Accessories
Samsung Gear S2 vs Moto 360: 5 Key Differences
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There is one major difference between these two watches, and that is the operating system. Most smartwatches run Android Wear, made by Google, including the Moto 360. Samsung's Gear S2 though, runs its own modified version of Tizen. The operating system looks somewhat similar to the Apple Watch, actually. The key difference for users here is while both are touchscreens, the Gear S2 can be controlled by the rotating bezel, leaving the smaller screen free from fingers. Samsung wants users to actually use apps, while Android Wear is more of an extension of your phone with "at-a-glance" mini-apps that run on your phone. The Gear S2 has NFC for mobile payments, like the Apple Watch. Android Wear is great and giving users alerts, incoming messages and calls, doing Google voice searches, replying to emails and texts and more, while Tizen wants to do more. We've yet to try it, and apps are limited, so it will all come down to developers for Samsung. It's clear Samsung is all about round apps that should work great, widgets, and easy information, while Android Wear gives you phone information without pulling out your phone. There is a lot more to both watches than just that, and we'll have more details in a full comparison once we get them both in our hands. We will say that from initial reports the rotating bezel for navigation appears to be an excellent feature of the Gear S2, something that simply makes sense, and Android Wear will likely adopt this in the near future. | ||||||
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Tom Kiscadden
10/07/2015 at 10:49 am
I am really torn between these two devices, which are both similar priced. One one hand (no pun intended), I own a Samsung smartphone and would love the Samsung app integration, like Samsung pay, but on the other hand, I really want a premium-looking smart watch with silver metal bands. #FirstWorldProblems
Arturo Perez
11/15/2015 at 8:42 pm
I’ve tried them both. I’m an avid Samsung fan (owned galaxy s3, s4, s5, and now so edge, as well as a new tab s2) do I really wanted to like gear s2. Rotating bezel is awesome, and battery life is pretty amazing – but Tizen kills it. To use email and text you basically then have to use the stock email and messages on your phone, otherwise if you’d like to use third party options (I use Aquamail pro for my email, and SimplyText for SMS) then the gear s2 can’t use email or text (very Apple like of you Samsung, there’s a reason many of us shy away from iOS devices that force you to use stock apps). Current Tizen apps are basically limited to watch faces and stock gear S2 apps.
So as much as I wanted to love the Gear S2, it’s unusable for me. So back it went to the store, and now I’m happy with my moto 360 and Android Wear.