Pros: Very nice fit and finish, so glad they kept the rotating bezel, this is something that I could simply not live without in such a watch. It is so slick and smooth. I couldn’t imagine having to swipe and tap constantly like on other phones. If you only want to use it for step counting, weather apps, etc, then no problem. However, scrolling through hundreds of spotify songs, playlists or other music files would be a real pain in the neck if it weren’t for this handy feature. Also, being able to adjust your brightness, volume and other controls using the bezel is SO much easier rather than having to tap to change for every single feature. Trust me, try it, you won’t go back!

Battery life is surprising long given what this puppy can do. I can get nearly 2 days for everyday app use. HOWEVER, if you are wanting to stream music on 4G LTE or make tons of calls, it will eat the battery much quicker…just saying. However, it can fully charge from 20% battery life in about 45 to 50 minutes. I come in from being out all day, lay it on the wireless docking/charging station and do some stuff at the desk and in <1 hour it is ready to go.

The fit, finish and overall quality is outstanding. It is a hefty and VERY solid piece of equipment. Honestly feels like a Rolex on your wrist with regards to its solidity. There is no hollow sound and I am amazed at how the engineers can cram so much tech into this house. It does not feel like a block of wood or lump of stone and is very comfortable. However, if you are used to a fitbit versa or charge 4, etc., that is a nearly “barely there” type of accessory on your wrist, well…there will be a different feeling, but it isn’t cumbersome.

The display is stunning. Even in full sun, it is EASILY readable and is simply a gorgeous display. There is no annoying pixelation. I can generally keep it at 1/2 brightness and it is very bright and clear and my eyesight isn’t the best (auto bright works very well also).

OK, I have to say, I have never used Spotify, I am a youtube music fan myself, but youtube music isn’t an app for this watch. However, you can STREAM using wifi or the 4G LTE even when your phone is not around. I don’t think you understand how freaking cool this feature is. Most fitbit or other smart watches have music apps where you tether to your phone via bluetooth and the watch is more of a remote control. Or, you can download so many files which is also a pain. Nope….I can wirelessly stream while I am on a walk or jog anything on spotify. The easiest thing is to go online via your phone or laptop and setup your playlists. You CAN also download these playlists if you don’t want to stream. I mean, WOW, slap in 2 wireless BT earbuds, turn your main phone off and go for a job or walk, listen to what you want. If you didn’t download the right playlist or haven’t set one up, just scroll through the ones they already have for nearly every genre of music and go with it.

The built-in speaker is surprisingly good, obvious if you are looking for Bang & Olufsen sound, good luck in ANY smart watch or phone. However, it is relatively loud and would be obnoxious if at max volume with people around.

The Samsung Health app is actually pretty good. The step counter and distance measuring is MUCH more accurate than on my brand new fitbit charge 4. I sent the charge 4 back, it would count 1000+ steps while I was driving due to wrist movement, drove me nuts.

The single lead ECG (EKG), SpO2, stress meter, etc. is really good for the most part. I personally think that Fitbit has the slickest app on the phone which gives you a clearer picture of your health. But, Samsung Health works well for the most part. The actual health monitors on the phone aren’t buggy and I have had no difficulties getting it to take measurements consistently.

On a side note…I was told this would take blood pressure. Well, apparently the firmware if you live in Korea has this function. I hope that it come soon, that would be honestly the bees knees to have this function. This would TRULY give the Gear 3 an advantage over every other smart watch out there. I mean good grief, ECG, O2 sats, blood pressure, heart rate. Who would have EVER though this was possible on a watch even 5-10 years ago.

Cons:

OK, I am sorry to say, but they may have 1000+ apps for the watch, most are mediocre at best. For such a dang good watch whose general type has been out for years (ie., frontier, gear, etc) you would think they could put out decent stuff. They are so freaking limited with the Tizen chipset. I wish they were more android based, I think samsung could sell a crap ton more of these puppies if they simply changed to android.

They watch faces are cool and all but just a few google apps would be so dang handy. Good luck trying to find a good assistant (Bixby is garbage for the most part), google maps or ANY good GPS app or music services such as youtube music or similar isn’t available.

Samsung could literally destroy the smart watch market if they had an android system that gave OFFICIAL youtube music, youtube (modify it for smart watch compatibility, etc), google maps, along with their existing tech.

Phew! OK, that is my take on it. The reason I am not giving it 5 stars is mainly due to the lack of good and honestly necessary apps. A longer battery life say 2 to 3 days would be fantastic, but its current configuration isn’t frustrating. I don’t feel battery anxiety like the apple watch (going off others’ experiences, not my own, never had one, sure that they are great watches too). However, overall after wearing this out for the past several days streaming music (still probably one of my favorite features), making calls, sending texts and responding to emails, etc., it is just about as good as it gets for the $369 that it cost me. Spring for the 2 to 3 year replacement plan too. I mean good grief, it is only like 10% of your purchase price. These are expensive and complex things to fix and one good smack against the wrong type of surface and well…scratched up paper weight.