I’ll be honest ‘Rock a smartwatch’ wasn’t high on the list of this years word domination plans. Actually come to think of it, it wasn’t on the list at all. But the boss has bought the latest version and now I’m road testing his old one, my possibly new wrist bound virtual assistant ‘Jurgen’ aka The Samsung Gear S3 Frontier..
It’s early hours in according to the watch face but it’s really starting to grow on me..
‘Do you wear a watch?’
The boss asked me earlier in the week with my basic reply being ‘Yeah sometimes.’ Those sometimes include a) when I find my various watches again wherever they’re hiding which is rare and b) when they actually still have a working battery, which is rarer.
Still, since the Samsung Gear S3 wasn’t doing much, he still figured I might get a kick out of it. And he was right as I spent the first ten minutes after setting it up umming and erring over which face I was going to start with.
Something classy perhaps?
Or do I go high tech here? Decisions, decisions.
I mean the software it comes with already has a fine selection of pre installed faces to play with but there’s more you can download if you choose. Then there’s ones you can buy and download too meaning it’s probably going to be a while before you run out of face options for this smartwatch.
A new look every day? Count on it!
Not just a pretty face. Er…faces.
Setup took less than five minutes, downloading the Galaxy Wearable app for my Samsung S20 and getting it to fist bump the Samsung Gear S3 so they could all live in connective harmony. It found it easily enough, they agreed to tag team and since then I’ve just sat back and let the notifications roll in. My wife text about lunch options (I think she’s going to get annoyed by me spamming the ‘Roger that’ reply you can text back from the watch face), the lads at work kept me updated with the plans for the upcoming AFL Supercoach day we’re going to have soon and while it was doing that, it was also recording how many steps I took, just in case I wanted to know.
Meanwhile I changed the face on it another 12 times and wondered how much I’d end up using the barometer.
Why did I call it Jurgen though?
Like all the cars I’ve ever owned both good and bad, I figured this bit of kit needed a name. And originally I was going to call it Q aka the Quartermaster in the James Bond films – because who else automatically springs to mind when you think of gadgets like watches chock a block full of high tech surprises? (There’s got to be a laser capable of cutting through thin steel on this unit somewhere..)
But the Samsung Gear S3 Frontier isn’t as old school as the Q era of withering looks Desmond Llewelyn used to give James Bond (pictured).
It’s also not nearly as funny (actually it hasn’t made me laugh once since I first strapped it on a few hours ago) as the legendary John Cleese who also played Q.
Of course I could have named it after the latest Bond Quartermaster Ben Whishaw and his fabulous set of hair, but here’s the thing – neither I or the Samsung Gear S3 actually have any hair, so that’s out.
But then another name sprung to mind when thinking of famous assistants because the Samsung Gear S3 is exactly that, an assistant to your phone. It can read your messages and let you know when things are happening but you certainly wouldn’t try to do you banking on it and I don’t think it’s possible to write a book through a smartwatch (happy to be corrected if that’s not the case).
One of my favourite literally assistants then would have to be Gunner Ferik Jurgen from the Warhammer 40k universe. While he’s not the smartest soldier in the platoon and smells like all things unholy wherever he goes (as well as taking everything as literally as possible) the thing is, he is very dependable not to mention unwaveringly loyal to his charge Commisar Cane. He’s one hell of a pack rat, highly dangerous with a melta gun, can handle just about anything (save for flying) and on top of that, is actually a blank – a rare oddity that causes all kinds of grief to the psykers of that universe.
And what does this Smartwatch do when not in action? It goes blank too. After all that, how could I not dub it Jurgen? (Well aside from the fact that it doesn’t smell..)
What Jurgen the Samsung Gear S3 can do
-Flash up my text and Facebook messenger messages to read as they happen
-Record fitness sessions including heart rate, calorie burn and elevation
-Change faces on a whim
-Give me brief news updates
-Record my caffiene intake (Samsung Health)
-Measure sleep
-Talk to people (haven’t tried this yet)
-Play music (haven’t hooked this up to an app yet)
What I’d like Jurgen the Samsung Gear S3 to do
(Although their might be apps/options to do some of this stuff already, I am investigating.)
-Sell more books.
-Block idiots on Facebook automatically
-Tell me when the fridge is empty or I’m down to the last beer
-Update me on how my mead is tracking
-Warn me when I’m about to accidentally watch a bad movie
-Detect incoming inlaws
-Drive my car for me
-Carry a melta gun, just in case.
But like I said before, it’s early days. I’m sure most if not all these options are just an update away. In the meantime even though the Samsung Gear S3 is a little larger than my usual watch choices, I am enjoying my time with it so far and what it can do so the boss might just have a sale on his hands when I’m back to work on Monday..
Finally, where to buy one
Now since this isn’t the latest version, finding an original still in the box edition might be a bit tricky. However you can certainly find a refurbished/renewed Frontier version from Amazon (US affiliate link but will deliver to Australia) and there’s certainly more than enough band options to sink a small battleship (AU affilite link)
There’s also Facebook and Gumtree where they’re going anywhere from $50-$100 AUD but make sure you get the chance to inspect in person first before money changes hand.
Right, now that’s done – time to try this thing in a workout. Wish me luck!
The Amazon Affiliate links above may give me revenue if you buy something through the site. It’s highly likely it might be more downloadable watch faces for this thing..
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