News - Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch has only achieved 50,000 sales

[crossy]

One thing is a delicious irony, though, given recent anger and outrage over the NSA's abilities to data track. If our governments, UK or US, told us we had to carry a mandatory ID card with a transmitter and NFC, wear a GPS tracking chip 24/7 and that a government snoop was going to read all your letters before they were delivered, and inspect your kitchen shelves and underwear drawers to see what you bought, there'd be riots. But call it a smartphone or smartwatch and people queue up overnight in the cold to buy the latest model.

Very true. In fact I've seen a couple of folks worrying that the camera on their lovely new wrist ornament could be switched on remotely. More worrying being those folks saying that there's little present to stop it happening - after all if Google can cause the phone to ring, remote wipe etc...

Curved displays (concave especially) do have one very noticeable but rarely reported advantage: massively reduced glare

Um, thinking back to high school first year physics, wouldn't a concave screen be absolutely brilliant at focusing (sun)light right back at you in a similar way to that infamous building in London.

[jnutt]

Could it be that they only work with Samsung devices?

[MustardCutter]

A good looking watch is subjective so one style limits your customer base (plus these look comically large), then you are also limiting that customer base to those who have Samsungs and limiting it further by those who'd actually find the functionality useful. Doesn't sound like a big seller to me. Besides, for that kind of money you can get your hands on respectable affordable mechanical automatic watches for that price (seikos, orients, entry level swiss made watches etc.)or alternatively solar + atomic controlled quartzes if accuracy is your thing.

[killer7xx]

I'm not surprised, it's very niche at the moment. When Samsung makes it compatible with other android phones, then it will be much more appealing.

[mud_z]

:O .. I wonder how they achieved 50,000. Quick glance; How much time it will take you to check your smartphone already in your pocket.
Oh what should we do, we have our own chips, think guyz think.. Sir, We can make our phone further big.. oh leave that part that is our future plan, if we failed to create anything new. Sir I have an idea why don't we make a talking watch though people will look stupid talking on it but think that we will the first one in this area to invent something like that without copying anything from others and still we can sell so many watches, before people realise that is so stupid. Hey.. Guess what.. they are not that stupid.

[Percy1983]

It I had a phone as big as most phones are going these days I would want a watch so I didn't have to keep getting the massive thing out of my pocket.

Luckily there is still some sensible size phones... hugs lumia 520...

[supercone]

This is quite a shame. The watches themselves are a good idea, imagine being able to have a quick glance at your email feed or text messages which are synced with your phone. Quite a handy little thing if you think about it. People dont want to wear tech just yet, its not very cool.

Are you serious? It's very cool, this is just a fail.

[crossy]

A good looking watch is subjective so one style limits your customer base (plus these look comically large), then you are also limiting that customer base to those who have Samsungs and limiting it further by those who'd actually find the functionality useful. Doesn't sound like a big seller to me. Besides, for that kind of money you can get your hands on respectable affordable mechanical automatic watches for that price (seikos, orients, entry level swiss made watches etc.)or alternatively solar + atomic controlled quartzes if accuracy is your thing.

Hmm, right there. Nip along to Watch Hut etc and take a look what £200-300 will buy you. Tell you now that I saw some very stylish Seiko's, Tissots and even some A-list designer brands. All of which are going to be more impressive than a slab o' plastic labelled "Samsung".
Other thing of course is that not only do these watches tell excellent time, but - as you say - also offer 200m water resist, radio sync, etc.

Actually I'm kind of disliking the description of these as "smartwatches", when in fact time display is an ancillary function. In reality these are "wrist mounted displays". Although I realise that the acronym would give Tony Blair palpitations ... i.e. "just bought a WMD from my local Argos", "Tesco Direct has special offers on WMDs", "Amazon can do next day delivery on that WMD".

Are you serious? It's very cool, this is just a fail.

These watches aren't cool, and Samsung's seems to have all the drawbacks of other attempts and few of the advantages. Failmax?

[wazi]

they should concentrate on reliability of their phones and update software quicker.... so glad i switched from Samsung s3 , i wonder if the watch will be the same in reliability as phones .....

[Cog]

The biggest error that samsung has made here has been calling it a smart watch.

It's not a smart watch, it's a satellite screen for a phone which doesn't work very well as a satellite screen.