It was recently reported that the top 5 spots of the global wearable market for Q3 2017 included Apple, Xiaomi, Fitbit, Huawei and Samsung. Samsung may have been at the bottom of this list but they still shipped one smartwatch for every 23 Galaxy flagship smartphones during the quarter. Samsung is still more confident in its wearable operating system than they are with Android Wear and to prove the point, they have just announced the Gear S3 Value Pack update for Samsung Gear S3 owners.

This is a rather big update with Samsung Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier owners getting their devices updated to Tizen version 3.0.0.1. This update also includes a number of quality of life user experience improvements such as a Clear All option for your notifications. Those who are looking for new applications for their smartwatch can now browse through and download any compatible application from the company's Galaxy Apps store without ever needing to use their smartphone.

The exercise and health tracking features of the Gear S3 have now been overhauled and improved with this update as well. A new feature that has been added includes real-time heart rate monitoring for those who wish for precise data before, during and after their workout. A new Samsung Health Fitness Program feature allows you to watch exercise programs from a synced smartphone on a TV which then allows you to use the Gear S3 to control the displayed content and even display heart rates on the TV.

Communication is another key area of focus with this Gear S3 Value Pack update. Gear S3 owners can create events with detailed information like time, date, location and can also add contacts to their address book directly from the device. If you have synced things such as checklists, video, and web reminders, they are now all viewable directly on the smartwatch now.

You'll find the full change log for the update down below but it's fair to say this is a big update for current and future Gear S3 owners.


Source: Samsung Newsroom