For the joy of Australian tech-enthusiasts and fitness fanatics out there, Samsung Gear Sport and Gear IconX are coming to Australia, starting today. The move follows the launch of pre-orders earlier this year. As announced by Samsung Electronics Australia, Gear Sport and IconX are already on sale in Samsung retail stores, Samsung Online Store and selected retailers.
Gear Sport
Priced at $499, Samsung Gear Sport is the ideal device for those looking for a stylish yet classical-looking smartwatch that can seriously boost sports performance. At a first glance the device winks at a more traditional taste, featuring a round face AMOLED display screen with two side-mounted buttons for Back and Home and a rotating bezel. Interestingly, the bezel is expected to provide new interaction modes, such as the possibility to control wearables and smart home devices and appliances such as lights, door locks, and TVs through Samsung Connect – a feature that basically turns your smartwatch into a remote control for your home.
But the most outstanding qualities of Gear Sport are in the fitness department. Gear Sport embeds a heart-rate monitor and has water resistance up to 5 atmospheres, which means you can actually swim down to 50 meters – even in the sea. Moreover the smartwatch has GPS and automatically detects when you go walking, cycling, running or even sleeping. Just by rotating the bezel you can easily keep an eye on your most valuable data. And it doesn’t stop here.
The Gear Sport can store 500 Spotify songs on the watch! Now, add this to what I just told you and compare it to the Apple Watch. Can you go swimming while listening David Bowie with your Apple Watch at your wrist?
A cherry on top, Gear Sport supports Samsung Pay, so you can forget your wallet at home and put your mind at ease.
Gear Sport is available in black and blue colors. The 20mm bands are interchangeable, so to let the user customize their look.
Gear IconX
Priced at $299, Gear IconX is the second generation of wireless earbuds by Samsung. As Gear Sport, Gear IconX runs Tizen. The design ergonomics has been improved from the first model. But don’t get yourself fooled by the appearance: these are not just earbuds.
First of all, Gear IconX automatically tracks your metrics when you start exercising.
You don’t need your phone.
Even without your phone, the earbuds have yourself covered with a Running Coach feature baked in, so basically a virtual coach that will give you status updates about your exercises in nine languages (!). And if you also have a Galaxy S8, S8+ or Note 8, you’ll be glad to find Bixby support. Just tap and hold the earbuds and you’ll summon Bixby, Samsung’s Artificial Intelligence.
Also, Gear IconX comes with a standalone media player that can play music even without your phone.
Gear IconX is available in three colours: Pink, Grey and Black.
