The newly launched Samsung Galaxy Watch is one of the best smartwatches available in the current market. It sits pretty atop its predecessor, the Gear S3, and any of the Wear OS-powered smartwatch available today. It also compares well against the Apple Watch Series 3 and even beats it in certain ways.
However, to get the best out of the watch, you need to have certain apps installed in it. So if you’ve just bought a new Galaxy Watch, or are on the fence, here’s a list of some great apps to kick things off with.
Facer
Every one of us loves to customize our watch with watchfaces that suits the mood. The Galaxy Watch, of course, comes with some pre-loaded watchfaces, and you can download plenty more of them from the Galaxy Apps store. However, if you’re still not content, Facer is the ultimate app you need.
Facer not only boasts a staggering collection of over 30,000 watchfaces, it also allows you to create your own watchfaces on Tizen, Wear OS, and WatchOS. You can select from a huge collection of watch hands, fonts, and background images to use in your custom designs. You can also share your design with the entire Facer community.
Find My Car
If you just visited an unfamiliar area and can’t remember where you parked your car, Find My Car will do it for you. Leveraging the built-in GPS of your Galaxy Watch, the app shows you how far away you are from your car. Find My Car is a small, but super useful app which also lets you leave voice notes.
Glympse
Glympse is another GPS-based app that adds to the functionality of your Galaxy Watch. The app lets you share your current location with your friends in the real time. So if you are running late but can’t be bothered to explain where you are exactly, a few taps on the wrist will directly beam your location to the other end. There’s also a “Request” button if you need a friend to share their location.
Here WeGo Maps
Navigation is one of the most useful features of smartwatches, and Here WeGo Maps is unarguably the best navigation app for your Galaxy Watch. It works standalone, meaning it doesn’t to be synced to the Here app on your phone. So whether you are walking, cycling or driving, Here WeGo Maps lets you to plan the best route for your proffered method of transportation. It also caches your data for future use.
PEAR Sports
For all the fitness buffs out there, Samsung has added significantly to its Samsung Health app on the Galaxy Watch. However, if you still want more, PEAR Sports is the app for you. It offers hundreds of workout sessions and training plans, covering activities that include walking, running, cycling, flexibility, stretching, and many more.
Spotify
“Streaming music on the go” is another essential feature of smartwatches. For tuning-in while jogging, or during workouts, smartphones might not be the best option, and that’s where Spotify comes in handy. With its “offline mode”, you can enjoy your favorite music on the go, without bothering about carrying your smartphone. And the Galaxy Watch’s signature rotating bezel makes controlling the music effortless, adding another layer of comfort.
Last but not the least, Flipboard is one of the must-have apps for your Galaxy Watch. The good old news briefing app’s perfectly tailored UI makes the best use of the tiny screen on your wrist to deliver the gist of today’s leading headlines. The feed provides you with the summaries and headlines, which can be expanded to full with a tap. And once again, the rotating bezel makes for an effortless scrolling.
Note that the Galaxy Watch runs on Samsung’s own Tizen OS, and not Google’s Wear OS. This essentially means the apps are not distributed through the Play Store, but Samsung’s Galaxy Apps store. As a result, we are unable to provide links to the listed apps. However, installing these apps shouldn’t be a problem at all. All you’ve to do is launch open the Samsung Gear app on your connected Android smartphone, and then tap Samsung Gear Apps. Now search for the app you want to install, and tap install.