Support our non-partisan non-profit newsroom 💜 Donate now

Samsung debuts its latest smartwatch into a crowded market

Nova Safo Sep 3, 2015
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Samsung debuts its latest smartwatch into a crowded market

Nova Safo Sep 3, 2015
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Samsung is showcasing its latest smartwatch, the Gear S2, at a consumer electronics show in Berlin. First impressions have been positive. But Samsung’s watch has plenty of competition in the wearables market, and a big disadvantage.

Analyst Ramon Llamas of IDC says that disadvantage is Samsung’s decision to use its own proprietary Tizen operating system, instead of Android Wear, to power the device. “It’s not a platform that droves and droves of developers are driving towards,” Llamas says.

Its reliance on Tizen is likely to make it harder for Samsung to attract a lot of popular apps for the watch. James McQuivey of Forrester research says in a nascent wearables market, apps are a key way in which consumers decide whether a product is useful enough to purchase.

“We’re seeing Apple Watch benefit from the attention given to it by Starwood Hotels [and] Foursquare, who are trying to make the watch basically a substitute phone,” McQuivey says.

There’s a lot happening in the world.  Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. 

You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible. 

Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.