What Is It? – 70 years ago, cartoonist Chester Gould gave his comic strip detective Dick Tracy a two-way wrist radio to communicate with the police force, creating what is arguably the first smartwatch in history. Samsung’s first smartwatch actually came out before the seemingly ubiquitous Apple Watch, and Samsung’s latest, the Samsung Gear S2, is also its best so far. The S2 comes in a few different versions, including one that works on a 3G/4G cell phone network, meaning you can use it somewhat independently of your smartphone to make and receive phone calls (the phone has to be on and connected even if it’s not nearby). All versions will connect with Wi-Fi or use Bluetooth to pair with your phone. What sets the S2 apart from most other smartwatches is a rotating bezel, with click stops, that you use to scroll through various menus of settings and apps, then use the touchscreen watch face. The Gear S2 is built on Samsung’s own Tizen operating system, which makes it different than Android Wear watches, and that’s also why it can have the rotating bezel. The S2 includes a long list of built-in apps, including health & fitness trackers, email, music, news, photos, calendar, and weather, and 
of course more are downloadable. The S2 comes in 3 styles, with many different watch faces available – you can choose a different one for every day – plus you can purchase a variety of watch bands which can be popped off and on fairly easily. You also don’t have to plug it in to charge it, as it comes with a charging dock, and the battery life is good enough that it may not need a charge every day, depending of course on your usage.
Is It 50+ Friendly? – The Gear S2 proved easy to use, and if you can operate a smartphone, you’ll be able to master the watch in no time – yeah, bad pun. Of course, it is a smartwatch screen, so things are small, but still pretty readable.
Frustration Factor? – I had a little trouble getting the review watch to Bluetooth pair with a Samsung smartphone, but doing a complete reset of the watch fixed that. The Gear S2 works best with a Samsung phone – no surprise there, try to use an Apple Watch without an iPhone – but if you download a few Samsung apps, it’ll also work with most other Android phones.
Is It Worth The Money? – If you’d like to extend your smartphone to your wrist, or want more than just a fitness tracker, the Samsung Gear S2 is a very good choice for a smartwatch. It is built with stainless steel and Gorilla Glass and is water resistant. The 3G/4G models are best bought from your mobile phone carrier, as they have to be paired, but the other models start under $300 from Amazon and elsewhere.
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