February 29, 2016 – Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., today announced that it won 38 iF Design Awards, including one Gold award, at the world renowned International Forum Design Awards 2016. Twenty-six of the awards were given for superior product design, eight for communication design, two for concept design, one for package design and one for interior architecture design.
“We are honored to be recognized by the International Forum Design for our excellence in product design,” said BK Yoon, President and CEO of Samsung Electronics and the Head of Corporate Design Center at Samsung. “We will continue to challenge ourselves and develop innovative designs that benefit our consumers based on our deep insights into their needs.”
Samsung received the Gold award for its Serif TV, a result of its focus on design that harmoniously interacts with people’s surrounding environments and naturally blends in with everyday furniture and various household objects. Main features of the Serif TV include: a design that resembles a capital “I” in serif font; a detachable stand, which allows the product to be placed anywhere within the home without standing out; and a fabric cover on the back side of the product, which heightens its beauty from every angle.
Samsung Won 26 iF Design Awards For These Products
Galaxy S6 & S6 edge: Both smartphones feature a harmonious design of metal and glass parts, and the Galaxy S6 edge features the first dual-edge display on either sides.
[adrotate banner=”4″]Gear S2: A smart wearable device with a unique rotating bezel, and an optimized UX for easy operation.
Chef Collection Fridge: A refrigerator for the European market, featuring a Kitchen Fit design that seamlessly integrates with the surrounding kitchen furniture without needing additional built-in construction.
AddWash Front-load Washing Machine: A washer with a distinctive access door that makes it convenient to add any item during a wash cycle without opening the main washer door.
System Air Conditioner 360Cassette: A circular, ceiling-mounted system air conditioner that controls the temperature of the room by providing an even distribution of air across a full 360 degree range.
MX3: A3 Multifunction Printer with a 7 inch LCD screen for easy operation.
Samsung Also Received 12 iF Design Awards For These Concepts
Following are the key products and concepts:
Galaxy Note5 UX: A smartphone UX that allows consumers to write a memo with an S Pen without turning on the screen. Awarded in the communications category.
Visual Identity Toolkit: A visual identity toolkit that provides a unified guideline for all digital and printed media of Samsung Printing Solutions. Awarded in the communications category.
TV UI (Stripe UI): An intuitive TV user interface that offers consumers a novel experience in navigating media content. Awarded in the professional concept design category.
Avengers Package: The Galaxy S6 edge limited edition package inspired by the Avengers. Awarded in the package designs category.
Samsung d’light: An exhibition space that provides the Samsung brand experience and showcases Samsung’s latest products and solutions. Awarded in the interior architecture category.
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The new Samsung Gear S2 smartwatch was officially launched in the US on the 2nd of October, 2015. However, eager Malaysian fans had to wait until the 27th of November before it hit our shores. Demand was so high that the first batch of 500 Gear S2 smartwatches sold out within 16 hours!
As a result, we had to wait until earlier this month to receive our own Samsung Gear S2. Today, we are proud to share with you our unboxing video and pictures, as well as our first impressions. The forthcoming review will have a slew of additional videos to show you how it all works.
The Samsung Gear S2
The Samsung Gear S2 comes in 3 different models – the Gear S2 (Bluetooth), the Gear S2 classic (Bluetooth) and the rare Gear S2 (3G). The model we will be looking at today is the Samsung Gear S2 (Bluetooth), which is also known (unofficially) as the Gear S2 Sport. Let’s take a look at the differences between the 3 models.
Specifications
Samsung Gear S2
(Bluetooth)
Samsung Gear S2 classic
(Bluetooth)
Samsung Gear S2
(3G)
Dimensions
42.3 mm wide
49.8 mm tall
11.4 mm thick
39.9 mm wide
43.6 mm tall
11.4 mm thick
44.0 mm wide
51.8 mm tall
13.4 mm thick
Weight
47 g
42 g
51 g
Display Type
1.2" full circular Super AMOLED display
Display Resolution
360 x 360 pixels
Display Pixel Density
302 ppi
Display Protection
Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Chassis Protection
IP68-certified
- dust-proof and water-resistant up to 1.5 m in depth for up to 30 minutes
User Interface Controls
- capacitive touch screen
- rotating bezel
- Back and Home buttons
Operating System
Tizen
System Chip
Samsung Exynos 3250
Qualcomm Snapdragon 400
CPU
1 GHz ARM Cortex-A7 (dual-core)
1.2 GHz ARM Cortex-A7 (dual-core)
Memory
512 MB RAM
Internal Storage
4 GB flash memory
Memory Card Slot
No
Connectivity
Bluetooth v4.1
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
3G (electronic SIM only)
Bluetooth v4.1
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
The Samsung Gear S2 comes in a circular box, instead of a rectangular box of the earlier Gear S smartwatch. The model details and key specifications are printed on the lower half of the box. A single seal (broken in the last picture) ensures that the Gear S2 inside has not been tampered with.
When you cut the seal and remove the top half, you will find the Samsung Gear S2 sitting on a white tray. Remove the Gear S2 and you can remove the tray. You will find all of its accessories nicely arranged in the compartments below.
[adrotate banner=”4″]When you take everything out, you should find the following items :
If you prefer to watch the unboxing process, we have just the video for you. Check it out :
In the next page, we will take a look at the Samsung Gear S2 and its accessories. We will also give you our first impressions of this smartwatch.
Wireless Charging
Unlike the earlier Gear S model, the Samsung Gear S2 smartwatch uses a Qi wireless charging dock. This is so much better than the clip-on battery extender / charging dock used by the Samsung Gear S. It’s smaller and less cumbersome to use.
All you have to do is slide the Gear S2 over the wireless charging dock and it will magnetically lock on and start charging. The Gear S2 will also change the orientation of the clock face so that it will display properly on the dock, no matter which way you put it on.
The Samsung Gear S2 comes with a small 3.5 W travel adaptor. This is a low-power adaptor because the Gear S2 is only powered by a small 250 mAh battery. Although it can also be used to charge your other devices, it will take longer than usual because it only has a power output of 3.5 W.
You can actually power the charging dock using any USB port on any computer or power bank. So if you are travelling with a computer or power bank, you can leave this travel adaptor at home and just pack a USB cable.
Extra Straps
The Samsung Gear S2 comes with two pairs of fluoroelastomer straps. The Large straps are attached by default, with a pair of Small straps included in the box.
The straps are locked using a proprietary clip. They can be frustrating to remove at first, but once you get the hang of it, it’s quite easy to remove and replace the straps.
Quick Start Guide
As mentioned before, the Samsung Gear S2 comes with two Quick Start Guides – one in English, and the other in Mandarin. The Quick Start Guide is a must-read for all Gear S2 users. It teaches you the basics of using the Gear S2, including how to remove and attach the straps.
As the Samsung Gear S2 is quite different from its predecessor, you should go through it even if you own and use the earlier Gear S smartwatch.
Our First Impressions
We are so far very impressed with the Samsung Gear S2. It was a massive redesign, switching from the geeky, rectangular Gear S to a more elegant round face. Samsung also made it slimmer and lighter, making it much easier to wear for a whole day.
The addition of a bezel was a very smart move because it allows the Gear S2 to be operated (somewhat) underwater. Samsung actually one-upped Apple by adopting the bezel. The bezel is much easier (and more intuitive) to use than the small crown on the Apple Watch. As a bonus, it doesn’t stick out.
We also noted that the Gear S2 has a much better ability to recognise rain drops and showers, automatically turning off by itself. The earlier Gear S would run amok under a shower. Unfortunately, the Samsung Gear S2 may have problems with water, despite its IP68 rating.
[adrotate banner=”4″]Despite its small battery, we noted that the Samsung Gear S2 is more than capable of lasting one and a half days non-stop. Our preliminary battery life tests recorded a maximum battery life of 38 hours. This is 10 hours less than Samsung’s estimate but this is our real world test with both Bluetooth and WiFi enabled.
The wireless charging dock is a joy to use. Just slide the Gear S2 over it when you go to bed and slide it off when you wake up. Best of all, it comes with the Gear S2 – a similar Apple magnetic charging dock would set you back an additional US$79.
The biggest impediment to mass adoption of the earlier Gear S smartwatch was the fact that it had to be paired with a Samsung Galaxy smartphone. Samsung appeared to have learned their lesson and “opened up” the Gear S2 to support other smartphones, as long as they run on Android 4.4 or better and have at least 1.5 GB of RAM.
Stay tuned for our full review and other articles on the Samsung Gear S2!
