Samsung One-ups Apple, Debuts Stylish Mobile Smartwatch

Samsung Mobile has debuted what could be their hippest and most innovative mobile device to date. This week the South Korean tech giant showed an anxiously awaiting world their newest mobile product, the GALAXY Gear smartwatch.

According to Slate Magazine, “For decades kids and techies have dreamed of owning a modern-day version of the Dick Tracy watch, a mobile device that can tell time, make calls, and more importantly, make you look like a secret agent. But efforts up to now have been underwhelming. The so-called smartwatches that have hit the market so far—the Pebble, the Sony SmartWatch, the Fitbit Flex, Nike’s Fuelband—are watches, all right, but “smart” is a stretch.”

Now Samsung has delivered what we’ve all been waiting for, a stylish smartwatch that people will actually buy. The Galaxy Gear operates by working in conjunction with other Samsung mobile devices like the Note 3 smartphone. Users can take pictures, take calls, text, shoot 10 second video clips, and access mobile apps. The watch even comes with a Siri type personal assistant called “S Voice” that can look up information and activate functions through voice commands.

As an iPhone app developer it was surprising to me and many mobile industry insiders that Apple has not delved into the smartwatch market earlier, allowing Samsung to steal the limelight. It seems Apple’s fiercest competitor is out innovating Apple on another multi-billion dollar mobile market. In the world of wearable mobile devices, Google’s launched their Glass project and Samsung has the Galaxy Gear, yet Apple has chosen to remain on the sidelines.

Members of the San Francisco iPhone app developer community are concerned over Apple’s ever shrinking market share and considering refocusing development efforts onto the Android platform. Only time will tell what Apple has in store for us during their upcoming event on September 10th. We’ll be covering the event and providing frequent updates on the expected release of a two new iPhone models, the 5S and moderately priced 5C.