Samsung unveils smartwatch that can make calls

Samsung has unveiled a computerised wristwatch that can do more without a smartphone to go with it, while LG has one with a round design. Thursday’s announcements in New York come as technology companies prepare for the holiday shopping season and Apple announced a September 9 launch for the iPhone 6, which many suspect is also a launch date for it’s own smartwatch. Samsung’s new smartwatch, called the Gear S, differs from its predecessors with a bigger 5 cm curved display and offers features like WiFi connectivity, pedestrian navigation and a built-in GPS. This device will run on Samsung’s nascent Tizen operating system. Samsung said the Gear S will start selling from October. Gear S, the company’s fourth major smartwatch in a year, will have 3G cellular connectivity so that it can receive notifications directly from social networks, calendars and other apps. It also promises to offer turn-by-turn walking directions using mapping data from Nokia’s Here service; and the ability to make and receive phone calls, although it is not clear how that will work without its own phone number.

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