Samsung announced the Gear Sport and the Gear Fit 2 Pro during IFA 2017, and they are now coming to the Middle East.
We first got word this was happening in January earlier this year, and now it's official. The Gear Fit 2 Pro is an upgraded version of the current (and popular) Gear Fit 2, with improved capabilities to help you do your fitness thing in more places.
It's not going to be the cheapest fitness tracker on the market, but it's a device that fuses the capabilities of a fitness band with the power of a smartwatch, so commanding a slightly higher price makes a good degree of sense.
Cut to the chase
- What is it? It's the upgraded version of the Samsung Gear Fit 2
- When is it out? October 26
- How much will it cost? AED 699
Key features
- GPS on board
- Swim tracking
There isn't a huge change in terms of the functionality of the Gear Fit 2 Pro, but there are some interesting updates.
The swimming capability will be a key design upgrade - while the Samsung Gear Fit 2 was IP68-rated, it wasn't technically recommended for swimming (the smashing into the water can actually force liquid under the surface) so the new model will be submersible and therefore able to log your watery training.
There's a Speedo-created app on the device as well, allowing you to track your swims through a dedicated brand, rather than hoping Samsung has worked out a decent way to monitor you in the pool (and it's not always great at fitness tracking...)
Otherwise, the Pro is rather similar to the Gear Fit 2 in terms of internals - but with a slightly longer-lasting battery at 200mAh and improvements to Samsung's Tizen operating system will make it more efficient.
One of the key strengths of Samsung's OS is the ability to help its portable smart products last longer – the Gear S3, for instance, easily outlasts the Apple Watch 2 despite having a relatively similar feature set.
You'll be able to track all manner of fitness capabilities with the new Gear Fit wearable, with automatic exercise recognition coming thanks to the inbuilt gyroscope and accelerometer.
Samsung Gear Fit 2 Pro design
- Upgraded band
- Smaller bezels around the screen
The key design differences to the Samsung Gear Fit 2 Pro is the strap, which has a buckled clasp to hold the heart rate monitor tight to your skin.
The screen will be the same as previously seen on the Gear Fit 2, with 216 x 432 pixels across the 1.5-inch Super AMOLED screen.
It'll be a little heavier than the previous Gear Fit 2, up from 24g to 30g, but that shouldn't be too much of an issue on the wrist.
It'll come in both black and red colors, with the screen slightly curved again to fit better on the wrist.
- Let's be honest - this is probably going to make our list of the best fitness trackers with ease
