When Samsung introduced the Gear S3 family of devices at this year's IFA, it definitely took a big and ambitious stem forward in the smartwatch realm. However, the Korean giant decided not to ditch last year's Gear S2 and continue to sell and improve it. Not only is the S2 smaller and will cater to a different audience, it also provides a much cheaper entry point into Samsung's Tizen-powered smartwatch ecosystem.
First up, the entire selection of new stock watchfaces from the Gear S3 is now available on the older wearable as well. Of course, even in its current, admittedly early stage of development, the Tizen Wear ecosystem already has no shortage of watch designs. Still, you can never have too many options.
New input and control schemes from the Gear S3 have been ported as well. The rotating bezel can now be used to act on calls, alarms, timers and alerts. The updated Handwriting mode is included as well - you can scrawl messages on the watch in English, Korean or Chinese one character an a time, without having to wait for the previous one to be recognized. You can also sketch, dictate or send an emoji using the default keyboard.
Some new default apps are making their way onto the Gear S2 as well. This includes the Alti-Barometer app and the Reminders one. Thanks to running Tizen version 2.3.2.1, the wearable now has access to games, like Monster Vampire and Stack too. They are downloadable from the Galaxy Apps store, along with more than 100 other titles.