The IFA trade show in Berlin is closing in, and if recent rumors turn out to be correct, Samsung will likely unveil its next smartwatch during the event, in a similar timeframe as the previous models launched at IFA in 2015 and 2014, respectively. The product is expected to be known as the Samsung Gear S3, and much like the ongoing Gear S2, it will probably sport a circular dial and a rotating bezel. But interestingly enough, it appears that Samsung Electronics has now applied to trademark a new moniker in South Korea, namely “Samsung Gear S3 Frontier”.
According to a new report from SamMobile, the “Samsung Gear S3 Frontier” nametag was recently spotted in the KIPRIS database (Korea Intellectual Property Rights Information Service), under the “Designated Goods” section which includes products categories such as “smartwatches”, “wearable computers”, “computer interfaces”, “software interfaces with multi-health devices to record health conditions”, and “smartwatches to make mobile payments”. At this point in time, there’s no telling what “Frontier” stands for, and it remains to be seen whether it will be a different variant based on a standard Samsung Gear S3, or the only Gear S3 smartwatch to be seen at IFA 2016. Either way, judging by the product categories listed in the trademark application, it’s possible that the Samsung Gear S3 Frontier could offer Samsung Pay support out of the gate, along with better health and fitness-tracking capabilities.
Previous rumors have suggested that Samsung may also prepare a luxury model based on the Samsung Gear S3 – similar to the Samsung Gear S2 by de Grisogono – but it’s more likely that these types of variants will come at a later date, and won’t be introduced at IFA in Berlin – at least if we assume that Samsung will follow a similar launch pattern for the upcoming model. As for the Samsung Gear S3 / Gear S3 Frontier’s specifications, at the moment there’s not much information to go by, but it’s worth reminding that older rumors from December 2015 explored the possibility that Samsung will no longer rely on the Exynos 3250 SoC for the third Gear in the series, and instead, the company may have developed a new system-on-chip specifically optimized for wearables. IFA 2016 will open its doors to the public on September 2nd, and the event will end on the 7th day of the same month.