T-Mobile has reportedly started rolling out the Tizen 3.0.0.1 update for the Samsung Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier smartwatches. As expected, the new firmware also introduces the Gear S3 Value Pack, adding new fitness-oriented features, additional functionalities that offer more control over user content directly from the watch, and various changes to the interface of the wearable. The update weighs 265MB and should be available for download through the Samsung Gear application installed on a smartphone connected to the watch, or the gadget itself.
The Tizen 3 update including the Value Pack was released for the Samsung Gear S3 in November but it should be noted that the update wasn’t without flaws. Last month, an increasing number of Gear S3 users have reportedly experienced heavily degraded battery life after they’ve applied the update, and later last month, Samsung began rolling out a new firmware update for the Gear S3 meant to address that specific issue. It’s unclear whether this latest Tizen 3 update released by T-Mobile includes this supposed battery fix as well, though that seems like a plausible scenario.
As for the benefits Gear S3 owners should expect from the Tizen 3 and Value Pack update, the firmware adds the option of adding new contacts, as well as creating events and reminders directly from the smartwatch. Fitness enthusiasts will be pleased to learn that the software improves the accuracy of the device’s real-time heart rate monitor, all the while including new functionalities for adding and checking calories-related information via the nutrition management feature. Furthermore, the new Samsung Health Fitness Program service allows users to watch exercise programs on TVs connected to their synced smartphones. Heart rate information can also be streamed to a TV and content can be controlled directly from the Samsung Gear S3 smartwatch. Widgets have also seen a redesign in order to fit the circular display more properly, and the rotating bezel now reacts to how fast or slow it’s being turned in order to display more or less information. Samsung Gear S3 owners may also notice that the application used for syncing the smartwatch to a smartphone now has a revamped look, and with the help of the Samsung Connect app, users will now be able to manage their Samsung-made IoT devices directly from their wrists.