Samsung is working on a new fitness wearable called the Samsung Galaxy Sport codenamed ‘Pulse’ under the model designation SM-R500and is set to include Bixby out-of-the-box, according to information picked up by SamMobile. Details on the wearable are still slim but it will reportedly feature 4GB of internal storage and bring Bixby Reminder support when it launches. Development on the Samsung Galaxy Sport is said to have just kicked off but its launch window is thought to be around the same time as that for its upcoming Galaxy S10 family of flagships. Those are presently expected to arrive at MWC 2019 in Barcelona in late February, following Samsung’s traditional release timeline.
Bixby support
Samsung recently revealed the presumed counterpart to the new wearable, the Samsung Galaxy Watch back in August, and has indicated at the time that the Galaxy brand will be used for its wearables moving forward. So it is not surprising that the Korean tech giant would use the ‘Galaxy’ branding with the new smartwatch. That particular smartwatch is also expected to receive Bixby support at some point in the future via a software update to the Tizen platform both it and the newly rumored Samsung Galaxy Sport operate on. Again, that isn’t surprising since Samsung revealed that all of its appliances and electronics would feature Bixby by 2020. Less clear is exactly which variation of Bixby will be included. A major update is forthcoming for the digital AI-driven assistant and has been suggested to arrive alongside the launch of the first-ever Samsung folding smartphone, tentatively the Samsung Galaxy F. That’s presently predicted to arrive in early 2019 but it isn’t known if that will be ready in time for the global mobile events set to take place in early Spring or if it will arrive later.
Regardless of which version of Bixby arrives with the Samsung Galaxy Sport, it may be the first wearable to feature the assistant if the Samsung Galaxy Watch isn’t updated first. Samsung hasn’t laid out a timeline for the update on the latter accessory and may plan to set the new watch apart from its sibling by introducing the feature on its fitness wearable first. That’s in addition to the more health-oriented features that will likely be included and expectations that it will not feature mobile connectivity outside of the standard phone-to-watch interactions.
An odd model designation
Rumors and leaks are generally best taken with a dose of skepticism but the model designation in use for Samsung’s Pulse does seem to warrant additional caution here. Samsung and other companies typically use model numbers that move upward with each successive device and that doesn’t hold with regard to the apparent predecessor to the new Samsung Galaxy Sport. The Samsung Gear Sport was sold under the model designation ‘SM-R600’ which would seem to indicate the new watch will be at least ‘SM-R650’ or ‘SM-R700’. Instead, the model is reportedly set at ‘SM-R500’. That could be, and most likely is, down to the fact that the larger of those two numbers was already used by the Samsung Gear S3. To avoid confusion, the company may simply be resetting its designations until a less confusing naming scheme can be worked out.