You may not remember this now, but Samsung actually managed to beat Apple to the punch with the 2013 announcement of the Galaxy Gear smartwatch. The non-Galaxy Gear 2 followed in 2014, then the Gear Live and Gear S the same year.
The company's naming convention started to get predictable after that... until 2016's Gear S3 was followed by a slightly cheaper and lower-end Gear Sport the next year. Of course, we never got a Gear Sport 2... or a Gear S4, with the Galaxy Watch released back in 2018 and two fitness-centric Galaxy Watch Active editions unveiled last year.
Because old habits die hard, you shouldn't be surprised to hear Samsung's next big wearable device is unlikely to be called the Galaxy Watch Active 3. But the company could also skip over the Galaxy Watch 2 name entirely and instead bring the Galaxy Watch 3 to light in a couple of months or so.
That's at least according to a fresh regulatory approval of the SM-R855F model over in Thailand (via MySmartPrice), which contains the Galaxy Watch 3 name in black and white. That leaves pretty much no room for interpretation or doubt whatsoever, although the official moniker is obviously far less important than the specifications of the upcoming Tizen-powered device, which are largely under wraps.
Thailand's Office of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission confirms this is a 41mm LTE-enabled variant we're dealing with here, while the US Federal Communications Commission recently revealed the SM-R845 is set to come in a 45mm case size.
Interestingly, that's going to place the Galaxy Watch 3 smack-dab between last year's Watch Active 2, which can be purchased in 40 and 44mm sizes, and the 2018-released Galaxy Watch, available with your choice of a 42 or 46mm case.
Hopefully, the rumored return of the popular rotating bezel won't mean the Galaxy Watch 3 will be as bulky as the original Galaxy Watch. Other features essentially etched in stone for Samsung's next Android and iOS-compatible smartwatch include a whopping 8 gigs of internal storage space, stainless steel, aluminum, and even titanium build options, Gorilla Glass DX protection, 5 ATM water resistance, MIL-STD-810G durability, standard built-in GPS functionality, and a not-very-impressive 330mAh battery for the larger model.
Everything else remains up in the air in advance of an official launch likely to take place sometime in early August, either simultaneously with or shortly before the announcement of the Galaxy Note 20, Note 20 Ultra, and Fold 2 smartphones.
Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.
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