Samsung launches Wi-Fi only variant of Gear S smartwatch in Japan

Samsung has released a Wi-Fi only variant of its Tizen-powered smartwatch Gear S in the Japanese market with telecom operator au. The new version of Gear S (aka SM-R750J) lacks the 3G connectivity, which is otherwise present in and is the USP of the Gear S (SM-R7500) sold in other markets and by NTT Docomo in Japan.

Apart from the absent 3G support, rest of the specifications of the Gear S R750J model are same as R7500. The smartwatch sports a curved 2-inch Super AMOLED 360x480p display, 1GHz dual-core processor, 512MB of RAM, 4GB of on-board storage, and 300 mAh battery.

Thanks to built-in Wi-Fi support, which is normally not present in the smartwatches as they rely on the companion smartphone or tablet to access the internet, Gear S SM-R750J will still be able to function as a standalone device most of the time.

It is unclear to why exactly has Samsung released this specific model, as I don’t think there will be many consumers who are looking for Wi-Fi only smartwatches. Anyway, the Wi-Fi only Gear S can now be grabbed from au for 38,880 yen ($329) and will soon go on sale via Samsung’s online Galaxy Shop.