Samsung is set to announce its next smartwatch, the Galaxy Watch Active 2, alongside the Galaxy Note 10 smartphone next month. The new smartwatch, which has been referred to internally as "Renaissance", will come in three models, including an LTE version - but the rumored electrocardiogram feature won't be working this year.
Sources speaking to Wareable have confirmed there will be three variants of the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 smartwatch: an LTE model, a Bluetooth-only model, and an Under Armour-branded Bluetooth version.
All will be available either 44mm and 40mm case sizes, the same sizing used for the Apple Watch. The UA version will come with come with an exclusive sporty strap, along with MapMyRun integration and six free months of the service.
Essential reading: Best Samsung smartwatches and fitness trackers
However, while we can confirm the Active 2 will indeed have an electrocardiogram (ECG) monitor as rumored, sources say that Samsung is still waiting on FDA approval and doesn't anticipate it will get it until "some time in the first half of 2020".
We're told that the Korean company will reveal the ECG on stage next month but will announce that the feature won't go live until a software update is rolled out next year. There will be some heart rate features available at launch, however, including alerts if your heart rate jumps too high or drops too low.
Further, while all models of the Active 2 will be compatible with both Android and iPhone, LTE functionality will only work with Android phones at launch, sources say. It's not clear when iPhone integration will support this, but it is planned.
Samsung is doubling down on the health and fitness angle, but one source said this watch is being positioned as "halfway between the Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Watch Active". They added that the company currently sees health and fitness as the primary drivers for its smartwatches, over features like Bixby and Samsung Pay, though these will also feature in the new lineup.
Many of the health and fitness features from the first Galaxy Watch Active will also appear in the Active 2 including sleep tracking, Samsung Health integration and on-device coaching.
As for design, the LTE model will come with a stainless steel case, a leather strap, and four color variants, some of which have already leaked in pictures: a black case and black strap; a silver case and black strap; a gold case and brown strap; and a rose gold case and pink strap. The rose gold and pink will be the only model that's only available in the 40mm size.
The Bluetooth models will both come in aluminium, in a choice of dark blue, silver and rose gold cases (and matching straps).
The Samsung Galaxy Active 2 is set to be announced on 7 August at the company's event in New York, and will be available later this year.
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By Hugh Langley
Now at Business Insider, Hugh originally joined Wareable from TechRadar where he’d been writing news, features, reviews and just about everything else you can think of for three years.
Hugh is now a correspondent at Business Insider.
Prior to Wareable, Hugh freelanced while studying, writing about bad indie bands and slightly better movies. He found his way into tech journalism at the beginning of the wearables boom, when everyone was talking about Google Glass and the Oculus Rift was merely a Kickstarter campaign - and has been fascinated ever since.
He’s particularly interested in VR and any fitness tech that will help him (eventually) get back into shape. Hugh has also written for T3, Wired, Total Film, Little White Lies and China Daily.