Samsung ditched its physical rotating bezel with the Galaxy Watch 5 series, and it was a change met with much dismay. But it seems like the feature is all set to return in the next iteration. The Galaxy Watch 6 Pro is said to sport a physical rotating bezel to interact with the device.
This news is according to Korean tipster SuperRoader. It is said that the next Pro smartwatch will bring back a physical rotating bezel to interact with the software. Further, the Galaxy Watch 6 Pro will also retain the focus on offering at least two-day battery life.
However, the regular Galaxy Watch 6 is likely to miss out on the feature, which would make the Pro model stand out from the non-Pro variant. It could also help Samsung make a design stride in the generational upgrade, rather than making it an iterating product.
In a world where most smartwatches look identical to each other, having an original design element like the physical rotating bezel is a big deal. With the Galaxy Watch 5, Samsung made a watch that looks indistinguishable from the competition. Earlier, I speculated that, like the 3D Touch on iPhones, maybe Galaxy Watch owners didn’t know about the existence of a physical rotating bezel, which led Samsung to drop the feature. If the company is bringing it back, it needs to market it in a better way than before, so Galaxy Watch 6 Pro owners actually know the feature is there.
Digital Trends contributor Nadeem Sarwar also speculated that the merger of Tizen and Wear OS might have made things tough for the rotating bezel on the Galaxy Watch 5 series. This could have made it difficult for Samsung to create specific functionalities for each app on the Google Play Store. And instead of opting for per-app optimization, Samsung chose to omit it. But it looks like Samsung has figured out a way to keep the DNA of Galaxy Watches in the Watch 6 Pro.
The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is one of the most long-lasting Wear OS smartwatches on the market right now. It would be interesting to see if Samsung manages to make the battery life even better with the next upgrade. Apart from the return of the rotating bezel, not much is known about the upcoming Galaxy Watch 6 Pro. But for some Samsung fans, the prospect of the bezel returning is all they’ll need to jump aboard the hype train.
