Exclusive: Samsung Gear S2 to get an update with new features, UX improvements

The update will be the biggest yet, and the headline feature for many is likely to be the ability to use their photos as backgrounds in watch faces. Using personal photos as a wallpaper on phones is something everyone does (or has done at some point), and it is only natural that the feature be made available on a smartwatch. After the update, the Gear S2 will also start offering watch face recommendations and will let users install these watch faces from the watch itself.

This will extend to recommended apps as well – Samsung basically wants you to use the paired smartphone less often, which is why the update will also add the option to post exercise stats to Facebook directly from the watch. The Gear S2's fitness tracking abilities will also be getting improvements, as the update will add a sleep monitor, a feature that probably should have been there from the start.

Other changes will include the addition of UV index information in the weather app, the ability to start a timer using S Voice, and a menu for managing notifications when there are no unread notifications available. We're told the update will roll out sometime in the coming weeks, although there's no concrete time frame. With a big update such as this, Samsung is likely going to make sure everything is right before making it available to consumers.