14 DAY TRIAL // Samsung has recently announced the Galaxy Watch 4, and now the company has started focusing on ways to improve the experience with the device.
And the first such attempt is the release of an app that’s clearly inspired by functionality already available on the Apple Watch, which is often described as the number one rival to the Galaxy Watch.
Samsung has therefore released a walkie-talkie app allowing for two-way voice communication on Wear OS devices, so if some of your friends have a Tizen-powered model, it’s not yet supported.
The app works exactly as you’d expect it to work: just touch and hold on the display to talk, with the person at the other end of the line then allowed to listen to the message on their watch as well.
Similar functionality available on the Apple Watch
This is an approach very similar to the one on the Apple Watch, and for short voice messages, it certainly comes in handy, especially since the device powering the experience stays on your wrist.
“The Walkie-Talkie app is an exclusive Galaxy Watch app, which allows two or more users to have instant conversations, just like if they were using a walkie-talkie. Create an instant Walkie-Talkie channel on your Galaxy Watch and enjoy instant conversations right away with the friends, colleagues, or family members who are in your Contacts and using the Watch,” Samsung explains.
Samsung explains in the official app store listing that only the Galaxy Watch 4 and the Galaxy Watch 4 Classic support the app and you need to grant microphone, contacts, and call permissions to use it.
Samsung hasn’t yet revealed if it plans to bring the walkie-talkie functionality to other smartwatches and therefore offered cross-device compatibility with older models.