Samsung Gear S3 is a versatile watch. It can help you stay on schedule, keep an eye on your health, and keep an eye on the weather.
But the best thing about the Samsung Gear S3 is that it helps you navigate wherever you go.
This is thanks to the combination of a watch app, a phone companion app and Google Maps. All three together make your Samsung Gear S3 and Google Maps an effective navigation companion.
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How to set up Samsung Gear S3 and Google Maps
First you need to install the Navigation app on your Samsung Gear S3 You can do this by following these steps.
- Make sure your Samsung Gear S3 is paired with your phone.
- Use the Galaxy Wearable Android app to install navigation on your Samsung Gear S3 smartwatch.
- Install the Navigation Pro companion app on Android.
- Make sure Bluetooth is turned on on your Android and paired with your Samsung Gear S3
You are now ready to start navigating Google Maps with your Samsung Gear S3
First, launch the Navigation Pro app on your Android. Make sure your smartwatch has no connection errors. Alternatively, select Settings and make sure the Auto-Launch Watch App option is turned on.
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This setting ensures that when you launch Google Apps and start navigating, the Navigation app on your phone and your smartwatch will launch automatically.
There are a few more settings you can tweak in the Navigation Pro app, depending on how you plan to use navigation on your Samsung Gear S3
- Show Current Time: Displays the time during navigation as the navigation app takes up the entire watch face.
- Show arrival time: Whether the navigation app should display arrival time, duration, or total distance on your watch.
- Vibration: Sets the duration of the vibration that signals an upcoming turn.
- Voice output on watch: Use the watch speaker for spoken navigation instructions.
- Dim watch screen: This is useful when you navigate your watch in low light conditions.
- Always display watch app: This allows you to keep navigation on top of notifications or any other activity on the watch.
- Rotate Watch Display: Allows you to use the watch bezel to control the display angle of the watch.
All of these settings can help you set up your Samsung Gear S3 for map navigation.
Samsung Gear S3 use Google Maps for driving
Most often Google Maps is used for navigation. This also shows the benefits of the Samsung Gear S3 and Google Maps.
It is the ideal solution for driving safely as it allows you to put your phone away and focus on driving. Your watch shows your turn-by-turn route by simply looking at your wrist.
After you set up the Navigation Pro app on your phone and smartwatch, everything will work smoothly. You simply enter your route into the Google Maps app on your phone, and as soon as you start navigation, it automatically launches the Navigation app on your smartwatch.
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Clicking on “Directions” in Google Maps launches the navigation app on your smartwatch. It doesn’t matter which layers you choose on your phone, but it can come in handy later if you will be using public transport or walking routes instead of driving (see below).
The navigation instructions on the watch face are very simple.
First, if Bluetooth is not already enabled on your phone, you will see a screen on your watch with a message that it is trying to establish a connection with your phone.
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Be sure to turn on Bluetooth and pair your phone with your watch. Once you have done this, the Driving View will open showing you the next upcoming turn and the distance to it.
Depending on how you’ve configured your Navigation Pro settings, you’ll also see the current time, arrival time, trip duration, and total distance.
Using the Samsung Gear S3 with Google Maps is pretty straightforward to determine your driving direction. Just take a look at the next upcoming turn on the watch face and follow the instructions.
Use Gear S3 and Google Maps for cycling and transit
If you think that driving with wrist-based directions is quite comfortable, imagine how useful that can be when you are cycling.
No need to fiddle with your phone while cycling, just take a look at your wrist to find out how to get directions.
Launching navigation for this is no different, just select the bike icon when searching for a route and turn-by-turn directions will be based on bike routes, not streets or highways.
Enabling the “Bicycle” layer in Google Maps can make the routes in this navigation mode clearer.
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Your Samsung Gear S3 will provide step-by-step directions for this cycling route.
If you are traveling by metro or bus, select the public transport icon.
You may be wondering why you need to use the Samsung Gear S3 navigation app when you are on the subway or bus. Well, if you turn on arrival time display in the Navigation Pro app on your phone, you don’t have to worry about keeping track of when your next metro or bus stop is coming.
Just keep an eye on your watch and you’ll know when you’re almost there!
Samsung Gear S3 and Google Maps for walking or hiking
Walking or hiking is a unique experience using the Samsung Gear S3 Navigation app.
This is because being able to put your phone in your purse or pocket means you can focus more on the hike and worry less about the routes.
It also allows you to use the new offline Google Maps feature for out-of-network hikes.
To use this, simply open the Google Maps app and open the menu. Select offline maps from the menu.
Use the offline maps feature to select a map of any area that you want to download to your phone for offline use.
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Scroll the map to any hiking trails or other places you plan to walk and save them as an offline map.
Then, when you are in this area, you can enable walking navigation as if you were using an online map.
Using the Samsung Gear S3 and Google Maps for walking or hiking is very helpful. This allows you to focus on the hike and the scenery. Make sure your Samsung Gear S3 battery is fully charged before leaving.
This is especially useful if you configure your navigation app preferences as follows:
- Display brightness: Increase the brightness for outdoor walks to make it easier for you to see the screen.
- Voice Output: If you turn on Bluetooth and use headphones, you don’t even have to look at your watch while navigating city streets. Just listen to the step-by-step voice instructions.
- Vibration: Turn on vibration so you know when an upcoming turn is coming.
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Using the Samsung Gear S3 with Google Maps turns a smartwatch into a really useful thing. You will find that you use it all the time, whether you are driving, on the subway or walking around town.
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