Samsung's Galaxy Watches will soon work on tattoed wrists.
The company has recently confirmed it is working on a feature that improves the wearing detection of its Galaxy Watches for users with tattoos on their wrists.
The problem isn't exclusive to Samsung's smart watches - those from other tech companies are also experiencing the same problem.
Samsung's New Feature For Tattooed People
Some people love to have tattoos on them as a form of self-expression or to mark something memorable on themselves as a permanent (and convenient) reminder. However, smartwatches, with all their technological advancements, are having difficulties working on people with tattoos on their wrists.
According to The Verge, many people with tattoos on their wrists found that tattoos can interfere with a smart watch's wrist detection, making them unable to recognize that its use is already wearing it due to the majority of wrist-based wearables relying on photoplethysmography (PPG) sensors. Unfortunately, these sensors are optical in nature, meaning they shine light into their wearer's skin to determine various biometric data - the tattoos absorb this light instead of reflecting it, which is what the sensors need.
Thankfully, Samsung is working on something that alleviates this problem. According to SamMobile, The Samsung Community moderator in charge of the Galaxy Wear app recently confirmed that the company is working on adding a feature that should improve wearing detection for users with tattoos on their wrists.
This feature will allegedly help Samsung's smartwatches to work better with tattooed wrists, preventing a tattoo's ink from interfering with their Galaxy watch's optical sensors.
Unfortunately, the moderator didn't reveal much information about the feature and how it works. However, they did mention that Samsung will release it within the second half of 2023.
The feature's estimated release date implies that Samsung plans to release it on the debut of its upcoming One UI Watch 5, and Wear OS 4 updates, meaning it will be available for Galaxy Watch 6 series watches from the start in late July, per Android Authority, and will later arrive on the Galaxy Watch 4 and 5 sometime after the next Unpacked event, which is supposedly scheduled to occur in Korea on July 27.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Details
Aside from the upcoming feature to make the Galaxy Watch 6 work on tattooed wrists, Samsung's new upcoming smartwatch will also feature a rotating bezel that was absent on the Galaxy Watch 5 due to Samsung removing it for a "sleeker" design - a move most Samsung fans didn't welcome with open arms.
The smartwatch will also feature heart rate and a magnetic loop strap attached, meaning users could purchase the Galaxy Watch 6 with a different-colored strap. It also has a 1.47-inch Super AMOLED display with 470x470 pixel resolution (bigger than the Watch 5 Pro) and a 425mAh battery, making it last longer than the Galaxy Watch 5.
Lastly, the Galaxy Watch 6 will also feature the Irregular Heart Rhythm Notification from Samsung's Health Monitor app, allowing the smartwatch to detect heart rhythms suggestive of atrial fibrillation (AFib) and helping Galaxy Watch users understand their heart health more comprehensively.
