Samsung Gear S3 and Sport get SmartThings wrist-mounted smart home control

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Got one of the latest Samsung smartwatches? Smart home control is headed to your wrist then, as the company has just announced at CES 2018 that it's squeezing its SmartThings smart home management app onto its wearable devices.

If you've got a Samsung Gear S3 or Gear Sport, you'll be able to use the app to control all of Samsung's connected devices around your home, getting at-a-glance views of your thermostat, controlling music, tweaking ambient light and more.

"We've been leading the wearables journey for four years," said Samsung's Alanna Cotton, Vice President and General Manager Mobile Computing and Wearables, during Samsung's CES 2018 conference.

"In 2018 we're taking it to the next level, bringing the SmartThings app to the Gear S3 and Gear Sport. Whether it's dimming the lights to set the perfect mood for dinner, or setting the house to the ideal 71-degrees before I get home, I'll be able to control my environment in new ways, right from my wrist."

Wrist action

Internet of Things connectivity and smart home proliferation is a key trend at CES 2018, and Samsung's very much part of the gang pushing connected devices to the fore in our homes.

But while other manufacturers are focusing on virtual assistants and voice control (note that Samsung's Bixby has also made an appearance, to be fair), it's interesting to see Samsung give wrist-based functions center stage at its press conference. It seems a pointed swipe at Apple's HomeKit and Apple Watch devices, which both already integrate together in what appears to be similar to what Samsung is set to offer with its wearables going forward.

If Bixby doesn't land in quite the same way as Amazon's Alexa and Google's Assistant have, at least those living in Samsung's ecosystem will be able to turn to their wrists for fine control over their future homes.

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