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Galaxy Watch 4 needs to have screen lock if you want to use it for payments

(Topic created on: 22-08-2022 04:13 AM)
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Oceanica
Explorer
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I can't believe this very annoying feature did not come up in any of the many product reviews I read / watched for the Galaxy Watch 4. As others have remarked, unlike in (say) the Galaxy Active watches where you only the Samsung Pay app required unlocking each time you used it, with the Watch 4 if you enable either Samsung Pay or Google Pay on your watch it will need to have a display lock. If you turn the display lock off, it will wipe the cards on either app and you need to reauthorise them and turn the lock back on. The 'excuse' is oh you only need to unlock it when you put the watch on, which presumably Samsung/Google engineers thought only happens about once a day. But most of us probably take the watch off and put it back on multiple times a day - to charge, to dry if our hands got wet, etc. If you don't use the pay function regularly - and working from home, I really don't - then you're having to unlock the watch multiple times a day just to have the option to very occasionally pay for something with your watch. Just not worth having.

55 REPLIES 55
Matthew W
Apprentice
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That's not my experience. I have to unlock my watch multiple times per day, and I only take it off every second day to charge it up. The rest of the time it's on my wrist. For example, I have to unlock my watch every morning when I get out of bed, even though it has been on my wrist and switched on all night.

 

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Oceanica
Explorer
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If what you have is an LTE watch (i.e. with cellular connectivity) I would definitely return it. I tried to return mine and wasn't able because I kept it for just a couple of days too long, past the period where returns were permitted. So I got stuck with replacements, and am on my 4th replacement watch 4 (that's right, I've gone through four of these little buggers in quick succession). Its three predecessors developed serious battery issues / meltdown loops. The only way I got to keep this final one from a similar fate was by turning off cellular connectivity for good, as I deduced that was what was causing the doom loops. Even then this one had to be repaired for defective water tightness. If you are already sufficiently disillusioned over this stupid pin thing that you're considering returning it, you'll have no reservoir of goodwill if anything else goes wrong and there's a good chance it will. My Active 2 worked so well, it's baffling how the Watch 4 proved to be so buggy and also how none of its software design issues came up in any of the reviews I read before buying the ***** thing. It tells you something about tech reviews... 

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joek1
First Poster
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Totally agree, this is annoying and weird. I guess we need a fingerprint sensor to solve it well,  watch6 perhaps?

 

Anyway, I'm managing with this by using a very simple pattern lock instead of a pin.  It's not too much hassle

dmcuk
First Poster
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+1 from me
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tcarrion
First Poster
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If the Samsung guys implemment the SmartLock functionality on the Galaxy Watch 4 this issue will be solved.  With SmartLock on the watch we could set the smartphone as trusted device, so if you put on your watch in proximity of your phone the watch is unlocked automatically.  Similar as how Apple Watch can be unlocked by unlocking the iphone in proximity.

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mricsi97
First Poster
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Just bumping, because it's a must have for convenience. I also don't understand how I've never heard about this in any reviews. Makes you think...

ShayB90
Student
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I got the Fitbit Inspire 3 and never looked back. My Samsung watch 4 lasted barely a day, kept missing sleep tracking because it would die in the middle of the night. The inspire 3 lasts nearly 2 weeks and I love it. I realised I don't need a watch / fitness band to pay for things, I have my phone on me 99% of the time. I don't need GPS, again I have my phone on me. ***** smartwatches basically, they're useless when you have your phone on ya 99% of the time. 

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sense1
Journeyman
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Unfortunately it's precisely when I forget my phone that I need the watch to work 😉 ... Although it would probably be fine in practice as so long as it unlocked automatically in the morning and stayed unlocked when it left phone proximity (since it's still on wrist).

sense1
Journeyman
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Woops. That was supposed to be a response to tcarrion regarding SmartLock... but yeah, fixing the primary issue would be preferable.

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BrianDuffy
Journeyman
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+1, 

This is absolutely shocking software design and something you for sure wouldnt get on an Apple watch

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