Samsung To End Support for Tizen Smartwatches by 2025 - Here's What That Means

Samsung, a major player in the smartwatch market, is bidding farewell to its Tizen operating system. This decision impacts owners of older Galaxy smartwatches like the Galaxy Watch 3 and Galaxy Watch Active 2. Here's a breakdown of what's changing and what it means for you.

Say Goodbye to Tizen

According to a Reddit user (via Android Authority), Samsung has begun informing users about its plans to discontinue Tizen OS support by the end of 2025.

The South Korean tech giant is phasing out Tizen support over the next year and a half. Here's the timeline:

Limited Choices Starting September 2024: From September 30th, 2024, the Galaxy Store will no longer offer new paid content for Tizen watches. This includes new apps and watch faces to personalize your smartwatch experience.

Free Downloads Ending in May 2025: As of May 31st, 2025, the spigot will be shut off for free Tizen content downloads as well. So, if you haven't downloaded the apps and watch faces you want by then, you'll be out of luck.

Losing Access to Past Purchases by September 2025: By September 30th, 2025, the "My Apps" section of the Galaxy Store will no longer allow you to re-download any Tizen content you've previously purchased. This means even if you bought watch faces in the past, you won't be able to get them back if you lose them or switch devices.

Core Functionality Uncertain After May 2025: Samsung's announcement also mentions that "core services related to this watch will stop everywhere except Galaxy Store" after May 2025. The exact functionalities impacted haven't been specified, but it could potentially affect essential features of your Tizen smartwatch.

Affected Watches: Which Ones Are on the Chopping Block?

This Tizen sunset applies to all Samsung Gear smartwatches and Galaxy watches that run on the Tizen operating system. This includes the Galaxy Watch, Galaxy Watch 3, Galaxy Watch Active, and Galaxy Watch Active 2.

What This Means for Tizen Watch Owners

If you're rocking a Tizen smartwatch, you'll have increasingly limited access to new apps and customizations over the next year. This could restrict your ability to personalize your watch and potentially impact its functionality after May 2025.

Wear OS Users Unaffected

It's important to remember that this announcement only applies to Tizen smartwatches. If you have a Galaxy Watch released since the Galaxy Watch 4 (launched in 2021), you're not affected. These newer models use Wear OS and will continue to receive support.