A Man Uses His Mobile Phone in Front of a Giant Advertisement Promoting Samsung New Galaxy S5 Smartphone, at an Art Hall in Central Seoul
A man uses his mobile phone in front of a giant advertisement promoting Samsung Electronics' new Galaxy S5 smartphone, at an art hall in central Seoul, in this file picture taken April 15, 2014. Samsung Electronics Co Ltd on April 29, 2014 said it expected stronger earnings in the second quarter as a pickup in sales of high-end televisions and smartphones spurs growth, after it posted its second straight fall in quarterly profit. REUTERS

Samsung might be readying the launch of a new Galaxy Gear Solo smartwatch alongside the Galaxy Note 4 on Sept 4, sources close to the company have revealed. While information about the upcoming smartwatch is scarce at the moment, what is known is that the Gear Solo is designed to operate independently and for this, it comes with a SIM card slot of its own.

Sources further mention that the Gear Solo is also designed to operate in conjugation with a smartphone, which means the SIM card is optional, reports the Korean news site The Chosunilbo. However, there exists some ambiguity so far as the operating system of the Gear Solo is concerned. Some are of the opinion that with support for SIM card built-in, the Gear Solo won't be running Android Wear since the special Android version for wearables does not include SIM card support.

However, having a SIM card has its own advantages for the Gear Solo as it can be used to surf the web, send and receive messages or make calls on its own. That said, its ability to hook up to a smartphone just as previous iteration of the Gear does make the Gear Solo a versatile device. With the SIM card removed, the Gear Solo will operate as a device secondary to the smartphone it is paired with.

The ability of the Gear Solo to work independently sans a smartphone support could well lead to the start of a new tend of ditching the smartphone altogether, speculates Trusted Reviews. This isn't a bad idea when say the user is engaged in some activity like jogging or any other physical activity that makes carrying a smartphone in person a bit uncomfortable. Right now all smartwatches serve as a secondary device to a smartphone and communicates with the paired smartphone device via Bluetooth LE.

Samsung has an unpacked event planned on Sept 3 when it is scheduled to launch the Galaxy Note 4 along with the Gear Solo. Specifications of the Gear Solo are scarce at the moment though expect it to come with a 1.63 inch display. A few fitness related apps is almost a surety as is a water and dust proof package.