The Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch release date is only a few weeks away, and the specs are still under wraps, but there are plenty of leaks and rumors to examine.

The Galaxy Gear is expected to debut Sept. 4, the same day Samsung introduces the next version of its powerful and large smartphone, the Galaxy Note 3.

For now, rumors say the Galaxy Gear will have a 2.5-inch square OLED color display centered on a 3-inch face. That may seem small to people accustomed to Samsung's gargantuan displays on the other Galaxy devices, but it should be large enough to be useful, yet small enough not to get in the way.

Contrary to earlier rumors, it looks like the Gear won't have a flexible display, though that's less useful on a watch.

Users will control the display with touch input and gestures, but fat-fingered customers, rejoice! There won't be any tiny keyboard or any keyed input at all.

As for the inside, the Gear doesn't look like it will be particularly powerful, at least compared to the number-crunching abilities of a smartphone. It will run a dual-core processor, possibly a 1.5GHz dual-core Samsung Exynos 4214 processor with a Mali-400 GPU. That's less than you get with a smartphone, but there's less space to work with, and tolerance for heat are likely far less, too, since the Gear will sit right on the skin at all times.

The Galaxy Gear will have speakers, and a camera situated in the wrist strap, but it won't be able to make calls on its own. Instead, it connects to a smartphone, though likely one that's kept in a pocket or purse, allowing more convenient communication without breaking stride.

As for an operating system, the Gear should come with Android 4.1 or 4.2, but some rumors say it will only be able to interact with other Samsung Galaxy smartphones, at least at first. That would limit its appeal and usefulness, at least until someone roots it.

Check back for the latest updates on the Galaxy Gear smartwatch as they become available.