Galaxy

Samsung’s Q1 results: mobile business declines, worries about iPhone 8, Note 8 coming

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 27, 2017

Samsung Electronics on Thursday posted financial results for the first calendar quarter ended March 31, 2017. While the South Korean conglomerate increased both revenue and profit from the year-ago quarter, the growth is attributed mainly to Samsung's lucrative components business as its mobile segment actually shrank year-over-year.

The firm appears worried about Apple's upcoming iPhone 8, cautioning that its mobile unit could suffer as “market competition is expected to intensify” in the second half of 2017.

Watch latest Samsung ads emphasizing Galaxy S8’s bezel-less Infinity Display and design

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 7, 2017

Ahead of the upcoming April 21 Galaxy S8 launch in the United States, Canada and Europe, Samsung has already covered Times Square with advertising for its new flagship phones. Today, the South Korean conglomerate published a pair of official Galaxy S8 television commercials on its YouTube channel.

Titled "The New Normal" and “Breaking Out”, the videos showcase the key features of the handsets, like their curved AMOLED screen, branded as Infinity Display, and a stunning industrial design with a nearly full-screen face and no chin at the bottom.

Battery showdown: Galaxy S8+ vs. iPhone 7 Plus

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 5, 2017

Samsung's top-of-the-line Galaxy handsets are typically outfitted with some of the best-performing batteries. That said, you could imagine our surprise when we learned that the battery in Samsung's flagship Galaxy S8+ performed worse than the cell powering Apple's iPhone 7 Plus, as per a new test carried out by review website PhoneArena.

Galaxy S8 biometrics can be tricked by a headshot

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 31, 2017

Samsung's newly introduced Galaxy S8 features iris scanning and facial recognition via the front-facing camera. Both these features can be used to unlock the phone for those times when you don't feel like reaching your finger around the back and feeling for its built-in fingerprint reader alongside the rear camera. iDeviceHelp posted a hands-on video with Galaxy S8's biometrics.

They concluded that eyeballs and faces are not as secure as fingerprints because the phone could be tricked into unlocking by scanning a user's headshot.

Here’s everything Samsung unveiled today

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 17, 2018

Wednesday, Samsung fired the first salvo against Apple's upcoming iPhone 8 with the official introduction of its Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ smartphones at media events in New York's Lincoln Center and London's Olympic Park.

But the South Korean conglomerate didn't stop there: they announced a 4K-capable 360-degree camera and other accessories, including a docking station that lets you connect your new Galaxy to an external display and wireless or wired keyboard and/or mouse to use it as an Android-driven computer with a desktop-like interface.

Without further ado, here's a quick recap of everything Samsung announced today.

Galaxy S8 may capture slow motion video at 1,000 FPS & cost less than iPhone 8

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 20, 2017

According to prolific smartphone leakster Evan Blass, Samsung's regular Galaxy S8 and the rumored Galaxy S8 Plus models will occupy prices between Apple's iterative iPhone 7s and a new premium iPhone 8 model that will likely cost more than $1,000 unlocked. Blass also shared genuine-looking press renderings of the next Galaxy smartphone.

Meanwhile, SamMobile is reporting that Galaxy S8's slow motion video capture mode could blow iPhone 7 out of the water with the ability to capture a thousand frames per second. Apple's camera partner Sony recently announced a new 19-megapixel CMOS sensor (IMX400), built it into the new Xperia XZ Premium, that can capture slo-mo video at 960 frames per second.

Samsung announces Siri rival Bixby

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 20, 2017

Samsung on Monday officially announced Bixby, its new personal digital assistant based on AI technologies from Viv Labs, a startup by Siri co-founders Dag Kittalus and Adam Cheyer that the South Korean company acquired last year. According to InJong Rhee, Executive Vice President and head of R&D, Software and Services at Samsung, Bixby is about completeness, context awareness and cognitive tolerance, aside from other features.

The personal assistant should launch alongside Galaxy S8 and will be “fundamentally different” than Siri, Cortana, Google Assistant and more.

Leaked render depicts nearly full-screen Galaxy S8 design with utterly minimal bezels

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 1, 2017

Revered smartphone leakster Evan Blass yesterday leaked out what appears to be a genuine press shot depicting Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S8 flagship.

Not only does the image give us a better look at the device's extra button, said to summon Samsung's new Bixby digital assistant, it's a preview of sorts of the kind of form factor we're expecting from Apple's iPhone 8 when it launches in September.

Samsung launches new tablets ahead of MWC, teases March 29 Galaxy S8 introduction

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated September 21, 2017

Mobile World Congress 2017 is underway in Barcelona, Spain from February 27 through March 2, but Samsung won't be taking the opportunity to launch its latest flagship smartphone at the event. Instead, as confirmed today, Samsung will be holding its media event on March 29.

Unpacked 2017 is widely expected to serve as a launchpad for Galaxy S8, the company's upcoming flagship smartphone which already leaked via a pair of hands-on videos.

Ahead of Mobile World Congress, the South Korean company also announced two new tablets—Galaxy Tab S3 and Samsung Galaxy Book—and said that Galaxy devices will gain a new level of audio experiences with the integration of audio technology from AKG by HARMAN. As you know, Samsung and Harman a few months ago entered into a definitive merger agreement, valued at $8 billion.

Samsung to take on iPhone 8 with 6.2″ Galaxy S8+ with eye scanner, Quad HD+ screen & more

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated March 1, 2017

Samsung is looking to pre-empt Apple's expected monster upgrade cycle stemming from pent-up demand for a cutting-edge iPhone with a new Plus-branded Galaxy smartphone, as was previously rumored. Likely named Galaxy S8+, it should have an iris scanner and a 6.2-inch AMOLED screen with a Quad HD+ 3,200-by-1,800 pixel resolution.

That's according to prolific leakster Evan Blass.

Among other features, iPhone 8 may support AR and 3D image capture/modeling via an improved FaceTime camera and use two-step biometric authentication combining either an iris scanner or 3D facial recognition and a Touch ID fingerprint reader embedded into the display. It's been inferred from a recent KGI report that iPhone 8's 5.8-inch 521 PPI AMOLED display should feature an active display area of about 5.1 inches with a native resolution of 2,800-by-1,242 pixels and the content area of 2,436-by-1,125 pixels.

Samsung delays Galaxy S8 following Note 7 fires

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 23, 2017

During its press conference Monday morning, Samsung shared the findings of Note 7 investigations conducted by itself and three independent industry firms. In the aftermath of Note 7 fires, Samsung's won't be unveiling its next-generation iPhone rival at the Mobile World Congress in February as previously thought, Samsung told Reuters.

Samsung shares results of Note 7 investigation, finds two separate flaws with the batteries

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 23, 2017

Samsung on Monday held a press conference to share results of its investigation into Note 7 fires that forced the South Korean firm to temporarily recall and eventually permanently discontinue its supposed iPhone killer.

For starters, the original battery made by Samsung SDI was irregularly sized and had a flaw in the upper right corner that could cause a short circuit.

A third-party battery made by Amperex Technology was used in replacement Note 7 units, but it suffered from a manufacturing issue that could cause the battery to catch fire because of a welding defect. The company announced new and enhanced quality assurance measures to improve product safety.