HERE updates its HERE Maps App, adds Gear S2 compatibility

HERE has partnered with Samsung to produce a maps and navigation app for its Gear smartwatch line, particularly the Gear S released last year. With Samsung’s announcement of the Gear S2 and its Fall arrival to the world market, HERE is wasting no time preparing its HERE Maps app to work for Gear S2 buyers. “You can install HERE for Gear on your brand new Samsung Gear S2 to get drive and walk navigation,” the company says in its Gear S2 compatibility announcement.

Samsung’s Gear S2 is the first round smartwatch from the Korean manufacturer to feature not only a round shape but also a circular UX and a rotating bezel. The rotating bezel has become the crowning glory of the upcoming smartwatch, allowing users to navigate the circular UX without needing to touch the display. Currently, Samsung has announced that the North American continent will see the Gear S2 arrive on October 2nd. While Samsung’s circular smartwatch will travel worldwide, only the US and Korea will see the Gear S2 3G model – for now, that is.

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Galaxy O5 (SM-G550) spotted in benchmarks, specs suggest mid-ranger

We reported some time ago on rumors regarding a new Galaxy O series of smartphones. Well, we now have some specifics to report regarding the new series. The Galaxy O5 (under the model number SM-G550) has been cited in benchmarks, with the specs suggesting this will be a mid-ranger.

GFXBenchmark points to the Galaxy O5 as a device with a 5-inch, HD display with a screen resolution of 1280 x 720p, a 1.3Ghz, quad-core Exynos 3475 processor with a Cortex A7 chip, an 8MP back camera (7MP usually translates to 8MP when smartphones arrive on the market), 5MP front camera, with some of the usual features (minus NFC, interestingly enough). Both front and back cameras will have 1080p video recording capabilities, but the mere 1080p back camera video recording is far from the 4K Ultra HD video recording capabilities of the Galaxy S5, Galaxy Note 4, and the new Galaxy S6 series and Galaxy Note5. The handset will arrive with Android 5.1.1 out of the box, but even Android 5.1.1 will be outdated by September 29th, when Google unveils Android 6.0 Marshmallow for the upcoming Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P devices.

The 900MB of RAM and 5GB of storage with the Galaxy O5 seems to hint at a low-end smartphone, but mid-rangers often have specs of both the low-end and high-end. The 5MP and 8MP cameras hint that this is a typical mid-ranger with specs from both ranges.

The device is labeled “Galaxy O5” in testing, although we have it on good authority that SM-G550 phone here will be labeled the Galaxy Grand On when Samsung announces it.

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Samsung Z1 update brings ‘double press home to launch camera’ shortcut

With the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge, Samsung introduced a novel way of letting users quickly launch the camera app by pressing the home button twice. This shortcut works from everywhere in the UI and also when the screen is off, and without a dedicated camera shutter key, it’s a great use of a button that has become a staple of Samsung smartphones and tablets. We’ve seen this feature on cheaper devices like the Galaxy A8, Galaxy J5 and Galaxy J7, and it has now made its way to Samsung’s one and only Tizen smartphone.

The Samsung Z1 is getting a 67 MB update over the air, which adds the quick launch option in the camera settings. The option is enabled by default and works pretty well; the camera app launched quickly the numerous times we tried the shortcut, and it’s possible the phone is now keeping the camera process in memory at all times, similar to the company’s latest Android devices.

The update’s build number is Z130HDDU0BOH1 and it is currently available in India. You should be getting a notification on your Z1 for the update’s availability; if you’re not seeing it already, you can head into the Settings » About device » Software update and hit the Update button to start downloading. The firmware is also available in our firmware database for a manual flash using Samsung’s Odin tool.

Firmware Details:

Model	SM-Z130H
Model name	Z1
Country	India
Version	Android 2.3.0.1
Changelist	0
Build date	N/A
Product code	INS
PDA	Z130HDDU0BOH1
CSC	Z130HODD0BOH1

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Samsung offering €75 cashback to customers in The Netherlands who purchase one of the Galaxy S6 models

Prior to unveiling the Galaxy Note 5 Samsung said that it’s going to adjust prices of the Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy S6 edge to maintain sales momentum, which is why the flagship handsets received a price cut in most markets across the globe. Samsung has also been running additional promotions to get people to buy one of its Galaxy S6 models and one such promotion has now gone live for customers in The Netherlands. The company is offering €75 cashback to customers who purchase the Galaxy S6, the Galaxy S6 edge or even the Galaxy S6 edge+.

Even though it has only been a few weeks since the Galaxy S6 edge+ was released the company has decided to offer cashback on that handset as well, which will bring down the price to consumers from €799 for the 32GB model to €724. The base model Galaxy S6 costs just €430 after the cashback is applied. Cashback is also available for the Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy S6 edge, orders can be placed online or through participating retailers. Customers will then have to go to the promotion page and fill out the registration form with details such as the EAN and IMEI number of the device as well as a copy of the receipt. The promotion runs from today through November 1, 2015.

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Weak profit expected in Q3 as Samsung’s phone business remains under pressure

Market analysts predict that Samsung Electronics will bring in under 7 trillion won ($5.9 billion) in Q3 operating profit, it will be yet another weak quarter for the company as its smartphone business remain under pressure across all segments of the market. 22 domestic brokerages in Korea have formed consensus over Samsung’s third quarter operating profit which they expect will come in at 6.61 trillion won or ($5.68 billion). The brokerages have reduced this figure by 6.4% from the previous month when it was estimated that Samsung would bring in close to 7.06 trillion won this quarter.

Even though Samsung is expected to reap 50.17 trillion won ($42.3 billion) in quarterly sales it may only post a net profit of 5.4 trillion won ($4.3 billion). If these numbers are accurate then Samsung would post more revenue than Q2 2015 but net profits will have declined over the same period despite the fact that the Galaxy Note 5 and the Galaxy S6 edge+ were released in this quarter. Many analysts are of the view that this is due to dwindling demand for high-end smartphones which tend to give higher margins which is why sales of Samsung’s flagship handsets aren’t doing much to turn the company’s fortunes around. On the other hand Samsung is coming increasingly under pressure from local vendors in emerging markets as well as Chinese OEMs in the low-end and mid-range segments of the market. It was expected that 2015 will be a tough year for Samsung and it’s certainly proving to be so.

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Samsung’s latest ads remind you that ‘It’s not a phone, it’s a Galaxy’

Samsung has a habit of taking shots at the iPhone in its ads and the company is sticking with strategy for some of the ads that it has created for the Galaxy Note 5 and the Galaxy S6 edge+. Apple has recently been using the “if it’s not an iPhone, it’s not an iPhone” tagline in many of its ads for the smartphone and Samsung, always willing to show that its smartphones are better, has come up with the “it’s not a phone, it’s a Galaxy” tagline for these new ads.

It has released three 30-second spots which highlight some of the biggest features of the new handsets which the iPhone doesn’t have. First up there’s built-in wireless charging which has never been a feature on the iPhone. Then there’s Samsung Pay and the fact that it’s much more widely accepted than Apple Pay due to the fact that it supports both NFC and MST-based transactions, which make Samsung Pay compatible with existing card machines at vendors in launch markets. Last but not the least Samsung reminds us just how beautiful the dual-edge curved display is on the Galaxy S6 edge and the Galaxy S6 edge+, the iPhone has never had such a display. The company intends to get a clear message across: this is what its latest flagships can do and what the iPhone can’t. Now it’s up to the customer to decide what they want to spend their hard earned money on.

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Exclusive: Samsung working on sequels to the Galaxy A3, Galaxy A5 and Galaxy A7

The Galaxy A series from Samsung has had a pretty good ride in the few months it has been on the market. None of the phones in the lineup have been bestsellers, but their combination of a premium design and mid-range specs has allured quite a few consumers, with the most recent entry – the Galaxy A8 – being the best mid-range smartphone we’ve seen from the Korean giant.

Now, we have learned that Samsung has already started working on sequels to the Galaxy A3, Galaxy A5 and Galaxy A7. We currently know only the model numbers for the smartphones – SM-A310F, SM-A510F, and SM-A710F for Russia, and SM-A5100 and SM-A7100 for China. The model numbers are only small variations on the model numbers of the original trio, suggesting the new devices will not feature drastic changes. A new version of Android will no doubt be one of the attractive features, but we don’t have any concrete information at this point.

It remains to be seen what Samsung will name these new devices in the Galaxy A lineup; going by the model numbers, it’s possible Samsung will simply add something to the existing names. Again, there’s no telling what the company is up to at this point, but we should be able to get a better picture in the future.

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The Galaxy Tab S 10.5 LTE (Verizon) is available on eBay for just $359.99

If you are thinking of buying a large screen tablet for media consumption, especially for watching movies and videos, you should know that the Galaxy Tab S is currently up for sale at a discounted price. The Galaxy Tab S 10.5 LTE is up for sale on eBay for just $359.99, and the best part about this deal is that the seller is willing to ship it internationally, so even if you are outside of the US, you can order this tablet by paying additional shipping charge.

The tablet, which was released in July 2014, runs Android 5.0.2 Lollipop, and features a 10.5-inch QHD Super AMOLED display, a quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor, 3GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, a microSD card slot, dual-band gigabit Wi-Fi, 4G LTE (Verizon LTE radio), a fingerprint sensor, an IR port, and a 7,900 mAh battery. It is also equipped with an 8-megapixel primary camera with 1080p video recording, a 2.1-megapixel secondary camera, and stereo speakers.

It ships in the US with a free economy shipping (with sales tax only in New Hampshire), and the seller will ship it to almost every part of the world including North and South America, Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The listing will be active for just a few hours, so you’ll have to hurry if you want to grab this deal.

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SK Hynix and Samsung will reportedly start supply high bandwidth memory for NVIDIA’s Pascal GPU

A report out of Korea claims that Samsung and SK Hynix are gearing up to mass produce second-generation high bandwidth memory for NVIDIA’s Pascal graphics processor starting in the first quarter of 2016, the firms are expected to finish pilot production and reliability tests by the end of this year. SK Hynix has already been supplying first-generation high bandwidth memory to both AMD and NVIDIA before Samsung jumped into the fray as well.

High bandwidth memory is basically a high performance RAM interface with DRAM modules stacked up in four layers. Through Silicon Via (TSV) technology enables these stacked memory chips to process data 4 to 8 times faster than conventional DDR memory while consuming up to 40% less power. Second-gen chips are expected to process data twice as fast as their predecessors which were first unveiled by SK Hynix in late 2013, while the storage capable of the 8GB chips is said to have increased fourfold.

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Samsung leading the way for standardization of 5G mobile technology

4G LTE networks are still in the process of being rolled out in some countries and yet others are already looking towards the next level. Countries like Japan, US and China are working to commercialize 5G mobile technology and establish their dominance in the market but progress has been slow. Samsung is playing a pivotal role in the commercialization of 5G mobile technology, it has proposed a vision of 5G mobile communication system to a private organization that sets global telecommunication technology standards.

Samsung made its proposal at the 3GPP RAN 5G Workshop which took place in Phoenix, Arizona last week. For those who are unaware 3GPP is a private organization that decides technical standards and comprises of the major mobile communications providers and equipment firms from all across the globe. This particular workshop was attended by some 500 officials from the industry including officials from 60 mobile carriers. A phased standardization schedule has been proposed to set up the first standard for 5G networks including technologies of higher frequency bands above 6GHz by September 2018 with the timeline for the second standard set for December 2019. Many participating firms including but not limited to Samsung Electronics, Nokia, Qualcomm, Ericsson, SK Telecom and NTT DoCoMo have formed a consensus on this proposal since it lays down a path for effective standardization of 5G mobile communication technologies with multiple service options.

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Samsung may soon start leasing Galaxy smartphones

Over the past year or so phone leasing programs have gained quite a bit of traction with consumers in the United States. All four major carriers now also offer phones on installment plans aside from conventional service contracts while carriers such as T-Mobile have done away with two year contracts altogether. Apple hopped onboard the bandwagon as well when earlier this month it announced the iPhone Upgrade program, the program encourages consumers to purchase iPhones directly from company stores provided they sign a two year financing agreement which starts at $32 per month and allows them to purchase a new iPhone every year with AppleCare. Samsung is reportedly going to take a page out of its rival’s playbook and start leasing Galaxy smartphones soon, at least in the US.

Forbes reports that Samsung could launch its smartphone leasing program over the next few months though it’s expected that the timeline may accelerate. It’s unclear at this point in time what Samsung’s pricing scheme for this program is going to be, unlike Apple it doesn’t have just two smartphones, but presumably the leasing program might be limited to the company’s flagship handsets. Samsung has not commented on this report so there’s no outright denial, for all we know the company could seriously be looking into leasing Galaxy smartphones to consumers in the United States. Whether or not it decides to bring this program to other markets remains to be seen.

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