Samsung and LG accused of collusion to keep employee wages down

A civil lawsuit has been filed against Samsung and LG as they have been accused of agreeing to not steal each other’s employees in the United States. This allegation is not that uncommon in Silicon Valley. Just last year, Apple and Google along with several other companies in Silicon Valley settled a similar lawsuit for $415 million. The case was based on a “no-poaching” pact between these companies which prohibited them from recruiting each other’s employees.

This proposed class action lawsuit has been filed in a Northern California federal court by an ex-LG sales manager who accuses both Korea companies of antitrust violations and colluding to drive down employee wages. A spokesman for LG has said that “no such agreement has ever existed” while Samsung declined to comment on this report.

A. Frost, the plaintiff in this lawsuit, claims that he was first contacted by a recruiter who was seeking to fill a position at Samsung over LinkedIn back in 2013. Frost says that he was later informed on that very day by the recruiter that “I made a mistake! I’m not supposed to poach LG for Samsung!!! Sorry! The two companies have an agreement that they won’t steal each other’s employees.”

The lawsuit alleges that it is “implausible” that such a deal between the rival companies could have been reached in the United States without their headquarters back in South Korea not knowing about it. The lawsuit does not state a specific damages amount but the proposed class action is likely to seek damages from both Samsung and LG.

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Galaxy Tab A (2016) with S Pen officially launched

We first reported a couple of weeks ago that Samsung had a new Galaxy Tab A in the pipeline which features the same S Pen that it has introduced with the Galaxy Note 7. We’ve also posted some images of this tablet and now Samsung has finally launched the Galaxy Tab A (2016) with S Pen officially. Currently, the tablet has only been launched in its home market of South Korea but it goes without saying that the Galaxy Tab A (2016) with S Pen will soon make its way to other markets across the globe.

The Galaxy Tab A (2016) with S pen features a 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution 10.1-inch display, it’s powered by a 1.6GHz octa-core Exynos 7870 processor with 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage. The tablet also features microSD card support, has an 8-megapixel rear and 2-megapixel front camera, while being powered by Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Some models of the tablet will have support for 4G LTE as well. Samsung says that the 7,300mAh is good for up to 14 hours of use.

It’s not that different from the existing Galaxy Tab A with the stylus being the only exception. The Galaxy Tab A (2016) with S Pen comes with the same S Pen that you get with the Galaxy Note 7 so all of the new software features are included as well. If you’re going to consider buying this tablet it’s definitely going to be because of the new S Pen.

The unlocked and off-contract model of the Galaxy Tab A (2016) with S Pen is priced at 489,000 won ($440) in South Korea. Samsung is yet to confirm pricing and availability for other markets.

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More than 70 Galaxy Note 7′s have caught fire in the United States

It has today been revealed that a little more than 70 Galaxy Note 7′s have caught fire in the United States since the device started shipping this time last month. That’s almost double the amount of incidents that Samsung reported when it revealed that the handset had a faulty battery on Thursday, September 1.

This latest figure was released by Health Canada (the government agency responsible for consumer safety), in partnership with Samsung, to stress the importance of trading in Galaxy Note 7′s that are currently in the hands of consumers for a shiny new one as part of the firm’s exchange program.

Health Canada believes that almost 22,000 defective units were sold in the region before sales were halted — so if you reside in Canada and own a Galaxy Note 7, it’s more than likely that yours packs the sketchy battery. To participate in the recall, head over to this website and fill in your details.

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Samsung nominates heir apparent Jay Y. Lee to company board seat

A major leadership move is underway at Samsung as heir apparent Jay Y. Lee has formally been nominated for a seat on the company’s Board of Directors today. He is the son of Samsung chairman Kun-Hee Lee and is widely believed to be the future leader of the company and the perfect candidate to take his father’s vision for the company forward. An Extraordinary General Meeting of Shareholders has been called next month where the nomination of Jay Y. Lee as a member of the Board of Directors will be approved.

Jay Y. Lee is considered as his father’s replacement at the helm of the Korean conglomerate. Lee Kun-Hee took over from his father Lee Byung-chull who founded the Samsung group in 1987 and he has grown the company into the behemoth it is today. Lee Kun-Hee has been hospitalized since the past two years following a heart attack and during this time, Jay Y. Lee’s executive titles have been gradually increased and so have his areas of responsibilities within the company. He has been involved in Samsung’s negotiations with Apple over patent disputes and has developed relationships with companies like Sony and HP.

Samsung says that “the time is now right” to nominate Jay Y. Lee as a member of the Board which will enable him to take a more active role in Samsung’s “strategic decision-making.” It’s widely believed by market observers that Jay Y. Lee will formally take over the reins once his father passes away. Having a seat on the company’s board will make that elevation to the top job that much easier once the time inevitably comes.

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First leaked renders of the Galaxy A8 (2016) arrive

We first picked up on the Galaxy A8 (2016) about a month ago when benchmark results of the handset revealed some specifications. Samsung launched the Galaxy A8 in July last year so a refresh is due, particularly since other handsets in the Galaxy A series have already been refreshed for 2016. A few weeks ago the Galaxy A8 (2016) received its Bluetooth certification and made a pit stop at the FCC which is normally an indication that a launch is not that far off. Today, we’re seeing the first leaked renders of the Galaxy A8 (2016).

The leaked renders from @OnLeaks who points out that with dimensions of 156.5 x 77.5 x 7.3mm the Galaxy A8 (2016) looks more or less like a larger Galaxy S7 with a relocated speaker. If these specifications are true then this handset is even going to be wider and taller than the Galaxy Note 7.

Benchmark results suggest that the Galaxy A8 (2016) is going to feature a 5.7-inch full HD display, a 2.1GHz Exynos 7420 processor hooked up with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of expandable storage. Additional specs include a 16-megapixel rear and 5-megapixel front camera as well as a fingerprint sensor and Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow. Samsung has not yet confirmed anything about this device officially so it’s a bit unclear right now precisely when it’s going to launch the Galaxy A8 (2016) and how much it’s going to charge for it.

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SamMobile Premium August giveaway winners

August is over, and we have selected the winners of the month’s SamMobile Premium giveaway! The prize for July was the Gear Fit 2, Samsung’s latest fitness tracker. Who got lucky? Well, here are the winners for August 2016!

• Username: ali_zaabi
  Country: United Arab Emirates
• Username: flug1000
  Country: Austria
• Username: kareem
  Country: Egypt

For this month (September), we will be giving the Galaxy Note 7, the new Gear VR, and the Gear Fit 2 (don’t worry, the Galaxy Note 7 you get won’t be of the variety that blows up). How do we choose the winners? We count all our Premium and Supporter subscription members and use random.org to pick the winners. Didn’t win this month? Well, there’s always a next time!

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Market experts forecast significant contraction in smartphone market due to the Galaxy Note 7 recall

Most people would have immediately thought that the Galaxy Note 7 recall is going to benefit Apple as the iPhone 7 is being released in the midst of this entire debacle. Customers who might be considering to spend a bunch of money on Samsung’s latest flagship might now look towards Apple’s new flagship deterred by the possibility of the Galaxy Note 7′s battery exploding, even though Samsung has promised to replace each and every unit of the handset with one that’s not a potential fire hazard. However, market experts believe it’s not going to play out like this.

The iPhone 7 isn’t exactly a revolutionary update to the iPhone and Apple has done something that has divided opinion – it has removed the 3.5mm headphone jack – and that’s a move many expect will irk prospective customers who don’t want to spend money on wireless headphones and would like to have the freedom of charging their phone and listening to music via headphones at the same time. Market experts believe that for this reason customers who were initially going to buy the Galaxy Note 7 may not spend their money on the iPhone 7. Who knows, perhaps they might hold on to their money until Samsung comes out with the Galaxy S8.

They believe that as a result of this, the global smartphone market is going to see a contraction in the second part of this year as no viable alternative to the Galaxy Note 7 is available. It’s plausible when you look at the fact that Apple has seen iPhone sales decline in the last two quarters which signals that people are just not upgrading their high-end phones as frequently as they used to. A contraction in the premium smartphone market has been forecasted since the beginning of this year and it’s only likely to get worse due to the Galaxy Note 7 recall.

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Samsung shares fall to lowest level in two months as investors price in Galaxy Note 7 recall

Things were looking great for Samsung last month. The Galaxy S7 was performing well and the Galaxy Note 7 had received a lot of praise soon after it was unveiled. Samsung shares were surging to new record highs as investors were bullish about the company’s continued sales momentum in the second half of this year. It all came crashing down when Samsung confirmed a battery cell issue with the Galaxy Note 7 which has forced it to recall and replace all 2.5 million units shipped since the Galaxy Note 7 was released on August 19.

Investors absorbed the news and held their nerve so there wasn’t an immediate reaction but after the Federal Aviation Administration sent out a warning against the Galaxy Note 7 they started dumping shares which caused Samsung to lose some $10 billion in market value. That loss in market value has now doubled as investors price in what they believe to be the true impact of the Galaxy Note 7 debacle. Investors were seen dumping their positions after Samsung told Galaxy Note 7 owners to power down their phones and urged them to take part in the replacement program.

Samsung shareholders have seen the biggest two-day price drop since the 2008 financial crisis, over $20 billion have now been erased from Samsung’s market cap and even though the recall is expected to cost Samsung around $1 billion the impact on its brand value is believed to be even higher. Analysts are now of the view that even though Samsung will be selling the Galaxy Note 7 with new batteries the handset will just won’t sell as well as it would have had this entire debacle never happened. Some expect that Samsung might lose as much as $5 billion in revenue due to the Galaxy Note 7 recall.

Samsung hasn’t released its earnings guidance for the third quarter as yet but are likely to see a glimpse of the true financial impact of the Galaxy Note 7 recall in its expected revenue and profit.

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Samsung sells its printing business to HP for over $1 billion

Samsung today announced that it has reached an agreement to sell the entire global operations and assets of its printing business to HP in a deal valued over $1 billion. The company says that this deal is part of its efforts to focus more on its core business areas. With the approval of shareholders, Samsung will spin off the Printing Business Unit into a separate company and then sell a 100 percent stake in the newly created company and its overseas assets to HP. Both companies expect the transaction to close within one year after receiving the appropriate regulatory approvals. This deal gives Samsung the right to source printers from HP and continue to sell them in South Korea under the Samsung brand.

Samsung reportedly decided to sell its printing business due to tough competition from rivals like Canon, Epson and obviously HP. It decided to get out of this business to focus more on its smartphone, memory chip and TV business. HP will get 6,000 new employees once the deal is closed by the second half of next year. Almost 2,000 of them are research and development engineers while 1,000 are sales and support staff. The rest work in manufacturing and service. This deal will immediately give HP a big presence in Asia’s printing market aside from Samsung’s laser printing technology and its over 6,500 printing technology patents.

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Galaxy Note 7 remote deactivation reports refuted by Samsung

Samsung is now urging all Galaxy Note 7 owners to power down their devices and participate in the company’s exchange program as reports about the Galaxy Note 7 continue to come in even though the recall has been announced. It’s certainly in the company’s best interest to ensure that it replaces all Galaxy Note 7 units before someone seriously gets injured, or worse. A recent report suggested that for this purpose, Samsung will remotely deactivate all Galaxy Note 7 units after September 30 so that owners are compelled to get their unit replacement with a safe one. The company has refuted these reports.

The Galaxy Note 7 remote deactivation news came from a Redditor who was apparently told by a Samsung representative over the phone that the company will remotely deactivate units that need to be turned in. Samsung refutes the report, adding that it has not said anything about remotely deactivating faulty Galaxy Note 7 units after September 30. The company says that it will share all official guidance related to the Galaxy Note 7 recall on its website.

It’s not uncommon for inaccurate information to spread in a story that’s rapidly gaining steam as this one and almost everyone appears to have an opinion about it. Always be sure to check the company’s official sources to ensure that you are abreast of the latest developments so that you are not misled by rumors and unsubstantiated reports.

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09-12-2016 Firmware Updates: Galaxy A3, Galaxy A5, Galaxy Core Prime, and more

Samsung has a plethora of phones and tablets in its lineup and regularly releases firmware updates for various devices. These can include major updates, which bring a newer version of the OS to a particular device, or minor ones that improve performance and stability and fix bugs. Software updates for Samsung devices roll out in various regions every day, and you can find out which firmware updates were pushed out by the company over the last 24 hours through our firmware list.

As usual, you can download each of these firmware from our firmware section (simply enter your device’s model number to view all firmware for that device) in order to update to a new firmware manually, or as a means to return to your phone or tablet’s stock software.

Country (Product Code)	Model	Model Name	Version	PDA
Argentina (Movistar)(UFN)	SM-N910U	GALAXY Note4	5.1.1	N910UXXU2COJ2
Australia(XSA)	SM-T580		6.0.1	T580XXU1APG1
Australia (Optus)(OPS)	SM-G900I	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900IDVU1CPG2
Australia (Optus)(OPS)	SM-G900I	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900IDVS1CPH1
Baltic(SEB)	SM-T235	GALAXY Tab4	5.1.1	T235XXS1BPH1
Baltic(SEB)	SM-G360F	GALAXY CORE Prime	5.0.2	G360FXXS1BPE3
Baltic(SEB)	SM-T235	GALAXY Tab4	5.1.1	T235XXS1BPF3
Bulgaria(BGL)	SM-G360F	GALAXY CORE Prime	5.0.2	G360FXXS1BPE3
Bulgaria(BGL)	SM-G903F	Galaxy S5 neo	6.0.1	G903FXXU1BPF4
Canada (Vidéotron)(VTR)	SM-G850W	GALAXY ALPHA	5.0.2	G850WVLU1BOD7
Colombia(COO)	SM-A500M	GALAXY A5	5.0.2	A500MUBU1BPB2
Croatia (T-Mobile)(CRO)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXS1CPHC
Croatia (T-Mobile)(CRO)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXU1CPGI
Czech Republic(ETL)	SM-G903F	Galaxy S5 neo	6.0.1	G903FXXU1BPF4
Czech Republic (T-Mobile)(TMZ)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXU1CPGI
Ecuador(EBE)	SM-G920I	Galaxy S6	5.1.1	G920IDVU3DOJ6
Ecuador(EBE)	SM-G925I	Galaxy S6 edge	5.1.1	G925IDVU3DOJ6
France (Orange)(FTM)	SM-G388F	GALAXY Xcover 3	5.1.1	G388FXXU1BPC3
France (Orange)(FTM)	SM-G388F	GALAXY Xcover 3	5.1.1	G388FXXU1BPE1
Germany (T-Mobile)(DTM)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXS1CPHC
Germany (T-Mobile)(DTM)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXU1CPGI
Greece (Cosmote)(COS)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXU1CPGI
Greece (Cosmote)(COS)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXS1CPHC
Hungary(XEH)	SM-T235	GALAXY Tab4	5.1.1	T235XXS1BPH1
Hungary(XEH)	SM-T235	GALAXY Tab4	5.1.1	T235XXS1BPF3
Hungary (T-mobile)(TMH)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXS1CPHC
Hungary (T-mobile)(TMH)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXU1CPGI
Hungary (Telenor)(PAN)	SM-G360F	GALAXY CORE Prime	5.0.2	G360FXXS1BPE3
Hungary (VDH)(VDH)	SM-A300FU	GALAXY A3	5.0.2	A300FUXXS1BPE1
Iraq(MID)	SM-A700F	GALAXY A7	5.0.2	A700FXXU2BPB2
Ireland (Vodafone)(VDI)	SM-A300FU	GALAXY A3	5.0.2	A300FUXXS1BPE1
Israel(ILO)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXU1CPI8
Israel(ILO)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXU1CPFG
Italy (Vodafone)(OMN)	SM-A300FU	GALAXY A3	5.0.2	A300FUXXS1BPE1
Italy (Vodafone)(OMN)	SM-A300FU	GALAXY A3	6.0.1	A300FUXXU1CPH3
Macedonia(VIM)	SM-G360F	GALAXY CORE Prime	5.0.2	G360FXXS1BPE3
Macedonia (T-Mobile)(MBM)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXS1CPHC
Macedonia (T-Mobile)(MBM)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXU1CPGI
Mexico (Movistar)(TMM)	SM-G920I	Galaxy S6	6.0.1	G920IDVU3EPE4
Morocco (MWD)(MWD)	GT-I9515	GALAXY S4	5.0.1	I9515XXU1BPA5
Netherlands(PHN)	SM-G360F	GALAXY CORE Prime	5.0.2	G360FXXS1BPE3
Netherlands (T-Mobile)(TNL)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXU1CPGI
Netherlands (T-Mobile)(TNL)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXS1CPHC
Norway (Telenor)(TEN)	SM-G903F	Galaxy S5 neo	6.0.1	G903FXXU1BPF4
Open Austria(ATO)	SM-T235	GALAXY Tab4	5.1.1	T235XXS1BPH1
Open Austria(ATO)	SM-T235	GALAXY Tab4	5.1.1	T235XXS1BPF3
Pakistan (PAK)(PAK)	SM-G530H	GALAXY GRAND Prime	5.0.2	G530HXXU2BPF3
Poland(XEO)	SM-G360F	GALAXY CORE Prime	5.0.2	G360FXXS1BPE3
Poland(XEO)	SM-G360F	GALAXY CORE Prime	5.0.2	G360FXXS1BPH2
Portugal (Vodafone)(TCL)	SM-A300FU	GALAXY A3	5.0.2	A300FUXXS1BPE1
Romania(ROM)	SM-G903F	Galaxy S5 neo	6.0.1	G903FXXU1BPF4
Romania (Orange)(ORO)	SM-G388F	GALAXY Xcover 3	5.1.1	G388FXXU1BPC3
Saudi Arabia(KSA)	GT-I9515	GALAXY S4	5.0.1	I9515XXU1BPA5
Singapore(MM1)	SM-A310F	Galaxy A3 ⑥	6.0.1	A310FXXU2BPGB
Singapore(XSP)	SM-A310F	Galaxy A3 ⑥	6.0.1	A310FXXU2BPGB
Singapore (SingTel)(SIN)	SM-A310F	Galaxy A3 ⑥	6.0.1	A310FXXU2BPGB
Singapore (StarHub)(STH)	SM-A310F	Galaxy A3 ⑥	6.0.1	A310FXXU2BPGB
Slovakia(ORX)	SM-G360F	GALAXY CORE Prime	5.0.2	G360FXXS1BPE3
Slovakia(TMS)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXS1CPHC
Slovakia(TMS)	SM-G900F	GALAXY S5	6.0.1	G900FXXU1CPGI
Trinidad and Tobago(EON)	SM-T815Y	Galaxy Tab S2	6.0.1	T815YDVU2BPF1
United Arab Emirates(XSG)	SM-T531	SM-T531	5.0.2	T531XXU1BOI4
United Arab Emirates(XSG)	SM-T561	Galaxy Tab E	4.4.4	T561XXU0APA2
United Kingdom (EE) (EVR)	SM-G903F	Galaxy S5 neo	5.1.1	G903FXXU1APH2
United Kingdom (Vodafone)(VOD)	SM-A300FU	GALAXY A3	5.0.2	A300FUXXS1BPE1
Uruguay(UPO)	SM-A500M	GALAXY A5	5.0.2	A500MUBU1BPG4
Uruguay(UPO)	SM-A500M	GALAXY A5	6.0.1	A500MUBU1CPH3

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