Gear Auto Link brings Ford SYNC compatibility to the Gear S3, Gear S2, available Spring 2017

Samsung debuted Car Mode for Galaxy last year, an app that allows drivers with connected cars to access messages, navigation, and music hands-free. At last year’s Mobile World Congress, Samsung partnered with SEAT and SAP to bring innovation to connected cars (such as the ability to make purchases without getting out of your vehicle). To continue its push into the connected car market, Samsung has partnered with Ford to bring a special service to Gear S3 and Gear S2 owners who have access to Ford’s SYNC service. The feature is called Gear Auto Link, and it lets you set parking reminders and wake-up alerts to keep you aware both inside and outside the car.

Gear Auto Link for Ford SYNC vehicles on the Gear S3/Gear S2 allows you to add parking information to your Gear smartwatch when your car is parked, such that you need not remember how to find it when returning to your car. You can add information about your Ford vehicle on your Gear smartwatch such as level, column, and other pertinent information. Upon returning to your car, the Gear smartwatch will retrieve your car’s coordinates via GPS and provide navigation instructions to help you get there quickly. You can simply set it and forget it, and let your Gear smartwatch do the rest.

Additionally, for drivers who tend to fall asleep at the wheel after a long day, the new Gear Auto Link program for Ford SYNC will let you set reminders to wake you up while on the road, for 3, 5, 10, 15, or 20-minute intervals. Currently, there are only sound alerts, though future versions of the Gear Auto Link app will let you set vibration alarms.

The Gear Auto Link service will be available later this Spring.

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iHeartRadio integrates music service with Samsung Family Hub refrigerator and the Gear S3

iHeartRadio is one of the most widely used online radio services with more than 95 million registered across the globe. The service provides access to live radio, custom Artist Radio stations, podcasts, and more. The company has announced the integration of its music service with two Samsung products at the Consumer Electronics Show 2017 in Las Vegas today.

The service has been integrated with the Samsung Family Hub refrigerator. It features a touchscreen display on the door which is used to access all of the features and functionality that Family Hub offers. Those who have a Family Hub will now be able to stream iHeartRadio stations directly from their refrigerator.

The Gear S3 integration enables smartwatch owners to control the iHeartRadio listening experience right from their wrist. Users get the same access to thousands of live radio stations, podcasts, Artist Radio stations and more on their wearable device.

“These new integrations allow our users to access the music and personalities they love most across even more apps, wearables and connected home devices they use every day.” said Darren Davis, President of iHeartRadio.

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Verizon kills the Galaxy Note 7 with last software update

Samsung announced late last year that it would release a final software update for the Galaxy Note 7 in the United States which will remotely brick the device. It will render the device incapable of charging the battery so the only way users can power it once the battery reaches 0 percent is by connecting it to a wall outlet or external charger.

While all other major carriers were quick to confirm when they will release the final Galaxy Note 7 update, Verizon initially said that it would not work with Samsung on this, but it eventually came around. Verizon is rolling out the final Galaxy Note 7 update today.

Software version MMB29M.N930VVRS3APL2 has been released by Verizon for the Galaxy Note 7. Users will see a notification on the home screen which tells them that they will no longer be able to charge the battery and that the handset will no longer work as a mobile phone once it runs out of charge. Verizon once again reiterates that those who are still holding on to their Galaxy Note 7 should power it down immediately and participate in the refund and exchange program.

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[Poll] Which Galaxy A (2017) device are you buying?

On Monday, Samsung announced three new smartphones as part of its Galaxy A series — the Galaxy A3 (2017), Galaxy A5 (2017) and Galaxy A7 (2017). All three handsets are expected to go on sale in early February in a whole host of different countries all over the world, but for some strange reason, the latter won’t be making its way to Europe.

This sparks the question, are you planning on pickup up a device from the 2017 Galaxy A series? If so, what device? Be sure to let us know in the poll below, and drop a comment in the section at the bottom of the page to elaborate on your response. We’d love to know exactly why you’re opting for that specific handset.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Read more: The best features of the Galaxy A (2017) smartphones

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Daily Deal: Get the 65-inch Samsung 4K SUHD Smart LED TV at a 43% discount

Amazon is now offering the Samsung UN65KS8000 65-inch SUHD Quantum Dot TV for just $1,597.99, which is a discount of $1,202 on the standard price. Needless to say, there’s quite a lot of money to be saved on this product, so be sure to check it out when it’s still out there.

Samsung’s range of SUHD Quantum Dot televisions have been quite popular and have received critical acclaim from experts as well. Since this is a Smart TV, you get access to a range of multimedia options including the ability to switch between live TV and streaming quite seamlessly.

The listing makes it abundantly clear that this is the 2016 model, which is the latest version you can get right now. Samsung is going to launch a handful of new televisions soon, including the new QLED TVs which are expected to start shipping next month.

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Samsung Galaxy A8 (2016) is now available in the UAE and Taiwan

Samsung launched the Galaxy A8 (2016) earlier this year as an exclusive to South Korea carrier SK Telecom. At the time of launch, the company failed to mention if the device would ever make its way to other markets, but it seems like the A8 (2016) has quietly been launched in the UAE (and possibly other Gulf states) and Taiwan.

The Galaxy A8 (2016) features a 5.7-inch Full HD Super AMOLED display, the Exynos 7420 SoC, 3GB of RAM, a 16-megapixel rear camera, an 8-megapixel front facing camera, 32GB of internal storage, and a 3,500 mAh battery. It runs Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow (with Samsung’s Always On Display feature) and should receive an update to Android 7.0 in the future. The A8 (2016) is listed in blue, gold and silver colors on the Samsung Gulf website and is priced at 1,799 AED (roughly USD 490) in the UAE. The pricing should be roughly equivalent for Taiwanese consumers.

It’s unclear how long the handset has been available outside South Korea, but we thought we would let our readers know that it is no longer exclusive to Samsung’s home market. Anyone interested in picking up the Galaxy A8 (2016)?

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CES 2017: Nvidia’s new Shield TV is compatible with Samsung SmartThings Hub

Nvidia unveiled a newer version of its Shield TV smart media streaming box at CES 2017. It features not only 4K HDR video streaming through Amazon, Google Pay, Netflix, VUDU, and YouTube but also 4K HDR game streaming from PCs to the TV. Since it also features Google Assistant, it is also compatible with Samsung’s SmartThings platform, letting you control your smart home.

Owners of the Nvidia Shield TV can use the Nvidia Spot accessory (sold separately) to trigger Google Assistant and control SmartThings compatible smart home devices through voice commands. The Android TV-based media streaming box features an Nvidia Tegra X1 processor, and it comes in two variants: Shield TV (16GB storage) and Shield TV Pro (500GB storage). The Shield TV is priced at $199.99, while the Shield TV Pro is priced at $299.99.

Nvidia CEO and founder Jen-Hsun Huang said, “SHIELD TV is the world’s most advanced streamer. Its brilliant 4K HDR quality, hallmark NVIDIA gaming performance and broad access to media content will bring families hours of joy. And with SHIELD’s new AI home capability, we can control and interact with content through the magic of artificial intelligence from anywhere in the house.“

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This could be our first proper look at the Galaxy S8, but it probably isn’t

Over the course of the past few months, we’ve heard an awful lot about Samsung’s much-anticipated upcoming flagship smartphone of 2017, the Galaxy S8 — and now it looks like we’re finally getting our first proper glimpse at the design of the device, thanks to a leaked photograph that surfaced on Chinese social networking website Weibo earlier today, which corroborates everything we’ve previously reported about its appearance.

As you can see in the image below, the most noticeable difference between the purported Galaxy S8 and its predecessor is the omission of the physical home button and capacitive navigation keys. What’s strange, however, is that there don’t appear to be any on-screen buttons, either. Typically, when you head into Settings, they don’t automatically hide — so we’re left wondering whether the photo is a product of some Photoshop wizardry.

There could be a simple explanation for the lack of buttons, though. It’s perfectly feasible that Samsung could have developed a full-screen mode, which can be manually activated to take advantage of the entire display. If this (or a similar feature) turns out to exist, then it’s likely that they keys would only appear when a user swipes up from the bottom of the screen. This is, of course, nothing but speculation on our part.

If it wasn’t for this major discrepancy, we’d feel pretty confident in saying that this picture is the real deal. Earlier this week, we heard from our insiders that by doing away with the front-facing buttons, Samsung was able to shrink the width of the top and bottom bezels on the handset by as much as 30 percent. Although, we have to say, it doesn’t look great; mainly because the bottom bezel is thinner than the top (another discrepancy).

Unfortunately, as with all leaks, we have to take this alleged design with a pinch of salt until Samsung provides us with some evidence with regards to what it has in store for its next flagship, and if the latest rumors are anything to go by it looks like we may have to wait until April 18 to find out more. There is some good news, though. As we approach its release date, the frequency of leaks should increase — so there’s a good chance we’ll see more of the device in the coming weeks.

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CES 2017: Portable wireless storage solution with 2TB SSD and optional LTE is powered by Samsung’s Exynos 7420 processor

We’ve seen some pretty amazing products at CES 2017, including premium Galaxy A (2017) smartphones, new QLED TVs, and laptops from Samsung. We’ve now come across a nifty little portable wireless storage solution for smartphones with up to 2TB of storage. The most interesting part of the gadget is that an Exynos processor powers it.

Unveiled at CES 2017, the Fasetto Link is a portable storage solution with a fast NVMe SSD from Samsung. It is driven by a 2.1GHz octa-core Exynos 7420 processor. This 2-inch wide accessory also packs in dual-band Wi-Fi ac/b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0 (with LE) for connectivity as well as a USB Type-C port for data transfer and fast charging. It can be connected and controlled through a smartphone app.

The device can turn into a portable NAS, so it can also be used to stream media to connected smartphones or tablets. There’s an optional LTE module (that costs an additional $149) that can turn the Link into a portable hotspot. It is also an IP68-certified product, making it resistant to dust, shock, and water. The 256GB SSD variant costs $349, and the price goes as high as $1,149 for the 2TB storage variant.

The Fasetto Link is available for pre-order right now from the company’s website. It’s great to see that other brands are using Samsung’s Exynos processors in a variety of products ranging from smartphones, standalone VR headsets, and portable storage solutions.

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Samsung capping Galaxy Note 7 battery at 15 percent in Korea

Over the past few months, Samsung has sent out updates for the Galaxy Note 7 that cap the battery charge in order to nudge owners to return their units. It has also been rolling out the final Galaxy Note 7 update in several markets including the United States, this particular update basically bricks the device remotely. The return percentage had been low in South Korea compared to other markets which is why Samsung has had to hold off on tougher measures but with the company having received 94 percent of all units sold in South Korea, it’s now pushing ahead with this update.

Samsung has said that it’s going to release a new update for the Galaxy Note 7 in South Korea next week. The update is going to cap the battery at 15 percent. It would be an absolute nuisance to get any proper use out of a device that can’t charge itself beyond 15 percent and Samsung would certainly be hoping that this finally compels the holdouts to return their units.

As for what caused the Galaxy Note 7 to catch fire, Samsung confirmed during its Consumer Electronics Show 2017 press conference yesterday that the root cause report will be shared with the public “very soon.”

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Galaxy S8 release date reportedly revealed

Samsung was expected to unveil the Galaxy S8 at the Mobile World Congress 2017 in February but if recent reports are to be believed, it may conduct a separate event in New York City to launch the handset in a couple of months. It’s not known for sure right now when the device will actually be released. A new report claims that the Galaxy S8 release date has been decided and that it’s April 18.

Citing industry insiders, the latest report out of South Korea claims that the Galaxy S8 release date is April 18. It’s also said that Samsung is going to unveil the Galaxy S8 to the public either by late March or by early April and would then proceed to release the handset across the globe on the aforementioned date. Another recent report suggested that Samsung will start mass production of the Galaxy S8 in March so it does add up.

Keep in mind that this is an unconfirmed report from an unofficial source so the April 18 Galaxy S8 release date is not set in stone just yet. Samsung is expected to launch two variants of the Galaxy S8 this year with one retaining the flat display.

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