SamMobile Daily Recap: October 4, 2017 — Galaxy Note 8, Samsung Pay and more!

We publish a lot of stories on a daily basis. Unfortunately, the majority of news breaks during our European hours of operation, which makes it difficult for our readers in the US (and other regions) to keep up. However, we think we’ve come up with a fantastic solution — a daily recap.

Here’s what we covered today.

Deals

Daily Deal: Take 73% off a first-generation Gear 360

Phones

Galaxy Note 8 camera test ends in tie with the iPhone 8 Plus at DxOMark

Galaxy Note 8 security features detailed in new video

Samsung Pay

Samsung Pay updated with support for Co-op Bank in the UK

Tips & Tricks

How to encrypt Galaxy Note 8 microSD card to keep data secure

Wallpapers

Wallpaper Wednesday: Material Nature

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Wallpaper Wednesday: Material Nature

Welcome to the latest edition of Wallpaper Wednesday. This week, we’re highlighting a total of five animated backgrounds. All of the images are available in a suitable resolution for the Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8+ and just about any other smartphone on the market.

If any of the following images float your boat and you want to download and set one as your wallpaper, simply tap on the photo to maximise it, then click and hold to save it. Once the picture is stored locally, open up Settings, locate and select Wallpaper, then just press the image to set it as your background.

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Desert Moon

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Lake

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Lighthouse Night

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Mountain

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Download

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How to encrypt Galaxy Note 8 microSD card to keep data secure

The Galaxy Note 8 comes with 64GB of internal storage. While that’s going to be enough for some users, most users will just pop in a microSD card. If you’re using one, here’s how you encrypt Galaxy Note 8 microSD card. You should certainly do it if you want to keep the data on the card secure.

The data that’s stored on the internal storage is secure as long as your phone is locked. You can secure it using various features, including but not limited to facial and iris recognition. That protection doesn’t extend to the microSD card as it can simply be removed by ejecting the SIM tray. They can then pop it in another device or in a computer and get access to all of your data.

If you encrypt Galaxy Note 8 microSD card, then the data will only be accessible via the phone when it’s unlocked. It will have to be decrypted first before it can be used with another device.

You will not be able to use the microSD card elsewhere before decrypting it on the Galaxy Note 8. Follow the same steps in reverse to decrypt it.

How To Encrypt Galaxy Note 8 MicroSD Card

Step 1: Launch the Settings app on your Galaxy Note 8 and tap on Lock screen and security

Step 2: Scroll down to locate the Encrypt SD Card option

Step 3: Tap Encrypt SD Card to begin the process. If you use one, you will have to enter your password or pattern for the process to begin.

Do keep in mind that encryption can take an hour or more, it depends on how much content is stored on there. Ensure that there’s adequate juice in the battery and keep the device plugged in until the process is complete.

The microSD card can’t be used during the encryption process. If the device is reset to factory default settings, it will be unable to read encrypted microSD cards.

It’s simple enough to encrypt Galaxy Note 8 microSD card but if you face any problems, do ask for help in the comments below. While we’re on the subject, here’s how you move apps to microSD card on Galaxy Note 8.

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Daily Deal: Take 73% off a first-generation Gear 360

Amazon has temporarily slashed the price of the first-generation Gear 360, which is Samsung’s award-winning camera that’s capable of taking 360-degree photographs and videos, down to just $93.00 (73% off).

If you want to take advantage of this promotion, hit the Buy Now button below. We strongly advise you to hurry though, as Amazon only has a limited amount of inventory available — and once it’s gone, it’s gone.

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Samsung Pay updated with support for Co-op Bank in the UK

Samsung Pay has today been updated with support for Co-op Bank, one of the United Kingdom’s largest financial institutions. This news comes four months after the mobile payment platform introduced compatibility for HSBC and M&S Bank in the region.

It’s worth noting, however, that it could take up to a week for the upgrade to reach your handset, but as soon as it does, you’ll be able to activate Samsung Pay to start making contactless payments in both brick-and-mortar and online stores.

Related: Samsung Pay launches in the UK

What’s strange is that Barclays and NatWest, two of the largest banks in the United Kingdom, are still missing from the list—and unfortunately, it doesn’t look like compatibility is going to be added for them anytime soon.

Samsung Pay is available on a whole host of smartphones, including the Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy S8, Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S6, though support varies region by region. It can also be accessed using the Gear S3 classic and Gear S3 frontier in select countries.

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Galaxy Note 8 camera test ends in tie with the iPhone 8 Plus at DxOMark

DxOMark, a camera reference publication, tested the iPhone 8 Plus camera last month and declared it as the “best smartphone camera.” It has now published its report on the Galaxy Note 8 camera test. Samsung’s new flagship smartphone has tied with the iPhone 8 Plus. DxOMark awarded both handsets a score of 94.

The Galaxy Note 8 is the first smartphone from Samsung to feature a dual camera. It has two 12-megapixel sensors aided by one wide-angle 26mm f/1.7 lens and one 52mm telephoto f/2.4 lens with x2 optical zoom. According to DxOMark, the Galaxy Note 8 offers “the best zoom capabilities” of any mobile device it has tested so far.

Galaxy Note 8 Camera Test Results

To achieve its Galaxy Note 8 camera test results, DxOMark captured and evaluated more than 1,500 test images and more than two hours of video in both controlled lab environments and natural indoor/outdoor scenes.

According to the publication, the Galaxy Note 8 is the current class-leader for stills as it has excellent zoom quality, good noise reduction, detail preservation and accurate autofocus. Relatively noiseless low-light photography is a plus as well.

DxoMark sings praises of the Galaxy Note 8’s zoom. Aside from its x2 optical zoom lens, it’s capable of taking shots at x8 digital zoom as well. Even though less detail is captured at x8 digital zoom, the images were found to be very usable.

What this Galaxy Note 8 camera test tells you is that your Galaxy Note 8 is great for portraits, low-light photography and capturing fast-moving scenes. It’s not that it underperforms in other aspects, these are just the qualities that stand out.

The fact remains, though, that the camera is just part of the equation. You have to like other things about a smartphone as well before you decide to spend over $1,000 on it. If you’re still on the fence, perhaps our Galaxy Note 8 review can help change your mind.

The post Galaxy Note 8 camera test ends in tie with the iPhone 8 Plus at DxOMark appeared first on SamMobile.

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Galaxy Note 8 security features detailed in new video

We can never be too careful with the data on our phones these days. Samsung has posted a new video online to help users understand the various Galaxy Note 8 security features. The video walks us through some of the main features that the Galaxy Note 8 offers in order to keep the device secure.

Galaxy Note 8 Security Features

The video touches on the basics first, it shows how to set up the fingerprint scanner. That can be done by heading to the Lock screen and security menu in the settings app.

If you’re one of those users who feel the fingerprint sensor placement could have been better then perhaps you might want to try another one of the Galaxy Note 8 security features. The Galaxy Note 8 is the second smartphone from Samsung to feature Face Recognition. The Galaxy S8 was the first device to offer this feature.

You can also configure the Face Recognition feature from the Lock screen and security menu in the settings app. It’s also where the iris scanner can be configured. Like the Galaxy S8, the Galaxy Note 8 also has more security options than any other Android smartphone.

Check out the video highlighting these Galaxy Note 8 features down below.

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