الأربعاء، 13 فبراير 2019

SamMobile Daily Recap, February 13, 2019: Galaxy S10 video, February updates, and more

Samsung’s new midrange tablet spotted on Geekbench

In December last year, we exclusively reported about Samsung working on a new Galaxy tablet with model number SM-P205. Since then, we haven’t heard much about the device, but today, alleged specifications of this tablet have surfaced online in a Geekbench listing. While Geekbench is not necessarily the most credible source for such information, the listed specifications do sound plausible and in line with our expectations from a midrange Samsung tablet.

According to the information on Geekbench, the SM-P205 tablet will be powered an Exynos 7885 SoC, with 3 GB of RAM and Android Pie 9.0 onboard. You can also add 32 GB internal storage and black and grey color options to the mix from our previous report. The device scored 1329 in single-core and 4150 in the multi-core tests, which are on par with other Exynos 7885 scores on Geekbench.

Model number hints at S Pen and LTE capabilities

Samsung has often used the letter ‘P’ in the model numbers of tablets to denote S Pen functionality. For example, Galaxy tablets SM-P580, SM-P585, SM-P350, SM-P355, etc support the S Pen, and so the same may apply to the SM-P205 model as well. Also, the number ‘5’ at the end of tablet model numbers is used by Samsung to signify mobile data variants of its devices.

Interestingly, the model number SM-P205 doesn’t align with any of the existing Galaxy tablets, making it difficult to understand the company’s positioning of this device. Since firmware development has begun months ago and the tablet is now making an appearance on benchmark websites, the launch may not be too far. But given how little has been leaked about the device so far, it seems unlikely the device will make an appearance at the Galaxy S10 Unpacked event or the Mobile World Congress (MWC) this month.

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IDC places Samsung at a distant second in the Indian smartphone market

Though Samsung has been reduced to irrelevance in China, the world’s largest smartphone market, the company continues to have a much stronger presence in the second largest smartphone market, India. Even in India, the Korean company has been facing an uphill task with the mushrooming of Chinese brands, resulting in loss of margins and market share.

Samsung’s performance in the subcontinent in the last year or so hasn’t been very promising. The company has conceded the top spot in the Indian smartphone market to Xiaomi and feature phone market to Jio for many continuous quarters now, at least according to a bunch of sales trackers. IDC’s Asia/Pacific Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker for Q4 2018 is the latest report to reiterate this growing trend.

According to IDC’s data, Xiaomi shipped 10.5 million units and captured 28.9% market share to emerge as the largest smartphone vendor in India in Q4 2018. This represents year-on-year growth of 28 6% in shipments from Q4 2017 when the company shipped 8.1 million units and secured 26.8% market share. Samsung came in second with 6.8 million shipments and an uncharacteristically low 18.7% market share, with a year-on-year decline of 7.9% in shipments. Vivo, Realme, and OPPO occupied the next three spots, respectively, with impressive shipment numbers and growth rates. Overall, with a YoY growth of a healthy 19.5% in an increasingly saturated market, smartphone sales clocked 36.3 million units in the last quarter of 2018.

Xiaomi tops the yearly shipment numbers

Not just the last quarter, Xiaomi also tops the yearly shipment numbers with 41.1 million units and 28.9% market share in India in 2018. The Chinese company registered a whopping 58.6% YoY growth in a market that grew by 14.5%. By shipping 31.9 million units, Samsung captured 22.4% market share and occupied the second place in the list of top five vendors. Vivo, OPPO, Transsion followed Samsung with healthy growth rates.

The Average Selling Price (ASP) of the smartphone in the country remained flat at $158, with most of the sales falling in the $100-$200 price range. The premium smartphone market (above $500) grew at an impressive 43.9% YoY, but still makes up only 3% of the total smartphone market in the country. OnePlus emerged as the leader in the premium segment ($500-$700), while Samsung replaced Apple as the market leader in the above $700 super premium segment with its Galaxy S9 lineup.

The feature phone market grew at 10.6% to reach 181.3 million units in 2018. Most of the growth is attributed to the JioPhone which accounted for 36.1% of the total feature phone shipments in the country last year. It is doubtful Samsung will ever be able to reclaim the top position in the feature phone market, given Jio’s strategy of selling phones at cost or a loss to achieve its growth objectives as a telecom operator. On the smartphone side of things, however, the report notes the launch of the Galaxy M series may change Samsung’s fortune in the coming quarters. That seems plausible considering our own impressions of the lineup and the reported customer demand in the recent flash sales.

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Samsung patents a Smart Mirror TV design, but no product in sight

In addition to mainstream smart TVs, Samsung also boasts a couple of lifestyle televisions, like The Frame and the Serif TV. These TVs basically prioritize design over everything else. The former turns into a work of art when the television is switched off, while the latter looks like a piece of furniture.

It appears Samsung had one more idea of a lifestyle TV design. The company was granted a patent for a Smart Mirror TV design towards the end of 2018, and it looks interesting.

Samsung Smart Mirror TV

Smart mirrors are already a thing of reality, as we saw a few of them being exhibited at CES 2019. While we are yet to hear about anything from Samsung, this design patent suggests that the Korean giant may have mulled over a similar idea in the past.

The graphics in the patent document show a flat, square device with rounded corners and thin bezels. When turned on, it will function as any other TV, but as soon as you turn it off, you have a big square mirror at your disposal. One of the patent images shows the device displaying the weather forecast while it is being used as a mirror. The back of the device offers space for various connections, including the power supply.

Sounds good? Well, the fact that the patent was originally filed in South Korea back in October 2016 more or less confirms that we would not be seeing such a product from Samsung anytime soon. Nevertheless, it’s an interesting idea that may well result into an appealing product in the future.

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Galaxy S6 continues to get security updates, almost four years later

Samsung has just released the January 2019 security patch for the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge, continuing support for its first glass and metal flagships almost four years later. The update has been released in the UAE and comes with software version G920FXXU6ESA1 and G925FXXU6ESA1 for the S6 and S6+ respectively. The last Galaxy S6 update came out in November last year, and Samsung doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to stop regular updates anytime soon.

The Galaxy S6 is not on a quarterly update schedule at the moment, so it’s quite impressive to see ongoing support. However, this is something that may become more common in the coming months, as suggested by Samsung moving the Galaxy A5 (2016) to a quarterly schedule instead of removing it from the list of devices eligible for security updates altogether. This is good news for the Galaxy S7 and more recent flagships like the Galaxy S9 as well, although we’re still hoping Samsung also moves towards releasing three major OS upgrades for its flagships now that even the Galaxy J series phones are getting two major updates.

Galaxy S6 and S6 edge owners in the UAE can download the update over the air from the Software update menu in the phone’s Settings app. We also have the firmware for the new update in our database that you can install using a Windows PC.

Galaxy S6

  • Model: SM-G920F
  • Dimensions: 143.4 x 70.5 x 6.8mm
  • Display: 5.1" (129.2mm) Super AMOLED
  • CPU: Exynos 7420
  • Camera: 16 MP, CMOS OIS (F1.9)
More specifications

Galaxy S6 edge

  • Model: SM-G925F
  • Dimensions: 143.4 x 70.5 x 6.8mm
  • Display: 5.1" (129.2mm) Super AMOLED
  • CPU: Exynos 7420
  • Camera: 16 MP, CMOS OIS (F1.9)
More specifications

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Galaxy S10 video leak confirms an in-display fingerprint sensor limitation

Popular accessory retailer Mobile Fun, which offered us a glimpse at some of the Galaxy S10 cases yesterday, has now published a video that shows off a working Galaxy S10+. According to the retailer, the video was captured when the phone was being tested with screen protectors. The phone isn’t actually operated in the video, but we can see it with the screen on a couple of times.

The thing to note here is that rather ugly cutout on the screen protector for the in-display fingerprint sensor. We had heard from one case maker before that the Galaxy S10’s in-display fingerprint sensor may not work with screen protectors, and that limitation seems to be confirmed in this leaked video. Basically, instead of just the front camera cutout, those who opt to put a screen protector on their Galaxy S10 will also have to deal with a big gaping hole at the lower part of the display.

The hole doesn’t seem to be visible when the screen is on, but this does mean that that part of the display won’t be as well protected as the rest. However, this may just be the case for tempered glass protectors and not regular ones. It’s Samsung’s first attempt at a fingerprint reader built into the display, so we might have to wait for the next flagship or Galaxy smartphone to come along before the company is able to get around the limitation completely.

Check out the video below, and let us know what you think of that fingerprint sensor cutout on the screen protector! Will this finally get you to stop using screen protectors, or will you wait until Samsung is able to make the in-display fingerprint sensor work with screen protectors?

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Galaxy A series Android Go handset (SM-A260F) pops up on Geekbench

It emerged last week that Samsung is looking to launch three new Galaxy A smartphones – the Galaxy A10, Galaxy A20 and Galaxy A30 – in India in the near future, later launching an additional six. One of those six devices is going to be an Android Go handset, and that device – model number SM-A260F – has now shown up on Geekbench running Android 8.1 Oreo.

Information included in a listing on Geekbench’s online database reveals that the SM-A260F will have very modest hardware. It gets 1GB of RAM, which is the maximum that an Android Go smartphone can have, and is powered by the Exynos 7870 SoC. Sadly, it seems the Android Go A series device will run Android 8.1 Oreo instead of Android Pie, which suggests we could see it launch before any of the other 2019 Galaxy A smartphones, all of which have been spotted with Pie on-board.

There’s no word on when exactly the SM-A260F will hit the shelves. All we know is a launch will take place soon, and India is likely to be one of the first markets where the device goes on sale.

Galaxy A series Android Go handset (SM-A260F)

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Galaxy Buds pre-order bonus for Galaxy S10 confirmed by Samsung Vietnam

Samsung Vietnam has confirmed that the upcoming Galaxy Buds earbuds will be one of the pre-order bonuses for the Galaxy S10. Samsung Vietnam seems to have its marketing engines running at full steam at the moment, as it also confirmed some Galaxy S10 features yesterday with teaser videos published on YouTube. The Galaxy Buds will also be part of the pre-order promotion in Russia, and it’s likely that quite a few other markets will see the same promotion as well.

In Vietnam, Galaxy S10 pre-order customers will also get the waterproof JBL Charge 3 Bluetooth speaker and the S10’s Clear View case as pre-order bonuses. The three items will make for a total of 7000000 Vietnamese dong (roughly $300), and it seems the pre-order window has already started. The three products will be offered to those who pre-order the Galaxy S10 between February 11 and February 26th, so interested folks will have a few days after the Galaxy S10 goes official to decide if they want to purchase the device.

The Galaxy Buds will not be the only new wearable Samsung will announce alongside the Galaxy S10. We should also see the Galaxy Watch Active and possibly the Galaxy Fit fitness tracker make an appearance. Of course, the foldable phone is likely to steal all the limelight, and we hope Samsung also tells us more about availability details of the Galaxy Home.


Thanks for the tip, My_wikileaks!

The post Galaxy Buds pre-order bonus for Galaxy S10 confirmed by Samsung Vietnam appeared first on SamMobile.



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10 years of Samsung Galaxy S flagships: Looking back at the Galaxy S III

Welcome to part two of our 10 years of Samsung Galaxy S flagship series, in which we here at SamMobile talk about our experiences and memories of each of the nine Galaxy S flagships that have come before the Galaxy S10. Today, we look back at the Galaxy S III. The Galaxy S III was the first time Samsung had designed a Galaxy S flagship on its own instead of taking inspiration from Apple, but it marked the start of the company’s own design language that it improved and perfected with each successive Galaxy S flagship.

Samsung, of course, went overboard with the marketing, calling the Galaxy S III a device “designed for humans”, prompting plenty of memes and jokes about how the company was discriminating against aliens with that tagline. And who can forget how the Galaxy S III bombarded the user with a plethora of software features. It introduced Smart Stay, which keeps the phone’s screen on when the user is looking at it. There was Smart Alert, which vibrates the phone when it’s picked up to tell you there are unchecked notifications. It also introduced S Voice, a voice assistant that no one really liked and was ultimately replaced by Bixby with the Galaxy S8.

The Galaxy S III further cemented Samsung’s position as the leader in the Android smartphone market and the only competitor to the Apple iPhone that mattered. What do we remember about the phone all these years later? Read on to find out, then take to the comments section to tell your memories about the Galaxy S III, whether you owned it or not!

Daniel Dorresteijn

I remember that around the Galaxy S III’s announcement, we had leaked sketches of the device. JK Shin gave us a sly nod when he mentioned onstage that some rumors and leaks had been right and others had been wrong (yes, our sketches were in the former camp). It was also our first official Samsung event where we were present in person. I wasn’t quite happy with the Galaxy S III’s looks right after launch, and I remember people complaining about the many features the phone had and calling them gimmicks. The funny thing is here in 2019, some of those gimmicks are considered normal. And while I didn’t like its looks much, I found the S III felt quite good in the hand. And when it came to actually using the phone, it never disappointed me, as the software experience was a good one overall.

Abhijeet Mishra

I’ve never been one to care about form and have always looked at what a device could do instead of what it looked like. I didn’t buy the Galaxy S III, but when it was announced, I was instantly put off by those rounded corners. The design came off as too feminine in my eyes and seemed like Samsung had just slapped something together to make it not look like the iPhone anymore, or least not have the same squarish design. Thankfully, no one really expected great design from Samsung at the time, so it didn’t really matter as far as the phone’s sales were concerned.

Martin Reinders

I remember the Galaxy S III as the Galaxy S that sounded extremely annoying. Thanks to the “inspired by nature” motto, that water droplet tone for notifications drove me nuts. It was a good phone overall and it sold quite well, but that waterdrop sound gave me nightmares if I think about it. The S III also had the most ugly home button of the entire series. It was, however, the device that established SamMobile in the leaking game. Our exclusive leak of sketches of the Galaxy S III prompted a sly nod from JK Shin at the phone’s launch, which was great to see.

Daniel van Dorp

The Galaxy S III was a great phone and I thought it looked pretty premium. What I didn’t like was the glossy back, which looked too shiny. Sadly, I lost the Galaxy S III, but hey, the bright side is that I bought a Galaxy Note 3 when that happened. It was my first Note and I thought it was quite awesome, so I left the Galaxy S lineup behind.

Adnan Farooqui

The Galaxy S III was the phone that really made me pay attention to Samsung smartphones. I had used the company’s feature phones previously and then shifted over to Nokia. Samsung did something different with the S III that made me want to give it a go. Samsung ditched the boxy design of its predecessor and introduced curves with the S III, and it had pretty decent specs for its time.

No wonder then that the Galaxy S III became a colossal hit, selling over 70 million units globally by 2015. For me, it marked the beginning of a relationship with Samsung phones that continues to this day. I particularly liked the Smart Stay feature, which didn’t allow the screen to go dark while the user was looking at it. The S III was a pretty solid device and I will always remember it fondly.

Don’t forget: We want to hear about your fond memories and experience with the Galaxy S III, so go ahead and get a discussion going in the comments!

The post 10 years of Samsung Galaxy S flagships: Looking back at the Galaxy S III appeared first on SamMobile.



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Galaxy J3 (2017) and Galaxy A7 (2018) pick up February security patch

Samsung has released an update with the February 2019 security patch to the Galaxy J3 (2017) and Galaxy A7 (2018). The two devices join a rather small list of devices that have been updated with the February patch (although the list is longer if we count the Galaxy S8 and Note 8 Pie beta), with Samsung moving considerably slow with security updates this month compared to the last six months or so.

The Galaxy J3 (2017) is receiving the update in South Korea, with software version J330LKLU1BSA3. The A7 (2018) update is out in Spain and comes with software version A750FNXXU1ASA4. Neither update is likely to have any new features or changes other than enhanced security. Speaking of security, the February 2019 security patch fixes five critical vulnerabilities, in addition to dozens of high and one moderate risk Android OS vulnerabilities. 12 vulnerabilities specific to Samsung software have also been fixed.

To download the update, owners of these devices can open the Settings app, go into the Software update menu, then tap Download updates manually. Not everyone may see the update right away, in which case they can simply check again after a couple of hours. Those unwilling to wait can grab the firmware from our firmware database and flash the new software using a Windows PC.

Galaxy J3 2017

  • Model: SM-J330F
  • Dimensions: 152.4 x 74.7 x 7.9mm
  • Display: 5.0" (126.3mm) TFT
  • CPU: Exynos Exynos 7570
  • Camera: 13 MP, CMOS F1.7
More specifications

Galaxy A7

  • Model: SM-A750FN
  • Dimensions: 159.8 x 76.8 x 7.5 mm,
  • Display: 6.0" (152.4mm) Super AMOLED
  • CPU: Exynos 7885
  • Camera: 24 MP, CMOS F1.7, 8 MP, CMOS & 5 MP, CMOS
More specifications

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Samsung teases Galaxy Unpacked 2019 with billboards around the world

Samsung will be unveiling the Galaxy S10 lineup, and possibly a few more devices, including the foldable smartphone, next week. The company is holding the Galaxy Unpacked event in San Francisco next Wednesday, the 20th of February. Ahead of this much-anticipated event, Samsung has started teasing the “exciting future of its flagship smartphone line” with giant billboards around the world.

Samsung started this billboard campaign last month by putting up a set of billboards in Paris’s famous Place de la Concorde. The company is now expanding the campaign globally.

The future unfolds

Samsung has put a number of billboards in some iconic landmarks around the world. This includes Time Square in New York, Milan’s Piazza del Duomo, Callao Square in Madrid, Hydroproject Building in Moscow and The Heeren in Singapore.

Samsung teases Galaxy Unpacked 2019 with billboards around the world

As the billboards in Paris do, the newly put billboards also display imagery which translates to “The future unfolds”. We’ve already seen a number of video teasers from Samsung with the same text. Samsung says it’ll unveil “a bold new vision for the Galaxy brand that will drive the future of smartphone innovation”. This could be the Korean giant’s way of describing its foldable smartphone.

This is the tenth anniversary of Samsung’s Galaxy S line of smartphones, and the excitement has been doubled by its foldable smartphone. We can’t wait to see what the company has up it sleeves. Not a long wait now, though. The future unfolds on February 20.

Samsung teases Galaxy Unpacked 2019 with billboards around the world

Samsung teases Galaxy Unpacked 2019 with billboards around the world

Samsung teases Galaxy Unpacked 2019 with billboards around the world

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Samsung France posts names of entire Galaxy S10 lineup on its website

Though the naming scheme of the upcoming Galaxy S10 lineup has been rumored endlessly, we did not yet see it confirmed by Samsung. Now, the French branch of the Korean OEM has gone ahead and done just that.

Galaxy S10e name confirmed

With one week left to Samsung Unpacked 2019, it seems all details, big and small, of the Galaxy S10 lineup have already leaked. Still, leaks are leaks, but confirmation directly coming from Samsung is another thing. Last week, Samsung stuck to identifying the different Galaxy S10 variants with letters. And even yesterday’s monster leak of all S10 specs only made mention of the device’s codenames: Beyond0, Beyond1, and Beyond2. But now, Samsung France has dropped these charades and named the devices outright.

samsung galaxy s10 names confirmed in france

In a page on its own website, likely published by accident, Samsung lists all three S10 models. It is far from the first time Samsung acknowledges the Galaxy S10 branding but never before was the Galaxy S10e name used publicly. Though less surprising, the same goes for the Galaxy S10 Plus.

No Galaxy S10 5G, no surprise

Those of you still hoping for the launch of a 5G version of the Galaxy S10 might observe Samsung France makes no mention of such a device. This should not come as a surprise, because even if Samsung does introduce that variant, it will not make it to Europe any time soon. The complete lack of 5G networks ensures this. However, not even US or Korean 5G models might be launched on February 20, as firmware development for those devices has been progressing very slowly. Samsung might mention them, but we do not expect a full-blown launch until much later in the year.

Galaxy S10E

  • Model: SM-G970F
  • Dimensions:
  • Display: 5.8” (146.5mm) Super AMOLED
  • CPU: Exynos 9820 Octa
  • Camera: 12 MP, CMOS F1.5 & 16MP, CMOS F2.2 Ultra Wide
More specifications

Galaxy S10

  • Model: SM-G973F
  • Dimensions:
  • Display: 6.1"(157.5mm) Super AMOLED
  • CPU: Exynos 9820
  • Camera: 12 MP.CMOS F/2.4 45-degree telephoto / 12MP F/1.5 77-degree regular / 16MP F/2.2 fixed-focus 123-degree ultra-wide
More specifications

Galaxy S10 Plus

  • Model: SM-G975F
  • Dimensions:
  • Display: 6.4"(162.5mm) Super AMOLED
  • CPU: Exynos 9820
  • Camera: 12 MP.CMOS F/2.4 45-degree telephoto / 12MP F/1.5 77-degree regular / 16MP F/2.2 fixed-focus 123-degree ultra-wide
More specifications

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