Samsung plans to bring cryptocurrency features to more Galaxy devices

In the run-up to the launch of the Galaxy S10, there were many rumors and leaks that Samsung’s latest flagships will come with a cryptocurrency wallet and blockchain features. The news generated a lot of buzz as Samsung, the world’s largest smartphone vendor, investing in cryptocurrency and blockchain technologies was seen as a major win for the crypto market.

The rumors were true as Samsung indeed brought a cryptocurrency wallet named Samsung Blockchain KeyStore to the Galaxy S10 lineup. However, the company’s foray into the crypto market is not as ambitious or aggressive as many hoped it would be. Availability of the Samsung Blockchain KeyStore is severely limited, and it doesn’t support any of the major cryptocurrencies yet.

More devices and more markets

Nevertheless, it appears the Korean company is still interested in the cryptocurrency market and plans to bring its wallet and blockchain features to more Galaxy devices. In a post on Samsung Newsroom for Korea, Chae Won-cheol, senior managing director of Product Strategy at Samsung’s Wireless Business Division said, “We will lower barriers to new experiences by gradually expanding the number of Galaxy models that support blockchain functions.”

“We will also expand our service target countries after Korea, the United States and Canada,” he added further. The post doesn’t offer any specific details about upcoming devices and is more of a generic expression of interest. We have to wait and see if and how any of this translates into real products and services in the near future.

There is growing saturation in the smartphone industry, forcing manufacturers to experiment and find new avenues for growth. Investments by these companies in cryptocurrency and related technologies can be seen as part of this strategy. Interestingly, it’s not just the world’s largest smartphone vendor that is testing waters in the crypto market. Even HTC, whose smartphone business has been on a downward spiral, is betting its future on blockchain phones.

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Samsung working on next-gen high-end tablets SM-T860 and SM-T865

Samsung’s next generation of high-end tablets might take a significant leap forward, as model numbers SM-T860 and SM-T865 surface. These might belong to the yet-to-be-unveiled Galaxy Tab S5, though this cannot be confirmed at present.

Since Samsung unveiled the Galaxy Tab S5e, many have wondered what happened to the ‘regular’ Tab S5. While we still do not know if and when a tablet with that name will finally hit the market, new information does shed light on Samsung’s next-gen high-end tablet line-up.

According to information received by GalaxyClub, Samsung is working on tablets with model numbers SM-T860 and SM-T865. Previous flagship devices in Samsung’s Tab S series have traditionally carried SM-T8xx model numbers. No further details are mentioned, nor is it known if the new tablets will come with their own S Pen stylus.

A significant overhaul in the works?

There is, however, one further detail that arouses curiosity. The first-generation of Samsung’s AMOLED-tablets, the Galaxy Tab S, carried model code SM-T80x. The Tab S2 was the SM-T81x, the Tab S3 came under the SM-T82x guise, and just last year saw the release of the Galaxy Tab S4, also known as the SM-T83x.

The new tablets’ model codes present a significant jump in Samsung’s numbering scheme. We’d love to speculate that this could signify a noteworthy overhaul of the otherwise stale tablet series. However, this idea should be taken with several grains of salt, at least until more tangible information surfaces.

Let’s hope for a launch this summer, alongside the Galaxy Note 10, for example. This would mirror last year’s schedule that saw the next Note arrive more or less together with the next Tab S. After all, although Samsung has launched several affordable tablets this year, a truly high-end slate is still missing from the 2019 portfolio.

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Android 9.0 Pie for the Galaxy Tab S4 now rolling out to the masses

Last month, Samsung treated the LTE model of the Galaxy Tab S4 to Android 9.0 Pie in a small selection of markets, including Brazil, France, India and Singapore, and now it’s arriving in Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Israel, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Slovakia, Switzerland, Ukraine and Uzbekistan — so suffice to say, it’s now a global rollout.

So, what does Pie bring to the table for the (LTE variant of the) Galaxy Tab S4? Well, aside from all the usual features baked into Android 9.0, it bundles Samsung’s stunning One UI interface, which was designed to deliver a more fluid and seamless user experience — and that’s what it does, introducing several must-have tools, like a system-wide Night mode that’s easier on the eyes in the evening.

Just like the release Sprint started distributing in the United States on Tuesday, April 30, the update also transports improvements for Bixby and support for HEIF images, as well as a new Adaptive Battery optimization tool and improved notification management. For a more detailed overview of what One UI brings to the table, be sure to take a look at our in-depth One UI Feature Focus series.

The update is, of course, being rolled out in stages. To check to see if it’s available for your Galaxy Tab S4, head into Settings, navigate to Software update, then select Download updates manually. Alternatively, you can always download the firmware from our database to flash it on to your handset manually — though you will need to be fairly tech-savvy if you choose to take that route.

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Galaxy S7, Galaxy A5 (2017), and Galaxy A8 (2018) get May 2019 security update

Samsung has been rather quick and regular in releasing monthly security updates to many of its Galaxy devices, and the May 2019 update is no different. It started rolling out said update a week back, beginning with Galaxy A9 (2018) and Galaxy Note 8 and has been steadily adding more devices to the list since then.

The Galaxy S7 (and S7 Edge), Galaxy A5 (2017), Galaxy A8 (2018), and Galaxy Tab A 10.1 (S Pen) are the latest batch of devices to receive the May update. These devices have started receiving the update in the last couple of days in select markets around the world. As of now, the update for the Galaxy S7/S7 Edge is rolling out in the UK, in Brazil for the Galaxy A8 (2018), in Colombia for the Galaxy A5 (2017), and in South Korea for the Galaxy Tab A 10.1 with S Pen.

Patches seven critical Android OS vulnerabilities

While we cannot confirm for sure, the update appears to bring to nothing more than the latest security fixes. As detailed by Samsung, the May 2019 Security Maintenance Release (SMR) patches seven critical and dozens of high and moderate risk Android OS vulnerabilities, along with 21 Samsung Vulnerabilities and Exposures (SVE) items of varying severities that are specific to Galaxy devices.

Samsung tends to release software updates in phases, so it may not be available to all the eligible devices at once. To check if the update is available for your device, go to Settings and tap on the download option under the Software update menu. If you are impatient to wait for the update, you can download the newest firmware for these devices from our database and manually flash it. You can find the Galaxy S7 firmware here, S7 Edge here, Galaxy A8 (2018) here, Galaxy A5 (2017) here, and the Galaxy Tab A 10.1 with S Pen here.

Galaxy S7

• Model: SM-G930F
• Dimensions: 142.4 x 69.6 x 7.9mm
• Display: 5.1" (129.2mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 8890
• Camera: 12 MP, Dual Pixel F1.7

More specifications

Galaxy S7 edge

• Model: SM-G935F
• Dimensions: 150.9 x 72.6 x 7.7mm
• Display: 5.5" (139.3mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 8890
• Camera: 12 MP, Dual Pixel F1.7

More specifications

Galaxy A5 2017

• Model: SM-A520F
• Dimensions: 146.1 x 71.4 x 7.9mm
• Display: 5.2" (132.2mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 7880 Octa
• Camera: 16 MP, CMOS F1.9

More specifications

Galaxy A8

• Model: SM-A530F
• Dimensions: 149.2 x 70.6 x 8.4mm
• Display: 5.6"(142.0mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 7885
• Camera: 16 MP, CMOS PDAF (F1.7)

More specifications

Galaxy Tab A (2016) with S Pen

• Model: SM-P580
• Dimensions: 254.3 x 164.2 x 8.2mm
• Display: 10.1" (255.4mm) TFT
• CPU: Exynos 7870
• Camera: 8 MP, CMOS

More specifications

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Can my Galaxy Watch find my phone? Of course it can!

You can do a lot of things on your Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Watch Active. Finding your misplaced phone is one of them. If you have paired the devices together, using your Galaxy Watch to find your phone is easier than you might think.

The app to do that is already pre-installed on your smartwatch so this functionality works out of the box. You just need to follow a couple of steps and that’s about it. The feature certainly comes in handy particularly if you have a habit of misplacing your phone.

Can my Galaxy Watch find my phone?

Yes, your Galaxy Watch can find your phone. It can do that even if it’s not paired with your phone over Bluetooth. In that case, it uses Wi-Fi to remotely connect to the phone. That’s similar to using Samsung’s Find My Phone feature.

To do that, simply launch the Find My Phone app on your Galaxy Watch or Galaxy Watch Active. Tap on the Start button and if the devices are paired over Bluetooth, it will immediately start looking for the phone. You’ll see a “Finding my phone” screen on the handset as it vibrates and rings at full volume.

You can still use your Galaxy Watch to find your phone even when it’s out of Bluetooth range. Connect it to a Wi-Fi network and perform the same steps. The app will inform you that the process could take some time as it will try to search for the phone remotely. The Locate phone option can also be used in both cases to get an approximate location of the handset.

The feature will obviously not be of much use if your smartphone is turned off or in airplane mode. Advanced functionality such as remote wiping of the handset’s data is also not possible from the smartwatch version of the Find My Phone app. That doesn’t take away from the fact that this is a neat feature to have on your smartwatch and it works very well.

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Daily Deal: Up to 46% off Samsung’s Fast Charge Wireless Charger Stand

Charge your compatible Galaxy device without plugging it into a wall charger! With Samsung’s Fast Charge Wireless Charger Stand on your desk, you can simply drop your phone on it to quickly start charging and pick it up when done without messing around with a cable. The Fast Charge feature is compatible with every Samsung flagship since and including the Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 edge+, while standard charging speed applies to devices with Qi-enabled wireless charging support.

Right now, this fast wireless charger is on sale with a 46 percent discount on Amazon, which amounts to a saving of $27.54. Interested? Hit the Buy Now button below to order one for yourself. Don’t delay, as stocks for these deals are usually limited and can sell out pretty quickly.

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Samsung Pay surpasses 14 million subscribers in South Korea

Samsung’s mobile payment service, Samsung Pay, has hit 40 trillion won (~$33.65 billion) in accumulated transaction volume in South Korea. The number of subscribers has also surpassed the 14 million mark as of April 2019, the company said.

Launched in August 2015, Samsung Pay had logged transactions worth 2 trillion won (~$1.68 billion) during the first year. The service has since grown exponentially to hit 10 trillion won (~$8.41 billion) in 24 months, 20 trillion won in 33 months, and 30 trillion won in 39 months. It surpassed the 40 trillion won mark in April 2019, after 45 months of launch. Of the total amount, 25% were online payments.

Samsung Pay accounts for 80% of offline mobile payments

Samsung Pay is South Korea’s most favored mobile payment service, and by a big margin. According to the Financial Supervisory Service, Samsung Pay accounted for 80% of South Korea’s domestic offline payments in 2018. Samsung Pay allows users to pay with their smartphones without needing to carry around the physical cards; it works with NFC payment terminals and also regular magnetic payment terminals thanks to magnetic secure transmission (MST) technology.

Samsung now plans to bring more convenience to Samsung Pay consumers with added services. In partnership with Woori Bank, a local commercial lender, the company has launched a currency exchange service in South Korea. Users can apply for the service via the Samsung Pay app and exchange money at Woori Bank branches. A total of 15 currencies, including the U.S. dollar, yen and euro, are supported initially. Samsung is also running a promotional event offering a fee-free currency exchange until June 12 for first-time customers. The tech giant further plans to expand Samsung Pay in various sectors.

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Samsung Pay now supports BV’s Mastercard cards in Brazil

Samsung Pay has picked up support for one more financial institution in Brazil. Votorantim Bank (BV) has teamed up with Samsung as the newest member of its mobile payment service. BV joins Sicredi, Banco do Brasil, Santander, and several others on the list of Samsung Pay-supported banks in the country.

Samsung Pay expands its presence in Brazil

Samsung Pay has consolidated its place as one of the world’s leading mobile payment solutions. The service is supported by over a dozen financial institutions in Brazil, with BV being the latest addition. As of now, only Mastercard-branded cards issued by the bank are compatible with Samsung Pay. Support for more card brands should arrive soon.

Customers who have a BV Mastercard, meanwhile, can now make payments with Samsung Pay at various online and offline stores. BV is also offering extra benefits to those who adopt Samsung Pay early. Customers who complete five financial transactions (with each separated by at least 24 hours) from May 13 to May 28 will earn 200 points on Samsung Rewards. The reward points can be redeemed in exchange for products, services, discounts and more directly from the Samsung Pay app.

“The partnership with BV reinforces our commitment to the Brazilian consumer. Samsung Pay is increasingly present in the routine of people, who can safely and easily enjoy their purchases,” said Paulo César do Nascimento, Senior Manager, Samsung Pay Brazil.

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