Samsung’s Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 2 sweepstakes offer $100 in points

Samsung has a history of teaming up with popular battle royale game Fortnite for new promotions. Fortnite’s Android launch was actually timed with the announcement of the Galaxy Note 9, so it’s not surprising to see that they’re back again with a new campaign.

Samsung today introduced its Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 2 sweepstakes, offering gamers a chance to win $100 worth of Samsung Rewards points. Fortnite players can participate in the sweepstakes starting today and for the next three weeks.

Win $100 worth of Samsung Rewards points

Those who wish to participate can enter into the sweepstakes by making an in-game purchase in Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 2, but that’s not the only way, at least for those in the United States. Such is the law in the US that no purchase is actually necessary to participate in sweepstakes, so those who don’t want to make an in-game purchase can simply mail in their entry for a chance to win $100 in Samsung Rewards points.

Multiple in-game purchases in a single day will not count as multiple entries, you can only enter once per day. The sweepstakes will end on May 10 and the winners will be notified via email over the summer. A total of 1,500 players will receive 20,000 Samsung Points each, valued at $100.

Samsung Rewards points can be used for in-app purchases and for buying content in the Galaxy Store. These $100 equivalent points can also be used to purchase Samsung products from the company’s online store and its Shop Samsung app. So if you end up winning the points, you can knock a cool $100 off your next Samsung smartphone, tablet, smartwatch, etc.

If you’re interested in participating, check out the full terms and conditions for this promotion at Samsung’s website.

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Samsung to fix Galaxy S20 Ultra green tint issue with a software update

We reported earlier this week that the April 2020 update for the Galaxy S20 Ultra had brought an annoying bug. A distracting green tint would appear on the device in certain conditions. Considering the fact that this issue wasn’t present before the update, it’s evident that there’s no hardware failure behind it.

Samsung is working on a fix for the problem and we hear that the company will be rolling gout a software update for the Galaxy S20 Ultra soon. The update will fix this issue once and for all.

Upcoming Galaxy S20 Ultra update will fix the green tint

The green tint would appear on the display in many apps at refresh rates higher than 60Hz when the brightness was lowered to below 30%. Much of the reports about this issue have come from those who own the Exynos 990-powered variant of the Galaxy S20 Ultra.

We hear from trusted insiders that Samsung is aware of the issue and that it’s going to release a software update soon to fix the problem. For the time being, those who don’t want to be annoyed by this bug, they can just keep the refresh rate locked to 60Hz. That’s obviously not an ideal solution.

One of the reasons that many customers bought the Galaxy S20 Ultra was that it offers a 120Hz refresh rate display. For them to not be able to utilize one of the best features of their $1,400 device is a little sad. Hopefully, it won’t be too long before Samsung releases this update for the Galaxy S20 Ultra.

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Galaxy A71 5G and OnePlus 8 use the same in-display fingerprint sensor

Quick question: what do the Galaxy A71 5G, the Huawei P40, and the new OnePlus 8 flagship series all have in common aside from an OLED screen? Well, you’ve probably already guessed it since the title above gave it away, but the answer is the optical in-display fingerprint sensor. This was confirmed to us by Samsung’s new fingerprint sensor supplier Goodix, whose optical-based solution can also be found on quite a few of Samsung’s rival phones.

The Galaxy A71 5G is Samsung’s first smartphone to employ an optical in-display fingerprint sensor from Goodix, even though the two companies have collaborated before for capacitive-based sensors. Therefore, the Galaxy A71 5G represents a step further in the Goodix-Samsung partnership, and we assume that the Galaxy A71 5G will not remain the only device to take advantage of Goodix’ solution.

But will this guarantee the Galaxy A71 5G to have the snappy fingerprint reader response of the OnePlus 8 series? Technically, it could, but Samsung’s animations and lock screen-to-home screen transition might make things a tiny bit slower. We’ll have to wait for the Galaxy A71 5G to hit the shelves before we know for sure. Samsung will release the Galaxy A71 5G in the USA this summer.

Goodix also contributes to a ‘premium voice experience’ for the Galaxy A71 5G

Aside from providing Samsung with its optical in-display fingerprint sensor, Goodix also revealed to us that the Galaxy A71 5G takes advantage of its voice calling enhancement solution that delivers premium voice experience when making phone calls in noisy conditions.

Call quality on the Galaxy A71 4G model was already up to par, so we’ll have to wait and see if the 5G variant will offer any benefits in this regard.

You can read more about the Galaxy A71 LTE in our review, but do keep in mind that the 4G and 5G models don’t share the same chipset. The upcoming model employs the high-end 5G-enabled Exynos 980 SoC instead of the mid-range Snapdragon 730.

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Base Galaxy Note 20 model has a 4,000mAh battery similar to the S20

We have new bits of information about the Galaxy Note 20 series, particularly the battery capacity of the base model. According to the findings of our Galaxy Club colleagues, the Galaxy Note 20’s battery carries part number EB-BN980ABY and has a 4,000mAh capacity, same as the Galaxy S20 base model.

More precisely, the Galaxy Note 20 battery has a rated capacity of 3,880mAh, meaning that the typical capacity should be around 4,000mAh. This represents a 500mAh increase over the Galaxy Note 10 which ships with a 3,500mAh non-removable unit.

The top-tier Galaxy Note 20 model could have a 4,500/5,000mAh battery

We expect Samsung to follow a similar launch strategy as last year and release two Galaxy Note 20 variants at the same time. Details on the top-tier Galaxy Note 20 battery capacity are lacking, but we can assume it will conceal either a 4,500mAh or 5,000mAh unit similar to the Galaxy S20+ / Galaxy S20 Ultra.

This detail will be indicative of the company’s approach to designing the high-end Note 20 model. A 4,500mAh battery will likely mean that the Galaxy Note 20+ will share more similarities with the S20+, while a 5,000mAh battery would bring it closer to the Galaxy S20 Ultra in terms of specifications.

The Galaxy Note 20 series is a few months away from its August Unpacked unveiling, online as it may be in the wake of COVID-19. But we’re bound to learn more about the S Pen flagship’s specifications by then so stay tuned.

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Daily Deal: 47% off JBL Pulse 3

The JBL Pulse 3 is a portable speaker that will take your listening experience to the next level. It can last up to 12 hours on a single charge and is waterproof so you can use it safely at the pool or beach. With JBL connect, you can wirelessly link more than 100 JBL Connect+ devices to amplify your party. You can also take calls with the built in microphone and they will be high quality due to the noise and echo cancelling. If you’re looking for a high-end portable speaker, this JBL Pulse 3 is the best choice. Now available at 47% off, it’s a great bargain as well!

Hit the Buy Now button below to get one in before they’re out of stock!

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Samsung rep hints at One UI 2.1 for Galaxy S9 being on the cards, again

The Galaxy S9 series may yet receive the One UI 2.1 update, at least according to a new screenshot revealing a discussion between a Samsung India representative and a Galaxy S9+ user. It claims there’s still a chance for the S9 series to receive One UI 2.1, but the representative was unable to confirm an exact date.

This new statement follows another recent ‘confirmation’ about One UI 2.1 still being in the works for the Galaxy Note 9 series. And if you’re wondering, we have to use quotation marks because Samsung representatives have contradicted themselves before, even as far as the 2018 flagships are concerned. Not long ago, a notification was sent through the Samsung Members app in South Korea, informing Galaxy Note 9 (and implicitly Galaxy S9) owners that there are no plans to release One UI 2.1 for these devices. That was after the update was initially ‘confirmed’ to be on its way.

The recent Galaxy Note 10 Lite update might be a sign of things to come

While Samsung’s forum moderators haven’t always been right about the availability of firmware updates, there seems to be some hope that One UI 2.1 will eventually be released for the Galaxy S9 and Note 9 lineups. Particularly, the Galaxy Note 10 Lite just received the One UI 2.1 update, and the aforementioned device uses the same chipset as the one found inside the 2018 flagships. This throws any excuses Samsung might have for the SoC not being able to handle One UI 2.1 out the window. Then again, it doesn’t guarantee a release for the S9/Note 9 either.

We still advise you to remain skeptical and not get your hopes up too high based on these recent occurrences. Nothing seems to be set in stone just yet, but we will keep you up to date as soon as we learn more on this front. Stay tuned.

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Bixby Routines update adds game-oriented condition with tons of actions

Bixby Routines just got a new update for Galaxy devices running Android 10 and One UI 2.1, and mobile gamers are bound to find it useful to some extent. Along with a few improvements, the new app version introduces a new ‘Game is being played’ condition and tons of actions to go along with it.

As detailed before, Bixby Routines is a very useful feature that was originally introduced with the Galaxy S10 series. It lets you create conditions and actions based on the IFTT (If This Then That) principle, and it’s quite flexible at that. With the new ‘Game is being played’ condition added to Bixby Routines, Galaxy smartphone owners running One UI 2.1 can ‘tell’ their phones to perform certain actions whenever they play a mobile game.

There are tons of game-centric actions you can determine

The range of actions for the new game mode in Bixby Routines is very wide; for example, you can now set your phone’s screen to have a specific brightness level whenever you play mobile games. You can disable/enable Blue Light Filter, or even manipulate DND if you prefer playing games outside of Game Launcher, the latter of which has its own notification settings. There are numerous actions you can use to tailor your user experience, so feel free to let us know if – and in what ways- you find this new addition useful.

To grab the new Bixby Routines update, launch the app, tap the three-dot button, go to Settings » About Bixby Routines and tap Update.

The new Bixby Routines version (2.5.36.5) also fixes a few bugs and errors related to ‘App opened’ conditions, and improves visibility of themes.

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Galaxy Note 10 Camera update fixes scan quality and French translation

Samsung has released a new Camera update for the Galaxy Note 10 series. It weighs 6.39MB and pushes the app to version 10.0.03.2. The changelog is barebones but it does include a couple of bug fixes, one of which addresses a translation error with the French camera app name. Obviously, this change will only be of use to Galaxy Note 10 owners who use their phones in this language.

Camera scan quality regained

Another issue fixed by this new update pertains to the Camera’s scan quality being ‘worse than before.’ So if you did experience issues with the Camera’s scan quality on the previous Camera app version, the latest release should address that.

As a reminder, the Galaxy Note 10 series also got a minor firmware update in Europe recently, bringing some network-based improvements and additional bug fixes. Check this link for more details and instructions on how you can download and install it.

As for the new Camera app version, you can acquire it on the Galaxy Note 10 by opening the Camera, tapping the cogwheel icon at the top, scrolling down and accessing About Camera, then tapping the Update button. Alternatively, you can open the Galaxy Store on your phone, tap the hamburger menu, go to Updates, select the one for Camera and tap Update.

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Latest Galaxy Note 10 Lite update brings One UI 2.1 with new features

The latest Galaxy Note 10 Lite update that started rolling out this week brings One UI 2.1. This means that the affordable phablet now gets some of the best features that Samsung introduced with the Galaxy S20 earlier this year.

One UI 2.1 is the newest iteration of Samsung’s custom Android skin. It’s being gradually rolled out to compatible devices after debuting on the Galaxy S20 and the Galaxy Z Flip. The Galaxy Note 10 Lite receives One UI 2.1 along with the April 2020 security patch.

Galaxy Note 10 Lite gets One UI 2.1 in latest update

Samsung has released firmware version N770FXXU2BTD4 for the Galaxy Note 10 Lite in Spain and the United Arab Emirates so far. It’s rolling out over-the-air and the update is also available for download from our firmware section.

One UI 2.1 brings several new features for this device. They include new camera modes like Single Take and Pro mode for video, My Filters, Selfie Tone and AR Zone. Samsung also brings Quick Share to the Galaxy Note 10 Lite with this latest update in addition to Music Share.

AR Emoji has been updated as well with a new manual editing feature and enhanced facial expression recognition. Samsung Keyboard gets a multilingual translation feature, improved search for emoji and stickers as well as a new text undo/redo feature.

The Galaxy Note 10 Lite was launched alongside the Galaxy S10 Lite and it has already received the One UI 2.1 update. Spain was also the first market to get One UI 2.1 for the Galaxy S10 Lite.

The fact that the Galaxy Note 10 Lite is receiving some of the best One UI 2.1 features should bode well for the Galaxy Note 9. There has been some conflicting reports about whether the Galaxy Note 9 will get One UI 2.1. Both of these handsets use the same Exynos 9810 processor, so if One UI 2.1 can run on the Galaxy Note 10 Lite, it shouldn’t have a problem on the Galaxy Note 9.

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Samsung brings new Galaxy Watch app to coronavirus fight

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch wearables are joining global efforts to slow down the spread of COVID-19 with a new app meant to help you develop, fortify, and maintain great personal hygiene habits.

Simply called Hand Wash, the smartwatch tool was developed in only two weeks over at Samsung Research Institute-Bangalore in India. Several developers within the SRI-B UX and wearable team came up with the concept and realized it in record time while simultaneously adapting to working remotely.

Fighting a global pandemic 25 seconds at a time

The app was designed to teach and reinforce good hand-washing habits described as part of WHO’s official recommendations for curbing the spread of the infectious disease. It does so by reminding users to wash their hands regularly, as well as making sure they’re doing so long enough for the cleanup to be effective. That would be 25 seconds in practical terms, or 20 seconds of continuous rinsing, as per the same guidelines. Compatible devices like the Galaxy Watch Active 2 will vibrate when that time is up so that you don’t have to improvise with less reliable methods of tracking wash time, Samsung says.

Hand Wash also comes with its very own watch face, an ability to analyze your hygiene habits over longer periods, and a couple of other features. Galaxy Watch owners can take advantage of Samsung’s new solution as of today, with the Hand Wash app now being available for download from the Galaxy Store free of charge.

A single Galaxy Watch app isn’t the only thing Samsung’s Indian operations brought to the global coronavirus fight. Earlier this week, the local arm of the company donated the equivalent of $5 million to the South Asian country, distributing the funds among the federal government and some of the hardest-hit states. The move came on top of plenty of other Samsung initiatives, all of which are in line with how the chaebol has been contributing to COVID-19 relief efforts in other parts of the world. Since early March, it did everything from ramping up hospital equipment production to suspending non-essential factory work so aggressively that its output already hit rock bottom, as it’s now reportedly at its lowest point in the firm’s 82-year history.

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Galaxy Z Flip update brings improved camera Flex Mode, April security patch

The Galaxy Z Flip is now being treated to the April security update in Europe. The update brings the latest security patch and improves the Flex Mode functionality for the Camera app. It is accompanied by firmware version F700FXXU1ATD6 and is rolling out in Italy at this time. It will soon be making its way to other European markets and will eventually be available worldwide.

As we detailed in a separate post, Flex Mode for the Camera app now lets you use more dramatic angles by allowing the camera viewfinder preview to be shifted to the bottom half of the screen. Until now, in Flex Mode, the Camera app would show the viewfinder in the top half of the screen and the controls on the bottom half, but with the latest update, that can be reversed with a double tap on the preview screen, further enhancing the tripod-like capabilities of Samsung’s clamshell flagship.

The new software update is rolling out over the air, and your Galaxy Z Flip will show you a notification once the update is available in your region. You can manually download it from the phone’s Settings » Software update menu as well. We also have the complete firmware available in our firmware section, which can be used for updating the device with the help of a Windows PC.

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Galaxy Z Flip Flex Mode now lets you take photos in more dramatic angles

As we pointed out in our Galaxy Z Flip review, the Flex Mode is one of the most useful features of Samsung’s latest foldable smartphone. Basically, it allows the Galaxy Z Flip to become its own tripod so that you can make video calls and take photos completely hands-free by just setting the device down on a flat surface.

Samsung is now making this feature even more useful. An upcoming Galaxy Z Flip software update will make it possible to switch the location of the preview and controls in the camera screen up-side-down. This will allow you to use Flex Mode to take photos in more dramatic angles.

The camera preview can now be flipped up-side-down

The native Camera app is one of the very few apps that dynamically change their interface when the Galaxy Z Flip is in Flex Mode. The preview shrinks and occupies the top half while the bottom displays the camera controls.

Once the update is installed, it will be possible to flip the two around. You’ll just have to double tap on the preview window when in Flex Mode and it will automatically shift from the top to the bottom half of the device. The idea for this feature appears to have come from the tilt screen displays found in DSLR cameras. They articulate so you can easily keep an eye on the framing of the photo even in an extreme angle, something that becomes way too difficult without a display that can tilt.

The Galaxy Z Flip’s camera setup is placed in the top half where the camera preview is normally displayed. By switching it to the bottom half, you can easily keep an eye on the framing while setting the top half in as extreme an angle as you’d like. This will allow you to capture dramatic low-angle action videos to aesthetically pleasing top-down food photos. You can see how it works in the GIF below.

Samsung says that the software update which brings this functionality to the Galaxy Z Flip will start rolling out this week. What do you think about this, will it help elevate your photography game on the Galaxy Z Flip?

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Samsung to combat 2020 sales slump with cheap 5G phones

Samsung is hoping to combat the massive slump in smartphone sales with cheap 5G handsets meant to make the next generation of wireless tech much more accessible to the masses.

While consumer 5G adoption was already expected to continue marching toward mainstream popularity in 2020, industry sources suggest the COVID-19 crisis accelerated those plans. That’s particularly true for Samsung seeing how the company was long overdue for an overhaul of its mid-range Android smartphones, as evidenced by its continuous decline in the world’s most competitive markets like India and China.

Samsung slashes consumer 5G entry price by 62% in 11 months

The ongoing pandemic situation continues to take a heavy toll on the mobile industry, with new reports indicating February sales were down 38% annually, amounting to only 60 million units worldwide. Samsung and other top manufacturers aren’t under any illusions that the worst is behind them, either. The fact that worldwide smartphone shipments experienced a mere 13.3% decline over the first quarter of 2020 underlines how global markets were in the business-as-usual mode until early March, as per the same source. With the majority of the planet now being on lockdown, Samsung’s second-quarter performance has nowhere to go but down – the only question is how low.

Cue the company’s 2020 Galaxy A portfolio meant to combat that emerging negative trend by making cutting-edge telecom tech much more affordable than the first generation of 5G smartphones released last year. The MSRPs for the newly announced Galaxy A51 5G and Galaxy A71 5G amount to $499.99 and $599.99, respectively. That’s a far cry from the $1299.99 price tag Samsung attached to its seminal 5G flagship released not even 11 months ago – the Galaxy S10 5G.

The industry giant already confirmed its 2020 Galaxy A series will be coming to the U.S. Ditto for the EU, UK, India, Australia, and most other major markets around the globe. While it remains to be seen whether offering much cheaper 5G smartphones slows down its mobile sales decline to a significant degree, particularly in fiercely contested markets, the silver lining for Samsung is that it already lost China years ago, thus remaining insulated from the economic crash the Far Eastern country went through in Q1 2020.

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Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Watch Active 2 receive a new firmware update

There’s a new firmware update rolling out today for the Galaxy Watch and the Galaxy Watch Active 2. The Galaxy Watch last received a substantial update a few months ago when Samsung brought Galaxy Watch Active 2 features to this smartwatch.

The new update that’s rolling out today doesn’t bring much in the way of new features. It’s a relatively minor update that makes some overall improvements to the software for both of these smartwatches.

New firmware update rolling out for the Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Watch Active 2

Samsung is now rolling out firmware version R820XXU1BTD3 for the Galaxy Watch Active 2 and R800XXU1DTC1 for the Galaxy Watch. The changelog for both updates mentions that it brings ” Improved system stability and reliability.”

So don’t expect to find any new features on either smartwatch once you update it to the latest firmware. It’s likely some bugs that have been fixed through this update in addition to general performance and reliability improvements for the software.

Samsung is in the process of gradually rolling out this update for the Galaxy Watch and the Galaxy Watch Active 2. It may take some time before you see an update notification for your smartwatch in the Galaxy Wearable app.

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