Galaxy smartphones with UWB can be used as digital car keys for Genesis GV60

Samsung had revealed earlier this year that it is working with automobile brands to allow consumers to unlock their cars using UWB-equipped Galaxy smartphones. It looks like the first integration of the Digital Car Key feature is going live with the Genesis GV60 electric car that was released this week.

The South Korean firm has announced that Galaxy smartphones equipped with both NFC and UWB can be used as digital car keys for the recently unveiled Genesis GV60. The feature will be available on the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, Galaxy S21+, Galaxy S21 Ultra, Galaxy Z Fold 2, and the Galaxy Z Fold 3. With the Samsung Digital Key feature, users can lock and unlock their cars. They can also share their digital keys with their friends and family, and even set a time limit on how long the digital car key will be available to them.

Samsung said that users can also start the engine, open the trunk, and activate personalized settings like adjusting seats and mirror positions before getting in their Genesis GV60. These features will debut in South Korea and users would need to use the Samsung Pass app.

TM Roh, President and Head of Mobile Communications Business at Samsung Electronics, said, “We are proud to partner with Genesis as part of our mission to create exciting new mobile experiences that can make people’s everyday lives easier. As we continue to drive advancements in mobile technology like UWB, our priority is now to bring these new experiences to as many people as possible, in collaboration with our trusted ecosystem partners.”

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Why the Galaxy Watch 4 series launch is the greatest yet, at least in USA

Samsung got a lot of things right with the Galaxy Watch 4 series. Switching from Tizen to Wear OS appears to have worked in the series’ favor, and the new Exynos W920 chipset is better than the previous solution. The design was further improved, and speaking of which, one of my favorite things about the new Galaxy Watch 4 series is that it’s available in more design combinations than ever before.

The Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 4 Classic are the only Samsung smartwatches that allow customers to choose a wrist strap design at checkout. Up until this series, Samsung smartwatch customers could pick a color for their wrist strap but couldn’t select a different style. This meant that Galaxy Watch 3 owners who didn’t like the default leather strap and wanted to pair the smartwatch with a silicone strap had to purchase one separately.

This year, Samsung is doing things a little differently by allowing Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 4 Classic buyers to pick a wrist strap style and color before placing an online order. Thanks to this new philosophy, Samsung’s smartwatch series has never before been this customizable at launch, and the only issue is that the company isn’t treating every market the same.

Exclusive to Galaxy Watch 4 series customers in the USA

If you’ve purchased the Galaxy Watch 4 or Galaxy Watch 4 Classic and you’re about to yell at the screen that Samsung isn’t, in fact, allowing customers to pick a wrist strap style, that’s only because you probably bought the wearable outside the USA.

The option to pick a style isn’t available at Samsung’s online stores in every region. The service doesn’t even seem to be open in South Korea, where a dedicated Thom Browne Edition was recently launched. It is, however, available in the USA.

This could be a sign of things to come, as Samsung may eventually allow customers in other regions to customize their wrist strap options at checkout. For now, only customers in the USA have this privilege. Many Watch 4 enthusiasts may be looking across the pond with envy, but regardless, it’s a great initiative from Samsung, and hopefully, other markets will eventually get the same treatment.

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If this is how the Galaxy S22 Ultra looks like, Samsung needs to wake up

The Galaxy S22 series is rumored to consist of at least three models, the best of which might have a dedicated S Pen slot and other Note-like design elements. Early renders depicting what could be the Galaxy S22 Ultra emerged a few days ago, and all the promising bits and pieces aside (such as the S Pen slot and uniform metallic frame), I think it’s safe to say that most of us hate the purported camera housing design.

On one hand, early unofficial Galaxy S22 and Galaxy S22+ renders indicate that the two phones will refine the existing camera housing design that was introduced by the Galaxy S21 series.

On the other hand, the Galaxy S22 Ultra will seemingly take a step back and revert to a less refined camera housing design that doesn’t wrap around the top-left corner of the phone. Instead, early leaks suggest that the Galaxy S22 Ultra camera housing looks like Samsung tacked it on to the back panel. It’s outdated, and it doesn’t make the Galaxy S or Note series justice.

Samsung had the right design formula already!

Samsung’s been toying around with various design languages over the years, but we felt like the company stumbled onto something great when it unveiled the Galaxy S21 series earlier this year. The new design language was refined and seemed more thought-out than any others before it.

Now, assuming that the recently leaked Galaxy S22 Ultra renders are even close to accurate, Samsung appears to have lost the confidence from its previous design decisions. Will Samsung ever be fully confident in this regard? We might never know, but if the company will indeed release the Galaxy S22 Ultra with a protruding, off-putting camera design, then someone will have to answer some questions because this indecisiveness we’re seeing every single year is becoming more than a nuisance.

Over the years, Samsung fans have only asked for a little bit of consistency from one generation of smartphones to the next, but sadly, Samsung doesn’t always seem to realize when it’s done something right and when it hasn’t. Case in point, the Galaxy S21 Ultra has one of the best camera housing designs in years (if not the best). But here we are, mere months away from the next Galaxy Unpacked event, worrying about Samsung possibly botching the design again.

Anyhow, feel free to let us know if you’re a fan of the Galaxy S21’s wrap-around camera housing design. Or perhaps you think that Samsung should indeed revert to an older camera housing design for the upcoming Galaxy S22 Ultra. If so, feel free to leave an explanation in the comment section and/or our social media platforms.

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Samsung gets Vanilla Ice to remix ‘Ice, Ice Baby’ for a new eco campaign

If you grew up in the ’80s or early ’90s, you already know that there are plenty of things in this world to remind you of your past teenage years and young adulthood. And if you get your kicks from walking down memory lane, Samsung’s latest campaign featuring Vanilla Ice might just teleport you all the way back to 1990.

Yes, you read that right. Vanilla Ice — the rapper — is back with a remix on the famous single “Ice, Ice Baby.” And in case you don’t know who Vanilla Ice is, don’t worry. It probably means that you aren’t in the target demographic for this campaign, as you might not be old enough to worry about your kitchen and/or BESPOKE refrigerator. But if you ask your parents, they’ll probably tell you all about Ice, Ice Baby and how hot the single was when it dropped a little over 30 years ago. (Dear Lord, has it been that long?!)

“Alright stop, long-term solution”

If you are a responsible adult who cares about the environment, then Samsung wants Vanilla Ice to tell you all about eco-friendliness. According to a recent study, if every household in Europe would decrease their freezer’s temperature by only 1 degree Celsius, it could lead to a decrease of over 1 million tons of CO2 emissions every year.

And yes, the campaign is launching primarily across Europe, where we suspect Vanilla Ice is more popular now than he is across the pond. You can check the remixed “Ice, Ice Baby” single below, though a word of warning: if you’re not a fan of Vanilla Ice or the famous single, this whole thing might backfire on you and could make you want to go out and pollute a lake.

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Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3 get October 2021 security update in Korea

The Galaxy S21 series was the first to receive the October 2021 security patch earlier this week, and now, Samsung is rolling out a similar firmware update for its new range of foldable flagships, including the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and the Galaxy Z Flip 3.

The new firmware update is rolling out for the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 in South Korea, but we suspect that Samsung’s new foldable phones in other markets will join the party soon.

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 update carries firmware version F926NKSU1AUID, whereas the Galaxy Z Fold 3 update can be identified by version F711NKSU2AUIE. The firmware numbers suggest that the update should include more than just the October 2021 security patch, and we’ll be able to confirm this — at the latest — once the update reaches the Galaxy Z3 series in Europe.

For now, the update appears to be rolling out across different networks in South Korea, including KT, SK Telecom, and LG U+. If you want to check for new updates, you can do so from the Settings app on your Samsung phone by accessing the Software update menu.

You can also download the latest update for the Galaxy Z Fold 3 or the Galaxy Z Flip 3 in South Korea from our firmware database and install it manually on your phone using a Windows PC.

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Galaxy A33 in the works as sequel to the slow and laggy Galaxy A32

Chip shortages may be making things difficult for smartphone manufacturers, but Samsung isn’t letting anything get in the way of releasing as many new budget and mid-range phones as possible. For 2022, Samsung is working on making 5G more affordable with the Galaxy A13 5G, and it’s now been revealed that the company is also developing the Galaxy A33.

That’s pretty much it for what we currently know about the phone. There’s no information on its specs, release date, or pricing yet, though our friends over at GalaxyClub say that Samsung is well into the A33’s development, which means we could see some details surface over the coming weeks.

While it’s hard to speculate on specs at the moment, we hope the A33 will fix the biggest shortcoming of the Galaxy A32: weak performance. The Galaxy A32 suffers from a lot of stutter and lag that ruin what is otherwise a fairly good overall package, and Samsung would do well to make sure that isn’t the case with its sequel.

5G connectivity as standard instead of separate 5G and LTE models would also be nice to see. If Samsung intends on keeping them separate, then we hope the 5G model won’t offer faster network performance at the expense of other features, as many of Samsung’s 2021 mid-range 5G phones — including the Galaxy A32 5G — do.

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Samsung might be fined €39 million for illegally inflating TV prices

If you purchased a Samsung TV in the Netherlands between 2013 and 2018, you might have paid extra because of Samsung’s influence on local retailers. The ACM (Authority for Consumers & Markets) recently led an investigation on Samsung and determined that the company used unfair practices to pressure shopkeepers to raise prices. The ACM gave Samsung Electronics a fine of more than €39 million following the investigation. But according to De Telegraaf, the Korean tech giant plans to respond with legal actions to challenge ACM’s decision.

The ACM started the investigation and discovered that Samsung was using prohibited commercial practices after some shopkeepers complained. It turns out that Samsung Electronics was getting in touch with sellers in the Netherlands via email and WhatsApp to control prices regularly. If a retailer was selling a Samsung TV for lower than the company wanted, Samsung messaged the seller and explained that the price had to be increased.

Samsung claims to have followed all the rules, will fight ACM’s decision

The ACM investigated WhatsApp and email traffic between Samsung and shopkeepers and determined that “Samsung’s behavior distorted competition at the retail level and led to higher prices for consumers.” Samsung would constantly monitor its online TV range and pressure e-tailers to adjust their prices to match the Korean tech giant’s expectations, and therefore, Samsung was able to protect its margins and those of its partner retailers at the cost of the consumer.

But a few shopkeepers that were contacted by Samsung came forward. And with their help, the ACM discovered that Samsung coordinated sales prices in the Netherlands in an unfair manner towards the consumer.

On the other hand, a Samsung spokesperson said that the company has complied with competition rules and is disappointed with the ACM’s decision. Samsung will reportedly take legal steps to challenge the €39 million fine.

Beyond issuing this fine, the ACM lacks the authority to enforce Samsung to compensate customers who bought a TV between 2013 and 2018 and might feel like they got wronged. Time will tell how the story unfolds, but perhaps a law firm will prepare a class action lawsuit to represent the consumers.

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Carrier and unlocked Galaxy Z Fold 3 units get September 2021 security update in the US

Earlier this month, Samsung had released the September 2021 security update to the international version of the Galaxy Z Fold 3. The carrier-locked and unlocked variants of the foldable smartphone have now started getting the update in the US. Almost all carriers have released the new security update to the South Korean firm’s latest foldable phone.

The carrier-locked version of the Galaxy Z Fold 3 is getting a new update in the US with firmware version F926USQU1AUI4. The unlocked version of the device is getting the same security update with firmware version F926U1UEU1AUI4. According to Samsung, the new update brings the September 2021 security patch that includes more than four dozen security vulnerabilities. Bug fixes and devices stability improvements could also be a part of this update.

If you are a Galaxy Z Fold 3 user in the US, you might have received a notification of the new software update. If you haven’t received it yet, you can check for it manually by navigating to Settings » Software update and tapping on Download and install. You can also download the latest firmware file for your device from our firmware database and flash it manually.

Samsung had launched the Galaxy Z Fold 3 in August 2021 with Android 11-based One UI 3.1.1 on board. The foldable smartphone will get monthly security updates and three major Android OS updates.

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Samsung’s China shift is bleeding its Korean suppliers dry

Samsung’s adoption of multi-camera systems for smartphones a few years ago didn’t seem to have helped local lens suppliers much. In fact, the opposite happened, and rival companies from China have been thriving on the back of Samsung’s orders for a few years. Meanwhile, lens suppliers in South Korea were all in the red last year, and Haesung Optics stopped producing lens modules altogether earlier this month.

Sekonix reportedly was the only domestic smartphone camera lens supplier that had recorded an operating profit in the first half of the year. However, most other South Korean suppliers that were hoping to grow their business after Samsung switched to multi-camera systems haven’t been as lucky, and many of them are on the verge of losing their business entirely.

Samsung’s aggressive cost-saving strategies go beyond camera lenses

Samsung, like many other smartphone makers, is looking for ways to cut production costs. And to this end, the company’s been outsourcing the production of more smartphone models to ODMs and began acquiring more parts — OLED panels and batteries — from Chinese suppliers, including TCL, BOE, and ATL.

Word is that more TCL and BOE panels will be used for future low and mid-range smartphone models, while ATL batteries will reportedly power the Galaxy S22 series. And although there were rumors of a possible collaboration with Japanese camera manufacturer Olympus for the Galaxy S22 series’ camera system, they were later denied by the company.

Getting back to South Korean lens suppliers, industry watchers are worried that companies from China who benefit from supplying modules to Samsung could end up dominating the segment, similar to how LCD manufacturers did.

An unnamed industry official cited by The Elec went as far as claiming that if the domestic lens industry doesn’t improve, “it will be a burden on Samsung Electronics.”

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SamMobile Weekly Giveaway: Get your hands on the Galaxy Buds Live!

We have the Galaxy Buds Live on offer in our latest SamMobile Weekly Giveaway. It remains one of the best Samsung earbuds in 2021 and with good reason.

We mentioned in our Galaxy Buds Live review that comfort is one of the biggest selling points of these earbuds. The unique design allows for a very comfortable listening experience. The Galaxy Buds Live also happen to be the first Samsung earbuds to support Active Noise Cancellation.

SamMobile members from across the globe and enter using the widget below for a chance to win the Galaxy Buds Live. The winner will be announced on October 6, 2021.

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[Result] SamMobile Weekly Giveaway: It’s your chance to win a Galaxy Fit 2!

Need a little help with your workouts? Samsung’s Galaxy Fit 2 is just the perfect device for you. It’s up for grabs in our latest SamMobile Weekly Giveaway.

In addition to the many advanced tracking features that the Galaxy Fit 2 offers, the device can even automatically detect five different activities. There’s even sleep tracking functionality. A single charge is enough to make the device last for up to 15 days.

Simply follow the steps mentioned in the widget below to submit an entry for the giveaway. The winner will be announced on September 29, 2021.

Result: Congratulations to Rui Santos for winning the Galaxy Fit 2. We’ll get your prize out to you right away. Everyone else can try their luck in next week’s giveaway!

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Galaxy S22 has the same battery supplier as the Galaxy Note 7

What comes to your mind when someone mentions the Galaxy Note 7? It’s probably the device’s flawed battery that was a fire hazard. The battery was the entire reason why Samsung had to discontinue the Galaxy Note 7 weeks after it was released.

Samsung reevaluated its battery supply chain after the incident. It ceased all business with a Chinese supplier that supplied a chunk of those batteries. That same supplier has gradually been brought back into the chain. Now it has emerged that the Galaxy S22 series is also going to use batteries from the same supplier.

ATL and Samsung SDI both supplying batteries for the Galaxy S22 series

China’s Amperex Technology Limited (ATL) was one of the suppliers for the Galaxy Note 7’s batteries alongside Samsung SDI. ATL was cut off from Samsung’s battery supply chain following the incident.

Samsung has since put in place rigorous safety measures to ensure there’s never a repeat of that embarrassing episode. ATL might have been able to meet Samsung’s strict standards as the Korean giant has reopened its business relationship with the company.

Batteries from ATL are currently being used in Galaxy A/M series smartphones, Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Buds wearables. ATL has even supplied batteries for Samsung’s flagship models. The Galaxy S21 series utilizes batteries from both ATL and Samsung SDI.

Korean media is reporting that ATL and Samsung SDI will also supply batteries for the upcoming Galaxy S22 lineup. The fact that Samsung is using ATL once again for its flagship models shows that its technology and safety has continued to improve.

The Samsung SDI-made Galaxy S22 battery has already leaked online. It has a rather disappointing 3,700mAh capacity, a 300mAh decline compared to the Galaxy S21’s 4,000mAh battery.

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Samsung and Apple have canceled their OLED iPad project

There have been multiple rumors about an OLED iPad being released next year. Apple was reportedly working with Samsung on the OLED panel for the tablet. That was hardly surprising as Samsung’s is the dominant supplier of OLED displays.

However, it appears that there has been a change of plan. The latest reports suggest that Apple and Samsung have given up on this project for now. This means that there probably won’t be an OLED iPad next year.

Apple and Samsung can’t seem to agree, what else is new?

Apple was reportedly going to launch its first iPad with an OLED display in 2022. It would have featured a 10.86-inch panel supplied by Samsung. This tablet was supposedly the successor to the existing iPad Air. In 2023, Apple was then expected to launch 11-inch and 12.9-inch OLED iPad Pro models.

The latest reports out of South Korea suggest that the 10.86-inch OLED display project has been cancelled by Samsung and Apple. The reason remains a mystery with some claiming it may have to do with profitability issues or the single stack structure of the OLED panel.

The single stack OLED panel structure is most widely used currently. The RGBs form a single emission layer. In a two stack tandem structure, which Apple had reportedly asked for, there are two RGB emission layers stacked on top of each other. This is said to deliver a 2x increase in brightness and 4x in panel life.

Samsung Display proposed a single stack structure despite the request from Apple. It has commercialized single stack only so far. Unless Samsung Display knows that the 10.86-inch OLED iPad will sell well and for a long time to come, preparing the back-end process for the two stack structure would be very costly.

Samsung Display is right to be concerned about its profitability in the face of such uncertainty. Apple has had to pay the company penalties in the past for not buying as many displays as it was supposed to.

Apple could get the panel from LG Display that’s making two stack OLEDs for its automotive clients. However, its production capacity is limited and may not be able to provide the kind of numbers Apple would need for a new iPad.

It remains unclear what will become of the OLED iPad in the face of these supply chain issues. Perhaps the two companies will work something out that will enable the device to hit the market in 2023.

Apple is quite late to the OLED tablet game. Some of the best Samsung tablets have OLED displays, they’ve actually had them since 2011, when Samsung’s first OLED tablet was released.

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Galaxy Z Flip 3’s biggest advantage could soon be killed by Huawei

Back in 2019, it felt that the only company that could go toe-to-toe with Samsung in the foldables market was Huawei. Samsung was showing off the first Galaxy Z Fold at the event. Not far from its booth, Huawei had the Mate X foldable on display.

A lot changed in the coming months. Huawei’s troubles with the US government dented its ability to compete. It even had trouble securing vital components made by its suppliers that needed to seek US approval. The company has continued to work on foldable smartphones, though. It now has the Galaxy Z Flip 3 in its sights.

Huawei has a Galaxy Z Flip 3 competitor in the works

Rumors out of China suggest that the Huawei Mate V foldable might be unveiled this year. This is said to be a clamshell foldable like the Galaxy Z Flip series. The first rumors about the Mate V can actually be traced as far back as early 2020. That’s when it first emerged that Huawei might have a competitor for Samsung’s clamshell foldable.

Details on the specs of this device remain slim at this point in time. It’s believed that the Huawei Mate V will use the company’s latest and most powerful Kirin 9000 chipset. No details about the display size, cover display, batter, 5G support, etc are available right now.

The biggest advantage of the Galaxy Z Flip 3 is that it has no real competitor. The reincarnated Moto Razr could barely keep up with the original Galaxy Z Flip. It’s no match for Samsung’s latest clamshell.

Could the Huawei Mate V threaten that advantage? Huawei still faces significant hurdles in selling phones outside of China. It also remains cut off from Google Play Services. Unless those issues are resolved, the Mate V is really only going to threaten the Galaxy Z Flip 3 on Huawei’s home soil.

Huawei does have an event lined up next month where it’s expected to unveil new devices. Perhaps it may show off a glimpse of the new foldable at the event.

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Galaxy S22 battery capacity confirmed, get ready for disappointment

The Galaxy S22 series could be unveiled in January 2022. However, months ahead of its release, the phone’s design and almost all of its specifications have been leaked. The Galaxy S22’s battery capacity was reported two weeks ago, and now, the battery capacity has been confirmed.

A Samsung battery with model number EB-BS901ABY has been certified by the South Korean certification agency. Going by its model number, it will be used in the Galaxy S22, which has model number SM-S901B. The battery has a rated capacity of 3,590mAh, and its typical capacity is 3,700mAh. This is a 300mAh downgrade compared to the Galaxy S21’s 4,000mAh battery.

It is being rumored that the Galaxy S22 will sport a 6.06-inch display that is smaller than the Galaxy S21’s 6.2-inch display. It could also use a more power-efficient Exynos 2200 processor. However, despite a more power-efficient display and processor, a 3,700mAh battery might not be enough, and the battery life may be shorter than the Galaxy S21. If you were thinking of upgrading to the Galaxy S22, you may be disappointed by its battery life.

The upcoming high-end smartphone could have a 10MP selfie camera at the front and a 50MP+12MP+10MP triple-camera setup at the rear. It is expected to feature an in-display fingerprint reader, stereo speakers, an IP68 rating, and wireless charging. The Galaxy S22 will be restricted to 25W fast charging, while the Galaxy S22+ and the Galaxy S22 Ultra will be upgraded to 45W.

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Samsung has almost finalized its $17 billion semiconductor plant in Austin

Based on what we know so far, Samsung’s expansion plans in the United States are still all over the place. Rumour had it that Samsung was looking at multiple locations for its $17 billion plant.

Now a new report from Reuters tells us that the company has zeroed in on Texas. Sources familiar with the matter have told the news agency that Samsung is ‘close’ to finalizing the deal with local authorities.

Looks like Samsung might announce its decision soon

Samsung’s decision to stick with Texas makes logistical sense, given that it already has a manufacturing unit in the state. Whether or not it will expand upon its existing infrastructure remains to be seen. However, one source is confident that Samsung has chosen Williamson County in Austin as the location.

We previously learned that Samsung would manufacture some of its 5nm parts in Austin, Texas, very likely at the upcoming location. The 6-million-square-foot plant will reportedly cost upwards of $17 billion and will start producing wafers en-masse sometime in 2024.

While the 5nm node is somewhat cutting-edge today, things will be a lot different in 2024. Under ideal conditions, TSMC’s 2nm node should be operational by that time. Nonetheless, we can expect to see many mid-range smartphone chips and other peripherals use the node.

Samsung is still miles behind TSMC when it comes to market share in the semiconductor market, and it’ll take more than one plant in the United States for it to catch up.

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Second Galaxy S21 One UI 4.0 beta could come next week

Samsung was pretty quick with rolling out the Android 12 and One UI 4.0 beta program for the Galaxy S21 series. While the Galaxy S20’s One UI 3.0 beta program kicked off in early October last year, the One UI 4.0 beta for the Galaxy S21, S21+, and S21 Ultra was released mid-September.

However, Samsung is taking its sweet time with releasing newer One UI 4.0 beta builds, and the second one may not arrive until next week. That’s according to Samsung’s beta operations manager, who broke the news on the company’s community forums. The second beta was apparently supposed to release this week, but that is no longer happening.

In return for making us wait, Samsung will be trying to make the new build as stable as possible. Not that the initial One UI 4.0 beta is too unstable. It’s actually not bad for use as a daily driver, though naturally, everyone’s experience will differ and there could be many serious bugs that, even if they are affecting a small number of users, need to be ironed out before the public rollout (which is set to happen before the end of the year).

The second One UI 4.0 beta could also be the first one released in markets where the beta program is yet to kick off, such as India and Poland, but that’s just speculation for now. It also remains to be seen when Samsung will let owners of other Galaxy flagships test the new version of Android and One UI, but we’ll let you know as soon as we learn more.

In the meantime, check out the video below to see all the new features you can expect when Android 12 and One UI 4.0 come to your Galaxy smartphone or tablet.

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South Koreans can now register to buy the Galaxy Watch 4 Thom Browne Edition

Samsung had unveiled Thom Browne Edition variants of the Galaxy Z Flip 3 and the Galaxy Z Fold 3 in August. Both smartphones come bundled with the Galaxy Watch 4 Classic Thom Browne Edition. Last week, the company revealed a standalone version of the Galaxy Watch 4 Classic Thom Browne Edition in Korea. Now, registrations to buy the smartwatch have opened.

South Korean users can now register themselves to buy the Galaxy Watch 4 Classic Thom Browne Edition. The registration process will be available on Samsung’s website until 6 PM KST today. Not everyone who registers will get to buy the smartwatch, though. Samsung will announce some lucky winners tomorrow at 9 AM KST, and they can buy the smartwatch till 6 PM KST.

The Galaxy Watch 4 Classic Thom Brown Edition smartwatch is priced at KRW 950,000 (around $800) in South Korea. Samsung has been displaying this smartwatch at Samsung Delight Shop, Samsung Digital Plaza Hongdae Main Store, Samsung Daechi Main Store, Hyundai Department Store Apgujeong Main Store, and the Thom Browne Store in South Korea.

The limited-edition smartwatch will only be available in a 42mm version with Bluetooth-only connectivity. It comes with three watch bands (fabric, leather, and rubber) with the signature Thom Browne theme. Even the wireless charger that comes inside the box has a tri-colored stripe.

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Samsung’s budget Galaxy A03 passes the FCC with 5,000 mAh battery

Samsung’s got another entry-level Galaxy A series phone in the works. It’s possibly going to be called the Galaxy A03, and it’s now taken a step closer to an official launch by grabbing certification from the FCC.

The FCC certification gives us a basic outline of the A03’s design and mentions a 5,000 mAh battery, along with the usual details on its network connectivity (there’s no 5G, in case you’re wondering). 5,000 mAh batteries are pretty standard across Samsung’s budget Galaxy A smartphones, and it seems the A03 will do nothing to change that.

The Galaxy A03 features a UNISOC processor

However, the A03 will bring a notable change elsewhere: It will use a chip from UNISOC instead of MediaTek. The former is a Chinese chipmaker that was previously called Spreadtrum and makes unexciting low-end processors that have powered other Galaxy smartphones in the past, and you can expect the A03 to leave everyone unimpressed with its performance.

To be specific, the A03 will be powered by the Unisoc SC9863A chipset, as revealed by its Geekbench listing. The base model will come with 2GB of RAM, and going by the Galaxy A02, a variant with 3GB of RAM will probably be offered, as well. On the software side, the A03 will come running Android 11, likely with the Core version of One UI 3.1 that strips out all of the interesting Samsung features.

The Galaxy A02’s release date is unknown at the moment, but we can expect it to arrive sometime before the end of the year considering it’s already made the trip to the FCC.

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Samsung is getting rid of evidence of the Galaxy S21 FE’s existence

The Galaxy S21 FE release has become the biggest “will it, won’t it?” question for fans. It was initially expected that this handset would arrive in August. That didn’t happen. September was then the predicted timeframe. That didn’t happen either.

Despite multiple signs pointing to an impending launch, it seems that the Galaxy S21 FE might never see the light of day. Samsung is even getting rid of the evidence now, making it seem like the Galaxy S21 FE never existed in the first place.

Galaxy S21 FE support pages have been deleted

There has been no shortage of Galaxy S21 FE leaks over the past few months. We’ve seen leaked renders, user manuals, carrier listing and even mentions of the device on Samsung’s own website.

Whenever a new Samsung device is due, the company adds support pages for it across its websites. Support pages for the Galaxy S21 FE started appearing not too long ago. They mentioned the device’s SM-G990B model number. It was only of the biggest indications that the Galaxy S21 FE not only existed but would soon hit the market.

It appears that Samsung has now started deleting these support pages. The pages on Samsung’s websites for Hong Kong, Singapore, South Africa, Levant and other markets are now gone. They just display a message that the “link is now unavailable.”

It’s not surprising to see this happening two days after it was reported that Samsung is now thinking about cancelling the Galaxy S21 FE. The chip shortage might be a reason behind this decision.

Both the Galaxy S21 FE and Galaxy Z Flip 3 need the same processor, the Snapdragon 888. Since the Galaxy Z Flip 3 is selling better than Samsung had expected, the company wants to cut the Galaxy S21 FE loose to let the foldable ride the wave.

That’s disappointing but it’s not like we didn’t see it coming. Samsung ditched the Note series to focus on foldables this year. The Galaxy S21 FE is just small potatoes compared to the behemoth the Note series is/was.

Thanks, @natxobaraja!

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Samsung’s newest rehashed smartphone is now official in India

Samsung has launched the Galaxy F42 5G in India. The mid-range smartphone is a rehashed Galaxy A22 5G and features a big display with a 90Hz refresh rate and a triple-camera setup at the rear. It supports 12 5G bands and comes in two memory configurations: 6GB RAM + 128GB storage and 8GB RAM + 128GB storage. It is available in Matte Aqua & Matte Black colorways.

The 6GB RAM version of the Galaxy F42 5G is priced at INR 20,999 (around $285), while the 8GB RAM variant costs INR 22,999 (around $310). However, Samsung will sell the smartphone with an introductory price of just INR 17,999, and this price will be valid during Flipkart’s Big Billion Day Sale 2021. The phone will be available from October 3. It can also be purchased via Samsung India’s website and app.

The Galaxy F42 5G features a 6.6-inch IPS LCD Infinity-V display with Full HD+ resolution and a 90Hz refresh rate. The device is equipped with the MediaTek Dimensity 700 processor, 6GB/8GB RAM, 128GB internal storage, and a microSD card slot. It runs Android 11 with One UI 3.1 out of the box and will get two major Android OS updates in the future. It is powered by a 5,000mAh battery and supports 15W fast charging.

At the front, the new smartphone sports an 8MP selfie camera. At the rear, it has three cameras: 64MP primary camera with PDAF, a 5MP ultrawide camera, and a 2MP depth sensor. Other Galaxy F42 5G features include Dolby Atmos, a dual-SIM card slot, LTE, GPS, Wi-Fi b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 5.0, USB Type-C port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.

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