Tab S 2 receives Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Certification

The Galaxy Tab S won raving reviews after its release last August, with Samsung having achieved its lightest and brightest (resolution-wise) display we’ve seen yet. Its successor, the Tab S 2, has appeared in GFX benchmarks some weeks ago, but a new report suggests that the tablet is soon to arrive on the market.

Samsung has certified a device with the model number SM-T817V with Wi-Fi onboard on April 9, 2015. The SM-T817V is close in model number to the SM-T815 device we’ve seen in benchmarks several weeks ago, leading us to believe that the 9.7-inch Tab S 2 is on its way. The Tab S 2 (9.7-inch), alongside of its Wi-Fi certification, has also been certified to provide Bluetooth 4.1, the latest in Bluetooth low-energy technology.

The Bluetooth certification is where things turn interesting. While the SM-T815 model number is certified on April 9, 2015, there is an SM-T815C device certified the following day (April 10, 2015), with an SM-T817V and an SM-T817A certified on April 10th and April 16th, respectively. We do know that Samsung does release different model numbers for different variants of each device, and the same could be said for these four tablet model numbers.

The Tab S 2 is expected to continue Samsung’s cutting-edge tradition, with Samsung bringing its 4:3 aspect ratio to its high-end tablets and small-end tablets this year. This means that the 2014 Tab S resolution of 2,560 x 1,600p will give way to a 2048 x 1536p tablet this year, matching the resolution of Apple’s iPad Air 2. The Tab S 2 will also feature a 2MP front camera, 8MP back camera, a 1.9Ghz, octa-core processor (perhaps the Exynos 7420 or the Exynos 5433), 3GB of RAM, and 32GB of storage. Android 5.0.2 Lollipop is onboard.

The Tab S told us to “tab into color,” and we’re sure the Tab S 2 will exceed expectations. Samsung may give the Tab S a summer 2015 release, but it could be August before we see it arrive to market. Stay tuned to SamMobile as we bring you more details on the Tab S 2.

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Fido Canada and Virgin Mobile Canada now stocking Galaxy S6 and S6 edge

Samsung’s Galaxy S6 and S6 edge devices just launched worldwide last Friday (one week ago from today), but some customers have had to wait because some carriers have had to wait.

While Rogers, TELUS, and Bell Canada all had first dibs on their devices, Fido Canada and Virgin Mobile Canada had to “take a number” to wait for their turn to start stocking and selling Samsung’s latest. Fortunately, that wait ends today. If you’re a Canada resident and are willing to sign a two-year agreement with either carrier, then you’re in luck: both devices are now available for purchase from these two carriers.

Fido Canada currently has the off-contract Galaxy S6 edge selling for $850 off-contract, $650 with a standard two-year agreement, $550 with a two-year Smart plan, and $350 with a two-year MAX plan. The $350 MAX price is for the 32GB, since Fido’s only selling the 32GB Galaxy S6 edge for now. Fido’s Galaxy S6 will retail for $750 off-contract, $550 with a standard two-year agreement, $450 with a two-year Smart plan, and $250 with a two-year MAX plan. The $250 MAX deal is for the 32GB model, and the 64GB and 128GB models on the MAX plan will cost $360 and $470, respectively.

Virgin Mobile Canada is only selling the 32GB Galaxy S6 edge in Black Sapphire and White Pearl, with customers paying $829.99 for the month-to-month agreement or $349.99 on a Platinum Plan (requires two-year agreement). The Galaxy S6 will cost $729.99 on the month-to-month agreement, or $249.99 with a Platinum two-year plan. Virgin Mobile’s got a few other perks involved, such as a $250 credit when you trade in your old smartphone as well as free activation for your new Galaxy S6 or S6 edge (activation fee waiver for a limited time only). Keep in mind you’ll pay $4.99 for the SIM card charge, however.

So, Fido and Virgin Mobile customers, who’s picking up these “hot potatoes”?

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You’d have to be out of this galaxy to buy this Galaxy

The Galaxy S6 and S6 edge have highlighted Samsung’s sophisticated side, one that some reviewers and analysts have been waiting to see for years. The statement “Apple-level polish” has been used to describe the Galaxy S6 edge by one reviewer, with others finding an interest in the two new models that hadn’t been present since earth knows when. Reports continue to pour in that suggest that Samsung’s Galaxy S6 edge should’ve been the flagship device, with daily selling-out numbers confirming the same.

Well, one retailer in particular has decided to take the Galaxy S6 edge hype to a whole new level: one that starts in this galaxy but ends in another. Kickmobiles Ltd. has placed a special edition 128GB Gold Platinum Galaxy S6 edge on eBay that retails for the premium price of $7,989. You’re reading the price right: this phone retails for the price of about two or three months’ income from your daily job!

You may think to yourself, “you’d have to be out of this galaxy to buy this Galaxy,” but there’s a reason behind the insanity. The phone is not the only surprise you get inside the box, since you also get a free wireless charging pad, Clear View cover, custom engraving voucher, along with a Samsung BlueHouse Invitation.

The Samsung BlueHouse Invitation is the key to this mysterious sale by Kickmobiles. The BlueHouse Invitation points to an exclusive club that allows certain members to preview Samsung’s latest technology before it officially arrives on the market. The box in which the phone is placed says “Next is 1/500,” a clear reference to the exclusivity of this Galaxy S6 edge (and the club behind the invitation). The club is “invitation-only,” meaning that one must have an invitation in order to become a previewer of Samsung’s cutting-edge technology. Even the color of the device seems to be more bronze than it does Gold Platinum. Though there is no bronze Galaxy S6 edge, the bronze color may point to its exclusivity and rarity.

We have a feeling that the 128GB Galaxy S6 edge being sold here doesn’t cost $7,989; rather, the device costs what a normal 128GB GS6 edge costs, but the BlueHouse Invitation eats up the majority of the retail price in this sale. $8,000 for a Galaxy S6 edge is a heck of a buy, but having an exclusive membership and early access to Samsung devices (for the Samsung faithful) is, like the Galaxy S6 edge, worth the cost.

If you’re a Samsung faithful who’d do anything to be part of an exclusive club, check out the links below.

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Copy and paste images and text with Samsung’s Smart Select for the Galaxy Note 3

The Galaxy Note 3 has been a fabulous device to use for the last 18 months, and its stylus and in-built functionality have won many a Galaxy user over to the “phablet” side of life. “Once you go phablet,” they say, “you’ll never go back.”

Samsung’s announcement of the Galaxy Note 4 made many a Note fan’s jaw drop when Samsung stated that Note 4 users would get the “S-Pen as Mouse” function – a new feature that allows you to use your stylus to copy and paste images and text simultaneously without having to copy and paste one image, then a sentence or two, then another image, and so on. Let’s face it: the traditional way of copy and paste needed some serious revision.

Verizon Galaxy Note 3 users now join the rest of the Note 3 crowd with yesterday’s Lollipop update, but Samsung’s given us a surprise. Yep, you guessed it: the S-Pen as Mouse function has been brought over to the Note 3 by way of a new name – Smart Select. Smart Select, as the name suggests, allows you to select images and texts in a smart fashion. After all, this is a smartphone we’re talking about, right?

Without any further ado, let’s get into additional details of Smart Select and how you can activate this on your Note 3.

Smart Select – What’s It All About?

There are two buttons that participate in Smart Select: a “view text” button that lets you see the text you’ve copied, and a “collect” button that allows you to save images and text you find so that you can paste it via Google Keep, Gmail, S Note, or share via social media.

As you start saving images and text together, you’ll see a blue “plus” symbol (+) at the top right of the screen with what looks like a square “newspaper” below it. This is the floating action button that lets you take your copied images and text everywhere you travel on the Web – even if you travel to Lollipop’s new task manager section where all your game apps and webpages are stored.

One additional piece of info: you need only draw a “square” with the stylus around the content you want to save. But first, before you attempt to draw the square, make sure you’ve clicked the “gray” button on your stylus that brings up the Air View window. Once you’ve copied images and text, you’ll have the floating action button that allows you to add new content by pressing the blue + button before adding more material to it.

The floating action button, like the Facebook chat button, can be moved around the screen so as to not disturb your reading focus.

How do I enable Smart Select?

Smart Select (or S-Pen as Mouse, the formal Note 4 feature name) can be enabled by pulling your stylus out from the phone – at which point, you should see the Air View window appear on the display. From there, you can choose “Smart Select” where the Scrapbook once sat. Samsung integrated Scrapbook into the Smart Select function, and you can always save content there if you prefer.

Next, draw a square around the content on the page you want to copy and save. You’ll see a blue button with what looks like a “drop” arrow (the collection button). Select it, and the image and/or text will be saved in a floating square at the top right of the page.

That’s it. When done, press the floating action “plus” button, and you’ll get the choice to 1) save the content to Scrapbook, 2) share it to cloud storage providers, email, Facebook, Google Keep, Message app, S Note, and even Facebook Messenger. If you decide to not save it after all, just hold down the floating square until you see a trash can at the top of the page. Samsung’s treating this like deleting an unwanted app, so it’s easy to delete the content you’ve saved.

Are you excited about the Note 4’s S-Pen as Mouse function coming to the Note 3? Did you enjoy this how-to and would love to see others like it in the future? If so, hit up the comments to let us know.

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Galaxy S6, S6 edge sales put Samsung on the offensive, Apple on the defensive

In the world of mobile tech, there are quite a few companies that catch consumer attention – but none match the fan bases of Samsung and Apple. It’s something about the rivalry between two of the biggest names in mobile tech that keeps the rivalry going strong. Yep, fans are to the Samsung-Apple rivalry what lighter fluid is to a fire.

And Samsung’s Galaxy S6 and S6 edge sales continue to impress. Today, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo (who has a well-known track record with Apple news) has confirmed what many feared about Samsung’s fruit rival: Apple may be worried about its 14-nanometer A9 processors because of Samsung’s current success.

Just what success is that? The high sales of the Galaxy S6 and S6 edge. From what we’ve gathered, Samsung’s sales of both devices look to be 40% higher than initial expectations, driven to such heights by the Galaxy S6 edge and its curved screen. Samsung’s spoken explicitly about its unexpected increase from Galaxy S6 sales and how there will be a shortage in production due to high demand. In Apple’s case, according to Kuo, Samsung’s shortage will have the Korean manufacturer occupied with meeting its own numbers – which means that the A9 Apple processor will take a backseat, and Samsung’s industry-leading 14-nanometer along with it.

At this point, Kuo’s prediction about Apple’s worry may be justified; after all, Apple desperately needs its A9 chip manufactured for iPhone sales, and the company doesn’t want to take a direct hit this year in light of the fact that its most powerful opponent is having some significant measure of success. Apple is likely concerned, considering how quickly Samsung abandoned Qualcomm upon the discovery that the international chipmaker’s Snapdragon 810 was smoke and fire – literally.

At the same time, however, Apple may not be worried at all. The company has decided to enact an emergency measure “just in case” and turn back to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), who’s been the usual “go to” chipmaker each year as Apple attempts to wean itself off Samsung.

TSMC’s processors utilize the FinFET Turbo architecture but run on a 16-nanometer process instead of Samsung’s 14-nanometer FinFET process, and Apple, who’s not yet seemed “spec-hungry” in any manner (just ask iPhone users who are officially bored with the same 8MP camera placed in the iPhone each year), may not care. If anything, Apple wants its iPhone 6s ready for primetime, whether Samsung is the reason behind it or not.

Apple may be on the defensive in all of this, and that’s not a bad thing. Perhaps Samsung’s rush of success will stir Apple to make some needed changes to the iPhone. Whatever influence Samsung will have in the future, there’s no mistaking that the iPhone 6 Plus is a testimony to Samsung’s role as trendsetter in the mobile market.

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Samsung gives Netflix to Australian Curved TV customers

Samsung has been giving Netflix subscriptions left and right since the arrival of the company’s ultra-thin Galaxy Tab S on the market last August. We saw Netflix arrive again with the company’s latest Galaxy S6 and S6 edge (with T-Mobile for T-Mobile customers). Now, Samsung is back to award its new curved TV customers with a free Netflix subscription.

There are two major caveats to this new promotion, however. First, you must live in Australia, and secondly, must purchase a curved TV. Samsung just announced its curved TVs for the country a few days ago, and Netflix just launched in Australia last month. The timing of the promotion is ideal to help Netflix get off the ground in Australia, and for Samsung to sell curved TVs.

Australians will absolutely love watching the latest and most popular shows and movies on this TV that can be streamed straight to the living room from the likes of Netflix, Presto, and Stan, said Samsung Australia Corporate VP Philip Newton.

The Netflix subscription is nice, but it’s only for six months. We would like to see Samsung bring a one-year subscription considering that its curved TVs cost a pretty penny (A$4,999 to A$24,999), but six months is all you’ll get for now. It’s likely the case that, once you’re hooked on Netflix and staring into your stunning TV display, you’ll gladly pay for the remaining six months.

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The Galaxy S6 is of Uber importance in the latest Samsung-Uber partnership

You’ve got your new Galaxy S6 and S6 edge in your hands, and Samsung now wants you to have a quality ride to match your quality smartphone. The Korean manufacturer has teamed up with transportation app company Uber to offer Galaxy S6 and S6 edge customers the opportunity to ride in style. According to Uber Mobile VP Lars Fjeldsoe-Nielsen,

Samsung users who are new to the Uber platform will enjoy their first ride for free (up to $25) via the Galaxy Gifts offer. Uber will offer discounts to users in additional countries in the coming months.

Yes, the promotion is restricted to US customers temporarily, but will roll out soon for worldwide customers. Also, as you can read for yourself in the source link below, this Galaxy S6/S6 edge offer is restricted to new customers, not existing ones. As can be expected, Uber wants to expand its customer base – and teaming up with Samsung to do so is never a bad thing.

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