Check out Spigen’s prototype cases for the Galaxy Fold

As the release date for the Galaxy Fold inches closer, case makers are busy developing cases to have them ready when the foldable device goes on sale. Spigen, one of the well-known brands in this space, has released mock-ups of three cases – Tough Armor, Ultra Hybrid, and Thin Fit – for the Fold. The cases, which are made out of plastic and silicone materials, will offer varying levels of protection and will be priced at around $20 when launched.

The core design of all the three cases is similar, with a hinge and cutouts for the cover display and the triple-camera setup. Given how critical the hinge is in ensuring seamless opening and closing of the Galaxy Fold, it is safe to say the quality of the hinge alone can decide the fate of these cases. The company says it is still developing these cases and intends to launch them in mid-April.

Making cases for the Galaxy Fold is relatively easy

Since the Galaxy Fold is not yet available for sale, Spigen has developed these cases based on the measurements revealed by Samsung. Spigen says they started working on the cases even before the Fold was officially announced. The company reportedly developed around 20 different prototypes to account for all rumors and possibilities.

Interestingly, making cases for the book-like foldable design of the Galaxy Fold might be the easiest of all the foldable designs we have seen so far. The foldable devices shown by Huawei, Xiaomi, and OPPO present a much bigger challenge to case makers as the display folds on the outside. It will be interesting to see how case makers will overcome that challenge.

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Fortnite’s exclusive Galaxy Skin redemption period will get over on March 7

Samsung had announced an exclusive Galaxy Skin for Fortnite characters during the launch of the Galaxy Note 9 last year. The exclusive Fortnite outfit was available for Note 9 and Tab S4 owners. However, the free redemption period of the skin is now coming to an end. Samsung US recently announced that the “Galaxy Skin will be officially vaulted on March 7.”

Fortnite iKONIC Skin for the Galaxy S10

Galaxy Note 9 and Tab S4 owners are now left with only a few days to redeem their exclusive Fortnite skin. The free redemption period will end on March 7 2019, a day before the Galaxy S10 gets released. Samsung, however, is yet to specify if the Galaxy Skin will be available to buy from the item shop or not.

Though this exclusive Note 9-Fortnite collaboration is coming to an end, it is not like Samsung is terminating its partnership with Epic Games, the production house behind Fortnite, altogether. In fact, the company is expanding the partnership with the Galaxy S10 as well.

Samsung has announced that customers who pre-order the Galaxy S10+ will receive an exclusive iKONIC Fortnite skin. The company has also laid out iKONIK skin redemption steps on its official website. This Fortnite skin is modeled after Jung Chan-woo from South Korean band iKon.

Attention #GalaxyNote9 and #TabS4 owners.
The Galaxy Skin will be officially vaulted on 3/7. This is your last chance to get this exclusive outfit, so redeem yours today.

— Samsung Mobile US (@SamsungMobileUS) March 1, 2019

Galaxy Note 9

• Model: SM-N960F
• Dimensions: 161.9 x 76.4 x 8.8mm
• Display: 6.4" (162.5mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 9810
• Camera: 12 CMOS Dual OIS (F1.5/F2.4) & Telephoto: 12MP AF F2.4)

More specifications

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Galaxy S10 gets Netflix HDR certification, Galaxy M devices get HD support

Netflix is adding HDR support to the new Galaxy S10 family. All of the three Galaxy S10 phones can now play Netflix videos in HD and HDR10. The video streaming service is expanding HD support to the newly launched Galaxy M series as well. The devices, Galaxy M10, M20, and M30, are Samsung’s latest budget smartphones.

Galaxy S10 gets Netflix HDR certification

Netflix is one of the most widely used streaming services around the world. And whenever a new major Android smartphone gets launched, Netflix certifies it with either HD or HDR support, provided it comes with Widevine L1 support out-of-the-box. The Galaxy S10 and the Galaxy M-series devices are the latest Samsung devices to get the Netflix certification.

The Galaxy S10, S10e, and the S10+ have been certified to support streaming video content in both HD and HDR10. With this support, Galaxy S10 users with the necessary Netflix account tier will be able to watch videos in the best possible quality. The lower-end Galaxy M-series devices, meanwhile, will support video streaming in HD only.

In addition to these devices, Netflix is also expanding HD support to devices running some of Qualcomm’s latest chipset. Smartphones running the Snapdragon 675, Snapdragon 710, or the Snapdragon 855 are now pre-certified to stream Netflix videos in HD, provided they also ship with Widevine L1 support.

Galaxy S10e

• Model: SM-G970F
• Dimensions: 69.9 x 142.2 x 7.9mm
• Display: 5.8” (146.5mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 9820 Octa
• Camera: 12 MP, CMOS F1.5/F2.4 (77°) & 16MP, CMOS F2.2 (123°)Ultra Wide

More specifications

Galaxy S10

• Model: SM-G973F
• Dimensions: 70.4 x 149.9 x 7.8mm
• Display: 6.1"(157.5mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 9820 Octa
• Camera: 12 MP.CMOS F2.4 45° Telephoto & 12MP F1.5 77° & 16MP F2.2 123° Ultra-wide

More specifications

Galaxy S10 Plus

• Model: SM-G975F
• Dimensions: 74.1 x 157.6 x 7.8mm
• Display: 6.4"(162.5mm) Super AMOLED
• CPU: Exynos 9820 Octa
• Camera: 12 MP.CMOS F2.4 45° Telephoto & 12MP F1.5/F2.4 77° & 16MP F2.2 123° Ultra-wide

More specifications

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T-Mobile Galaxy Note 9 Android Pie update rolling out

There’s good news for those who have been waiting for the T-Mobile Galaxy Note 9 Android Pie update. The carrier started testing the update for this handset last week and is finally rolling it out now. The testing stage comes after development in T-Mobile’s software update program.

So once it entered testing it was evident that T-Mobile would roll it out soon. The carrier hasn’t been the quickest to release Android Pie for this device. Both AT&T and Sprint have already released the Android Pie update for the Galaxy Note 9 on their networks.

T-Mobile Galaxy Note 9 Android Pie rolling out now

T-Mobile has already released the Android Pie update for the Galaxy S9 and the Galaxy S9+. It currently lists the Galaxy S8, S8+, S8 Active, Galaxy Note 8, Galaxy J7 Star and the Galaxy A6 in the development stage. What that means is it’s going to be a while before these devices get their taste of Pie.

Once the firmware is done with the development stage, T-Mobile runs several tests on it. This is to find any bugs and fix them before the firmware is sent out to the public. It’s only rolled out once the carrier is reasonably sure that the update is bug-free.

It seems to have made that conclusion as firmware version N960U1UEU1CSB3 is now being rolled out by the carrier for the Galaxy Note 9. This will be a phased rollout so not all users will receive it at the same time. It should, however, go live for all Galaxy Note 9 users on T-Mobile in the not too distant future.

In addition to the Pie goodness and Samsung’s One UI, this update also brings new e911 call flow, a compass calibration fix and a BYOD update. Galaxy Note 9 users can now head over to the Software update section of the Settings app to manually check for the update. It’s also available for download from our firmware section.

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Galaxy S10 storage misses out on faster UFS 3.0 standard

It was rumored last year that the Galaxy S10 storage might adopt the faster UFS (Universal Flash Storage) 3.0 standard. It was announced earlier in the year and the Galaxy S10 was expected to be Samsung’s first smartphone to ship with UFS 3.0.

That’s not going to be the case, though. A teardown of the Galaxy S10 shows that it does not come with UFS 3.0. It sticks with UFS 2.1, the same standard Samsung has used on devices like the Galaxy Note 9.

Galaxy S10 storage doesn’t use the faster UFS 3.0 standard

The UFS 3.0 standard offers double the bandwidth compared to UFS 2.1. It has a data rate of 11.6Gbps per lane for a maximum peak data transfer rate of 23.2Gbps with two lanes. The new 2.5V power supply mode also makes it more power efficient as it reduces consumption. What this means in simple words is that storage solutions based on this standard will be faster while needing less power.

Samsung confirmed at Qualcomm’s 4G/5G Summit in Hong Kong last October that UFS 3.0 storage will ship in products in the first half of 2019. The company didn’t mention the Galaxy S10 by name. It was assumed that the company was referring to its upcoming flagship smartphone.

It wasn’t, actually. TechInsights’ teardown confirms that neither the Galaxy S10 nor the Galaxy S10+ features the UFS 3.0 storage. The teardown found the same Samsung KLUDG4U1EA-B0C1 128GB UFS 2.1 flash memory that has previously been seen on the Galaxy Note 9 and other smartphones. It goes without saying that it’s out of the question for the Galaxy S10e to have UFS 3.0 storage.

The first Samsung smartphone with UFS 3.0 storage will actually be the Galaxy Fold. The company mentions UFS 3.0 storage in the official specs table for its foldable smartphone. Samsung will release the Galaxy Fold next month with prices starting at $1,980. It will be made available in select markets and the retail experience will be carefully controlled as well.

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Galaxy A90 with its 48-megapixel camera may only be available in China

We have known for a while now that Samsung’s new A series includes the Galaxy A90 which is set to arrive later this year. Earlier reports have suggested that Samsung will opt for a no-notch approach for this device. It’s expected to feature a sliding, rotating mechanism for the camera.

Some additional information has surfaced regarding this device out of China. It’s claimed that the Galaxy A90 is going to have a 48-megapixel camera and that it will only be available in China initially.

Galaxy A90 development being led by the China team

Noted Chinese leakster Ice Universe tweeted today that the Galaxy A90 is an “independent design of the Chinese team.” This would suggest that the development of this device is being led by Samsung’s team in China. It’s also claimed that this device will only be made available in the Chinese market “in the short term.” So it’s possible that Samsung might eventually launch the Galaxy A90 in other markets as well.

Rumors about a unique camera mechanism for this handset have been reiterated as well. The “lifting rotary camera solution” is not something we’ve seen on a Galaxy device before. The Galaxy A90 will supposedly have just one camera system which could be used as the selfie and the rear camera. You’d just slide it out and rotate it as per your shooting requirements.

No technical details about the 48-megapixel sensor have been provided. Samsung did unveil the 48-megapixel ISOCELL Bright GM1 sensor in October last year. It’s a 0.8-micrometer (μm) pixel image sensor that can deliver light sensitivity comparable to a 1.6μm-pixel image sensor at 12-megapixel. Samsung started mass production of this sensor in Q4 2018. It’s a possibility that this sensor may be used for the Galaxy A90.

We have already revealed the colors and storage details of the Galaxy A90 exclusively. Additional information about this new handset should surface in the coming weeks.

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Samsung reportedly sends foldable display samples to Apple and Google

Samsung will release the Galaxy Fold next month. The foldable display panel for this innovative new device is made by Samsung Display. The company already has a significant position in the mobile OLED display market and it’s now looking to win customers for foldable displays as well.

According to a new report out of South Korea, Samsung Display has sent samples of foldable display to Apple and Google. This doesn’t mean that those companies are planning to release such a device in the near future. What it does show is that Samsung would want them to choose its display if they ever decide to do so.

Foldable display samples reportedly sent to Apple and Google

The foldable display sample that Samsung has sent to Apple reportedly has a 7.2-inch panel which is 0.1-inch smaller than the 7.3-inch panel on the Galaxy Fold. The same is also said to have been delivered to Google. It’s unclear if and when Apple will decide to jump on the foldable bandwagon itself. However, the company does source panels from Samsung for its OLED iPhones. There won’t be anything stopping it to get foldable panels from Samsung Display as well.

Google is becoming an increasingly competitive player in the hardware market with its Pixel devices. So it may eventually decide to launch a foldable smartphone of its own. Google has also worked with Samsung to optimize the user interface for the Galaxy Fold. It is evidently preparing the Android platform for the eventual proliferation of foldable devices.

Samsung Display certainly seeks to benefit from the industry’s shift to this form factor. It would obviously prefer if OEMs opt for its foldable panel going forward. The report mentions that the company can produce 200,000 units of foldable displays every month or 2.4 million units annually. It’s now said to be considering an expansion in the production capacity to the level of 10 million units per year in anticipation for future demand.

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