Samsung extending production facilities for 3D NAND flash memories

According to a report out of Korea, Samsung is going to extend production facilities in Hwasung for 3D NAND flash memories, an endeavor that’s going to cost the company around $2.13 billion. Samsung is looking to do this in order to further cement its position in the memory market by significantly increasing production capacity starting from the second half of 2016. The memory business is one of the company’s cash cows so it makes perfect sense for it to go ahead with an expansion.

Samsung made the first investment for D-RAM production at its facilities in Hwasung. After much consideration, it has decided that the second investment should be made in the mass production of 3D NAND flash memories. Production size is expected to be about 40,000 wafers with mass production likely to start by the end of this year. Samsung also has plans to mass produce 3D NAND flash memories at its new production lines in Pyeongtaek which will be operational by next year.

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President Obama has most likely ditched his BlackBerry for a ‘hardened’ Galaxy S4

US President Barack Obama has long been known to love BlackBerry handsets. When he first claimed the White House in 2009 he pushed to keep his BlackBerry but the agency that provides communications to the White House handed him a special BB 8830 with extra security features for unclassified email and calls. The world has come a long way since 2009 and with other OEMs significantly improving their security features, BlackBerry no longer enjoys the exclusivity in government and military circles that it previously did. Obama has now been issued a new smartphone that’s not a BlackBerry, the president revealed during his appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon earlier this week, he didn’t mention the handset by name but it’s most likely a “hardened” Samsung Galaxy S4.

If it’s not a BlackBerry then it’s most likely the hardened Galaxy S4, because that is the only mobile device that’s supported by the Defense Information Systems Agency, that’s the agency that provides communication services to the White House. The Galaxy S4 is the only device that’s currently supported under the DISA’s DOD Mobility Classified Capability-Secret (DMCC-S) program, it’s the first commercial handset that was given the approval to connect to the Secret classified DOD SIPRNet network. US Secretary of State John Kerry was one of the first members of the national leadership to have been issued a hardened Galaxy S4.

It may look like a normal Galaxy S4 but it’s far from it. There are layers upon layers of additional security measures like Android apps being restricted to a selection from the DISA’s Mobile Application Store (MAS) and no user-accessible camera. The president’s hardened Galaxy S4 takes it one step further, he told Fallon that his new phone can’t even make calls, play music, or even let him text. The phone is most likely restricted to secure VoIP functionality that’s controlled from a secured external switchboard. Obama compared it to an infant’s toy phone on the show because it’s so restricted in its functionality, but as they say, with great power comes great responsibility and when you’re the president of one of the most powerful nations on the planet you have to make some sacrifices, but I’m sure he’s already well aware of that.

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Samsung is present at E3 2016 to show off its mobile gaming and VR efforts

Samsung has just announced that it is present at the ongoing E3 2016 entertainment expo that’s happening in Los Angeles as a part of its focus on mobile gaming. The company will be showcasing its efforts in the mobile gaming segment using the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, and in the mobile virtual reality space using the Gear VR.

The South Korean technology giant will be showing off gaming capabilities of the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, which are the world’s first smartphones to come equipped with Vulkan API. Devices that support Vulkan have drastically better graphical performance while offering better battery life when running compatible apps and games.

Currently, Vainglory, Need for Speed No Limits, and Hit are the games that support Vulkan on the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge. Samsung will also showcase 4D VR experience and VR gaming at its booth using the Gear VR. The company will be hosting Anshar Wars 2 (multi-player) and Land’s End (single-player) VR games.

Samsung will also bring Lil’ Wayne to the stage on Day 1 of E3 2016. On Days 2 and 3, the company has invited professional gamers to compete in a Vainglory tournament which will be broadcasted live on Twitch TV. If you are at E3 2016, don’t forget to swing by Samsung’s booth to experience next-generation mobile and VR gaming.

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Samsung executive reveals how the company became a master of global brand marketing

Younghee Lee, Samsung’s EVP of global marketing for the mobile communications business, isn’t shy to admit that not long ago consumers thought of the company as “boring and monotonous” in a market dominated by companies like Apple who have achieved global stardom for their creative marketing campaigns. Yet things have changed. Samsung has come a long way since then bagging the Cannes Lions’ Creative Marketer of the Year award in the process.

The shift in Samsung’s marketing strategy has been evident for the past couple of years and it’s paying dividends for the company. Just last year it won 27 advertising and marketing awards at the Cannes Lions and now works with creative powerhouses which include the likes of Bartle Bogle Hegarty and Wieden + Kennedy. Lee recently sat down with Adweek to talk about the changes at Samsung which have helped the company beat its biggest rival at marketing.

Lee talks about Samsung’s shift from a tech-driven engineering company to a consumer-centric lifestyle brand, pointing out that it’s imperative for all of Samsung’s great technology to be translated to consumer language, and that’s where marketing comes in. Lee says that Samsung has done a lot of research to understand what its consumers want and need, and that’s now at the core of its marketing efforts. Based on the company’s research, the top words associated with Samsung are now “innovation,”technology,” and “dynamic.” Cultural changes at the company have also impacted its marketing, she pointed towards the launch of the Galaxy S7 where Samsung conducted a mass demonstration of its Gear VR headsets and even brought on Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on stage to talk about his vision for VR with Samsung.

Samsung’s marketing priorities going forward include getting the attention of millennials, it’s already considered to be the most trustworthy company by millennials in the United States, and it will continue to focus on the story of how the smartphone is simply a gateway to a bigger world of experiences. Read Lee’s full interview over at Adweek to find out more about how Samsung is working to become a truly global marketing behemoth.

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Galaxy S7 edge extended battery case from ZeroLemon brings 8500mAh battery

ZeroLemon released an extended battery case for the Galaxy S6, a 3,500mAh battery case for the Galaxy S6 edge+ and Galaxy Note 5, and an 8,500mAh battery case for the S6 edge+ and Note 5, so ZeroLemon is no stranger to providing battery accessories for Samsung’s high-end handsets. The company is back to offer an extended battery for what has become Samsung’s most popular handset to date, the Galaxy S7 edge. The extended battery case features 4 white LED lights at the bottom of the case back that let you know when your case is charged or when you’re running low on the case’s external battery.

The Galaxy S7 edge ZeroLemon 8,500mAh extended battery case features a protector case for the battery and the phone, with an external battery being placed behind the phone in order to utilize the battery case. The external battery can be charged, with the case remaining on it, after you’ve exhausted the battery, but as a good rule of thumb, you should obey the manual instructions and charge the battery for 7 hours before using it. Let’s just say that some of us here at SamMobile have rebelled before. Charging the battery per ZeroLemon’s instructions is the best way to avoid trouble down the line.

The battery, placed behind the Galaxy S7 edge, will add bulk to what is a beautiful and slim device, but those who plan on using this extended battery case won’t care about bulk all that much (battery life comes before design, some say). Since the battery itself has a capacity that is nearly twice the amount of the S7 edge’s battery, you should be able to achieve another 3 or 4 days of battery life with light usage, and about 36-48 hours of additional battery life with heavy usage.

The price of ZeroLemon’s 8,500mAh extended battery case for the Galaxy S7 edge is going for $59.99 at Amazon (40% off), which has proven to be the sweet spot price for ZeroLemon’s extended battery cases. For a device that already has excellent battery life, this new extended battery case will add great to great.

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Samsung’s pushing out an ‘image quality’ maintenance update for the Gear 360

Samsung is in the midst of rolling out a nifty firmware update for its first 360-degree camera, the Gear 360. Unfortunately, the upgrade, which carries the build number C200GLU0APE4, doesn’t bring anything by way of added functionality to the device. Instead, it bundles a plethora of bug fixes and stability optimizations that are said to improve image quality.

However, we’ve been playing with the release for a little over a week now and are disappointed to report that the frustrating stitch line is still present in both images and videos despite Samsung’s best efforts to adjust the front and rear lenses in order to ensure that color matching is more accurate — so it’s what unclear exactly the update fixes. We have noticed a new time lapse menu on the camera, though, which enables you to set the video resolution.

To install the firmware on your Gear 360, ensure that it’s paired to your smartphone, then simply wait until you receive a push notification prompting you to install the upgrade. While you’re in the updating mood, you may also want to open up the Play Store and download the latest version of the Gear 360 Manager application (v1.0.4) to grab the freshest connectivity patches.

Be sure to keep your browser pointed to SamMobile for our comprehensive review of the Gear 360, which is set to go live next week.

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Samsung led smartphone sales in the first quarter of 2016

Samsung has retained its title of being the world’s largest smartphone vendor and when it comes down to numbers, the South Korean giant is far ahead of the competition. A new report from IC Insights shows that Samsung led the pack in smartphone shipments in the first quarter of this year with Apple predictably coming in second place.

With sales of 81.5 million units, Samsung remained the world’s largest smartphone vendor, while Apple came in second place with 51.6 million units. Huawei, Oppo, and Xiaomi complete the top five by coming third, fourth, and fifth respectively. The research firm forecasts that both Samsung and Apple will show a nominal decline in smartphone shipments for the year 2016. However, market analysts are of the view that Samsung is on its way to posting record profits in the second quarter of 2016 no doubt aided by the stellar performance of the Galaxy S7 and the Galaxy S7 edge. Samsung’s 2016 flagships are expected to cross 25 million unit sales by the end of this month.

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