Category: Samsung

Samsung Odyssey Z Gaming Laptop Officially Launched

Samsung has unveiled a new gaming laptop called the Samsung Odyssey Z. The availability of the Odyssey will be initially limited to South Korea and China. However, the company is yet to announce the pricing of the laptop. The Samsung Odyssey Z comes with the latest Intel CPU and NVIDIA GPU. Additionally, Samsung has redesigned the notebook with four fan setup for thermal management using Z AeroFlow cooling system. As the Z Blades are located on up top, the company has squeezed the keypad and trackpad in the same frame. Though this sounds like an intellectual design choice, it does look hideous.

Samsung Odyssey Z Specs

The Samsung Odyssey Z has a 15.6 inch 1920 x 1080 px IPS LCD display. Under the hood, the device is powered by the 8th Gen Intel Core i7 chipset with NVIDIA GTX 1060 MAX-P GPU. The graphics card offers up to 10% more processing power than the 1060 MAX-Q. Additionally, the notebook has up to 16GB LPDDR4 RAM and 1TB NVMe based SSD. Additionally, the notebook packs in a 1.5 Watt speaker and a red coloured backlit keypad.

To keep the device cool all the time, Samsung has incorporated a new technology called ‘Dynamic Spread Vapor Chamber’, which helps to reduce the temperature of CPU and GPU. The notebook comes with a massive 54Wh battery and a 180 Watt power adapter in the retail package. The notebook comes with plenty of connectivity options, including 3X USB A, HDMI, LAN port, and a USB type C port.

April 3, 2018
Samsung Notebook 3, Notebook 5 Officially Launched

Samsung has officially launched the Samsung Notebook 3 and Notebook 5. These notebooks will be available in South Korea from April 2018, which will be followed by a global launch in Q2 2018. The newest series of Samsung Notebooks boasts the latest 8th generation Intel chipset with 14 inch and 15.6 inch display. However, the company has not revealed the pricing of these devices. Additionally, the Notebook 3 will be available in Misty Gray, Night Charcoal, Deep Peach, and Pure White. Similarly, the Notebook 5 will available in Light Titan colour a metal body.

Samsung Notebook 5

The Samsung Notebook 5 has a 15 and 15.6 inch FHD 1920 x 1080 px IPS LCD display. This notebook comes in two variants, one with 7th Gen Dual-core chipset or an 8th Gen Quad-core chipset. These processors will be paired with NVIDIA GeForce MX150 2GB GPU with up to 16GB LPDDR4 RAM and SSD+HDD storage. The Notebook weights at 1.97 Kilogram, which includes a 43Wh battery.

Samsung Notebook 3

The Samsung Notebook 3 comes in three display sizes. One can choose between 14/15/15.6 inch display. However, unlike the Notebook 5, the display resolution has been reduced to 1280 x 720 on 14 and 15 inch models and the 15.6 inch model has FHD 1920 x 1080p panel. These notebooks come with a 7th or 8th Generation Intel Core i5/i7 chipsets with NVIDIA GeForce MX110 GPU and 16GB LPDDR4 RAM. All three variants have a 43Wh battery. Due to different screen sizes, the 15.6 inch model weighs 1.97 Kilogram and the 14 inch model weighs at 1.68 Kilogram. However, unlike the Notebook 5 model, these come in a plastic design.

April 2, 2018
Samsung Galaxy J7 2018 Specifications Leaked

Recently two new Samsung A series smartphones were officially filed on FCC. And now, the Samsung Galaxy J7 2018 has been certified by the same, which is most likely to launch in the next couple of weeks. The smartphone filed on FCC comes with a model number SM-J720, which confirms that this is a Galaxy J7 series smartphone.

According to the FCC listing, the Samsung Galaxy J7 2018 has a dimension of 153mm x 76mm x 162mm. Considering this dimension, the smartphone is likely to have a 16:9 aspect ratio display with a 5.5 inch diagonal display. Additionally, the listing also reveals that the smartphone supports 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Hotspot, and Wi-Fi Direct.

Samsung Galaxy J7 2018 Specs

The smartphone will have a 5.5 inch 1920 x 1080 px display. Under the hood, the smartphone will be powered by the new Exynos 7885 Six-core chipset. Which will be coupled with 3GB RAM and 32GB storage. In fact, this is the first smartphone, which is based on this new chipset. Additionally, the listing also reveals that the smartphone runs on Android 8 Oreo with custom Samsung Experience UI.

Looking at the chipset specs list, this looks like a successor to the Exynos 7870 chipset. A recent leak on the Exynos 7885 reveals that the chipset has a Six-core configuration with two high-performance cores based on Cortex-A73 and four efficient cores based on Cortex-A53. The processor is based on 14nm FinFET technology, which is known to offer higher thermal efficiency with great processing power.

Allegedly, there is more than one model listed on FCC. According to the listing, a difference between the latter (SM-J720M/DS and SM-J720M) will be the style of its SIM tray. Having said that, Asian market model will have a dual SIM card capability and the US model will have a single SIM card capability. In fact, in the Bluetooth filing, a model is listed as ‘Duo’, which is Samsung’s trademark word for dual-SIM smartphones.

April 2, 2018
Samsung Galaxy A6 and A6+ Spotted On FCC

The Samsung Galaxy A6 and A6+ have been extensively leaked through different channels from the past few weeks. These smartphones were initially spotted on Geekbench, then on Wi-Fi certification portal. And now, the smartphones have been officially certified by Federal Communication Commission (FCC), which hints towards an imminent launch of these devices in the USA. These devices were tested on March 19th and 20th and the certificate was issued on the 20th of March 2018.

According to FCC filing, these devices were found under the ID A3LSMA605FN and A3LSMA600FN for the Galaxy A6 and A6+. A screenshot posted on filing also confirms the model name as the Galaxy A6, which has dual SIM card slots. Both the models are running on Android 8 Oreo OS with custom Samsung Experience 9 UI. Additionally, the screenshot confirms that the device does not support fast charging, and can draw a maximum power of 7.5 watts.

Samsung Galaxy A6 Specs

The Samsung Galaxy A6 comes with a model number SM-A600FN, which is powered by Exynos 7870 Octa-core chipset. The device comes with 3GB RAM and runs on Android 8 Oreo OS. Coming to the benchmark scores, the device gets 723 points on the single core and 3605 points on the multi-core performance. The Exynos 7870 chipset has been used in the earlier Galaxy J series smartphones. However, there is no information on the display resolution or aspect ratio of both models.

Samsung Galaxy A6+ Specs

The Samsung Galaxy A6+ comes with a model number SM-A605G, which is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 Octa-core chipset. The device gets a boost in RAM, which comes with 4GB RAM and runs on latest Android 8 Oreo OS. In terms of benchmarking capabilities, the device scores marginally higher score on single core performance and go down in the multi-core performance. In fact, the phone scores 739 points on the single core and 3469 points on the multicore performance.

Samsung Galaxy A8+

March 31, 2018
Samsung Galaxy Note9 Could Launch In July This Year

Samsung recently launched the Galaxy S9/S9+ in India and the company is already gearing up for its upcoming Note flagship smartphone launch. According to a report, the company will launch the Galaxy Note9 in the month of July, that is 2 months before the usual launch date. According to the report, Samsung usually starts manufacturing display units for its Note series of the smartphone in June. However, this time around, the company will start the manufacturing of the display panels in the early April. So, the Note flagship is coming sooner than the expected date.

One more reason for this earlier launch is to compete against Apple’s three upcoming iPhone models. The report also claims that the Note9 will miss out on an In-Screen fingerprint sensor as the technology was not up to Samsung’s quality standards. However, smartphone makers like Oppo, Vivo, and Huawei have already launched a smartphone with an In-Screen fingerprint sensor.

Samsung Galaxy Note9 Specs

The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is listed on Geekbench with a model number SM-N960U. The company will manufacture the Galaxy Note 9 in two variants. One variant will feature Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 and an Exynos 9810 variant similar to the Galaxy S9/S9+. The Geekbench listing confirms some of the key specifications of the device. According to the listing, the smartphone will have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 Octa-core chipset with 6GB RAM. Additionally, the smartphone scores 2190 points on the single core and 8809 points and multi-core performance. The score is similar to the other smartphones running on the Snapdragon 845 processor. Additionally, the listing confirms that the device runs on Android 8.1 Oreo with Samsung Experience UI 9.

March 31, 2018
Samsung Smartphones With Always-On Displays Get Support For GIFs

Samsung has silently added support to showcase GIFs on its smartphones with Always on Display (AOD). Always On Display is a feature where the phone’s screen is off, except for the clock and notification icon. This features required an AMOLED panel, and it only works in the Samsung flagship series smartphones.

To get this feature working, you should have AOD application version 3.2.26.4. If you are running on the latest version, then select ‘set always on display image’ and select a GIF. However, note that the app can only rear GIF formatted pictures, not .webp. Similarly, if the GIF is too long, the app will recommend it to trim down to a specific time frame.

Once, you lock your smartphone, the GIF will animate for a once and will stay in the fixed frame after that. Additionally, one can also set a super slow motion video recorded on the Galaxy S9/S9+ as an AOD picture as well.

This feature will work on devices including, the Samsung Galaxy S9/s9+, Galaxy S8/S8+ and the Galaxy Note 8. If you are yet to receive this update and you don’t want to wait. Then, click on this link to manually download the APK and sideload it. However, we don’t recommend sideloading third-party apps as they might goof-up your smartphone.

March 31, 2018
Samsung Galaxy Note9 Specifications Leaked On Geekbench

Samsung Galaxy Note series is the most premium line of smartphones from the South Korean smartphone company. After the Note 7 fiasco, the company launched the Galaxy Note8 to great critical reception. Now, a Samsung smartphone with model number SM-N960U has been listed on Geekbench. Considering the model number of the Galaxy Note8 (SM-N950U) this looks like the upcoming Galaxy Note 9.

Samsung Galaxy Note9 Specs

Samsung will manufacture the Galaxy Note 9 in two variants. One variant will feature Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 and an Exynos 9810 variant similar to the Galaxy S9/S9+. The Geekbench listing confirms some of the key specifications of the device. According to the listing, the smartphone will have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 Octa-core chipset with 6GB RAM. Additionally, the smartphone scores 2190 points on the single core and 8809 points and multi-core performance. The score is similar to the other smartphones running on the Snapdragon 845 processor. Additionally, the listing confirms that the device runs on Android 8.1 Oreo with Samsung Experience UI 9.

Features like truly wireless charging and an In-Screen fingerprint sensor might feature on the Note 9. However, few reports are vary about the Note9 having an In-Screen fingerprint sensor. Samsung’s optical fingerprint sensor was imperfect due to uneven screen brightness. The area containing the fingerprint reader appeared brighter than the rest of the screen, which is why it eventually couldn’t make it to the Galaxy Note8.

March 29, 2018
Samsung Could Soon Introduce Over The Air Wireless Charging

Samsung is known to introduce new features on its Galaxy Note lineup. The company introduced Iris scanner on the Galaxy Note 7 and the Note 8 was the first Samsung smartphone to have dual primary camera setup. Similarly, the company might incorporate Over the Air (OTA) wireless charging on the Galaxy Note 9.

Over The Air Wireless Charging

The company had registered a patent in 2016, which explains this technology. The OTA wireless charging works differently from the present generation wireless charging. In the conventional form of wireless charging, the charging pad surface has to touch the back of the smartphone to transfer charge. However, the devices with OTA wireless charging support starts to charge, as soon as one enters into the perimeter. This means the device can charge being inside your trouser pocket.

The device with this technology will use an algorithm that focuses energy on a device, inside the OTA charging enabled room. The technology will be capable of charging the device, even if the object is moving. Additionally, this technology uses reflectors to send the power signal, which can bypass certain barriers.

This will be a breakthrough technology, which can change the way that we use and charge our smartphones. The transition from a wired-charging to OTA-wireless charging will be similar to the transition from landline to wireless phones. However, the technology is still in its nascent stage and might take at 3-4 years to come to fruition.

March 26, 2018
Samsung Galaxy A6 Details Leaked

According to Wi-Fi Alliance listing, a new Samsung smartphone has been certified to support dual channel 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz Wi-Fi bands. However, the Wi-Fi support is limited to Wi-Fi a/b/g/n and does not support latest ac standards. The device is listed with the model number SM-A6000FN. Which confirms that this is indeed the Galaxy A6 2018.

The smartphone is likely to follow the footprints of the Galaxy A8+. The Samsung Galaxy A6 is expected have a glass back, glass front, and a metallic mid-frame. Additionally, the device is likely to sport a USB type C port for charging and data syncing.

The listing does say much about the hardware specifications. However, it is mentioned that the smartphone will run on Android 8 Oreo with Samsung Experience UI. Recently a Samsung smartphone with the same model number was listed on Geekbench, which clear up on some of the specifications.

Samsung Galaxy A6 Specs

The Samsung Galaxy A6 is likely to have 5.5 inch Super AMOLED FHD+ display with 18:9 aspect ratio. Considering the 18:9 display, the smartphone is likely to have a rear-facing fingerprint sensor.

Under the hood, the smartphone will have Exynos 7870 Octa-core chipset, which powers the quite a few of mid-range Samsung devices. The processor has 8 cores with a maximum clock speed of 1.6GHz. The device scores 723 points on the single core performance and 3605 points on multicore performance. Additionally, the chipset has Mali-T830 GPU.

The phone has 3GB RAM and 32GB storage. Additionally, we are most likely to see a micro SD card slot for storage expansion. The device is expected to have a single primary camera and a dual front-facing camera similar to the Galaxy A8+. However, we are yet to get a confirmation on camera specs.

March 24, 2018
Android 8 Oreo For Samsung Galaxy Note8 Rolling Out In India

Samsung recently launched the Galaxy S9 and S9+ in India for a starting price of Rs 57,900. Concurrently, the company also started updating its already existing devices with Android 8 Oreo. The update for Galaxy S8 and S8+ was recently made available. Similarly, the company has now rolled out the same for the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 with Samsung Experience UI 9.0.

Recently, the Galaxy Note 8 devices in France started receiving Android 8 Oreo update and now Indian units have started to receive the update. The update includes security update for the month of March. The Android 8 Oreo update brings in some new features to the device with Samsung Experience UI 9.0. This update includes features like a customisable keyboard, new emojis, new stickers, and support for dual apps.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Specs

The Galaxy Note8 has a 6.3 inch 2960 x 1440 px Super AMOLED display with an 18.5:9 aspect ratio with an all-glass body and a metal frame. Powering the device is a 3300 mAh battery with wireless charging capabilities. The device has the Exynos 8895 chipset, 6GB of RAM and 128GB onboard storage. The graphics are handled by the Mali-G71 MP20 GPU. The Galaxy Note8 and the S Pen are both IP68 certified water and dust resistant and will be available in Midnight Black and Maple Gold colour variants.

The Galaxy Note8 is also the first Samsung smartphone to feature a dual-camera setup. The new Note8 has a 12MP dual-camera setup, one of which has a wide lens and the other a telephoto. The use of dual camera allows for the ability to blur out the background for bokeh effect shots. Samsung claims that the first smartphone to feature OIS in both the cameras at the back. The Samsung Galaxy Note8 also records 4K videos at 30 FPS along with high-speed video at a lower resolution. The front camera has an 8MP sensor with an f/1.7 aperture and also records 4K UHD videos at 30 FPS.

March 24, 2018
Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 Priced At Rs. 13,990 Listed on Samsung India’s Website

Samsung India has officially listed the Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 on its website for a price of Rs 13,990. But, it is listed as sold out and there are no details regarding the availability of the smartphone yet. However, considering the wallpaper, which says 26th June, the device might get official on the same date.

The device has a metal unibody design with plastic antenna bands on top and bottom. Additionally, the navigation keys have been slightly resigned with a modern look.

Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 Specs

The Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime 2 has a 5.5 inch TFT display with 16:9 aspect ratio, which is protected by 2.5D Corning Gorilla glass. Under the hood, the device has the Exynos 7870 Octa-core chipset with 3GB RAM and 32GB storage. Additionally, the storage is expandable up to 256GB using a dedicated micro SD card slot.

The phone has a 13MP primary camera with an f/1.9 aperture with 28mm focal length. For the front-facing camera, Samsung has used a similar 13MP sensor with an f/1.9 aperture. The video recording is limited to 1080 @ 30fps on both cameras. Additionally, the device has a front-facing fingerprint sensor, embedded into a home button.

The smartphone runs on Android 7 Nougat with Samsung Experience UI on top. Connectivity features like Wi-Fi/ac, Bluetooth 4.1 are also onboard. As the device misses out on the NFC sensor, it has Samsung Pay mini. The device has a 3300 mAh battery with a micro USB port that supports USB OTG.

Smartphone makers like Honor and Xiaomi have been launching smartphones with dual cameras, taller display, faster processor and much more. Devices like the Redmi Note 5 Pro and Honor 7x cost the same but have a much better hardware. The Galaxy J7 Prime 2 is nowhere near those devices in terms of specifications. However, how this device performs in the real world is yet to be seen.

March 23, 2018
Samsung Exynos 9610 Chipset Officially Announced

Samsung has officially announced the Exynos 9610 Octa-core chipset. The Exynos 9610 is a series 7 processor which uses ARM’s big.LITTLE architecture, which will power Samsung mid-tier devices. The processor is based on 10nm FinFET architecture and the mass production will start by the end of Q2 2o18.

Ben Hur, vice president of System LSI marketing at Samsung Electronics said:

The Exynos 7 Series 9610 is our latest mobile processor that delivers on added power and speed. But more importantly, it sets a new performance standard for high-end devices with its deep learning vision-image processing solution and slow-motion video capabilities that change the way we engage with our mobile devices.

Samsung Galaxy A8+ based on the Exynos 7885 chipset

Specs

The chipset has 4 high-performance A-73 cores, which handles CPU intensive tasks and applications. Similarly, the other 4 cores are based on A-53. The four high-performance cores are clocked at 2.45GHz and the four efficient cores are clocked at 1.65GHz. The graphics are handled by Mali-G72MP3 GPU.

The chipset has a new image sensing processor (ISP) that supports native 4K video recording up to 120fps. Similarly, at 1080p the chipset can record up to 480fps slow-motion video footages. Samsung claims that the chipset can reduce the noise in low light shots. Similarly, the chipset also has a dedicated AI neural engine, which can detect various objects with the ability to produce real-time bokeh.

The Exynos 9610 offers greater LTE upload and download speeds using 3-carrier aggregation. In fact, the device which possesses this processor can offer a maximum download speed of 600Mbps and upload speed of 150Mbps. Additionally, the chipset has latest Bluetooth 5.0, FM Radio, GPS, A-GPS, and BeiDou.

March 22, 2018
Some Samsung Galaxy S9/S9+ Units Suffering From A ‘Dead Spot’ Issue

Samsung recently launched the Galaxy S9 and S9+ in India at a starting price of Rs 57,900. Though there was nothing new about their design, the smartphones were praised for their camera capabilities. Now, some owners of the Galaxy S9 and S9+ have started to report display input issues. A handful of these devices have failed to register touch input and are being affected by ‘Dead Zone’. It looks like the issue was predominately found in the Galaxy S9+.

According to reports on Samsung community and Reddit, the users have described that the device failed to register the touch input in certain spots. In fact, the issue is unresolvable even after a hard reset. According to some reports, the display was unresponsive in the bottom half and for some, the top half was unresponsive.

We tested out our review unit thoroughly and we didn’t find any ‘Dead Zone.’ This could be a hardware issue related to quality control and Samsung is yet to respond.

Samsung Galaxy S9+ Specs

The Galaxy S9+ has the same screen size as the Galaxy S8+. It sports a 6.2 inch Super AMOLED display with a 2960 x 1440 px resolution. Under the hood, the device has the Exynos 9810 chipset. The Galaxy S9+ is available in 6GB RAM/64GB storage and 6GB RAM/256GB models in India. Similarly, the storage is expandable up to 400GB.

Out of the box, the Galaxy S9+ runs Android 8 Oreo with Experience 9.0 on top. Powering the smartphone is a 3500 mAh battery, just like the Galaxy S8+. The smartphone will support wireless charging as well. The Galaxy S9+ also has an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance.

The Galaxy S9+ has one wide-angle 12MP camera with an f/1.5 aperture and the other is a 12MP telephoto lens with an f/2.4 aperture. On the front of the smartphone is an 8MP camera with an f/1.6 aperture and records 4K videos. Additionally, the mobile can record slow-motion videos at 960fps with 720p resolution.

March 22, 2018
Samsung Launches The Rugged Galaxy Tab Active 2

Samsung has launched the Galaxy Tab Active 2 in the US, which is the successor of the Samsung Galaxy Active. There aren’t a lot of rugged tablets on the market, and this one from Samsung tried to fill that gaping hole. However, it doesn’t possess the best specifications out there by any stretch of the imagination. The rubber-like material will absorb the shock keeping the internal hardware and display intact. The tablet is priced at US$ 450 for the Wi-Fi version and is available on Samsung’s official website. Similarly, there is an LTE version, but the price is yet to be known.

Like most of the rugged devices, this is made to withstand various environmental conditions. Subsequently, the device is MIL-STD-810 certified with IP68 water and dust resistance rating. The retail package also includes a rugged S-Pen, which works even in wet conditions. The Galaxy Tab Active 2 can be mounted to a professional grade vehicle, which can charge via pogo pins. The pogo pins connect with the device magnetically to give a firm grip. In fact, the pogo pin looks similar to Apple’s MagSafe charger.

Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 2 Specs

The Samsung Galaxy Tab Active 2 has an 8 inch 1280 x 800 px resolution display with a 19:10 aspect ratio. Under the hood, the device is powered by the Exynos 7870 Octa-core chipset with 3GB RAM and 16GB storage which is expandable up 256GB using a micro SD card.

The Galaxy Tab Active 2 runs on Android 7 Nougat with Samsung Experience UI on the top. It is powered by a 4450 mAh user replaceable battery with fast charging capabilities via USB type C port.

The tablet has an 8MP primary camera with a single tone LED flash, which can record 1080p video @ 30fps. Similarly, the device has a 5MP front-facing camera.

March 21, 2018
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ To Get Android 7 Nougat Update
Samsung recently launched the Galaxy S9 and the Galaxy S9+ in India. The smartphones resemble the Galaxy S8‘s design with a new camera setup with variable aperture. After launching its flagship series, the company is updating its older portfolio with the newer version of Android OS. Samsung follows the two-letter OS upgrade for its flagship smartphones. The Galaxy S8 was released with Android Nougat and the device has received an update for Android Oreo.

According to an official document found on Samsung’s website, the company is planning to upgrade at least 6 devices, which have completed the two year’s OS cycle. However, unlike the S8 or the S7, these devices will not receive the latest Oreo update. Instead, these OS builds will be based on an older Android version with security patch and bug fixes. Though these devices are listed to receive the software update, no time frame is mentioned.

Left to right: Update for Galaxy S6 Edge, Update for Galaxy S6 Edge+, Update for Galaxy S8

According to the document, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge will receive Android 7 Nougat update G9250ZCU2ERB2. The update weights at 1233.30MB, which upgrades the smartphone from Android Marshmallow to Android Nougat. However, the Galaxy S6 Edge+ and the Galaxy Note 5 are expected to receive the incremental software update. The Samsung Galaxy S8 and the Note 8 will receive Android 8 Oreo update with Samsung Experience UI 9.0. In fact, the update for the Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy Note 8 is already live in most of the countries.

Samsung Devices Listed
- Galaxy S6, S6 Edge
- Samsung Galaxy S8, S8+
- Galaxy Note 5, Note 8
March 19, 2018