Samsung’s latest flagship, the Galaxy S6 is set to hit the Indian and global stores today. The Korean electronic behemoth has grasped the importance of the Indian consumers for the future of the smartphone industry and has been bringing phones almost at the same time as the global market. But the other major force in the tech industry, Apple is still not close to giving India that priority, which is evident by the lack of the country’s name in the release locations for the Apple Watch.
Apple Watch is the company’s newest product family. The wearable is available from $349 for the basic model, the Watch Sport, and the line of offering goes up to $17,000 for the gold plated version called the Watch Edition. People looking forward to owning the device can pre-order it today in the countries where it is offered. But the only piece of information that the Indian Apple fans get is that the Watch will come to the country ‘sometime in 2015’.
Samsung brought the Note 4 to India at the same time as the US.
Meanwhile, Samsung’s Galaxy S6 was already up for pre-order in India and goes up for sale today. Samsung had also brought its last major launch, the Note 4 to India on 17th October, exactly the same time it came to the United States.
It’s not like Apple has a small market in India. Just in the space of October to December of last year, the company sold 500,000 devices in India, and the number keeps growing. Of course, it is just a tiny fraction of the global sales that have helped the company to have the most profitable quarter in history. A push for the massive Indian population can help the company take the profit higher.
Things do look brighter for the Indian consumers as Apple has plans to set up 500 stores across India. So maybe then the Indian fans would not have to wait impatient hours to buy Apple products.
HTC kickstarted MWC 2015 by unveiling the HTC One M9. There has been quite a bit of speculations around its release date in India. Now we’ve heard HTC is just about ready to revamp its Indian line-up with the high-end M9. HTC is expected to launch the HTC One M9 in India by the end of this month. According to our sources, HTC is also planning to price the device to fight it out with Samsung’s new Galaxy S6.
From the specs point of view, the display is a 5.1-inch Quad HD. A powerful 64-bit Exynos octa-core processor runs this handset along with 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of storage. It runs on Android 5.0 Lollipop with HTC Sense. Since we expect its price may clash with Samsung Galaxy S6, we pit the two device against each other. Here are the differences:
Samsung is finally breathing a sigh of relief with the number working once again in their favor. The Korean smartphone and electronics giant has seen a bump in the number of pre-orders received for their latest marvels : The Galaxy S6 and The Galaxy S6 Edge .
The number is much higher claims Samsung, than the pre-orders received for the Galaxy S5, which was simply the poorest selling Samsung Galaxy S series phone ever.
Samsung has tied in a lot of schemes and payment options in India with the handsets making them easily accessible to the end buyer. The company has also brought back 0% EMI schemes in India to lure their buyers into getting onto the Galaxy S6 bandwagon.
Reports have confirmed that, even though the numbers of pre-orders globally are extremely high, they are 70% less than what were received for the Apple iPhone 6 and 6 Plus at the time of their launch and linger in the 1-2 million bracket vs the 8-9 million received by Apple.
Samsung and its partners are aiming for heavy sales, but the numbers are not expected to beat Apple’s best selling Smartphones till date. In Q4 alone Apple sold 75 million of iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus units, taking a heavy lead on the Samsung Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge which are yet to launch.
Samsung finally launched products which are worthy of the Korean giant’s stature in the tech industry. The Galaxy S6 and its curvy sibling the S6 Edge bring unique features to the market that set a standard for others to follow. Samsung paid heed to all the criticisms directed towards it and built a smartphone that seeks to address all the issue and take smartphones to the next step.
Here are the ten features of the new Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge which make it stand apart from the rest of its competition.
Fact #1: Metal and Glass
Samsung has been making Android smartphones since the early days of the operating system. Smartphones are its most prominent product, but the company was criticised lately for bringing products with lackluster designs and made mostly of plastic. So this time around Samsung gave its devices the premium look and feel that its target consumers were looking for. The new flagship handsets are crafted with metal and glass which makes them flaunt-worthy. It has an aluminium frame and is strengthened with Gorilla Glass 4 on both sides.
Fact #2: Wireless Charging
Both the Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge offer wireless charging that supports major standards including Qi charging.
Fact #3: Quick Charge
The new flagships feature Quick Charge capability that allows you to get 4 hours worth of juice with just 10 minutes of charging.
Fact #4: Non-Removable Battery and No Expandable Storage
Samsung had in past flaunted the fact that you can easily pull off the back cover, pop in your secondary battery, and you’ll be ready to go. Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge are the first smartphones from the company to feature a unibody design with no removable battery and expandable storage. Samsung said that they were confident of their battery’s features, so they decided to lock it in. The phones are available in 32, 64, and 128 GB storage options.
Fact #5: The First Dual Edge Curved Smartphone
The Galaxy S6 Edge is a one-of-a-kind device. It is the only handset in the world to have a dual edge display. Samsung hasn’t really added a lot of features to the two curved displays, but they sure look fantastic. The curved displays are open for developers to innovate so we might see new utilities for the edge displays in the future.
Fact #6: Gorilla Glass 4
The premium metal and glass design asks for ingredients that look appealing while being tough and robust. Corning Gorilla Glass 4 is one of the strongest protective glass in the world, and the new Galaxy S-series flagships are covered with it on both front and back ends.
Fact #7: Samsung Pay
Mobile payments are the next step in payment technologies. Apple has already introduced the NFC-based payment system called Apple Pay with the new iPhones. Samsung went further and introduced Samsung Pay, a mobile based payment method that even works with conventional credit/debit card readers. Your payments will be secure as they will have to be authenticated with the phones inbuilt fingerprint reader located in the home button.
Fact #8: Flagship Camera
Both new Galaxy S flagships feature amazing camera modules. Both these devices have f/1.9 mm lens on both front and back cameras which ensure that you get bright photos and great night-time imagery. The 16 MP main camera with F1.9 on the back also comes with OIS, so you get fantastic images and videos devoid of any shakes.
Fact #9: Powered By Exynos
Samsung has previously marketed devices based on its homegrown processor, Exynos along with Snapdragon options. This time around, Samsung has put the task of powering the new flagships solely to the new octa-core Exynos chipsets based on 14 Nm architecture.
Fact #10: Samsung Knox
Considering the prices of these premium devices, you can guess that its target audience is the executive and businessman on the move. Mobile devices are playing a major role in the enterprise ecosystem. It’s important here that the crucial enterprise data remain secure while being convenient to access. Samsung Knox attempts to do just that. You can have two device in one, for professional and personal use. With Knox, your enterprise data remains separate and secure from your personal data. Samsung Knox also addresses several security concerns of the Android ecosystem and thereby becomes a valuable addition to the new smartphones.
Samsung is ready to let its latest flagships, the Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge to take on the world. There is a lot of excitement for these two handsets which is evident from the fact that Samsung received record orders of 20 million units within a week of launch. The Korean electronics giant released these new top of the line phones for sale in India today and here is everything you wanted to know about them.
What’s New?
Samsung had faced a lot of flak in the past couple of years for offering uninspired designs and features in its devices. The company considered the criticisms and said that they would be going back to the basics and create a device from scratch. It was called Project Zero and these two new launches of today are the first handsets to come out of Samsung’s initiative.
The New Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge introduces a premium metal and glass based design. Samsung has put great stress on the design aspects of the new handsets, and the elegant one-of-a-kind design of the S6 Edge is the proof of the hard work undertaken at Samsung’s laboratories. The devices offers unique features such as Samsung Pay, which lets you use your phone for card based transactions. They also offer the most pixel intensive Quad HD display with 577 ppi for a unique, eye-popping multimedia experience. and wireless charging and ultra power saving mode for improved convenience.
Samsung has added a security feature called Samsung Knox on these new flagships which basically lets you use the same device for business and personal purposes. The user presses an icon that switches from Personal to Work use with no delay or reboot wait time. Samsung has claimed this feature will be fully compatible with Android and will provide full separation of work and personal data on mobile devices and addresses all major security gaps in Android.
A Flagship Spec-Sheet
Samsung Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge definitely have a spec-sheet that would be the envy of all the lower end devices in the market. The two devices are almost identical and differ only in terms of their processor and battery power.The S6 is equipped with 64-bit Exynos octa-core while a peppier 2.5 GHz Exynos octa-core chipset is embedded on to the edgy Galaxy S6. Both the devices are available in 32, 64 and 128 GB storage variants and there are no expandable storage options.
The success of the Galaxy S6 is essential to Samsung. The company has been constantly losing its market share in the smartphone game. The phones have been received well by the critics and its now the turn of the end consumers to give their verdict on Samsung’s latest flagships. If the new design is appreciated by the target audience, Samsung might also attempt at bringing the design features in devices which are lower in the food chain. The Korean giant needs to re-establish its dominance in the lower end of the market, and a design revamp of the entire portfolio with boost in specs would be one way of achieving that goal. The market results of this year might be able to predict the future of the company.
Price and Availability
Samsung will be bringing the Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge with all their accessories to India and they will be available for purchase from the 10th of April. The Galaxy S6 is priced at Rs. 49,900 for the 32 GB variant, Rs. 55,900 for the 64 GB and Rs. 61,900 for the 128 GB variant.
The curvy S6 Edge is priced at Rs. 58,900 for the 32 GB variant, Rs, 64,900 for the 64 GB and Rs. 70,900 for the 128 GB variant.. The devices will be available in all the colour variants (White Pearl, Black Sapphire, Gold Platinum) that were showcased during their international launch. The Galaxy S6 will have an additional colour option of Blue Topaz while the S6 Edge will be available in Green Emerald.
Samsung has also offered some goodies for folks who pre-order their new phones before the April 10th release date. The company is offering 10,000 points to the customers in case the price of the device falls. It is also offering free screen replacement warranty for twelve months from the date of purchase.
Check out our exclusive hands-on video from Samsung’s MWC 2015 launch below:
Samsung is rolling out the sixth-generation flagship smartphones, Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge, to more countries of the world. The South Korean firm showcased the handsets in MWC 2015, and now we have learnt that Samsung will launch the devices in India on 23rd of this month.
While the company will be holding a special event on the coming Monday, they will not go on sale until April 10, as earlier stated by the company. Along with Galaxy S6 and the curvy S6 Edge, the Samsung event is expected to see the release of accessories as well, which includes flip cases and covers.
Samsung may also launch the new virtual reality headset for Galaxy S6. This headset is different from the VR Gear released for Galaxy Note and is specially designed to fit the smaller screen of the S6.
As far as the pricing is concerned, the Galaxy S6 will cost somewhere around Rs. 52,999, while its curvy counterpart is likely to get a price tag of Rs. 61,999.
Both the Galaxy S6 and its curvy companion are power packs and feature almost similar specifications. Both the handsets sports 5.1-inch QuadHD Super AMOLED with 577ppi resolution. The S6 is equipped with a 64-bit Exynos octa-core processor (1.5GHz quad-core Cortex A-53 and 2.1GHz quad-core Cortex A-57), while the edgier S6 is powered by the 2.5 GHz Exynos octa-core processor. The RAM of either of the devices stands same at 3GB, and both of them run on Android 5.0.2 Lollipop.
Both S6 and S6 Edge come in three variants with inbuilt memory – 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB. The devices don’t have external memory support. Optics of the S6 and S6 Edge are identical at 16MP rear with F1.9 and 5MP front camera. In case you missed the hands-on video, check the video below:
The Mobile World Congress 2015 became the spectator of the recently unveiled flagships from Samsung. The two phones launched by Samsung tried to address the concerns raised by the critics and they were well received by the industry. But the other major Korean manufacturer, LG, is yet to reveal its cards. Rumors have been whirling about LG’s next flagship, the G4. This new device is expected to trump over the G3 with a revamped design and upgraded specs. However, with Samsung’s new Galaxy S6 making records within a week of its launch, there’s mounting pressure on LG to pack the G4 with invincible specs and features. We have received exclusive information that LG is taking “inspiration” from Samsung’s flagship for its new handset to bring out a worth challenger in the market.
As per exclusive information, LG is planning to transform the G4 on the lines of the Galaxy S6.
According to a reliable source close to iGyaan, the Korean producer is ditching plastic and metal body plans in favour of an all metal design with strengthed glass protection. The new LG G4 will come in a bold metallic casing, which will guard the phone against accidental drops. Besides the layout, the battery capacity and camera of the upcoming LG flagship will also be overhauled so as to give a tough competition to the Galaxy S6. For the camera, LG G4 will tie in the already existing laser autofocus with improved optics for better shooting capabilities.
The LG G4 is expected to launch in the second quarter this year, and our sources have confirmed that the roll out of the device will begin much later after its unveiling. LG has time to remodel its top segment device by estimating the responses for HTC One M9 and Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge. But it should make a quick and smart move so that it can bring a worthy competitor in the market to challenge the flagships from Samsung and HTC.
At the Mobile World Congress today, Samsung unveiled two flagship handsets, Galaxy S6 and its the curvy and stylish sibling, the Galaxy S6 Edge. The new S iterations are a complete overhaul and triumph over the bugs and lags of the previous releases. Both the premium gadgets proved to be the showstoppers of the event. At the same event, Samsung also announced the arrival of its new payment system.
Coming back to the stars of the show, both the smartphones sport a new design language with an all glass front and back highlighted with stainless steel. The Galaxy S6 is standard in appearance, while the edgy Galaxy S6 is the one that gathers the extra points for its one-of-a-kind design. Galaxy S6 Edge has appealing displays on either edge.
Talking about the internal specifications of the handsets, then the two bad boys pack a punch. The devices are almost identical and differ only in terms of their processor and battery power. The S6 is equipped with the latest 2.1 GHz Exynos octa-core processor, while a peppier 2.5 GHz Exynos octa-core chipset is embedded on to the edgy Galaxy S6.
The RAM capacity of both the devices stands equal at 3 GB. The Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge resemble the iPhone in their storage capacity options. Just like Apple’s flagship, the two phones come in three variants – 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB, all based on UFS 2.0 (Universal Flash Storage).
Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge
Both the phones run on Android 5.0.2 Lollipop with TouchWiz UI on top. A 2550mAh battery is fixed to power Galaxy S6 and a slightly higher 2600mAh battery supports the S6 Edge. The handsets sport a new 5.1-inch Super AMOLED QuadHD display that delivers eye burning sharpness.
Considering the camera, then 16MP rear shooter with Optical Image Stabilization sits on the phone, along with a 5MP snapper that grabs a spot at the top the screen. With the new flagships, Samsung introduced quick charging and wireless charging capabilities along with Fingerprint scanner. The connectivity options comprise of LTE Cat 6, Bluetooth 4.1 and Wi-Fi.
Samsung finally brought its latest flagships, the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge to India. With these two premium devices, Samsung has introduced a new metal and glass based design architecture that is much better that its previous devices. Here we take a look at how these two top-of-the-line devices differ from each other in their spec sheets.
Overall, both Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge are exactly identical, and only sections that differ slightly is the processor and battery power. Both of them sport a 5.1-inch QuadHD Super AMOLED (577ppi) and feature 3GB LPDDR4. The former handset is powered by 2.1GHz Exynos octa-core, while the latter embeds a bit powerful 2.5 GHz Exynos octa-core processor. Running on Android 5.0.2 Lollipop with 16MP rear and 5MP front snapper, the standard Galaxy S6 gets its juice from the 2550mAh battery. On the other hand, its curvy counterpart boasts a slightly robust 2600mAh battery.
Samsung Galaxy S6 vs S5 Back
New Bumper Case
We have pitted them against each other for a closer look at their specifications:
SPECS
Samsung Galaxy S6
Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge
Display
5.1-inch QuadHD Super AMOLED (577ppi)
5.1-inch QuadHD Super AMOLED (577ppi)
Processor
2.1GHz Exynos octa-core
2.5 GHz Exynos octa-core
RAM
3GB
3GB
Storage
32GB/64GB/128GB
32GB/64GB/128GB
Expandable Upto
–
–
Main Camera
16MP + OIS
16MP + OIS
Front Camera
5MP
5MP
Battery
2550mAh
2600mAh
Operating System
Android 5.0.2 Lollipop
Android 5.0.2 Lollipop
Network
4G LTE
4G LTE
Bluetooth
4.1 + LTE
4.1 + LTE
Price and Availability
Samsung will be bringing the Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge with all their accessories to India and they will be available for purchase from the 10th of April. The Galaxy S6 is priced at Rs. 49,900 for the 32 GB variant, Rs. 55,900 for the 64 GB and Rs. 60,900 for the 128 GB variant.
The curvy S6 Edge is priced at Rs. 58,900 for the 32 GB variant, Rs, 64,900 for the 64 GB and Rs. 70,900 for the 128 GB variant..
The devices will be available in all the colour variants (White Pearl, Black Sapphire, Gold Platinum) that were showcased during their international launch. The Galaxy S6 will have an additional colour option of Blue Topaz while the S6 Edge will be available in Green Emerald.
Samsung has also offered some goodies for folks who pre-order their new phones before the April 10th release date. The company is offering 10,000 points to the customers in case the price of the device falls. It is also offering free screen replacement warranty for twelve months from the date of purchase.
Samsung’s latest flagship and its edgier brother have made it into our hands and that too before the main global launch event.
Samsung Galaxy S5 and S6 Back
The Samsung Galaxy S6, just like the rumors, holds a new design language. Which unmistakably is inspired and looks almost identical to the Apple iPhone lineage, all glass front and back, infused onto a stainless steel bezel. Samsung may have finally grown up.
S6 Edge
The new Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge is also a step in the right direction, while the device has dual edges the display’s continuity is not broken, as in the case of the Galaxy Note Edge, and the edge is mostly for aesthetic appeal.
Samsung has included quick charging and wireless charging capabilities in the new S6 and the S6 Edge, details of which should be available shortly.
Galaxy S6 Edge and Wireless Chargers
Spec wise Samsung has these bad boys fully loaded up with this years hardware, an all new Exynos Octa Core 2.1 GHz chipset along with 3 GB LPDDR4 RAM, the phone just like iPhone will be available in fixed storage sizes, however starting from 32 GB, a 64 GB variant and a 128 GB all based on UFS 2.0 (Universal Flash Storage). And yes, just like iPhones the Samsung Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge will not have micro SD expandability.
New Bumper Case
Connectivity is pretty top notch LTE Cat 6, Bluetooth 4.1 and WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac and globally unlocked variants will work on TDD and FDD LTE bands so networks should not be a problem for Samsung this time around.
5.1 inch QuadHD Display
The Display is a all new 5.1 inch Super Amoled screen with a QuadHD resolution giving it a total 577 ppi of eye burning sharpness. The Galaxy S6 Edge on the other hand has a much more snappier Exynos Octa Core with 2.5 GHz and a slightly better 2600 mAh battery vs the 2550 mAh on the Galaxy S6 (non-edge.)
The pricing remains a question (which will be answered shortly), however it is rumored that the Galaxy S6 Edge will cost more than the Note Edge did at launch.
We barely have a day before Samsung officially unveils its flagship smartphone to the world in Barcelona. A lot is at stake here for the Korean manufacturer. The device is supposed to redefine Samsung’s approach to design and features. The Korean electronics giant has really come to struggle in the market in the past couple of years and it is imperative the company comes out with an exceptional device.
The rumors of the upcoming S6 have been encouraging with a continuous onslaught of leaks and teasers, and we’ve gathered it all here in one place.
What can we expect from the new Galaxy S6, here’s a compilation of our calculated prediction as to what can we expect from the next big thing from Samsung.
Rumor mill suggests the upcoming Galaxy S6 will get a Super AMOLED Quad HD display anywhere between 5-5.5 inches with Corning Gorilla Glass 4. The Galaxy S5 sports a 5.1 inch display, and as we’ve seen in the past, large screen sizes are reserved for the Galaxy Note phablet range. Hence we can expect a smaller screen size, something in line with the Galaxy S5.
What about curves, will the Galaxy Edge get a curved edge? Well, going by the most recent leak from T-Mobile, it’s a YES. The picture titled “SIX APPEAL” clearly shows a Note Edge like device. Samsung had hinted before that the S6 will have a curved screen, and the image gives a clear view of the curved display. Some even suggest that Samsung will be extending it to both sides of the device.
The Galaxy Note Edge made quite a stir with its unusual and distinct design, so its a reason good enough for Samsung to bank upon this idea.
NEW DESIGN AND BODY
Plastic or metal, this could be anyone’s guess. Samsung has been flaunting new metal bodied phones, such as the all-metal Samsung Galaxy A5, Galaxy A3 along with the Galaxy A7.
The latest teaser by T-Mobile clearly shows grey metal body visible around the display, hence we can expect the Korean manufacturer to bolster its image with a premium metal clad smartphone.
CAMERA
We saw some awesome camera performance with the Galaxy S5 and the Galaxy Note 4, both of which came with 16 megapixel cameras, though the Galaxy S5 lacked OIS; a significant feature appreciated in the iPhone 6 Plus. So it’s a reason good enough that Samsung would bring this feature in their latest flagships’s camera.
Galaxy S5’s 16-megapixel camera is one of the best smartphone cameras around.
As we’ve seen in the past, Samsung usually increases the megapixel count with their new models. Samsung’s senior VP in a blog post recently stressed upon the fact how they have been constantly working on improving the cameras used in the Galaxy Series. In addition, Jang also stressed on the importance of the selfie cam, and duly noted that it forms an essential part of the whole ecosystem.
A recent report suggested a 20 MP camera sensor along with OIS and a 5 MP front facing shooter on the Galaxy S6 prototype. Both cameras are likely to include sensors from Samsung.
PROCESSOR, MEMORY AND STORAGE
Rumours suggest Samsung may be opting for its in-house Exynos 7420 for the first batch, and probably even make different variants of the phone. The Exynos 7420 is a 64-bit chip with four Cortex-A53 and four Cortex-A57 cores.
The Korean manufacturer plans to ditch Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips with the Galaxy S6 as it reportedly faces overheating issues. As we’ve seen with its earlier flagships, Samsung will make different variants of the Galaxy S6 with different chipsets for different markets.
On the memory front, the phone is rumoured to come in 32, 64 and 128 GB variants. Samsung is likely to equip the Galaxy S6 with 3GB of RAM, along with a microSD slot that is expandable upto 128 GB.
OS and TouchWiz
TouchWiz sitting atop Android 5.0 Lollipop should be the standard norm of the day. A recent report says Samsung will chuck many of its own programs in its forthcoming TouchWiz user interface. Instead Samsung will bundle Microsoft apps including OneNote, OneDrive, Office Mobile, and Skype.
Samsung’s TouchWiz is getting final touches before its anticipated announcement in Barcelona. And Samsung is apparently being sensible as it’s doing away with its own bloatware which included apps like S Health and S Note.
It’s likely be a toned down version of TouchWiz on the new device, in an attempt to improve the overall performance and responsiveness of the device.
FEATURES
The Galaxy S6 will reportedly get a host of new features. It may feature dual front speakers like the HTC Boomsound. Meanwhile, Samsung itself has dropped a lot of hints about its next-gen flagship. For instance, we can expect the Galaxy S6 to get wireless charging and fast charging capabilities. Rumour also has it that it’ll get a fingerprint sensor.
While, recent reports also suggest that the Galaxy S6 will have support for Gear VR, currently compatible only with the Galaxy Note 4.
MULTIPLE VARIANTS
The Korean giant is expected to launch the Samsung Galaxy S6 flagship along with the anticipated curved-display variant, rumoured to be called Galaxy S6 Edge at the Galaxy Unpacked 2015 event.
Hence we can expect multiple variants of its new flagship, with and without curved displays. Which makes sense as the Galaxy S6 might be akin to a more traditional flagship, while curved could be the model that brings a different flavour to the flagship.
Launch, availability and Price
Samsung has already sent out teasers and invitations for its forthcoming Galaxy Unpacked event on 1st March in Barcelona at MWC. Samsung’s earlier flagship model, the Galaxy S5 was unveiled at MWC 2014. The phone went on sale just a few weeks later, hence we can expect the Korean manufacturer to do the same with its upcoming flagship – the Galaxy S6.
Tentative release date for the Galaxy S6 is rumored to be somewhere between March 22 too April 19. A recent report claims that similar to last year, Samsung will release its flagship champion(s) in the Indian market in early-to-mid April. Indian customers can place pre-orders for the Galaxy S6 starting mid-March.
As far as pricing goes, Samsung tends to stick to the same pricing for its Galaxy Range. Initially, it is expected to be priced exorbitantly, easily above Rs. 60,000, which will likely come down to Rs. 50,000 within months (knowing Samsung). In short, it’s going to cost a lot of money, and we hope it’s worth it for prospective buyers.
Samsung is just a few days away from launching its magnum opus, the Galaxy S6. This will be a make or break device for Samsung. Consumers, as well as industry experts, have been losing their patience with Samsung’s products. Samsung’s claims of having designed the Galaxy S6 from scratch has intrigued the market and now everyone wants to see what the electronics giant means by a complete revamp. We look at some of the features that the Galaxy S6 needs to take on its prime adversary, the iPhone 6 Plus.
Display
Apple’s big boy, the iPhone 6 Plus sports a 5.5 inch Full HD display with a pixel density of 401ppi. Samsung’s previous flagship, the Galaxy S5 too flaunted a Full HD display with a pixel density of 432 ppi. This time around Samsung is expected to go for an increased screen size as well as to introduce a Quad HD (2K) which will be advantageous over the iPhone 6 Plus. Samsung is known for good displays especially on the higher end devices with Super AMOLED panels. So Samsung will have an easy win here. Some reports have also mentioned the possibility of a 4K display, which we hope the company doesn’t abide by as it would be a tremendous waste of resources. A 4K display would consume a lot of battery and processing power and the average users won’t be able to tell the difference anyway.
Design
A design makeover has been in order for a long while now. Samsung has answered the heavy criticisms for plastic based devices by introducing the metal frame design with the Galaxy Alpha series. The company is now expected to go full metal with the new S6, which is a welcoming news. The teaser of the device unveiled by T-mobile also shows a curved edge screen like the Note Edge, but it feels gimmicky and doesn’t have too much use as of now.
Battery
With an increased screen size and the rumored Quad HD display, the Galaxy S6 is bound to get a bigger battery. But what it does need to offer is a prolonged battery life that lasts for at least a week without using features like ultra power saving modes. This, of course, sounds like a heavy demand, but for once we’d rather the company invest in the state of the battery. The iPhone 6 Plus has a great battery backup that can last up to two days, and we hope Samsung has something good in store for us in this arena.
Camera
iPhone 6 Plus undoubtedly has the best camera in the business. Features like Time-lapse, slow-motion shots have made the device a one stop production tool. Samsung has to bring something at least comparable in this aspect. With the Note 4, the company brought wider selfies to its list of camera features, but this fell short of what Apple had to offer. An AnTuTu leak has hinted 20-megapixel rear camera and 5-megapixel selfie snapper for the Galaxy S6, which is decent spec listing. But we are more interested in finding how Samsung makes use of the hardware to provide improved shooting features with the camera.
Software
Galaxy S5 used as illustration
This is one area where Samsung needs to show real promise with the S6. It’s time Samsung shelved the boring TouchWiz UI for good. Samsung has updated the UI a bit over the past few years, but the market now expects a complete makeover. The UI update also needs to add advanced customizability features too so that users shouldn’t have to look for third party launchers or custom ROMs. Samsung has been cutting down on its bloatware too so it’s time it left just the bare essentials so that the user have control over what they choose to install on their device.
To Conclude
Samsung needs to give it all its got to the Galaxy S6. It needs to once and for all prove to the audience that it is still capable of delivering unique innovation to the market. Samsung being one of the pioneers of the smartphone business, has a responsibility to take the market further. If the device is appreciated by the market, Samsung needs to bring the design and feature down its ecosystem and update the new line of devices accordingly. Apple has done a good job with its flagship, now the world is looking at you Samsung, show us what you got!
Samsung’s upcoming flagship Galaxy S6 is the next big thing everybody is waiting for. It is scheduled to unveil at Barcelona on March 1 at the Mobile World Conference (MWC) 2015. The global launch is just around the corner and a fresh round of rumours suggest that it will possibly land in India in April.
With global launch date drawing nearer, the Korean firm is expected to make things clearer soon. As per IBN Live, the handset will be up for pre-bookings from March itself and the registrations will open for only a couple of weeks.
Considering the rumours, the Galaxy S6 looks promising and this is what Samsung needs at this moment; a powerful, value for money and an exceptional device. The company is said to have revamped almost everything – from design to software and hardware – it could prove to be a saviour for the drowning electronics producer. With Samsung’s market share following a steep fall in every segment (recently, the tablet segment), Galaxy S6 is its one hope.
Although Samsung has been facing stiff competition from the numerous smartphones released this year, it still continues to lead race among the android devices. Samsung’s devices last year were criticized for being iterative and over-priced. Now Samsung seems to be working on the Galaxy S6, codenamed ‘Project Zero‘ signifying the development of the device from scratch — putting lots of thoughts into its design and materials.
Finally realising their mistakes, Samsung has been mending its ways with the launch of Galaxy A3 and Galaxy A5 smartphones, which dropped the plastic body to include the premium metal frame. The company has long been criticized for using cheap plastic body on their devices and it is expected that Samsung will be bringing quite a drastic change in their devices’ design and materials.
Rumours surrounding the new Samsung flagship has been taking rounds of the internet for several months now. Although most rumours cannot be verified or validated, they give us some idea what we can expect from Samsung 2015 Galaxy S6 flagship.
Project Zero
Project Zero is, according to the rumors, Samsung’s top priority these days. More specifically, it is a codename for the Galaxy S6, according to sources. Previous flagship phones have gone by the names such as Project J, Project H, Project K and Project T in the past few years. as mentioned above, Project zero signifies that the company’s plan to build this phone from the grassroot.
The failure of Galaxy S5 coupled with the bad sales figures and constant backlash from critics, Samsung recently replaced its mobile design leader Chang Dong-hoon with deputy Lee Min-hyouk. It is safe to say that Samsung indeed is aiming to redefine its brand image with this new flagship. However, whether it will be successful; only time will tell!
Design
Recent chatter in the rumour mill has hinted that the new Samsung flagship may come with a flexible display. At a recent event for Samsung investors, Lee-Chang Hoon, vice president of Samsung Display’s, said: “We plan to provide consumers with a product that has a flexible display by the end of the year.” Along with his, the Galaxy S6 is expected to sport a flexible OLED that would allow the device to fold and bend. However, it’s also widely believed, especially since the all-metal Galaxy Alpha debuted, that the Galaxy S6 will feature a metal frame.
Display
Considering the trend over the last five generations, the screen size of Galaxy S handsets have grown from 4-inches to 5.1-inches. The Galaxy S6 is expected with a 5.2 or 5.3 inch display. Samsung has also previously said it will have 4K 3840 x 2160 displays on the market by 2015. It is therefore, possible that the Galaxy S6 will bypass 2K and feature a 4K screen. That said, South Korean news outlet Daum has predicted it’ll have a curved screen with a Quad HD resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels. The screen has also purportedly leaked on an AnTuTu benchmark test with a 5.5-inch QHD display.
Camera
The camera has always been Samsung’s strong selling point. We expect the company to improve the present 16Mp snapper that comes with Galaxy S5. The AnTuTu leak has hinted 20-megapixel rear camera and 5-megapixel selfie snapper.
Processor
The new flagship is expected to come with a Snapdragon 810 or Exynos 7420 processor, with octa-core technology. Although internal storage is not expected to be increased beyond 128GB. That said, the AnTuTu leak shows the S6 with a 64-bit octa-core Exynos 7420 processor and ARM Mali T-760 GPU backed by 3GB of RAM. Samsung, however, has been raving about 4GB RAM developments so we’d expect them to appear in the S6. It also was shown with 32GB storage.
Price and Release date
According to a recent leak, the Samsung Galaxy S6 release date is slated for Q2 2015. As for when the phone will actually launch, the Galaxy S4 and Galaxy S5 both launched in April 2013 and April 2014, respectively, so following this pattern, the Galaxy S6 should go on sale in April 2015. It will likely be priced similarly to the Galaxy S5.
The company has pledged that it will be bringing several changes to the future device to lure in more customers, after a huge setback during the Q3 earnings. Over the past years, the company has been criticised for the use of cheap plastic material in the high-end phones. With the new flagship on its way, the company is expected to make a lot of changes in design to compete in the market ruled by impressive devices like iPhone 6, HTC One and Sony Xperia Z series. This flagship may be a critical device to decide the fate of Samsung smartphones in this highly competitive market.
After much anticipation and numerous leaks, Samsung has officially launched the Galaxy Tab S6 in the US. Unlike what the chronology suggests, it is a true successor to the Galaxy Tab S4 which was launched in the year 2018. Even though Samsung had also launched the Galaxy Tab S5e earlier this year, it cannot be deemed the predecessor to the Tab S6, as the former is a mid-range device, whereas the latter packs flagship-grade specifications.
Moving ahead, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 is a significant upgrade over its predecessor both in terms of build materials and features. It is shipped with an all new S Pen and the company has also introduced a new detachable two-piece keyboard (sold separately) that has a trackpad built-in which provides for a laptop-like experience.
It is aimed towards people who consume a lot of digital media, play mobile games and are looking for a device that can handle productivity apps like Office Suite and email with ease.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Design and Features
To begin with, the Galaxy Tab S6 draws a lot of inspiration from the iPad Pro as it features slim bezels on all sides of the display and it also has an aluminium back which is unlike its predecessor that has a glass back. Nonetheless, it is a tried and tested design that is both functional and looks pleasing to the eye.
On the front of the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 sits a 10.5 inch Super AMOLED display that has a pixel density of 2560 x 1600 px. Besides, the display also features an in-display fingerprint sensor. However, unlike the Galaxy S10 lineup, the tablet has an optical fingerprint sensor and not an ultrasonic sensor.
As previously mentioned, the rear of the Galaxy Tab S6 has an aluminium back which houses a dual-camera setup, company branding, AKG logo and an indentation that holds the S-Pen firmly with the help of magnets. While in a resting position, the built-in battery of the S-Pen gets topped up and stays ready for use.
Under the hood, it features the Snapdragon 855 SoC which features an Octa-Core chipset and the Adreno 640 GPU. To provide the best of battery backup and performance, the eight cores are device into three separate clusters which are listed below:
1x 2.8 GHz Kryo 485
3x 2.4 GHz Kryo 485
4x 1.7 GHz Kryo 485
For photography, the Galaxy Tab S6 features a dual rear camera setup which consists of a 13 MP + 5 MP camera. In addition, it also has an 8 MP front-facing selfie camera which is placed in the bezel above the display. Noteworthy, it can also record 4K video at 30fps from the rear camera. While the details about video capturing capability from the front camera are currently unavailable.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 is powered by a 7,040 mAh battery which is a slight downgrade from the powerhouse found on the Galaxy Tab S4 that had a 7,300 mAh battery. Samsung claims a battery backup of upto 15 hours which will depend upon the kind of usage.
Other notable features of the Samsung tablet include side-firing quad speakers that support Dolby Atmos which provides for an immersive audio experience. The device also has dual microphones for making video calls or recording audio.
Talking more about the two-piece cover of the Galaxy Tab S6, the rear piece snugly fits on the back which also has a kickstand that can be adjusted to the angle of user’s choice. The keyboard also gets a couple of new additions and it now includes the previously mentioned multi-touch trackpad and dedicated function key to launch different applications or toggling DeX Mode.
Speaking of DeX mode, it offers what it is actually the acronym for, “Desktop Experience”. With the help of built-in USB C port, the screen can be mirrored to an external display or the device itself that mimics a conventional notebook computer experience with a mouse pointer.
To further enhance the Gaming prowess on the Galaxy Tab S6, Samsung has equipped the OS with Game Booster which as the name suggests provides the best possible gaming experience. The feature functions by minimising background process and smartly allocating the available resources to run the game. Also, this mode can be used to block any incoming calls while playing a game. Unfortunately, Samsung has done away with the 3.5 mm audio jack on the tablet and users either need to rely on a pair of Bluetooth headphones or use a USB C to 3.5 mm adapter.
Last but not least, the S Pen on the Galaxy Tab S6, except for taking notes can also be used to controlling the camera shutter. Also, it now supports air gestures which allow the user to toggle different applications by drawing gestures in the air, like drawing “O” to turn on the camera or swiping sideways with the button pressed to switch applications.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Price, Storage and Colour Variants
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yilbQbIm7UU
The Samsung Tab S6 is offered in three colour options which include Mountain Grey, Cloud Blue and Rose Blush. In terms of memory and storage, it is available in two variants for which the price is as follows:
6 GB + 128 GB: US $ 649 (around Rs 44,700)
8 GB + 256 GB: US $ 729 (around Rs 50,200)
Besides, it also supports memory expansion upto 1 TB via a microSD card. The keyboard accessory costs US $ 179 (around Rs 12,300).
To sum it up, the latest offering from Samsung is packed with top tier specs along with a sturdy build and is a praiseworthy tablet, overall. Also it can single-handedly carry the Android tablet bandwagon against the greatest from Apple.
What are your thoughts on the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6? Do let us know in the comments below.
