Tag Archives: One UI

Samsung Galaxy S23+ In-Depth Review: Refinement at Its Best For A Price

March 28, 2023 Nur Jeevan Leave a comment

Samsung’s back at it again with the new Galaxy S23 series. A new flagship experience which sees the S23 Ultra outshine the S23 and S23+. The plus variant of the Galaxy S series has always been that perfect bowl of porridge that packs the right updates, has the right features and is priced to win. That’s the legacy of the plus variant when it comes to Galaxy S.

That said, with Samsung’s immense emphasis on the S23 Ultra, why are we looking at the S23+? The simple answer is that we’re interested to see whether Samsung’s iterative approach to their flagship series has paid off. Is the S23+ THE PHONE to get when it comes to that fine balance between features and budget? Or has it left the S23+ with a case of middle child syndrome; being left to fend for itself?

Design

Samsung’s new Galaxy S23+ continues the company’s iterative formula when it comes to smartphones. As such, when it comes to design, the company has done little to change the overall look and feel of the smartphone. The big difference you’ll notice off the bat is the lack of the sleek, iconic camera cut-out we saw on the S22+. Instead, Samsung has decided to streamline the design by removing it. The S23+ comes with a completely flush and flat back. Even the camera modules are only just raised to protect the lenses. Aside from the camera modules, the only other thing of note on the back of the smartphone is the Samsung brand emblazoned on the lower portion of it.

On the front, the AMOLED 2X display covers nearly the whole face of the smartphone. It’s near edge to edge with little to no interruptions. The S23+ continues to have rounded corners but, this year, Samsung has opted to do away with the rounded edges on the phone itself. While the display does melt into the sides, the frame itself is angular. It may seem a little less ergonomic at first, but the sharp edges do provide a more sturdy grip. But be careful when you’re using it lying down, it can be painful when it comes for a close-up with your face. (Yes, the phone did meet my face a few times during the review period).

Hardware

Samsung’s approach to the new Galaxy S23+ brings most of the same specifications to the S22+. There are some notable changes, however, it looks like the company believes that a focus on the user experience will benefit them more than bumping the actual specifications of the smartphone – and truth be told, they may be one step closer to getting a solid user experience with their approach, but we’ll expand more on that in User Experience section.

Specifications

Processor	Qualcomm SM8550-AC Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (4nm) [Octa-Core: 1×3.36GHz Cortex X3, 2×2.8GHz Cortex A715, 2×2.8 GHz Cortex A710, 2×2.0 GHz Cortex A510]
RAM	*8GB (As Tested)*
Memory	*256GB (As Tested)* 512GB
Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)	Adreno 740
Display	Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel 6.6-inch (~393 ppi) 1080×2340 pixels FHD+ resolution 19.5:9 Aspect Ratio 120Hz Refresh rate HDR10+ 1200 nits peak brightness
Operating System	Android 13 with One UI 5.1
Battery	4,700mAh Fast Charging (45W) Fast Wireless Charging (15W) Reverse Wireless Charging (4.5W) USB-PD 3.0
Connectivity	Nano SIM 5G/4G LTE/EVDO/HSPA/CDMA/GSM Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e TriBand WiFi GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS A2DP Bluetooth 5.3 OTG Support USB 3.2 (Type-C)
Camera	REAR: Triple Sensor: 50-Megapixel (Wide) f/1.8, 1/1.56″, 24mm, 1.0µm Dual Pixel Phase Detection Autofocus (PDAF) Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) 10-Megapixel (Telephoto) f/2.4, 1/3.94″, 70mm, 1.0µm Phase Detection Autofocus (PDAF) Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) 3x Optical Zoom 12-Megapixel (Ultrawide) f/2.2, 1/2.55”, 13mm, 120˚FOV, 1.4µm Super Steady Video LED Flash Auto-HDR Panorama 8K Video recording (24/30fps) 4K Video recording (30/60fps) 1080p Video recording (30/60/240fps) 1080p Video recording (960fps) Gyro-electronic image stabilization (EIS) Stereo Sound Recording HDR10+ FRONT: 12-Megapixel (Wide) f/2.2, 26mm, 1.22µm Dual Pixel Phase Detection Autofocus (PDAF) 4K video recording (30/60fps) 1080p (30fps)
Sensor	Accelerometer Proximity Fingerprint (Ultrasonic, under display) Gyroscope Compass Barometer
Miscellaneous	Dual SIM/eSIM
Retail Price (Malaysia)	MYR 4,699 (256GB) MYR 5,199 (512GB)
Retail Price (US)	USD$ 999.99 (128GB) USD$ 1,199.99 (256GB)

User Experience

You will realise that we’ll be talking a lot about the user experience when it comes to the Samsung Galaxy S23+. That’s simply because when it comes down to it, the smartphone remains nearly identical to the S22+ when it comes to hardware. However, the lack of an improvement in the hardware itself has translated into one of the best experiences we’ve had with a Samsung flagship since the Galaxy Note5; and we don’t say that lightly.

Samsung’s focus on optimising One UI 5.1 for the Galaxy S23 series pays off in droves when it comes to the vanilla S23 and the S23+. While it comes with the same interface and overall experience we expect from a Samsung device, the S23+ feels better thought out from a software perspective than even the S22+. The software brings features that complement the overall experience.

The first place you will notice this improvement is with the booting up of the smartphone. It takes less time for the Galaxy S23+ to boot than the S22+ and even the Fold 4. After the initial setup, a reboot took less than 2 minutes. In addition, Samsung has found a way to make loading up widgets on your home screen more seamless and fluid. You don’t have the flickering and stuttering of widgets like before, instead, they load one after the other.

Aside from this, Samsung has made Android 13’s their own. Their personalization interface is more streamlined and easier to use. Everything is accessible on just one screen and you have more control over colours and accents that will appear on your Galaxy smartphone. However, when it comes to customisations, you’ll need Samsung’s Good Lock app to unlock more possibilities.

Personalisation & Good Lock

Personalisation is getting a huge upgrade with the rollout of Samsung’s Good Lock app. The app brings modules that supercharge personalization options beyond some of the most customizable experiences on Android. The app brings features like an even more customisable One UI Home Screen, Lock screen and even notifications.

Samsung’s level of customization in the Good Lock app is impressive. We were able to create home screens with widgets that looked like seamless wallpapers. You could even create more actionable notifications on your lock screen. Every detail from the notification shade, the sidebar activation and even the grid layout of your home and app screens can be customized with Good Lock.

That said, the extensive customisation is only available after navigating what can be a daunting list of modules to enable it. What’s more, once you’ve downloaded the modules, you’ll have to navigate another extensive menu of options. This will more than likely put off regular users. Power users, on the other hand, will welcome these menus and appreciate the level of personalisation that they offer. In our honest opinion, the overall experience can be streamlined with more streamlined menus and a more graphical interface within the Good Lock modules.

Performance

It goes without saying that we are expecting best-in-class performance when it comes to the Samsung Galaxy S23+. The processor alone comes with a near 30% performance bump from last year’s on paper. However, as we all already know, improvements on paper don’t necessarily translate to user experience but that isn’t really the case with this particular smartphone. Samsung has instead only upgraded the phone’s processor to the more capable Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and also the selfie camera with a larger 12-megapixel sensor. Somehow, just the bump in the processor has led to an exponentially improved battery life and also smoother performance overall.

Multitasking, Productivity & Day-to-Day Use

Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones have more or less become synonymous with productivity machines thanks to features like DeX and Link to Windows becoming more natively integrated into One UI. It’s no different when it comes to Samsung’s new Galaxy S flagship. The S23+ continues this legacy with more of a focus on remaining productive for longer stretches of time. All the features including DeX are still part of the package.

However, the S23+, when it comes to performance, the smartphone has a leg up on its predecessor. It can handle more apps at one go and has more capacity to multitask than ever before. The new TMSC-based Snapdragon 8 gen 2 brings a whole new level of power and power efficiency. We were able to handle apps like Microsoft Excel and Acrobat running in split-screen without much issue. Using other apps like WhatsApp, Telegram and even Chrome in the background or in split-screen wasn’t much of an issue. In fact, it was uninterrupted and fluid. Even with the split screen and pop-up window working in tandem, the experience continued to be top-notch.

The DeX experience on the S23+ is much improved with better stability and transfer speeds over wireless connections. Typically, we use DeX to copy large files like videos to our computers for editing. The wireless connectivity for DeX has long been an issue for us which made us default to using a USB connection. However, on the S23+, this wasn’t the case. We were able to transfer files that were between 2GB and 4GB quickly. It only took us about 10 minutes! Transferring smaller files like photos was nearly instantaneous.

That said, the Samsung Galaxy S23+ became a go-to phone for a daily driver not just cause of the multitasking ability. It was also a sold performer in day-to-day usage. We were able to use the smartphone reliably for work and communication for over 24 hours consistently. This puts Samsung’s flagship on par with, if not ahead of their competition simply for the productivity feature set which is bolstered by the impressive battery life on the Galaxy S23+.

In addition, Samsung’s Bixby Rouines adds another level of productivity to the smartphone. Creating “If this… then that…” operator sets allows you to automate a whole lot of features including turning on and off features like WiFi, NFC, Bluetooth and more according to location or even network. This allowed for even more power efficiency and also customization of your device behaviour to fit your routines. It also works when you use devices that you can control via Smart Things which now includes any device compatible with the Matter network. If you’re like us, this made for some of the most fun with optimising and automating of tech on our networks to fit our daily routines.

Call Quality & Connectivity

Samsung’s Galaxy S23+ comes with the usual connectivity features including WiFi 6, GPS, GLONASS and 5G. Of course, these features are expected in any 2023 flagship. Samsung has included a slew of software features which allow for better connectivity features including smart WiFi and smart detection of 5G connectivity. These features allowed us to have better battery optimisations and also better, more stable connectivity overall.

The WiFi connectivity on the S23+ is a marked improvement of Galaxy devices of the past including the recent Galaxy S22 and Galaxy Z series. We credit the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for this. It seems like Qualcomm’s new antennae and processor is able to create a more stable connection with a larger bandwidth. This resulted in faster, more stable connections over things like DeX and Link to Windows.

In addition, the cellular connectivity was also more stable compared to the S22+. We tested this over the Maxis 4G network and DNB 5G network via Yes 5G. In places where the S22+ saw limited connectivity of 1-2 bars, the S23+ was able to squeeze another bar or two. This also translated to the data stability of the device as well. The S23+ was able to load videos on YouTube, website content on techent.tv and content on Instagram more consistently than the S22+. Even when the S22+ was having issues loading content, the S23+ was able to load content albeit a little slower. We’re not sure if this is a software limitation on the S22+ but it’s worth noting that both devices were running One UI 5.1 with the February 2023 security patch.

Call quality on the S23+ was what we expected from a Samsung device. The voice quality on Voice over WiFi (VoWiFi) and Voice over LTE (VoLTE) were crisp and clear. It was also warmer than similar smartphones in the category. Over normal network voice (i.e. without VoWiFi or VoLTE), it was more of the same. The voice quality was consistent and didn’t drop without cause.

Gaming

Samsung has upped the ante when it comes to talking about its flagship as a gaming phone when it comes to the S23 series. This comes as no surprise given the chipset inside the smartphone. The increased power and power efficiency of the chipset allow for more gaming to be done at higher frame rates and with some ray tracing.

During our time with the S23+, we tested the smartphone with Diablo Immortal, Pokemon Unite, Pokemon GO, and Power Rangers Legacy Wars. Yes. It’s an eclectic selection of games but each was chosen for a reason which we will go into. That said, we don’t benchmark with synthetic benchmarks when we do the reviews on the smartphone. Instead, we’re looking at practical aspects of whether it was comfortable to do so, whether there was noticeable lag or frame rate drops and the like.

Diablo Immortal is one of the more complex games when it comes to on-screen events. At any given time, there can be over 20 events in a single occurrence. Enemies can swarm in packs and overwhelm players. Sometimes these enemies can be just off-screen but still land an attack. It’s precisely because of that that we’re using it to test out the S23+’s gaming performance. The Galaxy S23+ performed rather commendably when put to the Diablo Immortal task. The smartphone was able to render enemies, players, attacks, and events in the surroundings without much hassle on default settings. Pushing it up to maximum settings, the Galaxy S23+ still was able to perform quite well. However, the phone did get a little warm. That said, it didn’t heat up to the point where you couldn’t play the game. It never got to the point where the screen, back or frame of the phone got too hot to hold. This was actually the case when playing for more than 40 minutes on the S22+. On the S23+, we could game for about 5 hours on a full charge.

For games like Pokemon Unite and Power Rangers Legacy Wars, we were looking at the responsiveness of the on-screen controls and also performance when there were combos or multiple players on screen attacking at the same time. Similar to the performance on Diablo Immortal, the Galaxy S23+ was able to handle the games rather well. Given that Power Rangers Legacy Wars has been out for six years while Pokemon Unite has been available for two, the games still provide two different experiences for gameplay. One is a simple tap to battle game while the other is a full-on MOBA. Both provide different challenges for the smartphone when playing. Power Rangers Legacy War is a game which depends heavily on network performance in addition to graphical rendering. The S23+ was able to pull this off without much problem. In fact, it wouldn’t be too farfetched to say that it might have given us the upper hand when battling others on lower specced smartphones. Gameplay was responsive and had little lag when battling. The smartphone also remained cool and didn’t really heat up throughout our hour-long session. On Pokemon Unite, however, we have enemy NPCs and player enemies. The more current development of the game means that the game required more power to render graphics which the S23+ did without a problem. It was also able to handle rendering instances where team battles occurred. There was little stuttering or lag even on mobile connectivity. The phone also remained cool throughout the two hours of gameplay.

Pokemon GO is a unique game which needs both rendering and location services. This usually leads to immense battery drain and heating up on smartphones. This was the case for most smartphones even in 2022 including the S22+. However, with the S23+ the phone remained rather cool but did eventually get a little bit warm as we progressed into our hour long session. Aside from that, there wasn’t much of a hiccup.

Overall, the Galaxy S23+ was able to handle top-of-the-line games that are currently on mobile without much hassle. While it doesn’t come with gimmicks and features that make it more of a “gaming phone”, Samsung’s focus on performance does pay off when it comes to generational improvements from the S22. The optimizations for the phone’s cooling system and also processing and graphics have paid off in droves when it comes to gaming.

Battery Life

If you’ve not picked it up from the previous sections just yet, let’s just put it out there – the Galaxy S23+ has the best battery life we’ve seen in a Samsung flagship to date. We’re not saying this lightly either. Typically, we expect that a Samsung flagship smartphone will last anywhere between 5 to 9 hours. In recent years, this went up to about 10 hours maximum. However, with the Galaxy S23+, we were able to get up to 3 days of battery life. We typically measure this as the time taken to get to 5% of battery.

In our time with the smartphone, we saw a range of between 5 to 72 hours of battery life from the smartphone. Even with a mix of gaming and regular use, we were able to get about 2 days of battery. This, of course, depended on a few factors particularly processor and display usage. When we used the smartphone for gaming the maximum we go was about 5 hours on a single charge. With mixed usage and always on display (AOD) turned off, this capped out at about 3 days. However, when we turned on AOD, we saw a marked reduction in battery life to about 2 days.

When it comes down to it, this was the most significant improvement to the overall package of the Samsung Galaxy S23+. Comparatively, the S22+ capped out at slightly over 1 day of battery life even with low usage.

Display

Samsung continues to have Dynamic AMOLED 2X panels in its flagships. These panels have impressive colour reproduction and brightness peaking at 1,200 nits in the Galaxy S23+. That said, the S23+ is also equipped with a lower-resolution FHD+ panel, unlike the S23 Ultra which comes with a QHD+ display. However, the S23+ doesn’t miss out on much when it comes to the resolution. It still manages to produce crisp images with high contrast and even HDR content.

Samsung has done some minor improvements when it comes to display performance – possibly on the software end as videos and games on the S23+ seem to have better quality. The images are more crisp and have better contrast and saturation.

When we tested the display we used content on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and YouTube. HDR content was one of the main content we were looking at. On the S23+, HDR content was of marked better quality. There was more detail in the dark areas of the images while blacks appeared deeper and closer to true black while the whites were more pure. The colours on HDR content were vibrant and punchy.

Cameras

Samsung’s big push continues to be camera performance – particularly when it comes to the Galaxy S23 and S23+. Their approach of sticking to the same camera setup with a triple sensor setup complemented with by a 12-megapixel ultrawide and 10-megapixel telephoto sensor gives them the opportunity to further improve the software implementation for the camera. Improve they did.

The Samsung Galaxy S23+’s camera comes with a better implementation of Samsung’s Galaxy AI when it comes to the camera. It would seem – like many other things – Samsung is also following Google’s lead when it comes to smartphone photography. This year’s focus on the post-processing of shots taken with the camera setup integrates a new level of AI that results in sharper, more detailed images. Of course, you’d be hard-pressed to realise that this has been done as the pictures are taken near instantaneously with little time between touching the shutter button and the picture being saved.

The pictures taken with cameras on the Samsung Galaxy S23+ are crisp, detailed and sharp. The photos have little blur even when taken by someone like me with rather shaky hands. The photos also have pretty accurate colour reproduction albeit on the slightly more saturated side of things. However, with the implementation of the High-Efficiency Image Code (HEIC), you’ll be able to touch up and adjust the images with all the sensor information with programs like Adobe Lightroom. This is one of the best improvements year-on-year. The implementation and widespread usage of the HEIC standard allows a new level of customization and post-processing which brings the smartphone one step closer to being “pro-grade”.

In addition to the improvements on the photo side of things, Samsung’s new flagship also comes with improvements on the video side of things. The S23+ is able to shoot in higher resolution for longer and also supports higher resolutions with super steady mode. The higher resolutions allow for more detailed content to be captured with the smartphone. However, the most important thing – at least to us – is the ability to shoot video at a moment’s notice. Samsung has made it easy to kick into video with the long press of the shutter button. They’ve also made it so that your settings are saved into the camera app and are set until you change it. The resulting video, on the other hand, is pretty high quality. Thanks to the gyro EIS, it’s also more stable than before.

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Of course, these experiences are all done with the camera set in auto. If you want more control, you’ll be able to use Pro and Pro video modes. These modes give more control to things like ISO, aperture and shutter speed which allows you to capture your pictures and video with settings that are the most natural looking for you. It also allows you to play director and cameraman when you shoot content. This was really useful when we were looking for places for a personal project. The granular settings allowed us to replicate settings that would have been similar to our camera for better shot visualisation.

When it comes to Samsung’s big push for Nightography, the S23+ is a marked improvement from its predecessor. Shots are better in low light with a little bit more detail. Even with extremely limited light, the camera was able to capture video and pictures which were detailed enough to see what was happening. That said, the resultant photos and videos aren’t the best. Then again, we don’t expect the same quality as the pictures under amazing lighting but as a hallmark feature, it left a little bit to be desired.

Overall, while the hardware remained the same, Samsung has bolstered camera performance with minor tweaks to the features and a heavy hand with Galaxy AI. That said, they’re able to produce more natural-looking photos and videos and also give more granular camera control to users to capture their vision. However, it feels like the S23+ still has some work to do to be on par with the S23 Ultra when it comes to its hallmark Nightography feature. While it is much improved on the S23+, it still lacks the crispness and detail they tout in their ads.

Samsung’s Best User Experience Yet but With Drawbacks that Affect its Value Proposition

Overall, the Galaxy S23+ is proof that software and optimizations can revamp a device’s performance and user experience. It launched with a user experience that’s both refined and comes with extensive personalization options. However, these options are behind an additional app and its extensions requiring more memory and RAM to run. This weighs on the already limited 8GB of RAM which comes on the S23+.

That said, when it comes to performance, the S23+ is a marked improvement to its predecessor. This is mainly thanks to the improved architecture of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 which comes with a more power-efficient configuration. While Samsung’s new One UI does bring its own optimisations of Android 13, the extensive features it brings eat away at valuable storage.

The plus variant of the Galaxy S series has always been that Goldilocks device when it comes to Samsung’s Galaxy S series. However, Samsung’s decision to be iterative in their design and approach to the S23+ proves that the approach is a double-edged sword. The S23+ comes with a winning formula when it comes to hardware – we even praised it in our review of the S22+ – but therein lies the problem. They’ve made meaningful improvements including design choices that make the device feel more premium, but it’s overshadowed by a price point that makes their mid-range and competition look more appealing.

Android, Mobile, News

Samsung Unleashes Awesome With New Galaxy A Series Flagships

March 22, 2023 Nur Jeevan Leave a comment

Updated 24 March 2023 with pricing and retail availability. Pre-order details are available in the pre-order announcement article.

Samsung’s Galaxy A series has been one of Samsung’s most popular smartphone line up. The Galaxy A series underwent a reinvention in 2018 and began to take shape into the value-for-money offering that it is known to be now. This year, it looks like Samsung is scaling back the lineup – for now – with the omission of the follow-up to the Galaxy A73, the Galaxy A74. The new lineup is now spearheaded by the Galaxy A54 5G and the Galaxy A34 5G which continue to bring flagship user experiences to the midrange.

The new Galaxy A54 and Galaxy A34 come with Samsung’s Nightography and Au capabilities that we’ve seen in the Galaxy Z and Galaxy S lineups. Both the Galaxy A54 and Galaxy A34 come with triple camera setups. The A54 comes with a 50-megapixel main sensor with an f/1.8 aperture, phase detection autofocus (PDAF) and optical image stabilization (OIS). The setup is completed with a 12-megapixel ultrawide sensor with an f/2.2 aperture and a 5-megapixel macro sensor. On the A34, the main sensor is a 48-megapixel sensor with an f/1.8 aperture, PDAF and OIS. An 8-megapixel, f2.2 ultrawide sensor and 5-megapixel macro sensor complete the setup. On the front, the A54 5G comes with a 32-megapixel, f/2.2 selfie camera while the A34 5G comes with a 13-megapixel, f/2.2 sensor.

Together with optimisations that empower better low-light Nightography photos, these smartphones also come with video digital image stabilization (VDIS) which has delivered better, more stable videos in the flagship Galaxy S series. The camera experiences are also enhanced with the ability to remove unwanted reflections and shadows – a first for the Galaxy A series. Speaking of firsts, the new Galaxy A54 and A34 both come Continuity now. The feature, which has been available on Samsung flagships, allows users to seamlessly move between Samsung mobile devices while keeping their work and data on-screen.

The new Galaxy A series devices also come with long-lasting battery life and better performance thanks to the newer processors. The A34 comes with the MediaTek Dimensity 1080 while the A54 comes with the newly announced Exynos 1380. Both come with Super AMOLED screens with FHD+ resolutions. The A54 comes with a smaller 6.4-inch display while the A34 comes with a larger 6.6-inch display. Both have Corning Gorilla Glass 5 and have 120Hz refresh rates.

Samsung has also guaranteed 4 generations of OS upgrades and 5 years of security updates for the new A34 and A54. The devices also come with a 2-year warranty.

Pricing & Availability

The Galaxy A54 5G will be available in stores starting on 7 April 2023 for MYR1,899. It will be available in Awesome Lime, Awesome Graphite, Awesome Violet and Awesome White.

The Galaxy A34 5G will be available at the same time for MYR1,599. It will be available in Awesome Lime, Awesome Graphite, Awesome Violet and Awesome Silver.

Official Specifications

Galaxy A54 5G

Display	6.4-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED Display 120Hz refresh rate Vision booster
Dimensions & Weight	158.2 x 76.7 x 8.2mm, 202g
Camera	12MP Ultra-Wide Camera – F2.2 50MP Main Camera – F1.8 – AF – OIS 5MP Macro Camera – F2.4 32MP Front Camera – F2.2
AP	Octa-core
Memory	8GB Memory + 256GB Storage Expandable storage by up to 1 TB with an optional microSD card
Battery	5,000mAh (typical)
OS	Android 13 One UI 5.1
Security	Samsung Knox

Galaxy A34 5G

Display	6.6-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED Display 120Hz refresh rate Vision Booster
Dimensions & Weight	161.3 x 78.1 x 8.2mm, 199g
Camera	8MP Ultra-Wide Camera – F2.2 48MP Main Camera – F1.8, – AF, – OIS 5MP Macro Camera – F2.4 13MP Front Camera -F2.2
AP	Octa-Core
Memory	8GB Memory + 256GB Storage Expandable storage by up to 1 TB with an optional microSD card
Battery	5,000mAh (typical)
OS	Android 13 One UI 5.1
Security	Samsung Knox

Android, Mobile, News

Samsung Unpacks The Galaxy S23 Series

February 2, 2023 Nur Jeevan Leave a comment

It’s that time again, Samsung has just unveiled their new lineup of flagships – the Galaxy S23 series. The new S23 series follows its predecessor in more than just the design – there are also three devices in the lineup. You’re going to quickly realise that that’s a theme that will be recurring throughout the series.

Like previous years, the Galaxy S23 series will come with a vanilla Galaxy S23, the S23+ and the Note-successor Galaxy S23 Ultra. This year, however, it seems like Samsung has chosen to focus on the Galaxy S23 Ultra rather than its two siblings. The vanilla Galaxy S23 and the S23+ seem to have a lot more in common with the S22 than we’re used to.

Let’s start off with what’s changing across the board, the first and biggest update coming to the series is its new processor. This time, Samsung hasn’t been coy about it. Instead, globally, the S23 series will be coming with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for GALAXY. This is a customised processor built specifically for Galaxy smartphones. Prepare to see more of the “Snapdragon for GALAXY” in this year’s Galaxy lineup. In addition to this, the Galaxy S23 series will be coming with a Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with increased colour accuracy, a 120Hz refresh rate and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2. This comes in a 6.1-inch size on the S23, 6.3-inch in the plus and 6.8-inch in the Ultra.

Is the Galaxy S23 Series Continuing an Iconic Design?

When it comes to the design of the S23 series, the series drops the iconic contour cut design from the Galaxy S22 and S22+ in this year’s iterations. Samsung claims that it’s doing this for the uniformity of design across all three variants of the S23 series. To achieve this uniformity, they’ve opted to adopt the minimalistic design language of the S22 Ultra – which has more or less been recycled for the S23 Ultra.

However, there are some iterative changes that are being introduced. As mentioned, the contour cut camera cutout is no more. Instead, the back is totally uniform with each camera sensor being highlighted by a silver ring. The same design is used across the series. The Galaxy S23 Ultra is slightly more different with the design being flattened out to enlarge the flat surface of the 6.8-inch display to take advantage of the S Pen.

Galaxy S23 Ultra Focused Leaving the S23 & S23+ Behind – at least in Hardware

The new series is very heavily Ultra focused. The Galaxy S23 and S23+ are more or less the same devices we’ve seen in the S22 and S22+. The only difference aside from the new processor is the improved selfie camera which comes in at 12 megapixels and the larger batteries – 3,900mAh in the S23 and 4,700mAh in the S23+. Aside from that, they come with the same 10-megapixel telephoto and 12-megapixel ultrawide sensors we’ve seen in the S22 and S22+.

The Galaxy S23 Utlra, on the other hand, comes with a brand new 200-megapixel sensor complemented by a 12-megapixel ultrawide camera, 10-megapixel telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom and 10-megapixel telephoto camera with 10x optical zoom. The new camera setup – particularly the 200-megapixel adaptive pixel sensor – comes with improved pixel binning. The new sensor combines 16 pixels into a single pixel when taking photos. Samsung is calling this “Super Quad Pixel”. This gives better light sensitivity and contrast while giving the AI more information for better bokeh and nightography. With the improved pixel binning, the AI is able to discern between features like skin, eyes and hair better and more accurately. It also allows for better autofocus as it allows the AI to use a larger 4×4 grid with more points of focus.

Stabilization on the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s camera has also been improved. The optical image stabilization (OIS) angles have been doubled from 1.5° to 3.0°. This is supposed to give the smartphone even better image and video stabilization. Keep in mind, this is a stabilization that comes from the hardware itself and not the software. Software-wise, the whole S23 series comes with improved VIDS. The improved VIDS is able to analyse and subdivide movement and recognise lighting conditions that allow for better software stabilization. The S23 series also comes with better multi-frame processing and AI.

A Focus on User Experience Starting with One UI 5.1

While the series is a little bit bland when it comes to hardware, Samsung promising a renewed focus starting with One UI 5.1. The new update to One UI will bring a new sense of personalisation which can be extended with apps like Good Lock.

One UI 5.1 brings a few new features including Modes and Routines. The new modes and routines feature allows users to string together settings, apps and even smart things devices into a “routine” or “mode”. This allows you to do things by simply saying “Hey Google” or “Hey Bixby” followed by the name of the routine or mode or even trigger it with an exercise or more.

Bixby Text Call is also coming for the ride. The new feature allows users to send text messages as replies to incoming calls. In addition to this feature, the S Pen functionality is extended to work in a series of Google Apps including Google Drive, Google Sheets and more. Users will also be able to collaborate more effectively with the Co-Edit feature in Samsung Notes over Google Meets.

Pricing & Availability

The Samsung Galaxy S23 series will be in Phantom Black, Cream, Green and Lavender. Prices for the S23 and S23+ start at MYR3,899 in Malaysia while the Ultra starts at MYR5,699.

Android, Lifestyle, Mobile

Meet The Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 – A Mid Range All-Rounder

May 12, 2022 Nur Jeevan Leave a comment

Samsung has been creating waves and making its mark with its tablets – notably, the Galaxy Tab S series which pushes the boundaries of multitasking and productivity. However, what happens if we want the portability and versatility of a tablet but don’t have the moolah for a Tab S7 or Tab S8? Well, you have the Galaxy Tab A series, which brings all the essentials that make up the core Galaxy Tab experience.

The Galaxy Tab A8 was released worldwide earlier this year in January. It comes with a UNISOC Tiger T618 Quadcore processor. While this may seem a bit out of sorts for Samsung, the SoC isn’t a slouch. According to reviews, it is comparable with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 665. It has the Mali G52 MP2 graphics processor and is paired with up to 4GB RAM on the Tab A8. With up to 128GB of internal storage and support for microSD cards, the A8 is looking to be a contender for a top performing mid-range tablet.

The Tab A8 is equipped with a sizeable, 10.5-inch TFT LCD display which brings pretty good colour reproduction and accuracy. However, we’ll wait to make a judgement in our upcoming review. The WUXGA resolution of 1200×1920 pixels with a 16:10 aspect ratio promises a level of immersion that we once thought was reserved for flagships. Samsung completes the Tab A8’s media prowess with a quad speaker setup and Dolby Atmos sound.

It also comes with a conventional single camera setup with an 8-megapixel camera sensor on the back with autofocus capabilities. It can also shoot videos at 1080p Full HD resolution at 30 frames per second. On the front, there is a 5-megapixel selfie camera which can also shoot 1080p at 30 fps.

Connectivity on the Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 shouldn’t be an issue. It’s equipped with Bluetooth 5.0, WiFi 6 and GPS connectivity. Don’t need to worry about battery life too as Samsung claims that the tablet can last for hours on end with its 7,040 mAh battery. This is also thanks to the tablet supporting 15W fast charging via USB-C. The tablet is also one of Samsung’s lightest coming in at only 508g.

These specifications are just the surface of what the Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 can do. We’ll be giving it the techENT review treatment soon. So stay tuned!

Official Specifications

01 galaxy tab a8 specification infographic 1 — Source: Samsung

Business, Computers, Consumer Electronics, Lifestyle, News

[MWC 2022] Samsung Introduces the 2nd Generation Galaxy Book – Introducing the Samsung Galaxy Book2 Pro Series

February 28, 2022 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

Samsung introduced their Galaxy Book line-up last year, to everyone’s delight and confusion. Samsung has pulled itself from the PC business for a long time now, and they announced that they are back in the Windows PC world in 2021, a time where the world is still deciding whether exposure to the sun is a good thing or not. At the same time, it is a very sensible move from Samsung.

Samsung’s position in the smartphone industry makes it a prime candidate to introduce new technologies and innovations in the space. As one of the largest electronics manufacturers in the world as well, they are perfectly positioned to introduce a wide range of electronic packages that can work and communicate with each other seamlessly; an ecosystem of sorts. After all, if Apple can do it without owning factories, why not Samsung? Hence, the Samsung Galaxy Book series in 2021; there is the Galaxy name, so we know they are supposed to work with the smartphones at least.

While most second-generation stuff are minor updates to the older devices, the latest generation of Galaxy Book devices that are showcased from Samsung’s MWC 2022 gambit are more than minor updates though. They maintain largely the same looks as before, so it is not a facelift. Yes, it also packs Intel’s latest 12^th generation Core processors; that is a given update for 2022.

They introduced two new Galaxy Books for MWC 2022 though; three if you count the Galaxy Book2 Business. Let us stick to the stuff that ultimately gets to regular consumer’s hands though. They introduced a sort of convertible 2-in-1 Galaxy Book2 Pro 360, and a regular clamshell Galaxy Book2 Pro. Both are quite tantalizing for both Samsung Galaxy users and other Android device users.

Better Video Calls for Work

The Galaxy Book2 Pro series now has a Full HD 1080p webcam for better quality video calls. Still important for the current working from home practice. It also features a wider angle of capture, which allows you to get a bit closer to your laptop without looking overly creepy. It works with group calls too, of course. If not, the higher resolution might be useful for the “Auto Framing” function where the camera cleverly follows you in a call.

To ensure that you feel included and present in the call is also an excellent display. It is an AMOLED display that is supposedly brighter than before, meaning everything is a bit more vivid than before. The brilliant display is matched with equally impressive audio hardware in two AKG tuned, Dolby Atmos certified Smart Amp speakers. With bi-directional AI noise cancelling, video calls are crisp and clear, free from distractions.

Better for the Galaxy

The new Galaxy Book2 Pro series now comes with more integrated Galaxy Experience on it. What that means is that it gets some of the things that makes your Galaxy smartphones great, now optimised for Windows. One of them is the Galaxy Book Smart Switch.

Galaxy Book Smart Switch

You might be familiar with Smart Switch if you are a Samsung Galaxy smartphone user. It is one of Samsung’s most popular features especially when it comes to helping their customers transition from their older devices – be it another Galaxy device, other Android smartphones, and even Apple device. Now it comes to the Galaxy Book2 Pro series to help you transition from your old laptop. This is also the first time a PC maker allows users to completely duplicate data from one computer to a new one seamlessly. All you need to do is fire up Smart Switch on either the Galaxy Book2 Pro or the Galaxy Book2 Pro 360, connect it to your older laptop, and watch the progress bar go. It is just as simple as that, and we are excited to see it happen with our own eyes.

Work with Windows, or Your Phone, or even Other Galaxy Devices – One UI Book 4

The Samsung Galaxy and Microsoft Windows integration is much deeper in the Galaxy Book2 Pro. Your Galaxy Windows device now does Your Phone app with Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones much better now. Recent Apps now allow you to quickly check your smartphone and even pull up apps that you often use directly from the desktop.

Your Phone app, in nature, allows you to use your smartphone natively on Windows without you even touching your Galaxy device. You can make calls with the smartphone remotely, reply to messages on WhatsApp, or Telegram, or even emails on your smartphone via Windows. It is a one-stop-shop solution for controlling your smartphone from one device.

But the Galaxy One UI Book 4 is more than just a regular Your Phone companion app. If you own the new Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 series tablet, your Galaxy Book2 Pro’s keyboard and trackpad can be used for your tablet too. In that case, you can just leave your keyboard case at home and go with a more protective bumper case for your Galaxy Tablet.

Better Data Sharing

Quick Share on your Galaxy devices are some of the best data sharing features available on the devices. It allows you to quickly share out documents from one device to another without needing to go through the qualms of getting your devices paired first. The data transfer speeds are much faster than Bluetooth data sharing too, making your workflow more seamless.

Then there is Private Share, for when you are sharing more sensitive data with your colleagues or friends. No, do not use this for blackmailing people. It is designed for you to quickly share over files or photos with more security built in. Built on top of blockchain technology, you can even embed your files with functions like ”view-only” access by selected users. You can disable the files you share to be screen captured, have full control over who has access to the files, and even having a “self-destruct” timer for the files.

SmartThings – Samsung’s Integrated IoT

Of course, as per the name of the device, Samsung integrates SmartThings into the Galaxy Book2 Pro series. With Bixby, instead of Cortana, you can now control all sorts of stuff at home. You can turn on your TV, check the room temperature, tell your vacuum cleaner bot to start picking up the slack, check your security cams, and even control your lights via SmartThings Dashboard on your Windows PC and Bixby. If you are one of those that keeps misplacing your stuff at home, SmartThings Find can also help you find your keys, your smartphones, your Galaxy Buds, and whatever else you can attach your Galaxy Smart Tag (not to be confused with Malaysia’s SmartTag).

Better for the Planet

Additionally, Samsung has reiterated its commitment to their Galaxy for the Planet initiative very recently. In their recent Unpacked 2022 announcement, Samsung said that they are starting to make their stuff from eco-conscious materials like discarded fishing nets. The said material is being used in the Samsung Galaxy Book2 Pro series’ inner brackets and touchpad holders. To ensure that your Galaxy Book2 Pro series’ shelf-life is longer, new algorithm is introduced to regulate the battery charge and health to ensure that it lasts longer. The display is also a GREENGUARD certified AMOLED panel that is produced with more sustainable processes. Of course, you get your Samsung Galaxy Book2 Pro device in a recyclable paper boxes and mold trays that are also sourced from sustainable sources.

009 galaxy book2 business lte dark gray r perspective uk — Source: Samsung

8.Galaxy Book2 Pro 360 13 Silver — Source: Samsung

Price and Availability

Samsung’s Galaxy Book2 Pro is available in two flavours; a convertible and a regular clamshell, as mentioned. The Galaxy Book2 Pro 360 convertible will be available in Burgundy, Graphite, and Silver colour options. It will start their pre-order campaign on the 18^th of March 2022 onward and ship on the 1^st of April 2022 onward. The Galaxy Book2 Pro clamshell variant will be available for pre-order and ship on the same dates. You can opt for Graphite or Silver colour options. The convertible will retail at US$ 900 (MYR 3,782*) onward while the clamshell will set you back US$ 1,050 (MYR 4,413*) onward. These are details for its U.S. availability though, there are no mentions on its local (Malaysia and Southeast Asia) availability yet.

*Approximately based on conversion rate of US$ 1 = MYR 4.20 as of 28/02/2022 on xe.com

Android, Editorial, Mobile, Reviews

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 In-Depth Review – Back in Black

February 18, 2022 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

Flexible displays have a complicated history. It has also come a long way since its conception many years ago. Samsung was the first smartphone manufacturer in the world to finally realise the foldable smartphone dream with the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Fold back in 2018. If you have read our review of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2, you would know that we are quite fond of it.

They have released the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3. Admittedly, we are a little late on its review. But it is still one of Samsung’s most powerful flagships to date, and you can get one with an S Pen. Effectively, it is a spiritual successor to the Galaxy Note series that is confirmed to be long gone.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 is cheaper than before at MYR 6,699. There are a few reasons for that, but it is a good thing overall. Is it now worth its asking price though? Should you consider moving to a foldable device now that Samsung has forgone its Galaxy Note series? Is it even a good device? We find out.

Design

Unlike a lot of the other flagships that seems to get larger with new iterations, the new Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3’s dimensions did not change from the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2. They are identical in , width and even thickness. If you put them together side by side, ignoring the camera module, you would have a hard time telling the two devices apart.

The materials used are the exact same materials as before in all the same places. Even the hinge mechanism is the same one used in the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2. There is a small difference between the hinge in the third iteration though. It is now sealed and insulated to ensure that it can comply to IPX8 water resistance. Water resistance, in some ways, is a large improvement over the older Galaxy Z Fold2 in today’s modern standards. That, and they say that the aluminium ‘backbone’ (as they call it) is now 10% stronger than before. We did not get to test that though.

There are also some differences at the back of the device. The camera module looks a lot more modest than before. It now features three separate glass elements instead of a single glass box. It somehow makes the entire back of the device looks much cleaner, although the three cameras are the same three cameras you find on the old Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2. That is about it in terms of the difference in appearance though.

Hardware

Oddly, it is not powered by Samsung’s own Exynos powerhouse. In fact you cannot find a Samsung foldable with Exynos chip in it. Instead, it is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 System on a Chip (SoC).

Specifications

Processor	Samsung Exynos 888 Octa-Core 5nm 1x Kryo 680 @2.84GHZ 3x Kryo 680 @2.42GHz 4x Kryo 680 @1.80GHz
Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)	Adreno 660
RAM	12GB
Memory (as tested)	256GB
Display(s)	Main Internal Display: Foldable Dynamic AMOLED 2X 7.6-inch 1,768 x 2,208 pixels ~373ppi 120Hz (up to) HDR10+ 1200 nits Under-Display Camera Secondary External Display: Dynamic AMOLED 2X 6.2-inch 832 x 2,268pixels (25:9) 120Hz Corning Gorilla Glass Victus
Operating System	OneUI based on Android 11
Battery	Non-Removable Li-Po 4,400mAh Fast Charging 25W Wireless Charging 11W Reverse Wireless Charging 4.5W
Connectivity	5G UWB Dual SIM Wi-Fi WLAN 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax GPS/A-GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS A2DP AptX HD Bluetooth 5.2 OTG Support USB Type-C 3.2 Samsung DeX
Camera (s)	REAR: 12-Megapixel (f/1.8, 26mm wide angle) 12-Megapixel (f/2.4, 52mm telephoto) 12-Megapixel (f/2.2, 12mm ultra-wide angle) HDR 4K video recording (60fps) LED flash FRONT Internal: 4-Megapixel (f/1.8, under-display ) 4K video recording (30fps) FRONT External: 10-Megapixel (f/2.2, 26mm wide angle) 4K video recording (30fps)
Sensors	Accelerometer Proximity Side Mounted Fingerprint Ambient Light Gyroscope Face Unlock Compass

User Interface – One UI Full Flex

Of course, a Samsung device is never complete without Samsung’s very recognizable User Interface on top of Android. At the time of testing, we only had One UI on top of Android 11. Still, One UI is a league of its own in the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3. You do not want to be using a custom launcher with the Samsung foldable flagship.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3’s One UI does not feel like a blown up One UI for odd displays. It feels better than the older interface. Oddly, not that much has changed since the last round.

You still can have two different home screens for both your front display and inside display. This time round, you can both displays to display the same home screen too, if you really want, without messing about too much. Notifications are not blown up to occupy the entire space like before. It actually feels nicer and cleaner somehow. On top of that, you get more unique app experiences now on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3.

Settings Menu

Instead of the old settings menu that is clearly made for smartphones, the interface opens to a more tablet like experience with the main display. Of course, you get the regular smartphone interface type of settings menu on the outer display. Once you open the device, the interface immediately changes though, which is a real nice touch.

Spotify

The Spotify experience on the main display of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 opens to a more tablet like experience too. To be fair, it should not be to hard for app developers to include smartphone-to-tablet-to-smartphone switching modes. Most apps have their own dedicated tablet interfaces these days and it would make sense for them to include the interface for the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3.

YouTube

Of course, this was the first app with a proper interface that is more suited to the larger display of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold. It was first seen on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2, but it is a little smoother now on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3. At the same time, you can tilt the display to use half the screen to watch your videos and view the comments of description on the other. We think that it is a feature useful when you do livestreams, especially when you need to watch the comments box.

Gmail

You guessed it, when the Z Fold3 is open, Gmail opens to a more tablet like experience too with the email inbox list on the left and the contents on the right. We think that this is a much more intuitive experience for the larger tablet like display on the Galaxy Z Fold3.

Plenty to Work On

One UI is not perfect though. While Instagram now fills up the entire display, you might find that the app does not work as intended when you switch from the front display to the main display. You cannot interact with stories unless you close the app and open it again with the main display. Shopee and Lazada also do not resize between displays . While they are just irksome at best, it does detract from the whole foldable experience.

The Fold, Now with S Pen

This is an addition we appreciate though coming from the Samsung Galaxy Note line-up. One thing we were left wanting with the previous Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 was also the S Pen capabilities. The only issue is that the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3’s S Pen is a different one to the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra’s.

Screenshot 20211216 121141 Samsung Notes 1

Working with the S Pen is nice though. We missed the Galaxy Note series dearly and the Galaxy Z Fold3 sort of compensates the Galaxy Note’s discontinuation. We were worried that the S Pen would not be able to keep up at the dip of the display, where there are no digitizers, but it works perfectly, even when we drew a line down the crease. The whole S Pen experience is more natural than ever. It really is like writing in a notebook this time.

Performance

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 packs a very potent Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 System on a Chip (SoC). Even compared to the newly launched Samsung Galaxy S22, Galaxy Z Fold3 is still one powerful device. But its performance does not just come from the powerful SoC, it is the entire package that makes the Galaxy Z Fold3 what it is.

Benchmark

Call Quality and Connectivity

Like the older Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2, the Galaxy Z Fold3 packs only one earpiece and that is on its secondary (outer) display. That also means that you can only use it with the device folded. When it is unfolded, you can only make calls with the loudspeaker, which is not an entirely bad idea sometimes.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 in loudspeaker mode somehow feels a little louder than before. We are pretty sure it is the same hardware as the Galaxy Z Fold2 in terms of its audio. The increased volume also means that you can use it in a small discussion room with just a few people on the table as a teleconferencing device.

Of course, thanks to One UI, you can use your Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 as a video conferencing tool without the need to buy a stand or prop your device up against something else. You can set the device to open in any angle (nothing beyond 180^o, though) and its front-facing camera can be angled to you for a better video calling experience.

If the device on the other end of the line also supposed VoLTE and is calling with full signal strength, your calls are crystal clear and crisp. Of course, these days you are making calls when you are on the move (we strongly discourage using the device without hands-free when you are driving). In that case, you might come across areas with poor signals. If you have a single bar on the network though, you should be able to have conversations over the phone, albeit with some distortions.

Gaming

Like the older Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2, we tested the device with PUBG Mobile, and Mobile Legends Bang Bang. We also tested it with Pokémon Unite, a MOBA title. Of course, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 performed very well in these games. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 888, in 2021 at least, is the most powerful smartphone processor you can find on any Android device. It only makes sense that you can play these games at its highest requirements with no issues at all.

The only issue you might be facing is heat management on the device. There is only so much surface area on the back of the foldable device to dissipate heat too, so you are going to feel it a little bit in your fingers. It is not scalding hot though; you should be able to still handle it with little discomfort.

Multitasking and Productivity

The large display allows us to experience two apps at once without having to crimp on the window sizes. You can have three windows open at once, plus five floating windows in the back. In theory, you can have all eight apps open at the same time.

In practice though, the best way to use the device is by having three windows. We would like to be able to use up to four apps at the same time, there is enough screen real estate to work with. Sure, you can have a floating window open, but it is just not the same.

Still, three is better than two. At that as well, The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 never felt too sluggish to work with even when there are eight apps running at the same time (three windows, five floating windows). You can easily change from one app to the other effortlessly too, which is a huge plus point in multitasking.

Samsung’s latest One UI also inherits its not-so-intuitive multi-window mechanics. The easiest way to open all the apps is to first open the three apps separately, and to go into recent apps to fiddle with the little “multi-window” option on the apps you want to run. Once in this mode, you can just toggle the apps around to increase its size or rearrange the entire thing.

Like its predecessors, the new One UI also comes with a quick launch menu which allows you to dock up to two apps at once to be able to launch both the apps in multi-window mode immediately. We highly recommend using that feature in the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 to optimise your experience.

Battery Life

In our typical use case, we work with apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, Gmail, and even the phone app plenty. We would also scroll feeds on Instagram, Facebook, and even Twitter from time to time with it. Of course, our camera is also used to take various photos and videos we could use for our review. We do play games on the device occasionally.

In our typical use case, we never had too much of a problem with its battery life for an entire day. In our test period, we took the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 away from the charger at about 9am. The device would hit about 15% of battery at about 10 p.m. on average.

While the battery is smaller than before, it charges just about the same with the older device. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 charges to full in about two hours via USB Type-C cable. It also comes with wireless charging like its predecessor. Charging it wirelessly allows it to charge at 15W speeds. I will take longer than two hours to charge the device from empty to full in that case.

Displays & Audio

While the displays on the new and older device looks the same, they are slightly different. The outer display is a slightly smaller display before at 6.2-inch from the 6.23-inch of the Z Fold2. Nothing much has changed on the inside though, except for a difference in brightness and a revolutionary under-display camera.

Secondary Display

It is now a Dynamic AMOLED 2X display compared to the older Super AMOLED. It crams a little more resolution that before too at 832 by 2,268 pixels. You hardly notice the added pixels in such a crammed display. You will notice the difference in panel quality though.

The colours from a Dynamic AMOLED 2X tend to look more natural, less saturated than Super AMOLED. At 25:9 aspect ratio, the narrow display is not really made for immersive media consumption. The better colour contrasts of the display does make it a little more enjoyable when you are watching Netflix or even YouTube on the smaller display.

Main Display

Of course, you want to use the larger display for the best viewing experience. It is also the same great flexible display you find on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2, except it has gotten a little bit more brightness and the S Pen capability.

While the near square display works very well for productivity, it is a little crippled in consuming media. When you watch Netflix, you get two very large black bars on the top and bottom of the display. It does not take anything away from its experience though.

The display shines in gaming though. Mobile games tend to take advantage of different display form factors and optimizes itself to match the display size and form factor. Most of the games we tested fills the display. The result is an immersive gaming experience with plenty of details on display. The control buttons do not interfere with the peripheral visions on the display, which is a bonus in games like PUBG Mobile and even other MOBA games.

The same flex and bending marks from before can still be seen and is as noticeable as before. The crease is quite unavoidable in today’s folding devices. It is a little distracting especially when you view the display from an angle, but you might grow used to it after a while.

Under Display Cam – Not Just a Hole

If you look closely, the top part of the right side of the display looks a little odd. There are pixels that sit there, but you can see through it to find the small front-facing camera. While the pixel count in that small, rounded area is not as dense as the other parts of the display, it does help with your viewing experience. Netflix can now take full advantage of the display’s height and other media looks less janky.

Cameras

The under-display is not a brilliant camera. Photos taken with this 4-megapixel camera feels a little dated. Colours are a little off and details are not great. It is the camera that most will use for video conferences though, where high-resolution is not necessary.

There is another 10-Megapixel front-facing camera. This one is the same one as you can find from the device before. While it is not the most detailed photo you get from this camera, it is not a bad image you get. Colours and saturation seem to be more on-point.

The rear cameras are also the exact same ones you can find on the Galaxy Z Fold3. While you get the same triple 12-Megapixel camera set up, the processing chip is a lot more advanced than before. The results from the 12-Megapixel shooters are quite impressive.

They are not what you would call ‘DSLR’ quality, but they are more than acceptable for social media use. The colours look natural and vivid while details look great for 12-Megapixel photos. At the same time, you can still record videos at 4K.

Gallery

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Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 – The Z Fold2, just Better Everywhere

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 is not meant to be a huge leap from the older Samsung Galazy Z Fold2. It is meant to be just a touch better than the 2^nd generation foldable; more refined, if you must. But that does not mean that Samsung was complacent with the Galaxy Z Fold3.

The flagship foldable is now an IPX certified device, which means it can handle the weather. That also meant that the Galaxy Z Fold3 has some added durability built into the stuff. While the mechanism was a concern in the old device, the new one is made to be a little sturdier and just works better. The added durability on that also means that the S Pen feature can now be integrated and it works better than we thought it would.

They updated the secondary display, which may not be too noticeable to most people. But we do appreciate that small upgrade to bring the secondary display to the level of the main display. You get the same colours and same saturation levels. In some ways, it just makes the experience switching from the secondary to main display just a little more seamless.

The main display has not changed all that much, but the addition of a thin layer of LED on top of the internal camera does make it feel a touch more immersive than before. It makes the display looks complete too, even if you can still tell that there is a hole underneath the display. Yes, that means the camera underneath have to be a little worse than before, but that is an okay trade-off in this case.

The camera modules have not changed, but thanks to the new processor and better imaging algorithm, the camera experience is just a touch better. Below that is slightly smaller battery, but the difference between battery life from the old device is virtually non-existent. System wise, apps just work a little better and some apps have ‘tablet’ modes on the device now, which just makes more sense.

At MYR 6,699, it is way cheaper than the older device. Samsung is going all-in with the foldable device market, and it shows with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3. The lower pricing just means that they want you to be on board too.

The third generation foldable from Samsung is marginally better in almost every way. But they are marginal improvements in the areas that matter. All of them total up to a better Galaxy Z Fold experience.

So, to answer the questions we set out to answer. Yes, it is now sort of worth MYR 6,699. Yes, you can consider this as your replacement to the Samsung Galaxy Note series, if you do not mind the step-down in camera technology. Yes, the Galaxy Z Fold3 is a good device. If you are coming from the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 though, you might want to hold it off for a while and wait for the next iteration of the Galaxy Z Fold before considering an upgrade.

Android, Mobile, News

Android 12 Based One UI 4.0 is Coming to Samsung Galaxy S21 Devices Near You

November 17, 2021 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

There used to be a time when you want to avoid Samsung if you want fast and timely Operating System (OS) upgrades on your Android devices. Android updates in the early days of Samsung’s Android affair was pushed to Samsung devices way later than other manufacturers. At some point, a Samsung device only gets its major update 6 months after the same OS update was made available from Google itself.

Today, it is a different story though. Samsung is consistently topping charts when it comes to device updates. In the world of Android as well, apart from Google, Samsung has the best track record of timely software upgrades on their devices. They also keep their devices updated and supported longer than any Android manufacturer other than Google themselves currently. There is a reason why Samsung remained at the top spot when it comes to the smartphone market.

Android 12 was just released to the wild less than two months ago. Of course, it appears first on Google’s own range of devices. Of course, the new Google Pixel 6 series launched with Android 12 as part of its package. There was also a tonne of devices that had official Android 12 Beta support, if you wanted to try them. Strangely, Samsung was not too much in a hurry to release their own Beta version of the new OS even when others made theirs available near immediately after Google’s announcement of Android 12. There is a good reason, we think.

Samsung was late to the Beta party because they were busy making sure that they can push out the full version of One UI 4.0 based on Android 12 to market as soon as possible. At least we theorised that this is the case. Prove? One UI 4.0 with Android 12 is now rolling out on Samsung Galaxy S21 devices.

Of course, the update starts in the United States (U.S.) first. That also means we, living in Malaysia, will not be getting our Android 12 updates for the Samsung Galaxy S21 devices just yet. It should not take too long for Samsung to start rolling out updates for devices in Malaysia though, so we are expecting something to happen to your Samsung Galaxy S21 devices within the coming two weeks.

If you are not on a Samsung Galaxy S21 device though, you still should not worry too much. We are a little surprised too to find out that the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3 will only be getting their Android 12 update in December 2021 though, after the Galaxy S21 devices. The Samsung Galaxy S20 series will be getting their Android 12 update in the same month as the foldables. Even the Note 20 series gets their Android 12 treatment in December 2021.

If you are on anything newer than the Samsung Galaxy S9 or Note9 series, you are in luck to get your Android 12 update in January 2022, at least according to the leaked roadmap. That includes your Galaxy S10 and Note10 devices. Unfortunately, the Galaxy S9 and Note9 will not be getting anymore OS upgrades in the coming future.

Android, Editor's Choice, Editorial, Mobile, Reviews

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 In-Depth Review: They’re On to Something!

November 11, 2021 Nur Jeevan Leave a comment

Foldables – that’s what seems to be driving a new wave that is set to change how our phones look and feel in the near future. Samsung seems to be banking hard on foldable with a shift in their release schedule and strategy. Their once cornerstone Note series has seemingly given way to their new Galaxy Z series while its parts and features make it to other devices.

The Galaxy Z Flip3 is one of the latest devices in the Galaxy Z series and takes a sharp focus on self-expression and style. This is most evident with the announcement of the Galaxy Z Flip3 Bespoke Edition. However, unlike its predecessor, the Galaxy Z Flip3 comes with flagship specifications and features to complement them.

That said, we still have big questions that need to be answered – Is it worth your time and money? Does it belong in your pocket or should you pass and wait for another? Is the Z Flip 3 a worthy successor to the Galaxy Note series?

Design

The focus of the Galaxy Z Flip3 is its style and design – there’s no hiding that. The changes Samsung made from the Galaxy Z Flip and Z Flip 5G clearly show the direction that the smartphone is taking moving forward. To be very frank, it’s a direction that makes sense for the Z Flip lineup. We’ve all seen and experienced the twin technological flagships, in fact, we see that with most other companies in the mobile industry. The change in focus is a refreshing approach to a smartphone and one that seems to benefit the foldable – benefits we explore later in the review.

The first change you’ll notice on the Z Flip3 is that Samsung has done away with the rounded form factor of the original. It no longer tries to mimic a lady’s compact but instead looks more akin to a Galaxy flagship folded over. Its frame acts as a design accent which makes it look sleek, thin and stylish. It also highlights the design accents of the smartphone’s body.

The Galaxy Z Flip3 also makes one literal big change – the cover display. It changes the small, rather useless display of the original for a larger, more functional 1.9-inch display. This display is expertly blended into a large, black accent which also hides the dual camera setup on the new foldable. We will explore the functionality later in the review.

On the back, Samsung is using the same, but improved hinge we first saw in the Flip. It no longer occupies a prominent band on the back when the phone is unfolded. Instead, the hinge disappears seamlessly into the body of the phone when unfolded. The two halves meet in the middle leaving only a slimline where the hinge once was. The two halves are beautifully finished glass/glasstic with a glossy finish. When held the weight of the metal frame, glass panels and internals gives the Flip3 good weight while still remaining relatively light.

Where the design takes a departure from the run of the mill smartphone is when it’s neatly folded in half. The small, square form factor makes the phone easily pocketable. Samsung works to keep some functionality in the smartphone even in this form. That said, the smartphone seems like it’s only touching the tip of the iceberg when it’s in this form and, to be honest, those who are used to carrying a compact – will welcome the design and form factor.

Hardware

The hardware of the Galaxy Z Flip3 is a welcomed upgrade from the original. Instead of being a very public beta test, the new Flip3 feels well thought out and worthy of being a flagship. In fact, the hardware in the smartphone emphasizes the form over specifications approach that Samsung is taking with the line-up.

Specifications

Processor	Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5nm) Octa-Core @ 1×2.84GHz Kryo 680, 3×2.42GHz, 4×1.80GHz
RAM	8GB (As Tested)
Memory	128GB (As Tested) 256GB
Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)	Adreno 660
Display	Foldable AMOLED 2X panel 6.7-inch (~426 ppi) 1080×2640 pixels FHD+ resolution 22:9 Aspect Ratio 120Hz Refresh rate
Operating System	Android 11 with One UI 3.1.1
Battery	Non-Removable 3,3000mAh Li-Po Fast Charging (15W) Fast Wireless Charging (10W) Reverse Wireless Charging (4.5W) USB-PD 3.0
Connectivity	Nano SIM 5G/4G LTE/EVDO/HSPA/CDMA/GSM Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6(ax) A-GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS A2DP Bluetooth 5.1 OTG Support USB 3.1 Type-C
Camera	REAR: Dual Sensor: 12-Megapixel (f/1.8, 1/2.55″, 27mm (wide angle), 1.4µm Dual Pixel Phase Detection Autofocus (PDAF) Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) 12-Megapixel (f/2.2,123˚ (ultrawide), 1.12µm) HDR10+ LED Flash 4K Video recording (30/60fps) 1080p Video recording (60/240fps) 720p Video recording (960fps) FRONT: 10-Megapixel (f/2.4, 26mm (wide), 1.22µm) 4K video recording (30fps)
Sensor	Accelerometer Proximity Fingerprint (side-mounted) Gyroscope Compass
Miscellaneous	Single SIM/eSIM
Retail Price (Malaysia)	MYR 3,999 (128GB) MYR 4,199 (256GB)
Retail Price (US)	USD$ 999.99 (128GB) USD$ 1,049 (256GB)

User Interface

When it comes to the user interface, the Galaxy Z Flip3 is your run of the mill One UI interface. It does, however, have a big difference – its length. The foldable is slenderer and longer than your regular Samsung candy bar phones. Thus, it comes as no surprise that Samsung’s One UI has been adapted to the unique form factor as well as the many different modes that the unique fold form factor brings along with it.

The 9:22 aspect ratio is a unique form for Android. What Samsung has done is just scaled the UI to facilitate the added height. Unlike a regular smartphone, the grids that Android uses to align the widgets and icons are slightly elongated and rectangular on the Flip3. This gives One UI a more consistent feel even on the foldable. In fact, it behaves pretty much like a standard Android smartphone in this respect.

Where the UI shines on the Galaxy Z Flip3 is when you use apps that are compatible with the multiple angles the phone can fold. This includes the camera app, YouTube and a handful of other apps which have been developed together with Samsung. However, we expect that to change soon with Google releasing Android 12L. The optimised apps immediately scale or rearrange to maximise productivity. For instance, in the YouTube app, when you place the Flip3 at an angle, the video plays on the top half of the phone while chat and/or comments run in the lower half. Similarly, the camera app will optimise to have the viewfinder on the top half while the trigger is on the bottom.

Samsung has also made the front display a lot more actionable with the addition of widgets made specifically for the front display. At the time of review, there weren’t many third-party widgets for this. However, with widgets like calendar, voice recorder, stopwatch and more, you could get essential functionality literally at the touch of the small screen.

Aside from this, some hallmark features of One UI make it to the Z Flip3 including the sidebar and gesture navigation. The sidebar feels a little bit unnatural and awkward on the Flip3 due to the raised bezel that protects the screen. However, it doesn’t take away from the functionality that it brings such as quick access to apps and app pairs. Gesture navigation allows you to have even more screen real estate. It gives back the space which would otherwise be used to house the navigation buttons. However, since the active area for navigation is slightly larger than the sidebar, it actually felt pretty natural and ergonomic.

Performance

The Z Flip3 has graduated to one of Samsung’s main flagships this year. It comes as no surprise that they chose to go with the Snapdragon 888 5G processor, unlike the more experimental Z Flip. The SoC puts an octa-core processor with a capable GPU at the disposal of the Flip3. We all know by now, that it’s not about the hardware but how optimised it is to extract every ounce of performance. It’s also paired with 8GB of RAM and, in our review unit, 128GB of storage.

Multitasking & Productivity

It comes as no surprise to us that Samsung has vastly optimised the experience. Overall, the foldable is even more powerful than the original Flip. It’s able to handle multitasking better. The one thing that we loved in the original Flip was the ability to get things done – whether it be by disconnecting from the world or with the multitasking features of the smartphone.

The Flip3 continues this legacy by adding more features to the cover screen. The new widgets allow us to get more things done without opening the phone. This includes adding appointments to calendars, replying to messages and even taking pictures if the need arises. However, the more capable processor also allowed us to multitask more efficiently with split-screen multitasking. There was little to no slow down when using apps like Microsoft Excel and Samsung Email in split-screen. Even using Google Keep and Chrome in the same multitasking mode was a breeze.

Call Quality & Connectivity

It should come as no surprise that call quality and connectivity on the Flip3 is good. The smartphone comes with pretty much all the connectivity options you could need including the added futureproofing of 5G. Unfortunately, Malaysia hasn’t rolled out 5G, so we couldn’t really put that to the test.

However, aside from 5G, it comes with Bluetooth 5.1, WiFi 6 (AX) and 4G LTE. The connectivity options were robust enough that there were hardly any instances where we were offline. Bluetooth connectivity was stable on the Galaxy Buds Pro and even on the Sony WF-1000MX4. In fact, it seemed to be more stable and reliable than a few of the other review devices we had in-house and even my personal Galaxy Note10+. I could leave the smartphone in my room and walk a good 10 to 20 meters outside to the hall – mind you this also meant that the signal had to pass through a concrete wall. Even walking to the second floor of my house didn’t have the regular signal degradation. That said, once I was outside about 25 meters, connectivity started becoming spotty and weak.

Over WiFi and 4G, the Flip3 performed admirably. It had no issues when it came to connectivity. In fact, similar to the Bluetooth experience, the foldable seemed to have better connectivity than a few other smartphones. It was able to connect to 4G where other devices dropped to 3G. Even speeds over 4G networks was a little faster on the Flip3. When it came to WiFi, the Flip’s WiFi6 support allowed it to have better, faster connectivity.

Gaming

The only area where I would say the Flip3 has a few issues was with gaming – but it’s not for lack of performance capabilities. The elongated, hinged form factor was the main reason we had issues with the smartphone. The atypical aspect ratio meant that games were ill optimised to the screen. This was exacerbated by touch controls which took up more screen real estate than usual. In addition, the fact that you typically play in landscape made me even more aware of the hinge as there was always a lurking fear that being too engrossed in the game would make me accidentally overstrain the hinge – but that’s something that faded away the more I used the smartphone.

Performance-wise, gaming was a breeze on the Flip3. Games like Genshin Impact had little to no issue running on the phone. In fact, even Pokémon UNITE played smoothly on the smartphone. There weren’t many instances where screen tearing occurring and load times in Pokémon UNITE were quicker than the Switch. Touch controls were responsive and the sound experience from the smartphone was surprisingly good. However, with prolonged gaming sessions, the phone does tend to get a little warm.

The only thing we thought could have made the gaming experience more a little better would have been the optimisation of games to make use of the folded form factor. A few emulators were able to do this but mainstream games haven’t yet cooked up the feature. Hopefully, that changes with Android 12L coming soon.

Battery Life

Samsung has steadily been improving on their battery life when it comes to devices in general. That rings true for the Galaxy Flip3. It is one of the smartphones from Samsung with the longest battery life yet. The main contributor to this would be the fact that during my time with it, I hardly found myself opening the smartphone to use the screen. The cover display was where I was interacting most with the smartphone.

However, even with that, the longest active time I got with the smartphone was about 6 hours; This was with a little bit of word processing, social media and some light reading on Google Chrome. When gaming, this was significantly shorter, coming in at only about 3 to 4 hours; at the absolute maximum, it lasted about 5 hours.

Display

The Flip3 comes with a foldable AMOLED 2X display panel with an FHD+ resolution. As mentioned earlier in the review, the display comes with a rather odd 22:9 aspect ratio. That said, the display continues Samsung’s legacy of having pretty decent displays with good colour reproduction. While the Galaxy Z Flip3 does share the tendency of oversaturating reds, using it in natural settings does dial back the saturation. That said if you want more control over the colour reproduction on the phone the advanced mode under the “Vivid” option allows you to get into the nitty-gritty of the colour calibration. The added HDR10+ compatibility gives the screen a better colour range and accuracy with deeper blacks and more vibrant colours with compatible content.

That aside, the display’s odd aspect ratio does mean that you will have to contend with black bars in most cases. Even with the more cinematic 16:10 aspect ratio, the phone will compensate with two black bars flanking on either side of the content. While it’s not as jarring, it can be disruptive when watching older 4:3 format shows.

The display’s 120Hz refresh rate is noticeable when using the phone for games and scrolling through documents. The high refresh rate also lends itself to a more fluid experience with the phone’s UI overall. By default, the screen is set to an adaptive mode where the screen will dynamically adapt to the content on the screen. Samsung’s implementation of this is one of the better ones in the market. You hardly see the stutter when the refresh rate is increased or decreased as it adapts to content.

Cameras

Unlike its other flagships, Samsung has opted to not equip the Galaxy Z Flip3 with triple or quadruple-camera sensors. Instead, the Flip3 comes with 2 sensors and, in all honesty, you’re not really missing out when it comes to camera performance. The company still manages to make the setup one that’s feature-packed and pretty complete. In fact, it might just disprove the convention that more sensors make a better camera experience.

Up in the front, the Galaxy Z Flip3 is equipped with a 10-megapixel sensor. The sensor makes the most sense for the Flip given that I found myself defaulting to the main sensors. The selfie sensor was only my go-to when it came to video calls. This was mostly because of the convenience the folding allowed me when using it. It allowed the phone itself to become like a tripod and freed up my hands to do other things. That said, the images from the selfie camera were still pretty sharp and detailed.

The main camera setup is an unusual combination of two 12-megapixel sensors – a wide sensor with an f/1.8 aperture and an ultrawide one with an f/2.2 aperture. Samsung didn’t even include its variable aperture technology. However, the combination gave relatively good photos. The colours were bright and popped. It wasn’t too overly saturated either. In fact, it felt a little bit more tuned than the S21 and S21 Ultra.

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That aside, the camera combination allowed the Flip to be a little more versatile than other dual-camera smartphones. While the lack of a telephoto meant that there’s no optical zoom, the limited digital zoom allowed for good zoomed-in photos. However, don’t expect the quality to be anything like other smartphones with optical zoom. In fact, pictures beyond 2x or 3x zoom become grainy and unusable. Zoom aside, the phone was still able to adapt with portrait mode and was even able to take close up shots. The versatility proved to be quite useful during our review period, but it still is no replacement for a DSLR.

The main camera paired with the cover screen is also a winning combination. The fact that you’re getting stunning selfies thanks to the main sensors is a win in our books. What’s more, you don’t even need to flip the phone open to use them. However, the size does limit the versatility of the cameras. Although, that’s not really a deal-breaker considering you technically can just flip the phone open to use the cameras fully.

A New way to Think of Flagships – a Trend Setter making way for more possibilities

When it comes down to it, the Galaxy Z Flip3 is an iterative update – a finetuning of a formula that we know Samsung is going to be iterating on. However, the improvements made the phone a lot more useful and utilitarian than its predecessor. In fact, it would be my go-to for a phone if it weren’t for the lack of an S-Pen. Samsung has made the Z Flip3 a contender for phone of the year by focusing on what matters with any smartphone – its user experience.

To date, we haven’t seen any other smartphone which brings the optimisations and thoughtful iteration that the Z Flip3 brings. Each update and upgrade of the design and software was done with purpose and enhances the overall experience of the smartphone. It’s both stunning visually and conveniently utilitarian.

Of course, if Samsung’s focus was simply on style, it’s done quite a bit when it comes down to it. The Z Flip3 is gorgeous. The sleek exterior belies its true capabilities and performance. In fact, it’s impressed us so much we’re giving it an editor’s choice award. The Galaxy Z Flip3 strikes a unique balance between function and form that makes it an undeniable trend setter.

Health, Lifestyle, News

Samsung Galaxy Watch4 Series Debuts with Wear OS

August 11, 2021 Nur Jeevan Leave a comment

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch4 series is a revolutionary device for more than one reason. The Galaxy Watch4 series is the first Wear OS 3 enabled device. According to Samsung, the new smartwatch OS brings the best of Wear OS and the company’s own TizenOS to the smartwatch experience. Wear OS powered by Samsung makes the Galaxy Watch4 series the most compatible and open Galaxy Watch yet.

1. Galaxy Watch4 Product Series1 — Source: Samsung

The new Watch4 series comes in two flavours – the Galaxy Watch4 and the Galaxy Watch4 Classic. Just like its operating system, the Watch4 series is preserving adaptability and customization. It adopts the form factor of what was once the Galaxy Watch Active. It touts the signature digital bezel which allows users to easily navigate the circular interface. However, if that’s not your drift, the Classic brings back the signature rotating bezel which gives it a navigator watch appearance.

The Watch4 is also the first smartwatch to come with a 5nm processor with the Samsung Exynos W920. The dual-core processor promises longer battery life with better power efficiency. It is paired with 1.5GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage. The hardware combination promises smooth performance with the optimisations that come with the Wear OS 3. There will also be options for LTE connectivity on the Watch4. This comes in addition to the GPS, NFC and WiFi connectivity.

3. Galaxy Watch4 Product Series3 — Source: Samsung

You’ll be able to interact with the Galaxy Watch4 series through the digital or rotating bezel. In addition, the Classic comes with a Super AMOLED display in 46mm and 42mm sizes. The former comes with a 1.4-inch display while the latter has a 1.2-inch display. The Watch4, on the other hand, comes in 40mm and 44mm sizes; screen sizes remain the same as the Watch4 Classic. You will also be able to interact via voice with Bixby.

Staying Healthy with Samsung’s BioActive Sensor in the Galaxy Watch4 series

The smartwatch is more than a watch. It becomes a valuable companion in our journeys to keep healthy. It’s even more important now, in the current global climate. Samsung’s Galaxy Watch4 series is equipped with Samsung’s BioActive Sensor. The BioActive Sensor is a unified sensor capable of measuring heart rate and electrical heart and bioelectrical impedance. This sensor allows users to monitor their heart rate, blood oxygen saturation (pO2), pulse and even get an ECG (electrocardiogram).

With such a powerful sensor in the Galaxy Watch4 series, Samsung is also buckling down on their Galaxy Health app. The app is now more powerful with more features and more information than ever before. Users are even able to collaborate and get healthier together with their friends or communities via the app. The Watch4 series is also able to track over 40 different types of exercises.

7. Galaxy Watch4 Lifestyle Google Maps — Source: Samsung

Samsung has even made conscious design choices to enable better tracking. The Watch4 series is thinner and the straps allow it to be in closer contact with the skin to allow better, more accurate tracking. It also has IP68 water and dust resistance with MIL-STD-810G durability to keep up with your workouts. You can even express yourself with the interchangeable straps and watch faces.

Pricing & Availability

The Samsung Galaxy Watch4 series will be available for pre-order in select markets starting August 11, 2021. It will be available in retail on August 27, 2021.

The Galaxy Watch4 will be available in 40mm and 44mm sizes. It will be priced from USD$249.99 (MYR1,059.85^*) for the Bluetooth version while the LTE version will be priced from USD$299.99 (MYR1,271.83^*)

8. Galaxy Watch4 Lifestyle Outbox Strap1 — Source: Samsung

The Galaxy Watch4 Classic will be available in 42mm and 46mm sizes. Prices will start from USD$349.99 (MYR1,483.82^*) for the Bluetooth version and USD$399.99 (MYR1,695.80^*) for the LTE model.

A limited-edition Thom Browne version of the Galaxy Watch4 with a special rhodium plating will also be available in late September 2021..

Official Specifications

Galaxy Watch4 watch4classic product specifications — Source: Samsung

^*USD to MYR conversions taken from xe.com at the rate of USD$1= MYR4.23955 on 12 August 2021 at 11:30pm.

Android, Editorial, Lifestyle, Mobile, News

Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked 2021 Event is Happening Tonight! What is Unfolding?

August 11, 2021 Darwin Sucipto Leave a comment

Samsung’s biggest Unpacked event for the year 2021 is happening tonight (11^th August 2021). We say tonight because we are in Malaysia at +0800 GMT and the event will go live at 10.00 p.m. local time. It is also one of the most exciting Samsung Galaxy Unpacked event for a few reasons.

1. No Notes

Samsung has made a name for itself in the innovation industry. They introduced their Galaxy line-up 10 years ago with the first Samsung Galaxy S that went on the be one of the best-selling, if not the best-selling smartphone in its day. It showed what and Android smartphone is capable of in the hands of an experienced mobile phone manufacturer. It propelled Samsung into the limelight of modern smartphone world too.

A year later they introduced a smartphone that was heavily criticized by pundits around the world. It was a humungous device that comes with an accessory that was thought to be dead, or rather old fashioned. The first Samsung Galaxy Note was not received very well at all initially (I liked the idea though). But the Galaxy Note line-up was later known as one of the devices that really defined Samsung as a smartphone brand and sealed its hold of the Android smartphone market.

Sadly, we are not going to be getting any new Samsung Galaxy Note devices this year. As per Samsung’s reports from the end of 2020 and early 2021, the Samsung Galaxy Note series will be laid to rest and will be discontinued. There are still rumours surfacing around a final Samsung Galaxy Note device coming in 2022, but we are not entirely hopeful. This is the first time as well in 10 years that Samsung is not launching a Samsung Galaxy Note device for the year.

2. Folding and Flipping into the Future

While we may not be getting Samsung’s behemoth of the Galaxy Note, they are replacing the line-up with two larger than life devices though. They are replacing the Galaxy Note line-up with two foldable devices: the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold and Galaxy Z Flip series. As with any one of Samsung’s innovative devices, these two series have had their fair share of hardships and critics.

While most of the flaws of the first product was sort of corrected when Samsung launched their Galaxy Z Flip device in the same year, its price point is still higher than any flagship device that came before. It was not as stacked, in terms of specifications, as the other flagships around it too. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 last year fixed even more of the Galaxy Fold’s flaw, but it was still the most expensive mass-produced smartphone you can get in 2020.

Thing is Samsung is betting its future in foldable devices. Since Samsung launched the Samsung Galaxy Fold in 2019, other smartphone manufacturers have started taking notice. Since then, Motorola made the new Razr with a foldable display, HUAWEI also made their foldable line-up (2020) to mimic the form factor of the Samsung Galaxy Fold, OnePlus teased a foldable device just today, and even OPPO is jumping to the bandwagon of a shapeshifting smartphone with rollable displays.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3

There are still plenty of unknowns surrounding the new behemoth flagship that is the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. Like we pointed out, Samsung is betting on foldable devices. The S Pen feature remains a Samsung special though, as we saw on the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra.

That same S Pen capability is touted to be coming to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold line-up too. It makes sense, since the device opens to a large form factor device that would mimic a tablet. Although we are not entirely sure if the S Pen storage is integrated within the body of the Z Fold 3.

The Z Fold 3 is expected to pack Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888 5G System on a Chip (SoC). Although we would also like to see Samsung’s own Exynos SoC powering the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3; chances are, we are only going to be seeing a new Exynos chip in the coming year 2022 instead on the Samsung Galaxy S22, or whatever they decide to name the next device. The Snapdragon 888 5G SoC is considered the most powerful chip available for Android devices though, so it may not necessarily be a bad thing.

It will also come with up to 12GB of RAM, as we have seen on the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. Alongside the ample sized RAM is storage choices from 256GB onward to 512GB. It might make sense for Samsung to up the ante this time with 1TB storage though, since there will be no MicroSD support for the device.

Like the previous Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2, there are two displays you can work with on the Z Fold 3, obviously. One is an external display that is supposed to measure at 6.2-inch covered by durable gorilla glass and producing a little more than 720p in terms of resolution. You get a 7.6-inch in display real estate that boasts a little more that QHD+ in resolution inside. Of course, each of the display gets their own punch hole cameras.

Like the older device too, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 is supposed to come with a triple camera array that is reportedly packing three 12-megapixel sensors for different functions. This is not a device made for ultimate photography, so that is quite understandable.

In terms of battery, it seems like Samsung might have shrunk it a little bit. The previous Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 had a 4,500mAh battery. While it seems like it makes more sense to fit a similarly sized battery on the upcoming foldable, Samsung is looking to put a 4,400mAh battery to keep its weight down. It could also be an indication to an S Pen cargo hold.

There are also rumours pointing to multiple versions of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3, which also means there might be a more affordable option for the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. That is good news if Samsung is planning to bet its future on the foldable devices.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3

We are also expecting to see a certain clamshell device to make the event tonight. It is the successor to the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip we saw in 2019 too. Instead of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 2, they jumped straight into naming the upcoming device the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3. As we have discussed in our podcast, it could be because Samsung treated the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5G as its second-generation model. It could also to simplify Samsung’s product range and their naming scheme.

More recent leaks show that the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 device will be more of lifestyle-centric device. It is supposed to come in more colours than before with a more industrial and minimalistic design language. Apparently also, the device is supposed to come with a larger and more functional external display compared to the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip’s.

Of course, the Z Flip 3 will still command a reasonably premium pricing. You are still getting Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888 5G platform. You are also supposed to be getting up to 8GB in RAM and 256GB in storage.

You should get a similarly sized internal display at 6.7-inch that boasts Full HD+ resolutions with up to 120Hz in refresh rate. We do not expect the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 to come with S Pen capabilities though. Because the device is supposed to be more pocketable than the Z Fold 3, it will come with a rather small 3,300mAh battery and also two cameras on the outside rather than the three you get on the Z Fold 3.

3. New Wear OS in the form of One UI for the Galaxy Watch 4 and Watch Active 4

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 is supposed to be coming, and for the first time ever, it does not come with Samsung’s own Tizen OS for the Galaxy Watch. It is also the first smartwatch to come with Google’s brand-new Wear OS 3, albeit in a Samsung Galaxy flavour.

Samsung calls the new UI the One UI. They have also confirmed that One UI is based on Google’s latest Wear OS 3. It is also the culmination of Samsung and Google’s partnership to creating a unified Android smartwatch ecosystem. In some sense, it is Google’s attempt to not just improve Wear OS, it is Google finally taking wearable devices seriously.

Wear OS 3 is touted to come with a slew of improvements not just on its own functions. With Samsung’s input from the success of their Tizen OS for wearable series, there are new functions that are integrated into Wear OS as well. At the same time, Samsung and Google Both benefit from an expansion in terms of developer base.

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 4 series is supposed to come with Samsung’s very own Exynos SoC with 5nm process. That also means that it should be Samsung’s most powerful smartwatch so far. At the same time, the new SoC is supposed to allow for a longer lasting battery alongside Wear OS 3.

Reportedly, there are supposed to be more sensors withing the watch for even more accurate health tracking with even more data that can be collected. One such sensor is supposed to be able to detect your blood sugar level.

In term of design though, we are expecting the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 series, including its Active counterpart, to come in similar design languages as before. The rotating bezel that acts as a navigation tool should also make a comeback in the Watch 4 series. Of course, the two physical buttons will not be going away anytime soon.

There are supposed to be three sizes that users can choose from in the range. There will be a 42mm, a 44mm, and 46mm watch sizes that should fit a larger variety of users and preferences instead of the two 42mm and 46mm choices from before. All of them comes with 20mm lugs though, for standardisation purposes. They are also supposed to come in either aluminium or stainless-steel build material choices. Either builds will still be 5ATM water resistant and MIL-STC-810G certified though.

4. One UI 4.0 on Android 12

Android 12 has been on beta testing mode for a while now. Google is expecting the first Android 12 devices to be rolling out in September 2021 onward. They are even updating their Google Pixel devices in about the same time frame, which also means we can expect Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3 to come with Android 12 with their very own iconic One UI 4.0 flavour.

One UI, if you are not yet familiar with it, is Samsung’s custom skin on top on Android. While One UI started out its early life as TouchWiz UI, the new One UI design language has been dialed back from TouchWiz UX that technically existed since the first Samsung Galaxy S. One UI, while sort of retains some of the old charm from TouchWiz UX, is a completely different beast of an overlay though.

It cleans up the UX to the point that it is near barebones on top of Android. Of course, to ensure that Android on Samsung Galaxy devices takes full advantage of what Samsung’s devices are capable of, One UI still has to add some functionalities to Android as well.

The look and feel of One UI, in the Android world at least, is one that is quite unique to Samsung though, and one of the most intuitive out there. Thanks to Samsung’s own optimisation as well, you cannot possibly think using a Samsung device without the power of One UI. It is especially true when you start working with devices such as Samsung’s Galaxy Note series.

One UI 4.0 though will focus on bringing the best out Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold and Z Flip capabilities. It will optimise Android to the odd display aspect ratio on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 for example. One UI 4.0 will also expand on the multitasking capabilities of Android 12 on the foldable devices, obviously.

Of course, One UI 4.0 does not only highlight the benefits of Samsung’s foldable devices. It will also embrace Android’s Material You design language. In that sense it should be even more customisable for its users. The amount of customisation should reflect very well on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3. No two devices you pick up will be the same.

5. Samsung Galaxy Buds 2

Samsung’s Galaxy Buds started out life as the Samsung IconX. The IconX also kickstarted the whole True Wireless earphones (TWS) industry on its own. It also put Samsung on a path to becoming a one stop shop for all things mobile and seamless integration for Android devices. It spawned the Samsung Galaxy Buds in 2019.

Since then, there has been many iterations that comes from the humble Samsung Galaxy Buds. While capturing completely different markets, the Samsung Galaxy Buds was often compared to its Apple competition, the AirPods. Since then, the TWS earphones market has grown tremendously too, in terms of market size, demand, and even technology.

The new Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 is supposed to feature Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) technology. It is also reportedly an improved ANC technology that came on Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Pro. In that sense, there are also more ANC controls on Samsung’s Wearable app too. The ANC is supposed to be capable of blocking out 98% of noise.

In its IPX7 rated body (supposedly) is a powerful 11mm driver and 6.5mm tweeter. It also houses a battery that sllows the Galaxy Buds 2 to last up to 5 hours from a single charge. Its case is supposed come with three extra charges to give it 20 hours of total battery life. We are also expecting Samsung’s Galaxy Buds 2 to connect to smartphones via Bluetooth 5.2.

All Will be Revealed Tonight at Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2021

Of course, everything we have written here is a collection of speculations and even hopes that Samsung addresses problems with their older devices. We are extremely excited about Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 4 with Google Wear OS for the first time. It is also the first time we are looking at Google Wear OS 3 with Samsung’s input.

Everything will be revealed and announced tonight at Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2021 though. Of course, due to the current pandemic situation, Samsung will not be holding a LIVE physical event. Instead, they will be holding the global press conference online. You can watch Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked 2021 event LIVE on YouTube. We are also including the stream link here, so that you can just watch the announcement here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7ixp-XwqGI&t=4s

Design

Hardware

Specifications

User Experience

Personalisation & Good Lock

Performance

Multitasking, Productivity & Day-to-Day Use

Call Quality & Connectivity

Gaming

Battery Life

Display

Cameras

Samsung’s Best User Experience Yet but With Drawbacks that Affect its Value Proposition

Pricing & Availability

Official Specifications

Galaxy A54 5G

Galaxy A34 5G

Is the Galaxy S23 Series Continuing an Iconic Design?

Galaxy S23 Ultra Focused Leaving the S23 & S23+ Behind – at least in Hardware

A Focus on User Experience Starting with One UI 5.1

Pricing & Availability

Official Specifications

Better Video Calls for Work

Better for the Galaxy

Galaxy Book Smart Switch

Work with Windows, or Your Phone, or even Other Galaxy Devices – One UI Book 4

Better Data Sharing

SmartThings – Samsung’s Integrated IoT

Better for the Planet

Price and Availability

Design

Hardware

Specifications

User Interface – One UI Full Flex

Settings Menu

Spotify

YouTube

Gmail

Plenty to Work On

The Fold, Now with S Pen

Performance

Benchmark

Call Quality and Connectivity

Gaming

Multitasking and Productivity

Battery Life

Displays & Audio

Secondary Display

Main Display

Under Display Cam – Not Just a Hole

Cameras

Gallery

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 – The Z Fold2, just Better Everywhere

Design

Hardware

Specifications

User Interface

Performance

Multitasking & Productivity

Call Quality & Connectivity

Gaming

Battery Life

Display

Cameras

A New way to Think of Flagships – a Trend Setter making way for more possibilities

Staying Healthy with Samsung’s BioActive Sensor in the Galaxy Watch4 series

Pricing & Availability

Official Specifications

1. No Notes

2. Folding and Flipping into the Future

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3

3. New Wear OS in the form of One UI for the Galaxy Watch 4 and Watch Active 4

4. One UI 4.0 on Android 12

5. Samsung Galaxy Buds 2

All Will be Revealed Tonight at Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2021

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