New Samsung Gear VR cost $99 and works with any new Samsung phone
Oculus had their Connect 2 livestream today where they announced they are once again partnering with Samsung on another Gear VR. The headset will cost only $99 and will ship just before Black Friday. The best part is it works with all of Samsung’s 2015 phones.
The previous Gear VR headsets got good reviews, but cost a lot and would only work with one phone, either the Note 4 or Galaxy S6/S6Edge.
This new version will also feature a new trackpad design that has a D-pad built into it. This will make it much easier to actually feel what you are doing. It has a few other changes too, such as being 22% lighter and more comfortable to wear.
It will ship this November in the US and will be out worldwide soon after.
Source: Oculus (Twitter), Samsung
Come comment on this article: New Samsung Gear VR cost $99 and works with any new Samsung phone
Samsung announces $99 Gear VR, Netflix for Gear VR incoming
We’ve already seen two “Innovator Edition” releases of the Gear VR, but at Oculus Connect, Samsung finally unveiled the consumer version of the Gear VR!
Unlike the two previous models, the consumer edition Gear VR will work with Samsung’s entire 2015 flagship line. While Samsung doesn’t say for sure, it is also possible we could see support for some of their mid-range handsets as well, though that’s really just speculation at this stage.
The consumer-friendly version of the Gear VR is expected to land in November for just $99, half of the Innovator Edition’s price tag. Aside from being designed to work with multiple different phones, the new model is also said to be 22 percent lighter than the previous model, and has had several enhancements that improve its overall feel, as well as enhancements to its side-of-head touchpad and other components.
Previous versions of the Gear VR
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With cheaper hardware that is compatible with multiple Samsung devices, the Gear VR is certainly going to make it easier for VR fans to jump in without a huge investment. We can also expect Samsung to start really pushing hard on expanding its Gear VR optimized games and media ahead of its consumer launch. To that end, Samsung announced that Netflix and Twitch are heading to the Gear VR today, with Hulu, Vimeo, and TiVo slated to arrive “in the next few months”.
The consumer version of the Gear VR will also come with a special “Oculus Arcade’ app that opens up unique arcade experiences featuring classics like Sonic, Pac-Man, and others.
While the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift are certainly the most high-tech VR experiences being pushed to the market, products like the Gear VR will have a greater chance at mainstream appeal due to less expensive price tags. What do you think of the new Gear VR? Excited or not?
Samsung’s new and improved $99 GearVR ships this November
When Samsung released its revised mobile virtual reality headset, the GearVR, earlier this year, it did so with the label “Innovator Edition” still attached since the hardware wasn’t quite consumer-ready. Today, at the Oculus Connect 2 developer conference in Los Angeles, Samsung’s VP of Mobile, Peter Koo announced a new GearVR priced affordably at $99 and ready to ship in the United States in time for Black Friday this November and worldwide shortly after.To prove its shared commitment with Oculus to making virtual reality a truly mass-market product, the new GearVR will work with all of Samsung’s 2015 flagship phones. That means if you’ve recently upgraded to a Samsung Note 5, Galaxy S6, Galaxy S6 Edge or Galaxy S6 Edge +, you now have a compatible hardware.
The hardware’s now been made 22 percent lighter, which Koo said makes it more comfortable to wear for extended periods of time. And the side touchpad has also gotten a revised design, though Koo didn’t elaborate much on its changes.
We’ll have a chance to demo the new GearVR later today, so stay tuned for impressions. For now, though, you can look forward to joining the company’s push into mobile VR this November.
Source: Samsung
Pre-order stock of Samsung’s Gear S2 is snaffled up in just 2 hours by Koreans
Samsung took the wraps off its Gear S2 and Gear S2 Classic smartwatches at the IFA in Berlin earlier this month, with the new range of wearables set to hit South Korea on October 2nd. Samsung recently put the Tizen-powered smartwatches up for pre-order in Korea, a move that lasted only two hours as the pre-order stock was snapped up in its entirety.
Samsung had a thousand units available to pre-order online, which took just two hours to be depleted. One of the things that will help drive sales of the Gear S2/ Gear S2 Classic smartwatches is that they are both compatible with non-Samsung devices. So long as your Android device runs version 4.4 KitKat or later and has 1.5GB of RAM, then you can pair the Gear S2 to it. Even though they are running Tizen instead of Google’s Android Wear operating system, the Gear S2 wearables should provide a similar level of connectivity.
Are you waiting to get your hands on one of Samsung’s new range of Tizen-powered smartwatches? Let us know which model you prefer in the comments below.
Source: Samsung
Via: BusinessKorea
Come comment on this article: Pre-order stock of Samsung’s Gear S2 is snaffled up in just 2 hours by Koreans
Samsung Pay app receives screen-off fingerprint activation
Samsung Pay is currently in beta testing in the US. As such, Samsung is updating its mobile payment app with new features and tweaks to improve the user experience ahead of the full roll out. A new version of the Samsung Pay app (version 1.3.1716) has arrived, offering a number of improvements to the user interface.
The main new feature in the app is the ‘Simple Pay’ menu, which offers up a selection of ways to launch the payment app quickly. The options allow users to turn the current home screen and lock screen fingerprint sensor swipe gesture on or off and also adds in a third feature, which enabled the option to open up the app using the fingerprint scanner even while the screen is off. A particularly useful feature if you just want to make your payments as quickly as possible.
Cards registered with the app have undergone a visual change with the update too. Instead of having to tap on the card to see information, the virtual card number is now display alongside each card by default. There’s also a new ‘About’ screen in the app, which comes with an update button to check for the latest software.
Samsung will likely keep updating its Pay app up until and beyond its US launch on September 28th. How are you finding the beta so far?
Deal: Samsung Galaxy S6 only $429.99 on eBay! (US only)
Is the Samsung Galaxy S6 losing its “six appeal”? It’s hard to say, but we have reason to believe it doesn’t have the demand Samsung was expecting to see. This is likely why we have seen so many crazy deals on it. Regardless, it’s still one hell of a smartphone, and it did very well in our review, so it’s good to look out for these offers.
Those looking to score Samsung’s flagship device on the cheap get plenty of opportunities to do so, but today we are taking a look at one of the best we have seen so far. Monoprice’s eBay page is currently selling the Samsung Galaxy S6 (not Edge) for only $429.99. This is one hell of a deal, especially considering the official price is about $650 in most stores.
The Galaxy S6 is no slouch. It features a 5.1-inch Super AMOLED QHD display, a powerful Exynos 7420 processor, 3 GB of RAM, 32 GB of internal storage, a leading 16 MP camera, a 5 MP front shooter and a 2550 mAh battery.
Samsung took things to the next level in terms of design, as well. Instead of using the cheap plastic the manufacturer was characterized for, the team went back to the drawing board and produced a smartphone worthy of envy. It features premium materials like glass and metal.
Want in on this deal? You should act quickly, because we don’t know how many devices Monoprice has in stock. The eBay page says more than 75% have been sold, so you gotta hurry! By the way, this is the unlocked, international version. It also only ships to US residents, so some of you may be out of luck.
Samsung Pay is a hit in its home country
Samsung Pay has barely been available for a month in its home country of South Korea, but that isn’t stopping Samsung from crowing about its early success. The tech giant says that it has already seen the equivalent of $30 million in transactions in that first month, spread across 1.5 million purchases. That’s not a lot in the grand scheme of things, but it’s “beyond” what the company was hoping for. These aren’t just one-and-done tests, either. About 36 percent of users were active in the past month, while 10 percent were enthusiastic enough to use Samsung Pay every day. And in case you’re curious, the Galaxy Note 5 was the weapon of choice — 60 percent of Korean purchases went through the supersized phone.
Whether or not that translates to the US and other countries is another story. While Samsung is practically a fixture of daily life in South Korea (it even has its own credit card company), it doesn’t have nearly as much clout elsewhere. Also, it’s difficult to gauge Samsung Pay’s overall performance without context. There isn’t much official data available for Apple Pay’s launch, and it’s doubtful that even that information would be comparable. It may take months, if not years, before it’s clear whether or not Samsung Pay has legs.
Via: Talk Android
Source: Samsung Tomorrow
[Deal] You can now pick up a brand new Galaxy S6 for $429.99 on eBay
If you’ve been hoping to get your hands on the Galaxy S6, but haven’t quite yet accumulated the wherewithal to do so, we have a killer deal for you. For the next 24-hours only, independent retailer Monoprice is cutting the price of the handset on its eBay store by an eye-catching 57%, meaning you can pick one up for $429.99.
For those who need a refresher on its specifications, the Galaxy S6 packs a 5.1-inch Full HD display, an Exynos 7420 chipset, a Mali-T770MP8 GPU, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of expandable internal storage, a 16MP rear-facing camera, a 5MP selfie shooter and a 2,550mAh non-removable battery.
Just like the LG G4 we featured yesterday, this particular variant of the Galaxy S6 is the International model and will work with both AT&T and T-Mobile in the United States. A full list of all supported carrier bands can be seen below:
- 2G : 850/900/1800/1900
- 3G : 850/900/1900/2100
- 4G LTE : 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(1700/2100), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 17(700), 20(800), 28(700)
If your based in the US, like the sound of the Galaxy S6 and would like to take advantage of this deal – hit the source link below.
Come comment on this article: [Deal] You can now pick up a brand new Galaxy S6 for $429.99 on eBay
Oculus Connect 2 virtual reality event will stream live in VR
Tomorrow when the folks at Oculus show off the latest developments in their plan for VR world domination at the Oculus Connect 2 event, a select few will be able to experience remotely just as if they were there. If you have a Samsung Gear VR you can download the Next VR app and get your 360-degree immersion, just like I experienced with the first live stream several months ago. One day we’ll all put on headsets and take a virtual trip to press events like Oculus and OnePlus, but since that’s not universally available yet, we will be there liveblogging all the action. Assuming you have a compatible Samsung phone and one of the plastic Gear VR headsets, the app will be available before the keynote speech starts at 1PM ET tomorrow. (If you’re not VR ready yet, yes there will be an old-school 2D live video broadcast as well.)
Can’t make it to #OC2 this year? Download our app on Gear VR and experience our live VR stream of Connect Keynotes tomorrow beginning10am
— NextVR (@NextVR_app) September 23, 2015
[Image credit: AFP/Getty Images]
Source: Oculus Blog
Major update, possibly Android Marshmallow, in the works for Samsung flagships
Sources are indicating Samsung has a major update in the works that will be going out to the four flagship devices released this year – the Samsung Galaxy S6, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge, the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ and the Samsung Galaxy Note 5. According to individuals familiar with the update it is unusually large in size, especially when compared to the usual updates pushed out by Samsung. This has lead some to conclude Samsung may be preparing Android 6.0 Marshmallow to be issued to their devices and perhaps not too long after Google makes their official announcement.
According to some information on the firmware version numbers for the Galaxy S6 Edge, the device is being updated from G925FXXU2COH2 to G925FXXU3COI6. Sources indicate the change from “U2″ to “U3″ indicates significant changes to the user interface portion. However, that may not necessarily mean Android Marshmallow as significant user-facing changes could be part of some new features or improvements Samsung is rolling out for Android 5.1.1.
Sources have also mentioned the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 will get Android Marshmallow, although there is no indication that the Note 4 is part of this pending update.
source: SamMobile
Come comment on this article: Major update, possibly Android Marshmallow, in the works for Samsung flagships
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