Best Buy is selling the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 with $20 off
If you were on the fence about buying a Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 at it’s regular retail price of $199, then Best Buy taking $20 off that price may just entice you into that purchase.
The Galaxy Tab 3 is the 7-inch offering from Samsung with a 600 x 1024 resolution display, a 1.2Ghz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, and 8GB or 16GB of internal storage + expandable microSD slot up to 64GB.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 comes complete with the latest version of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and also the custom TouchWiz interface. You can make the device your very own by clicking here and ordering the Galaxy Tab 3 for only $179 online at Best Buy.
[via BestBuy]
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Daily Roundup: Engadget’s 10th birthday, Apple announces CarPlay, and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours — all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
10 Years In: The birth of Engadget
Since March 2, 2004, Engadget has been keeping people from all four corners of the globe in touch with the latest and greatest gadget news. And wow… what a ride it’s been. Whether you’re a casual techie or hardcore early adopter, we hope you’ll join us in celebrating Engadget’s 10th anniversary!
Apple announces CarPlay
Apple announced its new in-car interface called CarPlay, which offers touch- and Siri-based navigation of services and apps available on Lightning-enabled iPhones — including the likes of iHeartRadio and Spotify. Only a select few automakers are currently on board, but Apple says we can expect that to list to grow in the near future.
Galaxy S5 comes with premium app subscriptions
Looking to buy Samsung’s new Galaxy S5? If so, you’ll be happy to know the handset comes with a great selection of free, premium app subscriptions. Most of the limited-time services only extend a few months, but hey… who doesn’t enjoy free stuff?
Samsung Chromebook 2 hands-on
Samsung’s new Chromebook 2 comes in 11- and 13-inch flavors, starting at $320. Both models incorporate 2GB of RAM, Bluetooth 4.0 and a year’s worth of free AirDroid service. What’s more, the 13-incher packs a lid covered in faux-leather similar to that of the Galaxy Note III.
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Samsung announces next-generation Chromebook 2 devices
Samsung have today announced the launch of their Chromebook 2 devices – a new lineup of laptop running Chrome OS, available in 11.6-inches and 13.3-inches with a faux leather lid.
The 13.3-inch version will feature a full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution, and both models feature Samsung’s Exynos 5 Octa processor and 4GB of RAM.
Samsung says that the Chromebook 2 lineup will cold boot in less than 10 seconds, and be able to run up to 8.5-hours on a single battery charge.
If you are interested in purchasing a Chromebook 2, Samsung are also throwing in a few Apps like Air Droid Premium, Wunderlist Pro, and LittleBirdge, just to make that pricing even more appealing.
The 11.6-inch model will come with a retail price of $319.99 and the larger 13.3-inch version will cost $399.99 and they’re due to start shipping in April 2014.
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Samsung Chromebook 2 Announced, Premium Apps Included
Over the weekend we caught a glimpse of the upcoming Samsung Chromebook 2 in all its faux leather glory. They have since announced the new Chromebook 2′s as being scheduled for an April release and their isn’t just one model, but two.
Samsung will be releasing a 11.6-inch and a 13.3-inch version of the new Chromebook 2 device. The lower priced version comes in at $319 with a 1366×768 display, Exynos 5 Octa processor at 1.9GHz and 4GB of RAM. The higher priced model, $399, offers up a 1920×1080 display, a Exynos 5 Octa processor at 2.1GHz and also has 4GB of RAM. Variations in color will be available for the 11.6-inch model with a Jet Black and Classic White offering and weighs in at about 2.5 pounds. The 13.3-inch model will be Luminous Titan Gray and weighs in at about 3 pounds. Samsung even touts better battery life, about 8 hours and is keep with the 16GB on board storage.
The new Chromebook 2′s also pack in $100 worth of premium apps. They are mainly aimed at the classroom and business professional, but many are good for everyday users as well. With the faux leather briefcase look, it doesn’t surprise me much that they are aiming for professionals more so than general users. A few of the apps included is AirDroid Premium, Wunderlist Pro and LittleBridge. With Chrome OS being more tricky to bloat up, Samsung has found an alternate way of giving you more value to your purchase. Personally I think it is a good move to include great apps and services that many of us already know and use instead of trying to reinvent the wheel with their own software.
Are the spec bumps and the style changes enough to make you consider a new Samsung Chromebook 2?
img: CNET
Gartner: Android passes iOS to become the most popular tablet platform
Several years ago, technology research firm Gartner predicted Apple would maintain its hold on the tablet market until 2015. A new study from the company, however, shows Android taking a decisive lead: in 2013, it boasted 62-percent market share, compared to 36 percent for iOS. Google’s mobile operating system climbed to the number one position thanks to more tablet sales overall, though Gartner also credits the proliferation of cheaper, smaller-screen slates (the Nexus 7 no doubt included) with establishing Android’s newfound dominance.
The other winner, according to this study: Samsung, which grew by 336 percent in 2013 to a 19.1-percent share of the tablet market. That’s still a much smaller piece of the pie than Apple’s 36 percent, but among Android device makers the Korean company is still very much the king. Conversely, Microsoft has seen very modest growth; Windows 8 tablets accounted for just 2.1 percent of the market in 2013. Click through the source link for more stats.
Filed under: Tablets, Mobile, Samsung, Google
Source: Gartner
Samsung’s latest Chromebooks come wrapped in faux-leather, on sale next month for $320 and up
It’s been over a year since Samsung released a new Chromebook, and since then the competition has been heating up: Dell, HP, Lenovo and Toshiba all sell Chrome OS devices now, as does Acer, which has been at it from day one. Accordingly, Samsung is refreshing its lineup: the company just announced the Chromebook 2, which comes in 11- and 13-inch screen sizes, and will ship next month starting at $320 for the smaller version (the bigger one costs $400).
Perhaps even more interesting than any of the spec bumps, though, is the new design. Confirming some leaked photos that began circulating two days ago, the Chromebook 2 sports a faux-leather lid with a soft, rubbery finish and fake stitching at the edges — yep, just like the Galaxy Note III, Note Pro 12.2 and other recent Samsung devices. In-hand, it actually feels quite nice, and might even be easier for children to grip, assuming this ends up in classrooms. It also has a thin silhouette, which we’re told was modeled after the ATIV Book 9 Plus (formerly called the Series 9 Ultrabook). It’s generally a pleasing design, although the plain plastic underside makes for a mullet sort of look: premium on top, bargain-basement on the bottom.
If you wanna save money, the last-gen (safer-looking) model will still be around for $249, but you might choose to splurge anyway: the 13-inch Chromebook 2 steps up to a 1,920 x 1,080, 250-nit screen, with both sizes promising improved performance. In particular, they make use of an eight-core processor similar to the one found in a variant of Samsung’s new Galaxy S5 smartphone. As with the GS5, “octo-core” will sometimes mean running all eight cores simultaneously and other times just running a quad-core setup, with either the four powerful cores or the four weaker, energy-saving cores being used at one time, depending on the task. Largely thanks to that, Samsung is rating battery life at eight hours on the smaller 11-inch model, and 8.5 hours on the 13-inch version. Whichever model you choose, you’ll get 4GB of RAM (twice the allotment of the last-gen model) plus 16GB of local storage.
On the software side, these are also the first Chromebooks certified for Google Hangout, though really, any Chrome OS device can use Hangouts, not just these. Samsung also threw in a year of AirDroid service, which lets you wirelessly transfer files between your Android phone and Chromebook. Oh, and this isn’t a software tweak, but the Chromebook 2 now has Bluetooth 4.0, not 3.0. Also nice to have. In any event, it will ship sometime next month, priced at $320 for the 11-inch version (available in black and white), and $400 for the 13-inch model (“Titan Gray” only). We’ll be back with a review but for now, enjoy the hands-on photos.
Samsung Galaxy S5 versus LG Nexus 5
The Samsung Galaxy S5, introduced at Mobile World Congress 2014, will likely go on to become one of the top-selling Android smartphones of the year. And why not? It’s the latest in Samsung’s flagship line of devices and it’s better than ever. But, how does it fare when you compare it to other top smartphones of the day?
Let’s stack the Samsung Galaxy S5 up against another key Android handset, the LG Nexus 5. We’ll take a look at how they match up in terms of hardware, yes, but we’ll also touch on some of the differences in software and user experience.
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| Operating System | Android 4.4.2 KitKat (w/ Samsung UI) | Android 4.4 KitKat |
| Display | 5.1-inch Super AMOLED (1920×1080) | 4.95-inch True HD IPS (1920×1080) |
| Storage | 16GB, 32GB | 16GB, 32GB |
| Processor | Quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 | Quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 |
| RAM | 2GB | 2GB |
| Connectivity | 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, HSPA+, NFC | 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, HSPA+, NFC |
| Camera (Rear) | 16-megapixel | 8-megapixel |
| Camera (Front) | 2.1-megapixel | 1.3-megapixel |
| Battery | 2800mAh | 2300mAh |
| Weight | 145g | 130g |
| Size (mm) | 142.0 x 72.5 x 8.1 | 137.9 x 69.2 x 8.6 |
| Bluetooth | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| Expansion Card | Yes (up to 64GB) | NO |
| Fingerprint Scanner | YES | NO |
| Water Resistant | Yes (IP67) | NO |
| Charging | USB 3.0 | microUSB |
General Hardware
At first blush, the Samsung Galaxy S5 appears to have a slight edge in the camera, battery, and a few other details. But, dig deeper, and you’ll learn that the Snapdragon 801 processor is more than a slight upgrade of the Snapdragon 800 processor. With that in mind, we shouldn’t be all that upset that the Galaxy S5 does not have 3GB RAM. Internal storage capacities are the same, however the Samsung benefits by having external storage options.
It doesn’t hurt to have an extra 500mAh of juice in your battery, but we’re not yet sure as to how that translates to real world usage.
Camera
If you’re looking at just the specs, the 16-megapixel rear camera sounds much better than the 8-megapixel found on the Nexus 5. But, toss in some features like the fastet-yet shutter speeds, HDR, and selective focus, and Samsung pulls away. And, while we might not yet be able to take full advantage of it, the Galaxy S5 can record in video at 4K resolution. Should you have a TV or display capable of displaying that resolution then you’ll definitely be in business.
User Interface and Enhancements
Indeed, its water resistance is a nice touch this time around and helps protect the phone from life’s accidents and spills. It’s not quite ready to go swimming all day but a spilled glass of water is not the end of the world.
We also like that Samsung has opted for the USB 3.0 option in charging as it opens the door to added functionality. No, not every user will take advantage of it, but we like future proofing devices.
Fingerprint scanning is likely to find a place in most of the bleeding-edge smartphones going forward. It’s not a perfect tool, yet, and has limited capabilities. Samsung, for its part, is playing nice with the SDK and letting developers hardness the technology.
You know what else matters to a lot of users? Freebies and value-added bundles. To that end, Samsung is giving upward of $500 worth of apps and services away with each Galaxy S5. Not all stuff that every user will want or need, but it’s pretty darn appealing nonetheless.
Android
If there’s one thing that matters to heavy Android enthusiasts, it’s the software experience. While Samsung has added plenty of wonderful features, apps, and services, the edge still goes to the Nexus 5. That is, of course, if you care a great deal about timely upgrades and no carrier interference.
Availability
The Nexus 5 is offered through Google Play Store for $349 (16GB) and $399 (32GB) in three color options. Pricing has yet to be determined for the Galaxy S5 but we’re thinking the $200 range is in order. The key difference, however, is that the Nexus 5 does not require you commit to a two-year service agreement. Yes, you’ll be able to procure an unlocked Galaxy S5 (and likely a Google Play Experience, too), but it will be in the order of hundreds more.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 will be sold starting in April in 4 color options and should be available through just about any carrier you can imagine. All of the major players are expected to sell the device as are a number prepaid arms.
Which is right for you?
The first question you should ask yourself is whether you are willing to sign a contract. If that answer is yes then you should go with the Samsung Galaxy S5 without pause. For those who don’t want to tie up for two more years, it gets trickier. The Nexus 5 will be about half of the overall cost of the Galaxy S5 and is still a best-in-class experience. It’s ironic to even say this sort of thing, but you could do much worse than to go with a Nexus device.
Something else that you should consider is whether you need to be on the cutting edge of Android updates. Things have slowed on the overall platform front and features are coming at a slower pace. We venture to guess that most smartphone users cannot identify the exact build of their OS. If you don’t know the difference between a Jelly Bean and a KitKat release then it should not bother you to go with a modified UI.
Average consumers are going to flock to the Samsung Galaxy S5. Those who are coming out of contract with their Galaxy S3 are looking at this device as a huge step forward. At this point there’s nothing to stop the Galaxy S5 train; others may slow it a bit, but it will be the top-seller of 2014. For great reason(s).
The post Samsung Galaxy S5 versus LG Nexus 5 appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Tip: Disable S Voice to speed up Galaxy S4 Home button response
If you’re not a big user of the S Voice personal assistant bundled into the Samsung Galaxy S4, then disabling it from being activated using the home button could greatly speed up the response of it and make your device seem faster. We’ve already covered removing the screen transition effect to speed up your Galaxy S4, so turning off S Voice could make your device fly.
The reason this has an effect is that by default, S Voice can be activated by double-tapping the Home button. It’s this double-tap that introduces the delay since the device is waiting for that second press before deciding whether to activate S Voice (if it receives an additional press) or take you back to the Home-screen.
By disabling this S Voice activation, the Home button when pressed will instantly perform the desired function.
1. Open S Voice.
2. Press the menu key and hit ‘Settings’.
3. Uncheck “Open via the home key”.
That’s all there is to it – your Home key operation should now be lightening quick. This little trick also applies to any other Samsung device that is running S Voice, such as the Galaxy S3, Galaxy S5, and the Note 2.
The post Tip: Disable S Voice to speed up Galaxy S4 Home button response appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Buy a Samsung Galaxy S5 and Samsung will throw in $575 worth of app Goodies
For a lot of people, getting the new Samsung Galaxy S5 is pretty much a done deal. In case you were on the fence or needed a bit more incentive to take the plunge and get a Galaxy S5, Samsung says it’s going to be offering $575 worth of app subscriptions to make the deal even sweeter. And they’re not all sub-standard subscriptions either; the goodies include:
- Run Keeper – 1 year free premium service ($20)
- Lark – 1 year premium service ($36)
- Skimble – 6 months free premium service ($42)
- Map My Fitness – 6 months free premium service ($36)
- Wall Street Journal – Free 6 month subscription to Wall Street Journal ($160)
- Bloomberg Businessweek + – Free Subscription: 12 Months ($30)
- PayPal – special offers in select countries
- LinkedIn – Free LinkedIn Premium account for 3 months ($75)
- EasilyDo Pro – Free app purchase ($5)
- Blurb – Free $5 Coupon ($5)
- Flick Dat – Free download of $2 paid app
- Cut the Rope 2 – $10 in-game credits
- Bitcasa – Free Premium Service: 1TB storage for 3 months ($30)
- Box – Free 50 GB for 6 months and $60 value
- Evernote – Free Premium Service for 3 months ($15)
It’s a pretty exhaustive list, and while most of these subscriptions run out after a short while, the chance to try out these premium services as well as the fact you get these free with your new handset is a pretty good bonus.
Are there any subscriptions that catch anyone’s eye? And are you more likely to get the Samsung Galaxy S5 now that you know these goodies are being offered? Let us know what you think about all these extras.
Source: Samsung Galaxy Gifts via Phone Arena
Who was the real winner at the Academy Awards? Samsung won at the Oscars
You probably watched the 86th Academy Awards today. You probably also saw the above photo, but from the phone’s perspective, which by the way is the most retweeted tweet of all time. And that phone that they took it with? A Samsung Galaxy Note 3 which host Ellen DeGeneres used throughout the night; talk about product placement. While Ellen proudly paraded the phone about, usually quite non-discreetly, using it whenever prudent (or not), it did prove without a doubt that Samsung won at the Oscars, from an advertising perspective at the very least. You might have thought Samsung would be happy with having their device on stage all night, but that’s not all; Samsung also aired its very first advertisement for the Samsung Galaxy S5 at the Oscars, which you can check out below:
A simple ad, but it gets the point across, and on a night when millions tuned in to see “the biggest and the brightest”, that’s some killer advertising for their newest flagship smartphone, capping off a very Samsung night. In fact, Samsung didn’t just win at the Oscars; Samsung’s had their fingers in all kinds of globally televised events recently, for instance, like being the major sponsor for the Sochi Olympics, or featuring heavily at the NBA All-Star Weekend, and the list goes on.
While some people might hope that the Samsung Galaxy S5 doesn’t do as well as it traditionally does for whatever reason, Samsung has taken the steps it needs to dominate yet another year of sales by putting their name out again and again on the global stage, and you have to give credit where credit is due. Did you tune into the Oscars, and what did you think of Samsung’s presence there? Can you see Samsung repeating what they did with the Galaxy S4 with the Galaxy S5? Let us know your opinion in the comments.
Source: engadget
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