Samsung’s Tab S4 is both an Android tablet and a desktop computer

Today, Samsung is unveiling the successor to its well-rounded yet expensive Galaxy Tab S3 from last year. The new Galaxy Tab S4 improves upon last year's slab in nearly every way, and it should be more versatile for users thanks to included Samsung Dex software. Confined to accessories until now, Samsung Dex software lets users connect a Samsung mobile device to a monitor and then use the device as a pseudo-desktop.

The first Dex dock came out over a year ago and was designed to be used with Samsung smartphones. Users could plug their device into the dock, connect it to a monitor, pair a keyboard and a mouse, and use the setup as they would a full desktop PC. The system ran a version of Android that Samsung modified to better suit a desktop UI, which included a lock screen and a task bar area with app icons. Dex on the Galaxy Tab S4 works just like this, with a couple of extra features that leverage the power of a tablet.

When connected to a monitor, both the big screen and the tablet's screen can be used simultaneously. In a short demo, Samsung showed how the device supports up to 20 open windows at once and how features like split screen and drag-and-drop can be used just as they would on a desktop PC. Users can launch Dex when not connected to a monitor as well, and that produces the same modified Android UI on the tablet's 10.5-inch, 2560×1600 Super AMOLED display.

Samsung claims users can launch any Android app while using Dex, but it's unclear how many are truly Dex-optimized to fit a larger screen and make use of keyboard shortcuts. Big players, including Google, Adobe, and Microsoft, signed up to support Dex back when the software was still new, and more developers have been optimizing their Android apps for Chrome OS devices as Google's browser-based operating system has gained popularity. Undoubtedly, more Android apps can be used comfortably on desktop-sized screens than when Dex originally launched.

In addition to Dex, the Tab S4 supports signature Samsung features like Air Command, translate, off-screen memos, and live message. Originally confined to Galaxy Note devices, live message lets users create gifs of themselves and decorate them with pen drawings before sending them in a message to friends and family. Samsung redesigned the S Pen that accompanies the Tab S4 to be easier to hold in your hand and more like a traditional pencil, but even with those changes it still doesn't require charging. We'll have to test it further to determine how much better it is than the previous stylus.

The Tab S4 is slightly bigger than the Tab S3 with its 10.5-inch display, and it runs on a Snapdragon 835 processor, 4GB of memory, and up to 64GB of internal storage with space for up to 400GB with the use of a microSD card. It has a 13MP rear camera and an 8MP front-facing camera while supporting 4K video recording at 30fps, and inside are four speakers tuned by AKG.

Samsung added a lot of heft to the Tab S4's battery—the company claims the 7,300mAh battery can support up to 16 hours of video playback. On paper, it's a solid improvement from the Tab S3's 6,000mAh battery, so we're interested in putting it through our battery tests to see if Samsung's estimates hold up.

The Galaxy name is synonymous with Android, but the decision to make yet another Android tablet is a curious one. Android tablets are being left in the dust as Chrome OS infiltrates the tablet scene. It's possible that Samsung will consider making a Chrome OS tablet in the future—but the Galaxy Tab S4 supports Android and Android only, unlike the company's Galaxy Book of yesteryear that came in Android and Windows varieties.

The Galaxy Tab S4 will be available August 10 starting at $649 for the Wi-Fi version. Samsung will also sell an LTE version of the tablet through Verizon, but starting price for that model hasn't been disclosed yet. The Book Cover Keyboard for the Tab S4 costs $149.

Listing image by Valentina Palladino

Samsung says the Galaxy S9 isn’t selling very well

By Sam Byford@345triangle 

Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge

Samsung Electronics’ quarterly earnings are in, and as ever they’re right in line with guidance, meaning that the company’s run of record profits is at an end. Samsung made an operating profit of 14.87 trillion won ($13.3 billion) on sales of 58.4 trillion won ($52.1 billion); revenue was down 4 percent year on year.

According to Samsung, the drop in revenue can be put down to “softer sales of smartphones and display panels.” The company’s most important phone of the year, the Galaxy S9, went on sale at the end of the previous quarter, but Samsung describes its performance as “slow.” Earlier this month analysts predicted that it would be the worst-selling Galaxy S flagship phone since 2012’s Galaxy S3.

Samsung’s display business also had a rough quarter, with “weak demand” for flexible OLED panels as seen in products like the iPhone X, and LCD shipments falling in both price and quantity. The company does expect OLED demand to pick up in the second half of the year, and Apple’s reported plan to launch two new OLED iPhone models will likely help with that.

Bright spots include the TV division’s strong sales of premium models thanks to the World Cup, while Samsung’s major profit driver remains its semiconductor division — demand for NAND flash memory and DRAM chips isn’t going away any time soon. Samsung also says its image sensor business is growing due to Chinese companies using the chips in dual-camera smartphones.

Huawei wants to beat Samsung to market with a foldable smartphone of its own

July 26th, 2018 at 10:02 PM

One of the hotly anticipated handsets of 2019 is Samsung’s first foldable handset. We used to call it the Galaxy X until earlier this week, when we learned that Galaxy X might be Samsung’s first gaming phone, which doesn’t fold. Then we learned Galaxy F might be the real name of the handset.

Whatever it is, the Samsung foldable is expected to launch in early 2019. But when it finally arrives, after more than two years of speculation and rumors, the Galaxy foldable phone might not be the first phone of its kind in the world. Huawei seems very eager to beat Samsung to market.

As it is right now, we don’t have real foldable handsets. We do have ZTE Axon M-like devices (below) that are practically two smartphone displays joined by a hinge. That’s not what we expect from this new form factor, which means we’re still waiting for someone to make the first foldable smartphone in the world.

Image Source: ZTE

This isn’t the first time we’ve heard that Huawei is working on a foldable smartphone of its own — and, to be clear, everyone else is also working on something. But Huawei wants to beat Samsung to market, a new report from Nikkei Asian Review reveals.

Huawei is going to partner with local display supplier BOE for the flexible OLED screen that would go inside this unnamed Huawei foldable handset.

The first batch would be limited, but Huawei and BOE want just to beat Samsung to market. “Huawei’s planned volume could be limited to some 20,000 to 30,000 units, or even less, for a small group of first-wave adopters,” a source said. “The effort is mainly to demonstrate its technological capability and to attract the industry’s attention and media coverage.”

The product will hit the market by “very early 2019,” according to Yuanta Investment Consulting analyst Jeff Pu.

“The Chinese company wants to be the first in the industry even if the display technology from its panel supplier might not be that ready like Samsung,” he said.

The launch date depends on the development of the technology and the durability of the foldable panels, the report notes.

While Huawei wants to attract the attention of smartphone buyers, BOE is going after bigger fish. The company has been rumored for years to eye Apple’s iPhone supply business. BOE has been heavily investing in OLED display manufacturing plants, in the hopes that it will attract Apple’s attention.

For Huawei, it’s only logical to partner with a local company that’s heavily subsidized by the government. It’s not like Samsung will provide foldable screens to any rival, especially Huawei before its foldable phone hits the market.

The report doesn’t mention price details for the unnamed foldable Huawei phone, but a WitsView analyst explains profitability isn’t a major concern for this project. “Profitability for this project is not the first priority for the two Chinese companies,” Eric Chiou said.

It’s unclear at this time what kind of specs Huawei’s foldable phone will have to offer, but we’re probably looking at top of the line hardware.

Samsung’s Galaxy foldable phone, also supposed to be a limited run in the first year, is rumored to cost $1,500 to $2,000 because of the extra costs that went into creating this sophisticated handset.

Huawei is currently the world’s third-largest handset maker behind Apple, but the company plans to overtake the iPhone maker soon. Next order of business would be displacing Samsung, which has been the world’s largest handset maker for a few years now.

As for BOE, check out the video below to see its foldable smartphone concepts in action: