Samsung Galaxy S4 Top 10 Tips and Tricks

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is probably the most feature-laden smartphone ever released. In addition to the wow-worthy Smart Stay and Air Gestures features, the Galaxy S4 is packed with helpful tools for increasing battery life, blocking unwanted calls and notifications and helping you stay safe when you're traveling alone. Let's take a look at some of Samsung Galaxy S4's top 10 tips and tricks.

Top Galaxy S4 Tips and Tricks / © AndroidPIT

1. Decrease Lag in Touchwiz

If you don't see yourself using S Voice too often, you'll find that disabling it will lead to a much smoother Touchwiz experience. Have you noticed the slight lag between hitting the home button and the home screen appearing? That's because your Galaxy S4 thinks you might be trying to launch S Voice. To speed up the transition, open S Voice and turn off the "Open via home key" option.
Another way to speed up Touchwiz is to change a few options in the Developer Options menu. Go to Settings –> More –> About Device. Then scroll down to the build number and tap it seven times.
Now go back and you should see the Developer's Option Menu. Turn off "Drawing," "Window animation scale," "Transition animation scale" and "animator duration scale."  There will be less animation now, but Touchwiz should be more responsive.

2. Prolong Your Power

So you've got 10% battery left and the whole night ahead of you. What do you do? It's pretty easy: to increase your Galaxy S4's battery life, all you need to do is turn on Power Saving Mode. You can find this option in the Quick Settings notification pane.
The feature allows you to turn on CPU power saving, screen power saving or turn off haptic feedback. For best results, try disabling all three. If that doesn't work, turn off your data connection.

3. Enable Multiple Window Mode

If you're a multi-tasking fiend like me, chances are you're going to want to enable multiple window mode on your Galaxy S4. This feature allows you to run two applications at once, like email and web browsing for example.
To do so, simply hold down the back button to trigger the multi-window menu, which appears on the left hand side of the screen. Slide it out, select which apps you want to run simultaneously and enjoy!

4. Customize Your Notification Panel

From the notification pane, tap on the icon that looks like a few squares and two arrows in the very top right corner. Now tap the pencil icon that appears on the left.
From here, all you need to do is drag and drop icons around to move your most-accessed settings into the top five.

5. Enhance The Quality of Your Photos

You'd think the Galaxy S4 would take 13MP shots out of the box, but you'd be mistaken. To enable the highest quality shots, you're going to have to set the size for 13MP by opening the camera and hitting the settings button.

6. Get 50GB of Free Cloud Storage for 24 Months

This one's easy: to enable free cloud storage, just download Dropbox and log in. Voila! You have 50GB of free cloud storage for two years! You can enable Dropbox to upload any photo you take yo cloud storage, which means you won't lose those photos if your phone gets lost or stolen. Yes, Google+'s photo upload feature works well, too, but Dropbox will save your photos in the highest quality.

7. Enable Air Gestures

To answer your phone simply by moving your hand above the sensor, enable Air Gestures. You can easily do this via Quick Settings.

8. Take a Screenshot

You can take a screenshot using two methods. Either hold down the power and home buttons together or swipe your palm across the screen. The latter method requires you to first enable it by going to Settings –> My Device –> Motion and gestures –>Palm Motion and switch on "Capture Screen."

9. Block Unwanted Calls

To ensure you're not bothered by unwanted callers, turn on "Blocking Mode" via My Device. With this enabled, you can block all incoming calls, notifications, alarms and even your LED indicator. You can either turn it on manually or set it to disable communication between specified hours of the day.
If you want to reject specific numbers, go to Settings -> My Device and under "Call" menu, go to "Auto Reject" enter a specific number, check the box next to it and you'll never have to hear from that person again. You can even have the Galaxy S4 send a personalized meson to the person explaining why their call was rejected.

10. Enable Safety Assistance Mode

This is a great feature if you're traveling somewhere alone and concerned something might happen to you while you're away. By holding the volume up and the volume down keys, you can send an emergency message to predetermined contacts, as well as two photos taken by the front and rear cameras. Your phone will also send your location to your contacts. To turn it goon, go to Settings –> My Device –> Safety Assistance

Samsung slows down: Market forecast woes

Samsung has, over the last little while, definitely become one of the leaders when it comes to smartphones, posting record after record. It has even gotten to the point where in some areas, the Galaxy brand is almost synynomous for telephone. However, some speculation as of late has revealed that Samsung might be in store for a slowdown on the global market and might be snapped back to reality.

© Hersteller/AndroidPIT

"Samsung Stock collapses" was the headling over at heise.de, noting the global price drop to the South Korean companies shares over the last few days. In South Korea, the shares have fallen by about 6 percent, on the Frankfurt stock exchange, they've fallen as much as 8 percent. As the website noted: "The [loss of] market capitalization was therefore some 12 billion U.S. dollars."

Galaxy S4 Issues

Some might be skeptical when placing some of the blame of the recent price drop squarely onto the Galaxy S4. I mean, just after having celebrated the ten millionth S4 sale since it's launch and with market observers indicating that it's not completely unreasonable to expect 80 million units to be sold it would be hard to believe that the flagship device would be causing any issues for the company. However, analysst from JPMorgan have downgraded expectations after a slower start to the second quarter of 2013.
However, the opinion of just JPMorgan isn’t the sole deciding factor behind the stocks downward shift. Experts from South Korea have also recently put Samsung underneath the magnifying glass. "It's a general consensus that the profitability of Samsung's mobile business will weaken," Young Park, with Woori Securities, noted in a recent interview with the BBC. And while profitability behind their devices was another cause for concern, the market of low-cost competition, mainly stemming from China, is another driving force. Chinese companies have start to push around more clout in the smartphone market as they make more established brands at a cheaper price, especially in the entry-level and mid-range segments. Samsung, as of late, has been excelling in the high-end segment, but has fallen behind in the other two.
Ongoing struggle versus Apple
As per usual, Apple was another factor. The WWDC will be happening in San Francisco on Monday and is Apple’s most important event of the year. As with every year, the announcement of new hardware (iMac and Macbook Pros anyone?) as well as the latest update to iOS 7 are expected to be announced.
However, there are some other rumors circulating around that Apple will reveal a new repurchase model for used iPhones that will encourage users to give up their older generation iPhone in exchange for a discount on a newer model. As well, more rumors of a lower priced iPhone are swirling around; giving rise to speculation that Apple will try to break into the mid-range smartphone market as well. And so, while the press for Apple soars on rumors of new devices and whatnot, the forecasts for competitor Samsung continue to swirl around the drain.

It may be just a matter of perspective: Samsung stock price over the last five days (left) and last 3 years (right) / © Wallstreet-Online, AndroidPIT

By looking at the historic stock price graph for Samsung, one can easily dismiss the blip as par for the course. When looking at the 3 year history, Samsun has seen a steady rise, with small ups and downs a normal par for the course as they continue their cyclical release of new products. However, there could be more to the latest drop in price.
Samsung and Apple have become pretty similar over the last few years, despite being considered rivals. The unprecedented success of Samsung following Apple’s triumph over the smartphone industry is definitely something to be proud of, however, they should be aware that other companies are continually vying for the coveted spot at the top of the market. However, as every mountaineer knows: In order to climb to the top, at some points you’ll also need to go back down.

Samsung Premiere 2013: Galaxy galore

While there wasn’t really much that came out of the Samsung Premiere event at London that was a huge surprise, there was a nice feel to have a polished presentation to the Samsung devices that we’ve been keeping tabs on over the past few weeks.  On the Galaxy side of things, we got a hands-on demo of the Galaxy S4 Mini, S4 Active, and S4 Zoom as well as confirmation of the anticipated Galaxy NX Camera.

The Galaxy S4 lineup. / © samsungmobile.com

Glossing over on the already announced Galaxy S4 Mini, Samsung spent a little time acknowledging its existence and moved on to a little bit more hands-on time with the other Galaxy S4 devices.

S4 Active

Asides from already knowing the basics behind the technical specs of the device, Samsung concentrated on showing us exactly what the rugged Galaxy S4 Active could do. Claiming an IP67 protection against dust and water (check out what the different IP ratings stand for over here), it means that the Active not only is completely protected against dust, but it is also water resistant to a depth of 1 meter.

The S4 Active is phone of choice for people who either want protection for their device coming standard...or who are extremely clumsy. / © samsungmobile.com

In fact, that Active can spend up to 30 minutes submerged at a maximum depth of 1 meter. That’s a long time for a smartphone just out of the box, without a protective case. As well, while the touch screen will not work underwater, you do have access to an Aqua Mode to take pictures by using the physical volume buttons. And one of my favorite reveals? The fact that you can use the touch display with gloves on! No more braving the cold while skiing around just to be able to respond to a text or take a quick snapshot of the mountains around me!

S4 Zoom

The news about the S4 Zoom was much like what was already presented in the Press Release one week ago. A portable camera and phone all rolled into one, it also boasts a 10x optical zoom.

The S4 Zoom will be aviable in two colors: White Frost and Wine Red. / © samsungmobile.com

We got an on-hands demo of how In-Call Photo Sharing works: simply rotate the lens ring while in a call, snap a photo, and share it with whoever you’re chatting with. A simple three steps! As well, Samsung revealed a little bit more about their smart-modes, allowing users to concentrate more on taking a photo and less about tweaking around with settings in order to get the best picture. Professional level results from an easy to use interface.

© samsungmobile.com

Galaxy NX

One of the only devices that was a little bit of a surprise during the London Premiere (…and even then, we had reports of it last week) was the Galaxy NX Camera. Having heard rumblings of this device last week, we didn’t have an official confirmation of its existence until today.
Running Android 4.2.2 and boasting a 4G LTE Connection, this high-end camera hopes to revolutionize the higher end camera market. As with the S4 Zoom, the Galaxy NX has access to a bunch of smart modes when capturing photos, allowing users to simple let the system choose the best setting for them given a certain scenario.

The Galaxy NX in all its glory: a smart, high powered camera. / © samsungmobile.com

As with information that we knew before: the Galaxy NX will be compatible with current Samsung NX interchangeable lenses and will boast a 20.3-megapixel sensor inside of it. Otherwise, it’ll have a 4.8” LCD touch screen on that back and will boast a 1.6 GHz quad-core processor inside.
And while there weren't any surprises or anything that really blew us away during the presentation of the Galaxy devices, it was definitely a nice touch to get a hands-on approach behind the devices. I particularily liked the water demonstration of the S4 Active and especielly the over-view of the smart modes on the S4 Zoom and Galaxy NX.

New Windows 8 Devices at Samsung London Event: the ATIV Q is Awesome!

Samsung just announced 3 new devices that will join the ATIV family. The ATIV line from Samsung are the Windows based devices and at the reveal in London Samsung showed us two new laptops, A hybrid tablet running both Windows 8 and Android, a Windows 8 tablet and finally an all in one computer.

The ATIV One 5, Samsung's All in One Computer / © samsungmobile.com

Samsung ended up showing us 9 new devices at the London event today, some of which where Galaxy devices which you can read about here. There were a total of 4 Galaxy devices revealed at the event and a total of 5 Ativ devices.

ATIV Q

The first device to be shown to members of the audience was the Samsung Ativ Q. This device is a hybrid one running two operating systems in Windows 8 and Android 4.2.2. One really neat feature about this device is that it allows you to seamlessly switch between the Windows 8 OS and the Android Jelly Bean OS. The Ativ Q also has a screen resolution of 3200 x 1800 which is the highest screen resolution in the world at the moment. The device can be used as a normal tablet, as a laptop with a keyboard, and can be placed in a reading or viewing position. Files can be shared around the two operating systems and the battery life is also impressive at it comes in at about 9 hours.

ATIV Tab 3

Samsung's Ativ tab 3 looks a lot like the Samsung Galaxy tab but this device is of course running Windows 8 and it is the world's thinnest Windows 8 tablet at well. The 10 inch tablet has a resolution of 1366 x 768 and has 64 GB of onboard storage. The storage is also expandable as the device comes with a Micro SD slot. Other features include an HDMI out port, and also a good 2 GB of RAM. This device along with the Ativ Q also includes a stylus which can be used for things like drawings etc.

ATIV Book 9 Plus

This is the flagship Windows 8 laptop from Samsung. This high end device has a wonderful design, comes in at a thickness of 13.6mm and weighs in at just over 1.3 kg's. The device has the same screen resolution as the Ativ Q at 3200 x 1800 and the same size display at 13.3 inches. Other specs include 256 GB SSD, a micro HDMI port and also 2 USB 3.0 ports. Gorilla Glass is the material protecting the screen which also boasts touchscreen functionality.

ATIV Book 9 LITE

This is the cheaper version of the Ativ book 9 range of laptops. It comes in with a lot of the things that the Ativ Book 9 has but at a more affordable price. The screen resolution is no longer the 3200 x 1800 qHD but a more humble 1366 x 768 which is a noticeable drop when you view the two side by side. On the outside though the two look very similar.

ATIV One 5 Style

This device is a desktop PC running Windows 8, with the same look and feel as the Galaxy family of devices. The machine boasts a quad core AMD A6 processor and 4 GB of RAM. As far as storage is concerned it goes all the way up to 1 TB which means you will probably not run out of storage space for all your files. Moving on to connectivity, you have 3 USB 3.0 ports, 2 USB 2.0 ports, Bluetooth 4.0 and HMDI in and out.
It seems as if Samsung is looking to replicate the success of its Galaxy line with these Windows devices. Tell us what you think of Samsung's latest efforts by leaving a comment below.

Samsung Galaxy Tab Series Coming On July 7

Samsung has announced that the new Galaxy tab series that we reported about previously is coming to the United States on July 7th. The tablets are coming in 7, 8 and 10 inch variants, and are going to be priced at about $199, $299 and $399 respectively. This time Samsung is focusing on more affordable and thin devices which are designed to meet the needs of the mass marketing.

The 10 Inch Version of the upcoming Galaxy Tab 3, which is now available as of now, online and at Brick and Mortar retailers / © Samsung Mobile

Differences in Specs

Each of the upcoming devices has different things under the hood. For the 7 inch variant we are looking at a 1.2 GHz Dual core Marvell chip, for the 8 inch version we are looking at a 1.5 GHz Exynos CPU, and finally for the 10.1 inch version of the series we are looking at a 1.6 GHz dual core chip. The 7 inch version of the series of tablets sports a 1024x600 display while the other ones both have a 1280x800 resolution.

Appearance & Android Version

Despite the differences on what is actually under the hood on the different devices, all of them look like Samsung products and are instantly recognizable as such. The 7 inch tablet will be running Android 4.1 whilst the other two will come running with Android 4.2.

Availability

If you are in the United States you can now pre order your Galaxy Tab 3 devices online at Samsung's own store or at other online retailers such as Amazon and BestBuy now, or if you prefer you can also pre order the devices at actual brick and mortar stores too.
What do you think of the specs that the new Galaxy devices are coming with and will you be buying one of these soon?

Google Play Edition HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S 4 Available on Google Play Store

The Google Play editions of the HTC One and the Samsung Galaxy S 4 are available for purchase though the Google Play Store today. The Google Play editions of these flagship smartphones take the manufacturer software out of the devices, stripping away Samsung’s TouchWiz and HTC’s Sense UIs to deliver a pure Google experience. Both devices run on Android Jelly Bean, and will be among the first to receive important updates and Google goodies.

The handsets will come unlocked, allowing owners to choose a month-to-month contract or a pre-paid service option as they please.The device is not being sold outside of the U.S. however, so international customers will have to wait.

Both devices can be purchased through the Google Play Store, and will be shipped to customers starting on July 9th. The Samsung Galaxy S 4 comes with a price tag of $649 for the 16GB version, and the HTC One comes with 32GB of storage and is a little cheaper than the S 4, coming in at $599. So head on over to the Google Play Store if you’ve got your eyes on one of these powerful, pure Google experience touting  devices.

Samsung launches Galaxy NX, Ativ Q, and much more at Premiere 2013 event

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Samsung promised new Android and Windows devices at its June 20th event in London and it delivered. The Galaxy NX wedded Android with an interchangeable lens camera, the Ativ Q combined Android and Windows into a crazy convertible tablet form factor, and two new Ativ Book laptops brought Samsung's ultrabook line into the Haswell age.

Catch up on all of Samsung's announcements right here.

Samsung Unleashes Kernel Source Code for Galaxy S 4 Active and Galaxy Note 8.0 LTE

Samsung recently released the kernel source code for two of its newest devices: the Galaxy S 4 Active and the Galaxy Note 8.0 LTE. The source code will allow developers create custom ROMs for all of you flash-happy owners.

Both devices were released as AT&T exclusives last friday, each welcomed entries to the carrier’s lineup. The Galaxy S 4 Active rocks a majority of its Active-less brother, but ships with a tweaked and ruggedized design that’s both water and dust resistant. The Galaxy Note 8 LTE is exactly what it sounds like – An 8-inch tablet from the Note family, meaning it ships with an S-Pen and all of the expected features that you’d expect from the Note line of devices.

If you’re an owner of one of these two devices, you have a little more time to wait, as developers need some time to do their thing. But soon enough, you’ll be able to flash a custom ROM if you so choose.

Head on over to Samsung Open Source site here to download the code now.

Samsung Enters Carbon Fiber Partnership, Signals Move Away From Plastic

Samsung Petrochemical, the materials wing of Samsung, has formed a partnership with SGL Group to invest in developing composite materials. Samsung’s plasticky phones may be a thing of the past!

Carbon based products firm, SGL Group, has formed a 50/50 joint venture with Samsung to develop electronics that use carbon composite. Carbon fiber is commonly used in smartphone cases as a way to make phones tougher, more scratch resistant, and give them a better feel. The composites developed by SGL and Samsung would be a mix of carbon and other materials, and could combine increased durability with the affordability of regular plastics.

While the fruits of this partnership might not reach Samsung’s consumer goods for a while, their feel and durability could be greatly improved. So, will the Galaxy S5 come in a mega tough, carbon composite shell? We’ll just have to wait and see.

You can read the joint press release below:

SGL Group and Samsung establish joint venture for Carbon Composite Materials

• Strategic partnership with a Marketing & Sales JV for joint market development and distribution
• Target: Introduction of new industrial and electronic applications for carbon composite materials

Wiesbaden, June 20, 2013. Today, SGL Group – The Carbon Company – and Samsung established a strategic partnership for carbon fiber composite materials with the foundation of a Marketing & Sales jointventure. The joint venture partners, Samsung Petrochemical and SGL Group, will each hold a 50% share. The primary objective of the cooperation is to develop new industrial and electronic applications with carbon composite materials for Samsung and the Korean market. Thejoint venture will operate under the name “Samsung SGL Carbon Composite Materials”.

The cooperation is expected to provide a stable long-term supply of carbon fiber materials for Samsung and promote its use in various Samsung products and applications such as consumer electronics, medical devices and engineering applications. Carbon fiber materials from SGL Group will be preferred by the Joint Venture. In the mid-term, the joint venture will aim for business expansion over the rest of Asia.

Juergen Koehler, member of the Board of Management of SGL Group: “In this partnership with Samsung, we combine our strengths and promote the use of carbon fiber materials in fast growing markets such as digital media. Carbon fiber materials play an increasingly important role in the material substitution process towards lighter products. Ourjoint venture underlines our strategy to enter new markets and develop innovative applications for our high-performance materials. We are proud to partner with Samsung.”

Yoosung Chung, President & CEO of Samsung Petrochemical: “Our long-term cooperation with SGL Group will ensure the exclusive supply of carbon fiber composite materials to Samsung. We selected SGL Group as partner due to the company’s unique expertise along the entire value chain from carbon fibers to CFRP components. Lightweight materials have become an important factor not only in industrial applications but also the consumer end markets such as digital media. This partnership will position Samsung as a leading player in the development and application of carbon fiber-based products.”

Both companies will combine their core competencies in this marketing & sales joint venture. SGL Group contributes its know-how in high performance carbon fiber-based materials. Samsung Petrochemical shares its experiences from particular application development with the Samsung’s affiliates, which is expected to allow the company to successfully meet the requirements of new industrial products and solutions.

Following the signing of the joint venture contract, which took place today in Seoul, the closing of the transaction is scheduled for July, pending regulatory approvals. Operations of the joint venture are scheduled to begin immediately thereafter. The joint venture will be headquartered in Ulsan/South Korea, at a Samsung Petrochemical facility. The office of the Marketing & Sales joint venture will be located in Seoul/South Korea.

The joint venture targets applications in the markets for electronic products, wind blades, pressure vessels, automotive and household appliances in the Far East. The Asian carbon fiber market is expected to be sharply growing in Korea and China by over 20% per year. Currently the Korean market focuses on prepreg and sportive goods. In the future though, the market is to be expanded to a wider range of industries like wind energy, electronics, automotives and others.

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 entering mass production in August

Samsung will likely unveil the new Galaxy Note phablet at some point in September. According to ET News, the Korean company will start mass producing the powerful device in August, helping its suppliers along the way.

If you recall, we’ve told you that Samsung has halved its orders for the Galaxy S4 due to weaker than expected demand. The company’s suppliers were obviously concerned but since the new Galaxy Note 3 is coming soon, they hope to get back to the “business as usual” within a month or so. And thanks to the upcoming Note the impact to suppliers will be “minimal.”

So, if Samsung is ready for the mass production, the designs were most certainly completed as we can attest with quite a few in-the-wild photos we’ve seen in the past.

Earlier, we’ve heard that the Galaxy Note 3 will boast Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 800 processor, at least 2GB of RAM, 13-megapixel rear camera, front-facing camera, a ton of built-in storage and other top-notch specs…

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 leaks again in China

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 has been leaked,again. This time the leak comes from China, showing the upcoming phablet from two different angles.

We already know pretty much all there is to know about the Galaxy Note 3: it will pack a large full HD screen, super-fast Snapdragon 800 processor (or Exynos 5 Octa), a ton of built-in storage, S-Pen stylus, 13-megapixel rear camera, front-facing camera and so on. Once released, it will probably be the single most expensive phone on the market but we’re sure Sammy will sell a ton of them, nevertheless.

It is said that the Korean company will launch the new Galaxy Note in early September, just before the IFA trade show in Berlin. We’ll most likely get back to you in the meantime with all the details we catch from unofficial sources. Stay tuned…

Microsoft’s new Windows Phone ad tells Apple and Samsung fans to stop fighting

Microsoft has created what I consider a brilliant new Windows Phone ad that tells Apple and Samsung followers to stop arguing with each other all the time. It’s true that the Android vs. iOS battle has evolved nowadays into an Apple vs. Samsung battle. Microsoft says, “Don’t fight. Switch.” and just buy a Windows Phone handset instead.

The ad takes place at a wedding. The groom’s side of the wedding all own Galaxy phones and the bride’s side all have iPhones. When someone with a Galaxy phone takes a picture, an iPhone user on the other side makes a snarky comment about how big it is. They start going back and forth until everyone at the wedding is throwing fists. Two people who seem to be working at the wedding stand calmly together as they use their Nokia Lumia 920 phones.

It’s not very often you hear the terms “Microsoft” and “brilliant new advertisement” together in one sentence, but this Windows Phone ad is really just quite well done. It gives off a good impression that Windows Phone is superior while all the inferior little brats argue, so to speak. I’m reminded of the “The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street” episode of the Twilight Zone when the humans destroy themselves with their own fighting and finger-pointing while the aliens end up getting to sit back and watch effortlessly.

But enough chit chat. You can watch the Windows Phone ad in its entirety right here.

Samsung unveils world’s thinnest Windows tablet

ATIV Tab 3 one of two new tablet devices unveiled by the manufacturer during star studded launch event in London yesterday evening (June 20)

Samsung has added two new tablet devices to its portfolio, unveiling the ATIV Tab 3 and ATIV Q in London’s Earls Court venue last night.

The ATIV Tab 3 (pictured in white) is Samsung’s first tablet to run on Microsoft’s Windows 8 operating system – and is said to be the world’s thinnest at just 8.2mm, and weighing 550g.

The device features a 10.1 inch HD screen (1366×768), 64GB memory, 10 hour battery and comes preloaded with Microsoft’s  Office Home & Student software. 

The ATIV Q, includes the world’s highest resolution screen (3200×1800) and can run on either Windows 8 or the latest Android operating system, Jellybean 4.2.2.

Features include a larger 13.3 inn screen, 13.9mm thick, 1.29HG weight, 128GB memory, up to nine hours battery, and Intel HD Graphics. 

Each devices includes a full QWERTY bluetooth keyboard, which adjusts depending on your needs and usage. Samsung said the devices have been designed to accommodate different user needs, such as the inclusion of a hinge to help recreate the feel of a laptop when typing. There is also a ‘stand mode’ for when watching movies. 

In addition, Samsung has launched a new product called SideSync, which enables users to control their device, including responding to texts and emails and view photos taken from their handset, from their computer.

Both device will be available before the end of the year. Pricing details and launch partners have yet to be confirmed. 

Samsung Electronics VP of IT and mobile division for the UK and Ireland Simon Stanford said: “We’re committed to offering our customers choice and convenience in personal computing, and the convertible nature of both these new tablets delivers the freedom and versatility our customers demand.

“These innovative devices have been designed with busy people in mind, and the adaptability they offer is better suited to busy lives than any tablet on the market.”

The event concluded with a live performance from British female singer Emeli Sandé.

LG not interested in competition with Apple and Samsung on price’

Manufacturer will let rivals battle it out on price as it reveals it has no plans to release a tablet this year

LG says it is happy to let Apple and Samsung battle it out in the “very high tier” for smartphone devices.

The comments came from LG UK head of mobile Andy Coughlin during the launch of the manufacturer’s new Optimus G smartphone (pictured) at Mobile World Congress.

Coughlin said LG is focused on releasing devices across all ends of the market, but will not launch devices in the same price bracket as, say, the iPhone 5 and the Galaxy S III.

He also told Mobile News LG has no plans get involved in the “distracting” tablet market this year. The firm’s last launch in this area at MWC was the LG Optimus Pad back in 2011.

Coughlin said a decision on price for the Optimus G is yet to be made, but he said it will be “nowhere near” as expensive as devices such as the Galaxy S III and iPhone 5.

No immediate decision on a UK launch for the Optimus G Pro phablet, unveiled at MWC, has been made. It will go on sale in Asia first.

Instead, Coughlin said LG’s UK focus is on its L series, with the low-end L32 (RRP £79.99) and L52 (£129.99) coming to the UK at the end of March. Mid-tier smartphones the L72 and L92, whose prices have not been announced, are coming to the UK in the summer.

“Our aim is to have the largest display at all price points,” Coughlin said.

“There is a need to be in the premium end. But the Optimus G will be nowhere near as expensive as Apple and Samsung. LG are not in the business of playing in the very high tier space.

“I can’t control what the others do, we are not in a fight with Apple and Samsung. We are not concerned with what they do.”

Samsung Ativ Book 9 Plus: the new ultrabook champion has arrived

Samsung's dual-OS Ativ Q will no doubt dominate the headlines emanating from the company's Premiere 2013 event that just wrapped up, but for some of us the star of the show was another Windows device, the Ativ Book 9 Plus. This horribly disjointed name has been attached to a laptop the likes of which we've literally never seen before.

The 13.3-inch screen squeezes in an unprecedented 3200 x 1800 resolution, and what's dramatically more, Samsung promises it'll go for a full 12 hours of use. Compare that to Apple's newly refreshed MacBook Air, which can go for 13 hours but has to power a much tamer 1440 x 900 display. The Ativ Book 9 Plus also has a touchscreen, which the Apple machine lacks.

Most impressive about Samsung's new flagship laptop, however, is its build quality. Not since the current Air design was introduced by Apple in late 2010 have I felt this enamored and pleased with the construction of a new portable computer. The aluminum unibody exterior is perfectly rigid and robust, and the hinge opens up to a full 180 degrees. The display is well supported whatever angle you choose to position it at, and the single piece of glass covering it lends this machine a subtle elegance.

Whatever Intel and Microsoft may believe about hybrid tablet-laptop devices, there's just no getting away from the fact that the best Windows 8 machines are likely to be purely one or the other. The Ativ Book 9 Plus proves this point by being a perfectly streamlined expression of the ultrabook ideal. Without the physical compromises inherent in creating a convertible device, Samsung has perfected a hardware design that is every bit as delightful and robust as the MacBook Air. And let's not forget about Asus' Zenbook line or Acer's extremely competent Aspire S7. The world of laptops looks to be growing ever richer in desirable machines, with Samsung's star shining brightest tonight.

AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 Available on June 21st For $199

The Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 is slated for a June 21st launch on AT&T, and the company is offering a bundle deal for those customers looking to save a few bucks on the new tablet.

AT&T will offer the Galaxy Note 8.0 for $399.99 with a two-year contract, and is offering customers the device for $199.99 when bundled with a Samsung Galaxy S 4,Galaxy S 4 Active or a Galaxy Note II and a qualifying plan.

The AT&T version of the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 will have LTE connectivity, an 8-inch display with a  1280 x 800 p resolution, a 1.6 GHz quad-core Exynos 4 processor, 2 GB of RAM, a 4,600 mAh battery and 16GB of memory. The Note 8.0 also features a microSD slot, the S-Pen and Samsung features such as Multi-Window, Air View and Samsung SAFE.

Samsung Galaxy Ring Now Available on Virgin Mobile For $179

Virgin Mobile is adding another Samsung Galaxy device to it’s pre-paid mobile network today, announcing the availability of the Samsung Galaxy Ring. The new Galaxy device has a 4-inch display and runs on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, and is available for purchase off contract for $179.99, giving Virgin Mobile customers a more affordable option to theGalaxy S3.

The Galaxy Ring is powered by a 1.4GHz processor and has 4GB of internal storage, 1GB of RAM, a 5MP rear-facing camera, a 1.3MP front facing shooter, and a 1,750mAh battery. The device utilizes Virgin Mobile’s 3G network, and has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity.

While the Galaxy Ring doesn’t have the most impressive specs, it is an affordable and functional option for Virgin Mobile customers. The device is available for purchase on Virgin Mobile’s website.