Samsung introduces the new Galaxy S5 and Gear 2, Gear 2 Neo, Gear Fit for 2014
At the Samsung Unpacked Live event for 2014 held in Barcelona Spain on Monday, taking center stage was the new Samsung Flagship mobile phone the Galaxy S5 along with the new Gear wearable line; the Gear 2, Gear 2 Neo and the Gear Fit watches.
Galaxy S5
The Galaxy S5 still sports a plastic body with a chrome metallic look and a simulated leather patterned back is again used like on the Note 3. The Galaxy S5 feels solid, it’s slightly thicker and heavier than it’s predecessor the Galaxy S4, measuring 142.0 x 72.5 x 8.1mm and weighs 145g shipping with Kitkat Android 4.4.2
The new Galaxy S5 includes a built-in heart rate sensor on the back of the phone that you can place your finger tip on to gauge your heartrate, a 5.1” FHD Super AMOLED (1920 x 1080) screen with a 2.5GHz Quad core CPU (Exynos Octacore US variant to follow at a later date). Comes equipped with 2GB of RAM with 16GB or 32GB of internal storage along and a microSD slot that is expandable up to 128GB.
I guess the Galaxy S4 Active must have done well because the S5 is now IP67 Dust and Water Resistant certified. A thoughtful little snap covers the USB 3.0 port at the bottom. Samsung also incorporates Knox mobile security along with a new Fingerprint scanner sensor so that all your pictures, contacts, notes etc are all secured. A 16MP rear firing and 2MP front firing camera are coupled with the fastest auto-focus available on the smartphone today at just 0.3 secs, also features multi-focus.
A larger 2,800mAh battery helps power it all along with a new Ultra Power Saving Mode which boasts 24hrs of standby from the time your battery lowers to 10%! You also have super screen dimming control and can turn the brightness way down for those times you need to be a bit more discreet.
The Galaxy S5 supports USB 3.0 connectivity, Wi-Fi 802.11ac and 2X2 MIMO the fastest wireless standards available today. Download Booster is “an innovative Wi-Fi technology for boosting data speed by bonding Wi-Fi and LTE simultaneously” claims to allow a 1GB file to be downloaded in under a minute! You may want to use this feature sparingly, depending on your monthly allotment of bandwidth.
Gear 2, Gear 2 Neo, Gear Fit
The Gear 2 is the next evolution of Samsung’s Gear watch sporting a 1.0 GHz Dual Core CPU, 1.63” Super AMOLED (320 x 320).The new camera and home button have been repositioned to the top and bottom respectively. Most noteably the Gear 2 takes media control to the next step by adding 4GB of internal storage becomes a standalone music player as well as incorporating a brushed metal bezel and home button, interchangeable strap and is also IP67 Certified Dust and Water Resistant.
The Gear 2 Neo is a light version of the Gear 2, it removes the camera and measures 37.9 x 58.8 x 10.0mm, 55g vs the Gear 2 at 36.9 x 58.4x 10.0 mm, 68g. An increased Li-Ion 300mAh battery allows the Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo about 2 to 3 days typical use and up to 6 days of low usage.
The new Gear Fit is the bell of the ball with it’s new 1.84” Curved Super AMOLED (432×128) screen. It’s of course also IP67 Certified measuring 23.4 x 57.4 x 11.95 mm, and weighs just 27G with a 210mAh battery giving you 3 to 4 days typical usage and up to 5 low usage. Also offers an interchangeable strap.
No price point was announced for any products but watch for the S5 and Galaxy Gear 2, Gear 2 Neo, Gear Fit, Galaxy NotePRO Tablet, TabPRO Tablet, NFC wireless charger and 9000 mAh portable Galaxy battery to be available sometime in April 2014. Stay tuned for more intimate hands-on reviews.
samsung.com/mobileus
