Samsung has launched a new premium Galaxy 5S smartphone that makes the iPhone look small and yesterday’s technology, it will go on sale in Australia on April 11.
The iPhone 5S has a 4-inch 1136 x 640 IPS LCD display while the new Samsung Galaxy S5 has a 5.1-inch Full HD Super AMOLED 415 ppi display due to part to the fact that Companies like Samsung and LG manufacture their own display screens while Apple has to work with third part suppliers including Samsung and LG.
Under the bonnet the Samsung offering has a 2.5GHz quad-core Krait chip and 2GB of RAM it also runs Android 4.4 KitKat and comes with a Samsung developed TouchWiz interface.
Samsung executives said the company wanted to enhance core features that improve everyday use as opposed to “wow” factor” design.
Key upgrades relate to photo-taking, battery life, download speeds and protection against water and dust.
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Image: Wall Street Journal
One standout feature with the Galaxy S5 is a fingerprint sensor-something already available on the latest Apple. There is also a more powerful camera and faster download speeds than its predecessor and enhanced wireless capabilities that will boost download speeds by nearly five times in some cases, the company said.
Samsung executive vice Lee Younghee said in an interview ahead of the launch that the company would push for “very competitive pricing” of the device.
Ms. Lee said Samsung is striving for the “optimal mix of feature set and pricing point,” declining to elaborate on price.
Analysts say the lack of bold innovations will likely disappoint some consumers, who have come to expect dramatic new features with each new iteration of devices from Samsung and rival Apple.
“People are easily excited about all this ‘disruptive’ and ‘latest technology,’ and we are working on this too,” Ms. Lee said. “But our philosophy is to listen to consumers.”
Samsung said it also has beefed up the phone’s waterproof and anti-dust capabilities.
The Galaxy S5 also has a heart rate monitor and an improved S Health app which may come in useful for Samsung executives if the device fails to take off like previous models.
