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Samsung Electronics showcased its 2021 lineup of MICRO LED, Samsung Neo QLED, lifestyle TVs, monitors, and soundbars at its virtual Unbox & Discover event. As people spend more time at home, Samsung’s latest innovations let consumers get the most from their screens—allowing them to work efficiently, communicate effectively, and explore their personal passions. “At Samsung, we are proud to constantly innovate to improve consumers’ everyday lives. Over the past year, technologies that were once ‘nice to have’ became a need, as our homes became offices, schools, gyms, and more,” said James Fishler, Senior Vice President, Home Entertainment Division, Samsung Electronics America. “The role of the TV in our lives has grown—and in 2021, Samsung continues to redefine the role of TV around the needs and passions of consumers.” For decades, TVs were seen simply as a way to watch movies and shows; now, TVs are serving as conference rooms and fitness hubs. By taking advantage of many features for the first time this past year, people are re-examining the role that their TV plays in their lives. Beyond Samsung’s innovative approach to new features, our leadership in picture performance has made Samsung the number one global TV manufacturer for 15 consecutive years. In 2021, Samsung continues to break new ground to offer consumers extraordinary viewing experiences. MICRO LED Comes Home With superb brightness, deep blacks, and breathtaking image quality, MICRO LED technology offers a groundbreaking viewing experience that lasts. Its inorganic LEDs help prevent burn-in and ensure the screen stays vibrant over its lifetime. In 2018, Samsung introduced MICRO LED in the form of “The Wall”—a configurable system of modules that can reach an astounding 292 inches for an experience like no other. With its inherent flexibility, “The Wall” requires professional installation in the home or office. In 2021, Samsung brings all the power of MICRO LED technology in the form factor of a traditional TV experience. Now, consumers can take home the cinematic experience in a beautiful edge-to-edge screen design, with no need for professional assembly and installation. MICRO LED is available in 110’’ and 99’’ sizes globally beginning at the end of March; an 88’’ size is launching this fall; and a 76’’ is on the future roadmap. MICRO LED can become 4 screens in one. With 4Vue (Quad View), consumers can watch up to four sources of content simultaneously. Keep up with multiple sports at once, or stream a walkthrough while playing a video game. MICRO LED brings true-to-life picture quality at an enormous scale—out of the box. Samsung Neo QLED Fits Any Home and Every Passion As people turn to TVs as an outlet for their passions, Samsung developed Samsung Neo QLED to enhance the viewing experience, no matter what you are watching. The Samsung Neo QLED viewing experience is defined by our Neo Quantum Processor, and new Quantum Mini LEDs. At just 1/40th the size of conventional LEDs, Quantum Mini LEDs allow for ultra-fine light control. With deep blacks, bright lights, and upscaling technology smarter than any Samsung TV has ever offered, Samsung Neo QLED delivers an ultra-realistic picture—whether you are watching a football game, or playing one on your gaming console. Samsung Neo QLED also offers features that level up gaming. Samsung is proud to be the Official TV Partner of Xbox Series X in the United States and Canada. With Xbox and Samsung renewing their multi-year agreement this year, the two companies will continue working together to offer an unbeatable gaming experience. Samsung Neo QLED and QLED offer cutting-edge capabilities that make them a phenomenal companion to next-gen gaming with Xbox Series X. In addition, Samsung Neo QLED and QLED let you see virtually every detail with incredible 4k clarity, a silky-smooth 120 frames per second, and a low 5.8ms response time. In order to further deliver optimized gaming performance to the 2021 Samsung Neo QLED and QLED line, Samsung has also partnered with AMD to develop the first TV with Freesync Premium Pro support for both PC and console games to deliver a truly exceptional HDR gaming experience. Additionally, Samsung’s new Game Bar helps players quickly monitor critical aspects of play. You can use it to access Samsung’s Super Ultrawide Gameview, which brings ultra-wide aspect ratios—traditionally only available on gaming monitors—to the TV. For those with a passion for fitness, Samsung Neo QLED brings athletic training and healthy living to the home. Last year, when people weren’t able to go to the gym, many sought ways to stay fit at home. Samsung Health, a comprehensive fitness and mindfulness platform launched in the spring of 2020, met this need. Samsung Health helped us stay fit with partner apps for every style of fitness and health, along with seamless connectivity to mobile devices and wearables. In 2021, Samsung Health adds the benefit of a Smart Trainer. With an optional camera sold separately, the Smart Trainer utilizes AI to analyze your posture and provide real-time feedback to improve your form as you follow instructional videos. In 2021, Samsung Neo QLED’s 8K models (QN800A and QN900A) will be available in 65’’, 75’’, and 85’’ sizes, while the 4K models (QN90A and QN85A) will reflect an even wider selection, starting at 50’’. TV Technology That Reflects Your Style Indoors or Outdoors Consumers today expect experiences tailored to their needs, personal tastes, and style. The Lifestyle TV category offers screens designed for every consumer and every space—in and outside the home. The Frame transforms the TV into a work of art that can be personalized to fit your aesthetic and decor. With new partnerships in the Art Store,1 like NAVA Contemporary and Etsy, The Frame features more original artwork to match individual tastes. It also includes AI-based auto-curation technology that recommends artwork based on your selections. Curate your own personal art collection with a growing library of over 1,400 pieces of art from world-renowned institutions. The Frame also features increased photo storage space from 500 megabytes in 2020 to 6 gigabytes in 2021, so you can store up to 1,200 photos (all) in UHD quality. From beloved classics to stunning photography, the Art Store gives you access to a variety of content to personalize your space. In 2021, there are new ways to customize the Frame itself—from new mounting options like the Slim Fit Wall Mount to five bezel options and more from third party providers. Additionally, we have made the 2021 Frame slimmer than ever: just 24.9 millimeters thick, about the same depth as an actual picture frame. It’s just as appealing off as when it’s on. Samsung is also offering a new way to display the 2021 Frame, with My Shelf, a new accessory releasing globally later this year that lets you create a tailored wall with personal touches to complement your screen and décor. My Shelf can be attached to the 55 inch, 65 inch, and 75 inch Frame sizes, and will be available in four different colors: beige, white, brown, and black. For those who miss the movie theater experience, The Premiere, the industry’s first triple laser projector with 4K resolution, represents the next stage in home cinema—all in a compact package. Traditional beam projectors can be clunky and difficult to set up—and even if they offer a big screen, the resolution is sometimes far below an ordinary TV. The Premiere’s minimalist design, with rounded edges and a fabric finish, fits neatly into any home. To help consumers use the Premiere anywhere in their home, we are going to be offering rollable screens optimized for the Premiere later this year on Samsung.com. Just position the Premiere around 5 inches or further from a monotone wall or ALR screen, and break out the popcorn. In 2020, Samsung took its industry-leading picture performance from inside the home to the yard—just as consumers were looking to get outdoors. With The Terrace, our first outdoor TV, consumers can enjoy the picture quality, audio performance, and smart features they expect from Samsung outside. And they can do so worry-free; The Terrace is weather-resistant, with an IP55 rating to protect against water and dust. It is also simple to install, and easy to connect to cable service and a Wi-Fi network. The Terrace is available in 55”, 65”, and a new 75” Full Sun model2 is coming in time for summer. Screens Suited for Every Need – From Productivity to Play In 2020, the relevance of the monitor at home changed dramatically. For many, this meant additional screens for multiple needs. Suddenly, a screen that was used to shop online or surf social media became critical to daily life, as consumers used it to make the most of work, school, and play. To fulfill this demand, the Smart Monitor is Samsung’s first “do-it-all” monitor—uniting the best of monitor and TV. Smart Monitor is compatible with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Wireless DeX, and Apple AirPlay 2, letting consumers work from anywhere without needing to connect to a PC. With AirPlay 2, customers can stream, control, and share their favorite content directly from their iPhone, iPad, or Mac to their monitor. When you need to relax, you can enjoy your favorite shows by turning on the Smart TV platform and accessing your preferred streaming apps. Smart Monitor helps consumers stay productive when they need to be—and entertained when they need a break. In 2020, the Odyssey G9 gaming monitor generated a lot of buzz—this year, Samsung is leveling up the experience with a Quantum MiniLED display and premium gaming features. The 1000R screen curvature, combined with Quantum MiniLED display technology, gives gamers an experience unlike any other. The new G9 joins Samsung’s full lineup of curved and flat Odyssey gaming monitors. To enable a new way of learning and working while staying safe, we are introducing the Samsung Interactive Display FLIP 75-inch,a digital whiteboard you can write, draw, and edit on. The Flip offers connective features for hybrid working and learning to help consumers succeed—whether in the classroom, the office, or at home. With optimized 4K picture quality and easy-to-read visuals, a team of up to 20 can work simultaneously to sync personal devices for real-time content sharing. The Flip allows users to see a coworker’s or teacher’s presentation as if they were there in person—offering the ability to work together while staying safe. Designed to foster greater collaboration, increase productivity, and enable a seamless exchange of ideas, the 75-inch display joins the 55-inch, 65-inch, and 85-inch display. Sound That Matches the Visual While Samsung TVs offer incredible sound from the tiniest of speakers, nothing rounds out the home theater experience like the addition of a Samsung soundbar. The 2021 Q Series lineup includes exclusive Q-Symphony tech, syncing audio from the Samsung TV to deliver enhanced 3-dimensional sound. The soundbar even measures its environment to project audio precisely where it needs to be. For a full, deep and rich immersive experience, the Q950A boasts the industry’s first 11.1.4 channel sound bringing you right into the center of the action. Its new Bass Boost feature allows users to add “more boom” with a simple click. For those who play music from their mobile devices, Tap Sound makes it as simple as tapping a device to the soundbar. And the Q950A works with multiple voice assistants, including Amazon Alexa and Bixby—making it easy to take full control of the listening experience. Passions, Style, Tastes, and Needs In 2021, Samsung complements your passions, adjusts to your tastes, and delivers performance that enhances all experiences. From the pinnacle of luxurious performance in MICRO LED, to the aesthetic appeal of The Frame, Samsung redefines the role of the TV in your home—at a time when the TV is more relevant than ever. For more information on Samsung’s TV products, please visit www.samsung.com. * Product availability may vary by region. 1 Art Store subscription required to access full selection. Fees apply to subscription service. 2 Panel protected up to 6 hours in sunlight at 700 watts and 104 degrees Fahrenheit; brightness may decrease to protect panel with other high temperature and sunlight conditions. View the full article

Welcome to a new game review series for developers. We will start showcasing and analyzing different games published in the Samsung Galaxy Store, and note the best practices that successful developers have followed to publish and promote their games. We will start reviewing the game Mirages of Winter that you can download in your mobile devices here. In the video you will be able to see more about the game’s unique style, gameplay, and how it took advantage of the listing in Galaxy Store to maximize the engagement with the players. Mirari games, the studio behind this title, delivered a premium game that creates an experience that goes beyond gaming. It is highly recommended to anyone that wants to escape to a magical land for a little while. Let’s connect We love to chat with mobile and wearable developers to help as you develop, publish, and market apps, themes and watch faces. If you have a published game in Galaxy Store, we would love to help you get discovered. Follow Up This site has many resources for developers looking to build for and integrate with Samsung devices and services. Stay in touch with the latest news by creating a free account or by subscribing to our monthly newsletter. Visit the Marketing Resources page for information on promoting and distributing your apps. Finally, our developer forum is an excellent way to stay up-to-date on all things related to the Galaxy ecosystem. View the full blog at its source

In a time when the amount of varied content viewers have access to is greater than ever before and our devices are playing a role in more and more facets of our lives, being able to make use of a top-tier television is a real priority. Over the years, Samsung has delivered a broad range of highest quality television solutions, leading the company to hold the number one spot in the global TV market for 15 consecutive years. This relentless innovation was demonstrated most recently with Samsung’s launch of its MICRO LED display, which is delivering outstanding color vibrancy and brightness and raising the bar for premium viewing. But Samsung is not only focused on establishing outstanding audio-visual quality in its televisions. As the company heads into its 15th year as the leading global TV brand, Samsung announced its ‘Screens Everywhere, Screens for All’ vision, underscoring their commitment to closely aligning business operations with a series of long-term sustainability and accessibility endeavors. Check out the infographic below to see how Samsung’s TV innovations have progressed over the years, reshaping the industry and elevating the user experience in a host of different ways. View the full article

Samsung Electronics topped the global TV market for the 15th consecutive year, according to market research firm, Omdia. Newly released data published on February 23 notes that Samsung Electronics recorded 31.8% in global TV market share by revenue in Q4 2020 and retained the largest annual category market share by revenue in 2020, at 31.9%. Samsung’s growth across the Visual Display Business reflects a commitment to the most premium at-home viewing experiences, coupled with the fast-growing QLED portfolio, category leadership in the ultra large screen segment over 75-inches, the introduction and expansion of a Lifestyle TV portfolio, and a series of industry, category and product “firsts” made possible thanks to Samsung’s constant drive for innovation. “Consumers use screens every day to entertain, connect with loved ones, work, exercise from home and do much more. And we have seen how different lifestyles and routines have not only evolved, but converged,” said Jong-hee Han, President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “We continue to be incredibly humbled by the trust placed in our vision and products; it is what drives our relentless pursuit to deliver cutting-edge innovation and a best-in-class screen experience that meets the needs of the modern-day consumer.” Looking back over the last 15 years, Samsung’s innovation-led growth agenda has incorporated groundbreaking new technologies, while spanning multiple categories, reaching a wide range of consumers and use cases. In 2021, Samsung expects to maintain its industry-leading market position with the introduction and expansion of core products and by incorporating proprietary technology and features across all TV lineups. This includes Samsung’s new Neo QLED lineup along with Samsung’s MICRO LED, Lifestyle TVs and a company-wide alignment of operations through long-term sustainability programs. Over the next few years, Samsung will also continue to invest in R&D and product development in strategic business areas to strengthen its core and emerging technology offers. For more information on Samsung’s TV products, please visit www.samsung.com/. View the full article

Ahead of the livestreamed broadcast, Samsung has released a brief preview of their Unbox & Discover event in the form of a teaser video. Beginning at 10 a.m. EST on March 2, the event will be streamed live on Samsung Newsroom and Samsung.com. Take a look at the teaser video below and prepare to learn more about how Samsung is set to redefine the role of the TV in 2021. View the full article

In this episode of POW!, we interview Drazen Stojcic. Drazen is the 2020 Galaxy Store award winner for best watch face collection. Not only do we talk about his rise to becoming one of the top watch face sellers on Galaxy Store, but also his fascinating career path. And it all started when he became an award-wining author after writing his first novel at the age of 16. Topics Covered: Galaxy Watch Studio Galaxy Store Galaxy Store Badges Social Media Photography Videography Animations SDC19 Best of Galaxy Store Awards View the full blog at its source

A television is a portal that can connect us to the world. As the amount of diverse content users have access to continues to grow, the range of entertainment they can access through their TVs is also expanding. Yet despite this innovation, for those who are hard of hearing, the deaf, people with low vision and the blind, accessing basic TV features like sound controls and screen settings can still prove challenging. In the final installment of this series, we look at how Samsung TVs and their array of exclusive accessibility features are seeking to provide an equal viewing experience for all. Check out the webtoon below to see how four friends make use of the accessibility features on a Samsung TV to all enjoy the viewing experience together. * The SeeColors app is available for download from the Smart TV App store. This app is not intended for use in the diagnosis of disease or other conditions, or in the cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of disease or medical problem. Any information found, acquired or accessed through this app is made available for your convenience and should not be treated as medical advice. View the full article

Design inspiration is all around us; however, tapping into it is another story. Fortunately, there are members of the Samsung Developers community who’ve cracked the code and defeated designer’s block. We connected with several watch faces/themes designers and over the last few weeks we have been sharing their advice, creative processes, and sources of design inspiration. We conclude our ‘Prime Time Design’ series with Ramon Campos from Friss in Motion. Based in the United States, Ramon’s watch faces are inspired by technology, science fiction and nature. Read on to learn about his design process and how he’s incorporating animation into his watch faces to stand out from the competition. When and why did you start designing watch faces? I started designing watch faces about six years ago as a hobby, creating designs for my own watch. I developed the habit of sharing my designs with other users and noticed they were popular. I soon realized it could be an opportunity to make money for my design work. As for themes, I started last year in January 2020. It has been an arduous experience, but also exciting and rewarding. What does your design process look like? Do you have a strict protocol or is it more free flowing? For me, the design process varies every time. There is no specific protocol; some designs have taken a very short time to complete, others have taken months. However, one thing on my mind during the design process is how to stand out from the competition. So, I think about how to design watch faces that show different characteristics. That’s why most of my designs are animated, although I also have experience in digital and analog design. How has your design approach evolved over time? My design process has evolved a lot. My first watch faces took a lot of time to finish, but now if I have a defined idea, it is easy to work on the project. The same can be said of my animated designs. I had to study hard to learn the computer programs, but over time it has made my work easier. What was the inspiration for your most successful watch face and how did you make it a reality? I really like technology, science fiction, nature and watches, so those four things are my source of design inspiration. How do you strike a balance between the vision you have for a watch face and its functionality? Is this the most challenging part of the design process? In my case, I have not had any complications with balancing my vision and functionality. Most of my designs are focused on health features and I have always had the confidence to ask the Samsung Developers team for their recommendations to help make my process easier. How do you navigate guidelines without compromising the integrity of your design? I think we all like flashy designs, but at the same time the information on the screen needs to be easy to read and locate. Due to my design style, this is probably one of my biggest challenges. What’s the one piece of advice you’d give a designer who is stuck in a creative rut? Express all your talent without fear and do not give up; there is a long way to go and your goals are not impossible to achieve. Thanks to Ramon for sharing helpful advice on the design process, staying creative and finding inspiration for Galaxy Watch Face designs. You can connect with Ramon and Friss in Motion on Instagram and Facebook. We hope you found our ‘Prime Time Design’ series inspiring and informative to help you on your journey to designing for Samsung devices. Don’t forget, there’s still time to submit your Galaxy Watch Faces or Themes portfolio before the submission window closes on February 23rd. Follow us on Twitter at @samsung_dev for more developer interviews and tips for building games, apps, and more for the Galaxy Store. View the full blog at its source

Following an unprecedented year that saw consumer viewing habits change exponentially, Samsung Electronics is continuing its legacy of delivering groundbreaking products for each any every consumer through 2021. On March 2, Samsung will share its vision for how the company’s latest innovative products are set to redefine the role of the TV through cutting-edge technologies, beautiful design and impactful partnerships. Join us at Samsung Newsroom and Samsung.com on March 2 for the event livestream which kicks off at 10 a.m. EST to see what Samsung has in store for 2021. View the full article

Remote Test Lab is a service that enables developers to control mobile and watch devices remotely. With the Remote Test Lab service, you can test your application on a real device by interacting with the device over the network in real time. The Remote Test Lab service is an easy and effective way to comprehensively test your application’s compatibility with the latest Samsung mobile devices, while reducing your spending on test hardware. Remote Test Lab highlights Application installation You can install and test Android and Tizen applications on the appropriate devices. Screen capture and recording You can capture or record the screen during testing, whenever you need it. Audio streaming You can listen to the audio played through the testing device. Repeat testing You can record a sequence of actions and replay the sequence multiple times. Remote Debug Bridge You can access the remote device through development tools, such as Android Studio, as if the device were connected to your computer. Test applications on a remote real device In your Web browser, go to Distribute > Remote Test Lab on the Samsung Developer site. Before using Remote Test Lab, make sure you have the system requirements: Samsung Account Standard Web browser with JavaScript support Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 7 or later, including Java Web Start Internet environment with port 2600 outbound open You can select the operating system, remote device, and testing time you want on the Remote Test Lab page. When you select Start, a JNLP file is downloaded to your computer, and when you run the file, the Remote Test Lab client is launched and the live image of the device screen appears on the client. You can use the Remote Test Lab device as if it were the real device. For example, you can even zoom in and out on Google Maps using multi-touch. A variety of testing tools are available in the client context menu: Screen menu: Screen Quality Control, Orientation, Scale, Capture and Record, Screen Share Manage menu: Application Manager, Clipboard Synchronization, Language, File Manager, Wi-Fi Reset, Device Reboot Test menu: Install Application, Auto-Repeat, Log Viewer, Remote Debug Bridge Experimental menu: Audio Streaming For more information on the tools in the context menu, see the User Manual. You can install your application on the remote device by dragging and dropping the application package from your computer into the Remote Test Lab client. Through the client, you can watch how the application behaves on the device, including in views such as Flex Mode on Galaxy Fold devices. For more details about the Remote Test Lab service and its policies, see the Remote Test Lab Support. View the full blog at its source

Hi, this is Eric from Samsung Developers. Normally, I’m behind the scenes managing the Samsung Developers website and creating tools for our talented group of developer evangelists. Today, I’m going to step into the spotlight and chat with my friend and colleague, Tony Morelan, about the next season of POW! The Samsung Developers podcast. Eric: We’re starting Season 2 of the Samsung Developers podcast next week. Can you tell our readers how the podcast got started? Tony: After the success of the Best of Galaxy Store Awards at SDC 2019, we talked about new ways we could engage with our audiences. We were already doing live events, webinars, and office hours, but we wanted to find a way to give our successful developers and designers a way to connect with fellow developers and tell their stories. Eric: For those who might not know about the POW! podcast, how would you describe it? Tony: The goal of the podcast is to inspire people to create for Samsung. We do this by interviewing influential designers and developers, as well as people internally at Samsung talking about the latest tools and services. Eric: I listen to a lot of podcasts about coding, baseball, music, history, and classic cars. Some podcasts, like Hardcore History, have incredibly high production values and could be the soundtrack for a documentary, while many others are just a casual back-and-forth conversation without a lot of cuts. Can you take us through your vision for the podcast and the steps you go through to make a podcast episode? Tony: My vision for the podcast has always been to create a channel for developers and designers to learn about new opportunities and hear from the success of others. I was first inspired by the NPR podcast How I Built This hosted by Guy Raz. His podcast has inspirational stories, great interviews and high-quality production. I absolutely love how they integrate music throughout each episode to help set the mood and give color to the audio. The first step for each episode is to first have a pre-interview call with the guest. This is my chance to go over the production steps, review questions and topics and just work out any technical issues. About a week later we will record the actual interview, which always is just a casual conversation between two people. The beauty of doing a pre-recorded interview is that we get to make mistakes and do re-takes. This really helps take the stress out of recording so that we can just relax and talk away. Eric: One thing I noticed when listening to Season 1, is that you always start the conversation by asking who they are. Some people answer very straightforward, as if reading their CV, while others go way off script. I think it’s such a unique way to start the conversation. What led you to start with that question? Tony: That all started because typically I really don’t know the person before they come on to the podcast. I wrote that question for the pre-interview so that I could get a quick peek into their personality. Is this person very Type A; structured, formal, precise? Or are they Type B; free flowing, loose and care-free? Having this little sneak peek into their personality helps me write the questions for the interview. However, I realized that listeners would love to know this as well. So as an ice-breaker I always start each episode with this same question, and it is very interesting how each person answers it so differently. Eric: Because of the COVID pandemic, the way we do our jobs has certainly changed. I miss seeing everyone in person, but I don’t know anyone that misses their commute. How has COVID changed your work on the podcast last year? Tony: Samsung had us working from home starting in March 2020. I had just returned from Orlando, Florida after attending the PodFest 2020 podcast conference and was only in the office for one day. None of us would’ve imagined that we’d still be working from home almost a year later. I remember those first remote meetings we did as a group, thinking we’d be isolating for 6-8 weeks and then return to the office environment. Fortunately, I have worked on many audio and video projects from my home studio. So I was able to conduct most of the Season 1 interviews from home. Eric: What were your favorite moments from the first season of the podcast? Anything that surprised you during your interviews? Tony: There were lots of great moments. Having been a huge fan of the Forza franchise, it was great to interview Andy Beaudoin from Microsoft/Turn 10 Studios. It was also a lot of fun for me to be interviewed by our own Charlotte Allen and tell my crazy story about how I ended up at Samsung. Another top highlight was the interview with Chris Shomo. When I was first learning that you could design and sell watch faces for Samsung, I found a video of Chris speaking at the 2017 Samsung Developer Conference. It was that video that inspired me to see if I could design and sell my own watch faces. Who would have thought that a few years later I would be hosting a podcast for Samsung and interviewing Chris. That was insane! Oh ya, and learning that his house was featured in a Hollywood movie and that it really is haunted! Eric: I believe we got some great feedback from our community on Season 1. Did any of this feedback influence how you prepared for this Season 2? Tony: All of the feedback we received was great. I especially enjoyed receiving the personal messages from listeners and how inspired they were. It’s this energy that motivates us to have another great season. Eric: Season 1 had a mixture of developers, designers, and Samsung employees sharing their thoughts. What can you share with our readers about the upcoming season of the podcast? Tony: I am really excited about Season 2. I think the biggest addition this season is that I will be interviewing many of the 2020 Best of Galaxy Store winners. It seems like each winner has such a unique story to tell. All of their journeys are so vastly different, and I know they will be very insightful. Eric: Anything else you can tell us about Season 2? Tony: We have some interviews scheduled around big announcements, new releases, updates, etc. I am super excited to share this news on the podcast when it can publicly be revealed. Thanks to Tony Morelan for joining me today. The first episode of Season 2 will be available next Monday, February 22nd. To follow along, use your favorite podcast app or listen directly from our Buzzsprout page. For more information on working with Samsung to develop apps, Galaxy Watch faces, and Galaxy Themes, sign up for our newsletter and visit our developer forums. 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Did you miss out on the latest Samsung Developers newsletter? Catch up now.. If you don't currently receive the newsletter, you can subscribe here. View the full blog at its source

The key to successful marketing is building your brand and creating a loyal customer base that returns to your store to purchase again. You want consumers to recognize your brand, trust the quality, and anticipate new releases. Building your brand takes time and effort. From designing compelling consumer marketing assets to expanding your customer reach, in this blog series, I offer suggestions to help grow your customer base and ultimately reach your marketing goals. Selling Your Apps Success is generally measured by sales, and knowing how to price your apps can drastically help your revenue. Free vs Paid Offering free apps is a great way to create brand awareness on Galaxy Store. Consumers get to see your style and experience the quality of your apps without purchasing. However, if you intend to generate revenue, you should limit the availability of free apps. At any given time, I would suggest only having one or two apps available for free. These could be "legacy" apps that have been on the market for an extended amount of time. Or, a free app offered for a limited amount of time as part of a marketing campaign. What I would not do, though, is flood the market with freebies. Consumers will grow accustomed to receiving your apps for free and content knowing that they simply do not have to pay for your products. Try and Buy A great way to promote your app is to offer a free trial. Once the trial has expired, users are allowed to purchase and continue using the app. For Theme designers, apps are set by default to be offered on a trial basis. Once 15 minutes have elapsed, users are allowed to pay for the theme. If not, the theme will return to the default UI. For watch face designers, trials can be set within Galaxy Watch Studio. Developers are given the ability to set a trial period from 1 minute to 999 days. You can learn how to add the Try & Buy feature to your watch face designs by reading the blog, "Galaxy Watch Face: Try and Buy". Price There is no magic price to sell your app. Simple apps may be priced cheaper than more complex apps. Popular apps may cost more than lesser-known apps. Newer apps could command a higher price than older apps. However, all apps have value and it is up to you to determine what value your apps have. A few suggestions would be: Don't offer .99 apps. This amount conveys "Cheap", both in price and in quality. Price "new releases" higher, then reduce the price after a certain amount of time. Offer different price ranges to see which sell best. Marketing Info and Resources Additional Reads: Strategies for Success Look for new releases of my blog series, Strategies for Success, where I continue to deep-dive into the many areas that can influence your market growth. Additional topics to include: Brand Names Building Your Fan Base Consumer Trends Selling Your Apps (this post) Samsung Galaxy Store: Tips For Marketing Your Apps Check out my video, Samsung Galaxy Store: Tips For Marketing Your Apps to learn more about creating brands, designing marketing graphics, social media tips, badges, and banner promotions. Marketing Resources Looking for even more info about promoting your apps? Our Marketing Resources page contains helpful information on promoting your apps. You can view lists of relevant hashtags to use on social media, learn more about discounts and coupons, as well as download guidelines and kits to help you get started. Developer Forums Post questions, search for answers, or just see what are the latest topics for discussion. Visiting our developer forum is an excellent way to stay up-to-date on all things related to the Galaxy ecosystem. To see the latest marketing topics, be sure to view the Marketing thread. View the full blog at its source

To start the year with some positive energy, we return to our collaboration with The Art Institute. This time, Samsung Sr. Developer Evangelist Diego Lizarazo Rivera participated in the AiLive interview series. AiLive is a collection of live and pre-recorded shows focused on student enrichment from professional interviews, panel discussions, town-hall meetings, and more. In this video, Diego speaks with AiLive about his career as a developer, the Galaxy Watch, Galaxy Store, and shared his experiences working with AI students through the Samsung partnership with The Art Institutes. The Art Institutes The Art Institutes is a system of 8 private schools with a focus on education, student outcomes, and community involvement. They focus on creative professional studies that prepare students for careers in design, media, and game design. Previous Collaborations Samsung Developers have had a close relationship with the Art Institutes, offering workshops, talks and focused design courses: Watch Face Designer Workshop: In selected locations, the Samsung team led workshops showing aspects of creating and publishing impactful designs for wearable devices. The energy in these workshops was amazing, and, in the span of a couple of hours, different student teams created beautiful and functional designs that could compete with any professional design found in the Samsung Galaxy Store. Game Art & Design Guest Speak: Last December, the Samsung Developers team participated in one of the latest classes, focusing on mobile gaming programming and development. A big topic was how to publish the student’s projects, obtain feedback from Galaxy Store’s players, and how to use that to make their projects grow to get more exposure and success. Watch Face Designer Course: This course explored the process of design with the utilization of wearable application tools. Students conceptualized and created design elements, as well as responsive interface techniques for wearable devices. Once created, students learned how to publish and market watch face designs globally on Galaxy Store. Watch face designer course in Miami Let’s connect We love to chat with mobile and wearable developers to help as you develop, publish, and market apps, themes and watch faces. Galaxy Store is a great place to publish your game and get discovered. If you have existing game titles or have a title under development, we would love to help you get discovered. View the full blog at its source

The web doesn’t have a marketing team. It doesn’t have a single developer program you can sign up to. And it doesn’t have a manual. That’s by design. Like the Internet, the web isn’t controlled by any single entity. But this decentralisation can also be a pain for web developers and designers. The web has lots of documentation, but it’s often an issue for developers to find documentation that is not written from a perspective of one web product — for example, a browser or a framework. The web needs a place where people can go to get the ground truth. Over the last decade, MDN has become that trusted source of information — a place where developers know they can get the documentation they need about how to build for the web. That’s because, even though it’s a project run by Mozilla, it documents the web across all browsers. Cross-browser compatibility is one of the key pain points of web development, and good documentation is one of the ways we can mitigate that pain. Ask any developer where they go first for documentation and they will likely cite MDN. That’s why, in 2017, I jumped at the chance of joining the Product Advisory Board of MDN. I saw it as an opportunity to give back, and also to be a part of a project to reinforce this cross-browser message. By the way, I started my career as a technical writer, so I have opinions on the importance of good technical writing when it comes to the developer experience. The product advisory board was an experiment from MDN to bring in an external advisory group — including members from Microsoft, Google and W3C. These organisations were all already investing time in building and maintaining MDN. The PAB gave them a way to advise on product direction and hear about future planning. Open Web Docs Fast forward to 2020. Mozilla restructured and MDN took a hit. As a response, the same organisations (and people) who had come together to support MDN via the Product Advisory Board came together again, with others, to launch something called Open Web Docs. Open Web Docs is a new open source project, set up to help support and maintain documentation on the web — via MDN. In practice, this means that Open Web Docs will be paying writers to help write documentation and build the tools that are required to produce high-quality web documentation (for example, to maintain browser compatibility data), in collaboration with Mozilla. Open Web Docs will help to ensure the stability of MDN and will focus the activities of the multiple stakeholders in good web documentation. I’m proud to have been a part of the planning for this effort. I’m also glad that Samsung Internet will be investing our time and energy, both through our continued participation in the MDN Product Advisory Board and via Open Web Docs, in helping to document the web platform. A beautiful library at Trinity College, Dublin. Photo by Alex Block on Unsplash View the full blog at its source

Design inspiration is all around us; however, tapping into it is another story. Fortunately, there are members of the Samsung Developers community who’ve cracked the code and defeated ‘designer’s block.’ We connected with several watch faces/themes designers and are excited to share their advice, creative processes, and sources of design inspiration in this blog series. This week, we’re featuring Pedro Machado from Health Face. A designer from Spain, Pedro focuses on creating sport watch faces designed for daily use. Read on to learn about how he got into designing watch faces and how he finds inspiration for his stylish and functional designs. When and why did you start designing watch faces? In 2017, I read a news story from Samsung promoting the design of watch faces and that explained some features of the Galaxy Watch Studio program (formerly Galaxy Watch Designer). Afterwards, I was curious to try designing my own personalized watch face, since a few months prior my parents gave me a Samsung smartwatch. I found watch face design interesting and started research on how I could start creating designs for others to enjoy on their devices. What does your design process look like? Do you have a strict protocol or is it more free flowing? I like to use my free time as a chance to get inspired and come up with ideas that I can later transform into a design. Once I have several ideas in mind, I put them on paper to see the possible combinations and shapes they can take on a watch. When the idea is clear or almost ready, I start preparing the design on my computer. Once I have all the elements created, I mount my design in GWS and test it on 4-5 devices to check that everything works correctly. How has your design approach evolved over time? In the beginning, I created varied designs of all styles, from formal and minimalist to fun with many patterns. However, after a year of experience and analyzing statistics, I concluded that sport designs that take advantage of watch characteristics are received well by users. That’s when I decided to create Health Face, focused on sports and daily life that many users can identify with and use to get the information they need. What was the inspiration for your most successful watch face and how did you make it a reality? I remember being inspired to create one of my most successful watch faces at the SDC19 conference in San José, California. There was a prototype car with some very striking speed markers that gave me the idea to design a watch face with similar markers – I also thought it would contrast well with smart devices. Health Face Nº58 How do you strike a balance between the vision you have for a watch face and its functionality? Is this the most challenging part of the design process? I agree that this part is the most challenging, since sometimes an idea is difficult to translate to the screen. Plus, there’s the added consideration of the user. If they have vision problems, they might need larger letters and numbers, and this can pose a challenge to your original idea. To achieve a good balance between the initial idea and the final product, it’s important from the beginning to think about all the possible errors or obstacles you may encounter with your design. That way, if any problem arises, they will likely be small and easy to solve. How do you navigate guidelines without compromising the integrity of your design? When you’re starting out, it’s impossible to know all the restrictions. You must be patient with yourself and learn from your experiences. Eventually you’ll learn how to navigate those guidelines and create great designs. What’s the one piece of advice you’d give a designer who is stuck in a creative rut? My advice to a designer who can’t think of a new design is to not get overwhelmed by the lack of inspiration. I recommend disconnecting for an afternoon. Go outside, play a sport, relax and clear your mind to help free space for new ideas. The world around us is constantly sending signals and clues to make new designs, so take advantage of it! Thanks to Pedro for sharing helpful advice on the design process, staying creative and finding inspiration for Galaxy Watch Face designs. You can connect with Pedro and Health Face on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Designers, are you ready to take the next step and sell your work on Samsung devices? Submit your Galaxy Watch Faces or Themes portfolio before the submission window closes on February 23rd. Stay tuned for the final installment in our ‘Prime Time Design’ series featuring Ramon Campos from Friss in Motion and follow us on Twitter at @samsung_dev for our latest updates. View the full blog at its source

A television is a portal that can connect us to the world. As the amount of diverse content users have access to continues to grow, the range of entertainment they can access through their TVs is also expanding. Yet despite this innovation, for those who are hard of hearing, the deaf, people with low vision and the blind, accessing basic TV features like sound controls and screen settings can still prove challenging. Following the first installment in our series on accessibility in Samsung TVs, Samsung Newsroom looked at the company’s exclusive accessibility features for those who are hard of hearing and the deaf. Sign Language Zoom Sign language is a language for the deaf that involves conveying the meaning of spoken language using hand gestures and movements. However, as the same gesture can convey different meanings depending on mouth shape and facial expression, all of these factors must be taken into consideration in order to understand the exact meaning. Samsung TVs utilize the company’s proprietary AI algorithm to automatically recognize sign language and magnify the person performing it by 200%. Users can also manually choose an area onscreen to magnify and alter the magnification ratio to get a closer look at details such as the questions on a quiz program or the scoreboard at a sports event. Separate Closed Caption Broadcasters already provide closed captions for programs to help the deaf consume their content. However, on occasions when the TV program itself also displays captions, the two sets of words often overlap with one another, obscuring the subtitles for the deaf. In this situation, the Separate Closed Caption feature is a great help. This feature allows the closed captions for the deaf to be viewed in a separate area from the captions on the TV program. Users can additionally change the background and text colors for the closed captions in order to further raise visibility. Multi-output Audio When watching TV with friends or family, those who are hard of hearing may need the volume to be turned up louder than the other viewers. To ensure everyone can enjoy the content at the appropriate volume level for them, Samsung offers the Multi-output Audio feature on its TVs. With the Multi-output Audio feature, those who are hard of hearing can utilize a Bluetooth device to listen to the audio at their desired volume without affecting the viewing experiences of the other viewers. Bluetooth devices can be connected directly to the TV, then the user can set their own volume levels through the Bluetooth device. In pursuit of its ‘Screens for All’ vision, Samsung will continue to work and innovate to ensure that Samsung TVs provide an enjoyable viewing experience for all. View the full article

In Part 1 of this intro to Apache Cordova series, we were able to see how front-end developers could use standard web technologies to create cross-platform mobile applications, and the prerequisites to install Cordova in your dev environment. In this second part we are focused on creating your first application with Cordova, and how to publish your app in the Samsung Galaxy Store. Creating the App After installing Cordova, you should go to the file directory where you maintain your source code. There, you can create a Cordova project. This would be a simple Hello World project, but would give you an idea of the file structure of a Cordova project, and the different parts that you can modify to obtain the functionality you are looking for. In your terminal or command interface type: cd pathToYourProjects After that: cordova create CordovaProject com.example.hello CordovaApp CordovaProject is the directory name where the app is created. com.example.hello is the default reverse domain value (package name). You should use your own domain name if possible. CordovaApp is the title of your app. This creates the required directory structure for your Cordova app. By default, the Cordova create script generates a skeletal web-based application whose home page is the project's www/index.html file. Adding Platform Since Cordova works for multiple platforms, we have to add Android to the build settings. You need to open your project directory in the command prompt. In our example, it is the Cordova Project. You should only choose platforms that you need. To be able to use the specified platform, you need to have installed the specific platform SDK. All subsequent commands need to be run within the project's directory, or any subdirectories: cd CordovaProject Add the Android platform, since this is the target of app, and ensure they get saved to config.xml and package.json: cordova platform add android You can also remove a platform from your project by using: cordova platform rm android To make certain you have added all the platforms you are targeting you can type: cordova platform ls This should list all the added platforms for your current project. Checking the Install pre-requisites for building To build and run apps, you need to install SDKs for each platform you wish to target. Alternatively, if you are using browser for development you can use browser platform which does not require any platform SDKs. To check if you satisfy requirements for building the platform that you just added: cordova requirements This command should show you a result similar to this one: Requirements check results for android: Java JDK: installed . Android SDK: installed Android target: installed android-19,android-21,android-22,android-23,Google Inc.:Google APIs:19,Google Inc.:Google APIs (x86 System Image):19,Google Inc.:Google APIs:23 Gradle: installed Building the App This step builds the app for a specified platform so we can run it on mobile device or emulator. cordova build If you have added more than one platform to your project, you can limit the scope of each build to specific platforms. For our example we should add 'android': cordova build android Build for android platform in release mode and use the specified build configuration: cordova build android --release --buildConfig=..\myBuildConfig.json Testing the App Using Cordova’s emulator Now we can run our app. If you are using the default emulator you should use: cordova emulate android If you want to use the external emulator or real device you should use cordova run android Publishing your APK To check in detail how to take your binary files and publish them in the Samsung Galaxy Store, check this in-depth video: We love to chat with mobile game developers and help you as you develop, publish, and market your own games. Galaxy Store is a great place to publish your game and get discovered. If you are a mobile app developer and want to request a quick chat with us, just fill out this form. View the full blog at its source

A television is a portal that can connect us to the world. As the amount of diverse content users have access to continues to grow, the range of entertainment they can access through their TVs is also expanding. Yet despite this innovation, for those who are hard of hearing, the deaf, people with low vision and the blind, accessing basic TV features like sound controls and screen settings can still prove challenging. As Samsung unveiled at its First Look 2021 event, the company’s 2021 TV lineup will harness the latest advances to allow those who are hard of hearing, the deaf, people with low vision and the blind to enjoy their TV experiences in comfort. This will be achieved with the help of Samsung’s new CES 2021 Best of Innovation Award-winning accessibility features for TVs, including Caption Moving, Sign Language Zoom, Multi-Output Audio and Voice Guide. Going forward, Samsung will keep developing new AI-based features to continue making Samsung TVs more and more accessible. Samsung Newsroom looked at the suite of accessibility features offered on Samsung TVs, as well as the company’s commitment to its new ‘Screens for All’ vision, which is helping ensure that everyone can enjoy their TVs. SeeColors App: A New World of Color for those with CVD The capability of Samsung TVs to reproduce lifelike color is constantly improving, however this is not as evident to those who suffer from color vision deficiency (CVD). Samsung’s SeeColors app1 makes color adjustments to aid those with CVD and help them enjoy a better viewing experience with optimized colors. By using the app on their TV, users can identify their CVD type and level and directly recalibrate their screen settings based on the results. The SeeColors app is available to download from Apps, the Smart TV app store. Color Inversion: For Comfortable Viewing without Glare It is also difficult for people with low vision to perceive colors clearly. In particular, black text on a white background can cause glare for people with low vision who are sensitive to light. The fact that their eyes tire easily also hinders comfortable TV viewing. In this case, the Color Inversion feature can prove helpful. Inverting menu colors so that the text is white and the background is black raises visual perception and alleviates eye fatigue. While inverting the colors of the TV menus to make navigating them easier, this feature leaves the colors of the actual content being displayed the same in order to best meet the needs of users with low vision. Features are also available to assist people with complete color blindness. These include GrayScale, which can convert color images into black-and-white. Meanwhile, the Focus Enlarge feature allows users to enlarge text and smaller details on interfaces such as Smart Hub. Audio (Video) Description: To Better Enjoy Exciting Scenes Spectacular action movies and exciting sports matches can really keep viewers on the edge of their seats. However, those who are blind are often limited to appreciating actors’ performances and athletes’ physical feats purely through their sense of hearing. In these circumstances, the information these users take in through sound effects and dialogue alone is bound to be limited. Audio (Video) Description is a feature that provides verbal descriptions of the situations and settings being displayed on the screen, in addition to the dialogue or commentary. It helps viewers who are blind enjoy their content more completely by providing explanations of factors that are hard to capture with audio alone, such as characters’ clothing and their body language. Learn TV Remote: For Ease of Use A remote control is a handy tool that puts the ability to control channels, volume and TV settings in the palm of your hand and makes viewing much more convenient. However, it is difficult for those who are blind to know what each button does. Thus, it generally takes a long time for them to learn the buttons and get used to using the remote control. Learn TV Remote is a feature that helps blind users get used to the location and function of each button through repeated practice. If you press a button on the remote control while the mode is on, the name and function of the button will be explained audibly. To return the remote control to regular functionality, press the ‘back’ button twice to turn off learning mode. Voice Guide: To Better Navigate Channels and Control Volume When viewers want to catch an episode of a TV show they like, they generally turn on their TV and navigate to the right channel by looking at the channel number or name. However, when they first turn the TV on, it is difficult for viewers who are blind to know what channel they are on, as well as what level the volume is set at. By telling you what channel your TV is on and what volume level it is set at, the Voice Guide feature eliminates the need to press buttons on the remote control multiple times to navigate to the channel and volume settings you want. The feature additionally enhances convenience by providing information on the program that is currently being aired as well as the upcoming TV schedule. Accessibility Shortcuts When you hold down the mute button on the remote control for your Samsung TV for more than two seconds, you will be taken to a menu where you can customize a variety of accessibility settings. In this menu, you will be able to select the most appropriate accessibility features for yourself or your family members. This menu is accompanied by a Voice Guide that allows any user to navigate it without difficulty. Continued Accessibility Efforts Based on User Feedback Based on its belief that an accurate understanding of visual deficiency conditions is necessary to developing appropriate accessibility features, Samsung has collected feedback from users in order to make TVs that are also convenient for people with low vision and those who are blind. To that end, Samsung has been working with the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) in the UK since 2013 to ensure that Samsung products are equipped with the proper features to offer accessibility to all consumers. Due to its continued efforts, the company received the RNIB’s ‘Tried and Tested Accreditation’ for its 2020 Smart TVs, which is the first time the accreditation has been awarded in the TV industry. In pursuit of its ‘Screens for All’ vision, Samsung will continue to work and innovate to ensure that Samsung TVs provide an enjoyable viewing experience for all. 1 This app is not intended for use in the diagnosis of disease or other conditions, or in the cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of disease or medical problem. Any information found, acquired or accessed through this app is made available for your convenience and should not be treated as medical advice. View the full article

Samsung Electronics has announced that it recently became an official partner of Green Pea, an eco-friendly shopping mall located in Italy. As an official partner, Samsung, which has been recognized for its continuous efforts to promote a sustainable future, has provided TVs and digital signage for use throughout the shopping mall. Samsung also installed an exhibition hall at Green Pea dedicated specifically to eco-packaging – a new kind of product packaging that facilitates the upcycling of the boxes that come with the company’s lifestyle TV models. Samsung is expanding its award-winning eco-packaging designs to include all of its 2021 Lifestyle TVs, as well as most of the 2021 Neo QLED line. Green Pea is a unique shopping mall that was built with a focus on sustainable concepts such as resource circulation and recycling. Its first location, which opened its doors in Turin last December, has garnered significant attention for its eco-friendly architecture, which features heavy use of solar panels and trees. With the goal of reducing environmental pollution and providing consumers with sustainable products and services, Green Pea’s stores not only sell eco-friendly products, but also utilize eco-friendly products and supplies for their infrastructure. Samsung has embarked on a sustainability journey that puts the environment at the forefront of all business operations. The company’s efforts have birthed several long-term sustainability programs that include everything from sustainable packaging design to solar cell-powered remote controls and the reduction of carbon footprints through the use of recycled materials. For more information on Samsung’s 2021 TV lines, please visit https://www.samsung.com. View the full article

Samsung’s First Look event, held virtually on January 6th, saw the company affirm its commitment to pursuing accessibility, sustainability and innovation in all its latest products and technologies to help redefine the role of the television in consumers’ homes. Samsung has embarked on a sustainability journey that puts the environment first in all business operations with several long-term sustainability programs that include sustainable packaging design, solar cell-powered remote controls and the reduction of carbon footprints through the use of recycled materials. Take a look at the infographic below to learn more about Samsung’s commitment to a sustainable future through its eco-friendly visual display products and processes. * Revision has been made from ‘AAA batteries’ to ‘AA batteries’ with regards to the Solar Cell Remote Control on March 4, 2021. View the full article

This year, Samsung has showcased a broad range of innovative products that are set to lead the market in 2021. Spotlighted at events that include the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), these products have included cutting-edge solutions in the fields of display, home appliances, mobile and semiconductor solutions. Read on to find out more about some of the company’s innovations for 2021 and hear more about the latest products from those who worked on them. Visual Display: From Display to Packaging to Remote Control, the 2021 Samsung TVs are Packed With Innovation (Clockwise from the back row) Joice Jeong, Jieun Kim, Yowon Jang, Mina Kim and Seongyeon Kwon of the Marketing Group of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics Q. Which products do you want consumers to pay particular attention to in 2021? We at the Visual Display Business have announced ‘Screens Everywhere, Screens for All’ vision and unveiled our 2021 portfolio of Neo QLED, MICRO LED and Lifestyle TVs. Along this line, we would like to draw attention to the 2021 Neo QLEDs recently announced at CES 2021. Samsung’s Neo QLEDs incorporate Quantum Mini LED, which are 1/40 the height of conventional LED. Thanks to Samsung’s Quantum Matrix Technology, the scale of luminance has been increased to 12-bit with 4096 steps, enabling a more precise viewing experience. Neo QLEDs also feature a Neo Quantum Processor with enhanced AI upscaling technology that can optimize picture quality to 4K and 8K picture output regardless of the input quality. Furthermore, thanks to its slim and delicate Infinity One Design, the Neo QLED can fit into any space by merit of its sleek design – providing viewers with an even more immersive viewing experience. Audio innovations such as SpaceFit Sound, which uses AI to analyze a TV’s physical environment, and Object Tracking Sound (OTS) Pro, which corresponds to the movement of objects onscreen, also further bolster the truly premium viewing experience offered by the Neo QLEDs. The 2021 Neo QLEDs also include numerous functions specially customized for the recent change in living patterns, wherein one’s home has become the center of one’s life. Those who enjoy workout at home can take advantage of Samsung Health’s new Smart Trainer feature that tracks and analyzes workouts and provides feedback, and those who enjoy high-quality gaming can harness Super Ultrawide Gameview to play on a screen with a ratio of up to 32:9, along with the Game Bar for customized and convenient game settings. We would also like to highlight the recently launched MICRO LED line. The new MICRO LED line produces stunning brightness and vibrant colors thanks to 24 million individually controlled LEDs. Its 4Vue (Quad View) feature is also worth noting – viewers can watch up to four different content sources from news or sports to Internet content simultaneously on one screen, and can even connect their game console for even more diversified entertainment. Q. Part of Samsung’s 2021 vision for Visual Display products is a commitment to sustainability and accessibility. Could you tell us more about the innovations that correlate with this? Firstly, in 2021, Samsung TVs will come with a solar-powered remote control that can be recharged by indoor light, outdoor light or USB — a first-of-its-kind innovation for the brand. This will help prevent the unnecessary waste of a projected 99 million AA batteries over seven years. Secondly, we are expanding the use of our ‘Eco-Packaging’ Design to our all 2021 Lifestyle TVs and most of the 2021 Neo QLED line. Thirdly, we are set to increase the use of recycled materials in our products so that resources can be upcycled and constantly circulated throughout the product cycle. Samsung’s 2021 accessibility features – now available on all 2021 QLED and Neo QLED models – bring the latest advances in technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to help more people comfortably enjoy their TV experiences. The 2021 line adds new features such as Caption Moving, Sign Language Zoom and Multi-Output Audio, giving those with the hard of hearing, the deaf, people with low vision and the blind the ability to optimize their viewing to their needs and preferences. We will continue to develop new AI based features to enhance the accessibility of Samsung TVs in the years to come. Home Appliance Category: In the ‘New Normal’, the JetBot 90 AI+ Works Harder and Smarter for Your Home Taesoo Kim of the Customer Experience Team of the Digital Appliances Business at Samsung Electronics Q. Which products do you want consumers to pay particular attention to in 2021? As people spend more time at home, the home space itself is becoming increasingly important – and in turn, domestic hygiene has become a priority. Times like these require the most cutting-edge cleaning solutions, and we answered the call with the JetBot 90 AI+ – a robot vacuum that harnesses AI to intelligently clean every corner of a user’s home. The first-ever robot vacuum to be powered by Intel® AI, the JetBot 90 AI+ is capable of processing a lot of information fast. The vacuum comes with over 1 million images pre-learned so that it is able to autonomously avoid various obstacles like towels, socks and electric cables as soon as a user sets it to work. That means users don’t have to tidy their floors before running the JetBot 90 AI+! Q. What are some features of JetBot 90 AI+ that make it stand out in comparison to other robot cleaners? Previous robot cleaners recognized obstacles in 2D, whereas the JetBot 90 AI+ features 3D sensors. This extra dimension helps the robot cleaner accurately identify different obstructions and select the most efficient driving method. In addition to these 3D sensors, the JetBot 90 AI+ is fitted with LiDAR for precise location mapping. Another special feature of the JetBot 90 AI+ is its Clean Station. The Clean Station not only empties the dustbin automatically, but also traps 99.999% of fine dust1 and allergens for easy maintenance. Q. Which function of the JetBot 90 AI+ do you recommend the most? I strongly recommend the Live Cleaning Report function of the JetBot 90 AI+, which is particularly useful if you want to use the device while away from your home. Users can connect to their vacuum from anywhere via the SmartThings mobile app in order to see where the vacuum is cleaning in real time and monitor the spaces that haven’t been cleaned due to obstacles the robot vacuum has encountered. When you get back home, those obstacles have already been identified, so all you need do is remove them ahead of the JetBot 90 AI+’s next clean. Mobile Category: Tune Into the Future With the All-New Form Factor of Galaxy Buds Live Sejin Jeon of the Wearable PP Group of the Mobile Communications Business at Samsung Electronics Q. Which products do you want consumers to pay particular attention to in 2021? I would like to recommend Galaxy Buds Live, Samsung’s innovative earbuds with a revolutionary form factor. From the earliest stages of planning, we factored user comfort and fit into our process, and the product we have now is the result of extensive trial and error. While minimizing the parts that protrude out of the ear during our design process, we struggled to find a design that simultaneously sat comfortably in the ear. After much modification, we were able to develop an ergonomic earbud design that is completely different from any of our previous earbud offerings. The exterior design exudes a luxurious aura thanks to its glossy and matte appearance, and even the earbud case has been designed with care to provide that perfect finishing touch. The unique open-type of Galaxy Buds Live is another point worth noting. Through the combination of sound technology by AKG, Harman’s premium audio brand, and Samsung’s innovative hardware technologies, we have been able to provide a fully immersive audio experience. The speaker and the bass woofer have also been enhanced to provide richer surround sound to users. Furthermore, Galaxy Buds Live’s Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) is another brand-new function to the Buds portfolio. Not only does it help users focus more on their music, it also reduces background noise within the low-bandwidth range (less than 700Hz) up to 97% to avoid that ‘earplugged’ sensation when listening while in a car or on a bus. Galaxy Buds Live will still let conversation or audio announcements through to users so that the sound is kept balanced but the user is kept aware of their surroundings. Finally, the call quality of Galaxy Buds Live is another area I’d like to draw attention to. Galaxy Buds Live include a total of three microphones, one on the inside and two on the outside, and an acceleration sensor to filter out external noises. We also improved the audio signal in order to highlight the user’s voice so that they can enjoy the clearest call experiences possible. Q. We have heard that your team challenges itself with developing innovations that put the environment first. Do Galaxy Buds Live include any such sustainable innovations? We are in the process of manufacturing recyclable plastic (Post-Consumer Material, or PCM). We have also designed our products in a way that allows users to replace separate components of their earbuds in order to extend the lifespan. These efforts have in fact led to us being awarded the Best of Innovation Award in the area of ‘Eco-Design, Sustainability’ at this year’s CES event. Memory Category: Small Yet Powerful Secrets Inside our Mobile Devices Seunghee Han of the DRAM Memory Planning Group of the Memory Business at Samsung Electronics Q. Which products do you want consumers to pay particular attention to in 2021? I would like to highlight the Samsung uMCP, which received a CES 2021 Innovation Award and is a high-end mobile memory solution that combines 10nm-class 12GB LPDDR5 (Low-Power DDR5) and sixth-generation 256GB UFS23.1. The LPDDR5 is the fastest mobile memory solution currently available, supporting high-resolution displays such as 4K or 6K on mobile devices, as well as smooth multitasking. Furthermore, UFS3.1 technology enables much faster data processing and is more energy-efficient than before. Above all, the biggest advantage of this solution is its 11.5mmx13mm size, which combines both DRAM and NAND. Component size is very important in smartphone design, and the uMCP makes the best use of its size. Q. Could you highlight any specific areas that users will be able to notice this improved product experience in? When it comes to choosing a new mobile device, one of the most important criteria is a device’s multitasking performance. Our solution provides a more seamless experience with 4K or 8K multimedia, AR/VR experiences and more. The LPDDR5, adopted in mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet PCs, currently supports 6400MB/s and is offered in up to 16GB-sized packages. It is around two times faster than its predecessor, LPDDR4. In the case of UFS3.1, the sequential write performance – used mainly when downloading videos – comes in at 400MB/s, which is also almost two times as fast as its predecessor, UFS2.2. LED Category: Innovations Capable of Brightening a User’s Day Jinha Kim of the Lighting Marketing Group from the LED Business Team at Samsung Electronics Q. Which products do you want consumers to pay particular attention to in 2021? I’d recommend that users keep an eye on our new indoor lighting solution, a CES 2021 Innovation Award-winner, the LM283N+. It has been developed to help users stay more alert and to improve sleep quality by helping to adjust melatonin levels. The DAY iteration of this product is for daytime activities, and prevents users from falling asleep by controlling the creation of melatonin. On the other hand, the product NITE helps users enjoy deeper sleep through its control of melatonin release. Whether you need to be concentrating or are just looking to relax, the LM283N+ can come in useful as it is customizable depending on the use circumstances – such a capability is why the LM283N+ received a CES 2021 Innovation Award in the category of Health & Wellness. Q. What are some special features of the LM283N+? The development of LM283N+ began from a question: ‘What kind of lighting can contribute to better daily life?’ I believe that the LM283N+ not only lights up a space, but also opens the door for the new ways that lighting can exert influence over our daily lives. We introduced the LM302N in the market for the first time last year as a truly human-centered light. Based on the LM302N, the LM283N+ has been developed as a platform exclusively specialized for LED light bulbs, meaning that users can easily incorporate the model into their own daily patterns, as it can be applied to replaceable lighting fixtures such as desk lights. 1 Based on internal testing, using Max mode, in accordance with the IEC62885-2 Cl. 5.11 standard. Results may vary depending on the actual home conditions. 2 Universal Flash Storage * Revision has been made from ‘AAA batteries’ to ‘AA batteries’ with regards to the Solar Cell Remote Control on March 4, 2021. View the full article

On January 6th, Samsung Electronics virtually unveiled its 2021 TV product portfolio at the company’s annual First Look 2021 event. The latest additions to the Samsung Visual Display lineup range from products that provide new premium entertainment experiences to purpose-driven inclusivity features – and more. In case you missed the event, check out these five highlights from the First Look 2021 presentation. 1. A Sustainable and Accessible Future for All Samsung will seek to decrease its overall carbon footprint across the TV manufacturing, packaging design and product power efficiency areas. In 2021, Samsung TVs will come with a solar-powered remote control that can be recharged by indoor light, outdoor light or USB—a first-of-its-kind innovation for the brand. This will help prevent waste from a projected 99 million AA batteries over seven years. The 2021 TV lines will also include the latest advances in technology and AI to give those with the hard of hearing, the deaf, people with low vision, and the blind the power to comfortably enjoy their TV experiences through new features that include Caption Moving, Sign Language Zoom, Multi-Output Audio and Voice Guide. 2. Hailing a New Era of Breathtaking Picture Quality and Design In 2018, Samsung’s first MICRO LED display was introduced in the form of “The Wall”— a system of configurable modules that could be installed professionally. In December 2020, Samsung then announced the launch and pre-sale of the groundbreaking 110” Samsung MICRO LED in Korea. Unlike any other displays currently available on the market, Samsung MICRO LED produces astonishing color vibrancy and brightness with self-emissive LED display technology along with an all-new Micro AI processor that delivers stunning 4K HDR content. 3. Neo QLED Takes a Quantum Leap in LED Technology By incorporating Quantum Mini LEDs based on Quantum Matrix Technology into their visual display products, Samsung is taking QLED to the next level by enabling displays to have precise control of the individual LED pixels, which can prevent blooming and maximize display longevity. Samsung’s 2021 8K Neo QLED features a new Infinity One Design—a nearly bezel-less form factor that provides an even more immersive viewing experience – as well as an all-new cable management system with the Slim One Connect box that can be attached to the TV’s back. The 2021 8K Neo QLED also features several premium, room-filling audio functionalities that correspond to the movement of objects onscreen and uses AI to analyze a TV’s physical environment to deliver an immersive sound tailored specifically to a user’s space. 4. Enhancing the Award-Winning Lifestyle TV Portfolio In addition to bolstering their QLED lineup, Samsung is also enhancing its 2021 Lifestyle TV line with new design and form factors to reflect the changing interests and tastes of consumers. Since launching in 2017, The Frame has redefined the concept of the television, transforming displays into stunning works of art – with over one million units sold. In 2021, The Frame will become 46% thinner and offer five color options and two different customizable styles—Modern and Beveled—to match the aesthetic of each and every room The Frame is placed in. 5. New Smart TV Features for 2021 During the past year, we have all witnessed seen the pivotal role technology has played in helping us carry on with our lives and stay connected to each other. Samsung’s 8K and 4K 2021 Neo QLED models offer smart features that expand the role of the TV and adapt to the changing needs of consumers in the fields of fitness, entertainment and the home office. Samsung’s 2021 TVs will sport new productivity features, including Google Duo for large-screen video conference calls right from your living room; Super Ultrawide Gameview and Game Bar for gamers enjoying next-generation 4K gaming consoles; and Samsung Health’s Smart Trainer, a feature that tracks and analyzes your workouts via AI and provides feedback on form, rep improvement and estimated calories burnt. As the company heads into its 15th year as the leading global TV brand, Samsung announced its ‘Screens Everywhere, Screens for All’ vision, underscoring their commitment to closely aligning business operations with a series of long-term sustainability and accessibility endeavors. Stay tuned to learn more about the innovations for the future of the display Samsung has in store in 2021. * Revision has been made from ‘AAA batteries’ to ‘AA batteries’ with regards to the Solar Cell Remote Control on March 4, 2021. View the full article

Samsung Electronics announced today that it is combining innovative new gaming features with exciting industry partnerships to create a groundbreaking gaming experience with 2021 Neo QLED and QLEDs. The new 2021 Neo QLED and QLED line delivers some of the most beloved features from Samsung’s award-winning, premium gaming monitors for optimized performance. “Consumers want premium TVs that can enhance the gaming experience – whether they are playing on PC or on a console,” said Younghun Choi, Executive Vice President at Visual Display Business, Samsung Electronics. “This is why it was critical for us to build upon and optimize key gaming features from both our award-winning monitors and TV displays in 2021. These enhancements will allow consumers to unlock the full power of next-gen gaming on our Neo QLED and QLED line.” Samsung’s 2021 Neo QLED and QLEDs have been designed with gamers’ needs in mind every step of the way. Next-gen gaming consoles demand a display that enhances both performance and picture quality—and Samsung’s cutting-edge Neo QLED and QLEDs are engineered to deliver. Capable of enabling 4K gaming at 120Hz, Samsung QLEDs let you see virtually every detail with 4K for incredible clarity and contrast, at a silky-smooth 120 frames per second. With low ms response time, auto low latency mode, variable refresh rate, and other gaming features designed with the next generation consoles in mind, Samsung Neo QLED and QLEDs help unlock and maximize performance. The 2021 line-up features the new and intuitive Game Bar in Game Mode, allowing players to easily adjust the screen’s aspect ratio, check input lag, connect wireless headsets, and more. With Game Mode, QLED also optimizes gameplay with its Samsung AI processor. With 4K resolution, a refresh rate of 120Hz, and lag time less than 5.8ms, Neo QLED and QLEDs are the perfect companion for next generation consoles. Additionally, the Q90A 50” and all other QLED models 55” and larger are the first TVs to offer support for AMD FreeSync Premium Pro Technology1. The technology enables true HDR console and PC gaming experiences, delivering a combination of smooth tear- and stutter-free gaming at peak performance with stunning HDR visual fidelity and low latency. The 2021 Neo QLED and QLED line-up also brings the immersive ultra-wide gaming experience of Samsung gaming monitors to the TV. This gives gamers the option to play PC games at both a 21:9 wide aspect ratio and the ultra-immersive 32:9 ratio on Samsung TVs. The 2021 Neo QLED and QLED models, from Q70A and above, support both the 21:9 and 32:9 screen ratio—ensuring gamers won’t miss any PC gaming action in the periphery. 2021 Neo QLED and QLED complete the gaming experience with crisp, clear, and immersive audio. With Game Object Tracking Sound, QLED TVs use AI technology to project audio around the room corresponding with onscreen action—so you’ll know exactly where to turn when you hear another player’s footsteps. For more information on Samsung’s 2021 TV lineups, please visit www.samsung.com/. 1 AMD FreeSync technology requires AMD Radeon graphics and a display that supports FreeSync technology as certified by AMD. AMD FreeSync Premium technology adds requirements of mandatory low framerate compensation and at least 120 Hz refresh rate at minimum FHD. AMD FreeSync Premium Pro technology adds requirements for the display to meet AMD FreeSync Premium Pro compliance tests. See www.amd.com/freesync for complete details. Confirm capability with your system manufacturer before purchase. GD-127 View the full article

On January 6, Samsung Electronics held its online ‘First Look 2021’ event ahead of CES 2021, the world’s largest consumer electronics and IT exhibition. During the event, Samsung declared its commitment to a more accessible and sustainable future and introduced its 2021 product range of Neo QLED, MICRO LED, and Lifestyle TVs. Those who missed the live event can check out the First Look 2021 video in full below to make sure they are kept abreast of all the exciting announcements Samsung has made.  View the full article