Samsung Galaxy S5 Release Date Planned for April, How the Smartphone Maker Plans to One-Up Apple
BySamsung's is reportedly going to release its Galaxy S5 smartphone in April, but the tech company is also looking to one-up the iPhone with an eye scanner.
According to Bloomberg, a new Galaxy Gear smartwatch can also be expected to be released with the latest smartphone. Samsung did not meet sales expectations set out by their analysts, but will put out the new products as well as revamp marketing for their tablet line.
"We've been announcing our first flagship model in the first half of each year, around March and April, and we are still targeting for release around that time," Lee Young Hee, executive vice president Samsung Mobile, told Bloomberg from the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. "When we release our S5 device, you can also expect a Gear successor with more advanced functions, and the bulky design will also be improved."
Samsung's latest smartphone, the Galaxy S4, saw its sales slow down when Apple released its iPhones 5S and 5C. The 5S featured a fingerprint scanner to open the phone and perform other tasks, but the Galaxy S5 has taken that technology further with plans for an eye scanner.
"Many people are fanatical about iris recognition technology," Lee said. "We are studying the possibility but can't really say whether we will have it or not on the S5."
Samsung's competitive edge seems to finally be wearing off as the company failed to post a profit increase for the first time in nine quarters. Combined with Apple adding two new iPhones at the same time and certain makers offering smartphones for $100, the company that sells one of every three smartphones worldwide has slipped.
"When we moved to S4 from S3, it's partly true that consumers couldn't really feel much difference between the two products from the physical perspective, so the market reaction wasn't as big," Lee said. "For the S5, we will go back to the basics. Mostly, it's about the display and the feel of the cover."
Also expected to be out in 2014, but in the latter half, will be the next Galaxy Note phablet (phone + tablet). The next Note may have a three-sided display, allowing messages to be read at an angle. Samsung will also be looking to expand in the wearable device market, a field that promises to be a huge trend in the coming year.
"We had put relatively fewer resources and focus, including marketing, on tablets, but from this year we will consider it as one of our key major focuses," Lee said. "We still have room to improve."