Samsung Electronics unveiled its latest foldable smartphones on Wednesday, making its AI-powered model lighter and slimmer. Samsung bolstered AI functions in its new device, challenging Apple’s dominance in the market, particularly following its new AI releases.
At its annual Unpacked event on Wednesday in Paris, the company announced updates to its foldable devices and earbuds. In addition, it shared more details about its upcoming smart ring.
Samsung revealed that it will start offering better health monitoring functions to drive new demand for accessories such as its smartwatch and its new ring for easy health monitoring and screen control.
Samsung’s latest foldable phones
The event’s highlight, however, was Samsung’s latest foldable phones: the Galaxy Z Fold 6, a smartphone that opens outward like a book to form a tablet, and the clamshell-like Galaxy Z Flip 6.
The world’s largest smartphone maker made breakthroughs in the industry in 2019 by launching its foldable smartphone. However, Wednesday’s launch is crucial as Samsung’s foldable phone shipment share fell from 81 percent in 2022 to 63 percent in 2023 with competitors surging into the market, according to Canalys.
Therefore, Samsung made the wide Galaxy Z Fold 6, its lightest and slimmest phone ever, to attract more customers. The clamshell Galaxy Z Flip 6 has a longer battery life, a higher resolution camera, and a new vapor chamber to keep the phone cooler. The company said that both devices feature a more durable hinge, better battery life, and run on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor optimized for AI processing.
The company priced the Z Flip 6 at $1,099.99, and the Z Fold 6 starting at $1,899.99, raising prices by just $100 compared to last year’s model despite a surge in materials costs.
Samsung will offer new AI functions including a listening mode that provides simultaneous interpretation by voice when paired with Galaxy Buds earphones.
Google’s AI assistant Gemini is also directly built into the phone. Users can say “Hey Google” or swipe the corner of the screen to get help with writing or doing web searches. The company also worked with Google for new AI search functions, including showing a math problem’s solution with all the steps when it is circled on the screen.
Read: Google introduces new AI-powered anti-theft features for Android in Brazil
Galaxy Watch and Ring
Samsung also added several new health functions to its Galaxy Watch, which includes new sensors and a 3-nanometre chip.
The U.S. FDA approved the watch as a monitoring device for sleep apnea. Samsung’s Galaxy Watch now also provides measurements of key cycling data, the functional threshold power (FTP), for biking enthusiasts. Moreover, it now measures a bio-marker for diabetes called advanced glycation end-products (AGEs).
During the event, Samsung also unveiled its latest product, the new Galaxy Ring. The 3-gram ring has a price tag of $399. Users can wear it in the shower or while swimming. The ring can constantly monitor heart rate and stress levels as well as help control a Samsung phone’s camera or alarm. The device, which comes in black, silver and gold, will likely compete with smart ring market leader Oura. According to IDC Research, smart rings are the fastest-growing segment in wearable devices, with 29 percent annual growth over the next five years.
Samsung will make the Galaxy Ring available starting July 24 in South Korea, North America and Europe.
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