Samsung eyes foldable smartphone, AI technology

2018 RELEASE

speaker that users can speak to in order to play music and conduct other tasks. Samsung acquired the Stamford, Conn.-based company last year as part of its plans to expand in the emerging market for connected cars.

Amazon and Google already have those always-on voice-controlled speakers in the market while Apple’s Homepod is due to go on sale this year. It is not clear when Samsung’s voice-controlled speaker, which will likely use the South Korean company’s Bixby voice assistant, will be unveiled. Koh did not say when it will hit the market.

The comments were made at Samsung’s news conference to announce the Galaxy Note 8 smartphone to domestic media, just hours before Apple announces its 10th-anniversary iPhone models.

Samsung’s mobile president said market response to the Note 8 beat its expectations even though its price was more expensive than past models and even as the Note brand’s reputation took a hit from its previous model, the disgraced Note 7 phone that was recalled twice and discontinued after it spontaneously overheated or caught fire.

Samsung received more than a half million pre-orders — 650,000 units — for the Note 8 in South Korea before its Friday launch, Koh said. The Note 8 has been the most expensive smartphone Samsung has released. Its price starts at 1.1 million won (US$969) in South Korea and US$930 in the U.S.