New Samsung comes with safety assurance

Samsung’s new smartphone is hard wired with artificial intelligence, visual reality and Internet of Things ability, but New Zealand buyers will have to wait for some features.

The Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus phone revealed yesterday featured a digital assistant named Bixby that can respond to a simple voice or text command.

Bixby is the company’s first take on artificial intelligence.

Samsung head of product development Todd Selwyn said Bixby was different to Apple’s Siri because it was integrated into the phone.

Bixby could carry out multiple tasks from one command and learned on the job. It adapted to the tone of your voice and common background noise.

New features on the device also include an iris scanner and facial recognition in the front facing camera. This means users can unlock the phone by looking at it.

The S8 is 5.8 inches in height and costs a minimum of $1299, dependent on storage size.

The S8 Plus is 6.2 inches and costs at least $1499.

Samsung has released a virtual reality headset and hand remote that can be used with the phone. It costs another $199.

An app allows the phone to connect with Samsung’s SmartThings household technology so users can remotely control and monitor household devices.

But only compatible smart televisions and fridges are currently sold in New Zealand.

‘‘It just does not work in New Zealand because we do not have the Internet of Things,’’ Selwyn said.

The S8 was a safe device, he said. Last year fires linked to its predecessor, the Samsung Note 7, resulted in a global recall.

Samsung now runs its batteries through an eight-step safety process, he said. The S8 did not charge as fast as the Note 7, which minimised the fire risk.

The S8 becomes available for pre-order sales on April 20 and will be in stores on May 1.