The Galaxy S evolution

> Since the launch of this series in 2010, Samsung has gone on to revolutionise the smartphone industry with a new flagship model released every year

THE Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ will soon arrive on our shores. Pre-orders began last week, with all 7,000 pre-order units snapped up in just three days.

Malaysians who have preordered will get their devices on May 4, while everyone else will be able to purchase the new Galaxy devices once they hit stores at a yet-to-be-announced date.

The standard S8 starts at RM3,299, rising to RM3,699 for the S8+.

Ahead of the launch, here’s a look back at the history of Samsung’s Galaxy S series smartphones, updated with a new flagship model each spring since 2010.

Samsung Galaxy S Launched in June 2010 in Asia before rolling out to the rest of the world a few months later, the Galaxy S was billed as a major rival for Apple’s iPhone 4 with its ultra-powerful processor and 4in SuperAmoled screen.

The handset initially ran Android 2.1 (Eclair), but was soon updated to 2.2 (Froyo).

Samsung Galaxy S II First presented at the Barcelonabased Mobile World Congress in February 2011, the Galaxy S II progressively rolled out globally.

The phone proved a great commercial success for Samsung, standing out in the smartphone market at the time, thanks to its dual-core processor and two onboard cameras, including an eight-megapixel rear-facing camera with autofocus and HD (1080p) video mode.

Samsung Galaxy S III The Galaxy S III replaced the S II in May 2012. Display size was upped to 4.8in, and resolution to HD (1280x720 pixels). The phone also came with an intelligent voice assistant (S Voice) and ran Android Jelly Bean.

It was the first model to get 4G support in certain markets and was accompanied by the smaller and less powerful Galaxy S3 Mini.

Samsung Galaxy S4 Released in April 2013, the Samsung Galaxy S4 landed with full 4G support and major upgrades, including a 5in screen, an octa-core processor, a 13megapixel camera, etc.

As well as touch controls, this model was also able to respond to eye movements, for example, pausing a video when the viewer looked away from the screen.

Samsung Galaxy S5 After a global premiere at Barcelona’s Mobile World Congress, the Galaxy S5 was released in April 2014.

This 5.1in smartphone (1920 x 1080 pixels) stood out from its predecessor with new security features such as a fingerprint reader and private mode, and a virtually instant autofocus.

It was also compatible with Samsung’s first smartwatches.

Samsung Galaxy S6 Thanks to its metal casing, this PCIe SSD storage.

For RM7,799, the processor is upgraded to a 7th Generation Intel Core i5-7Y75 processor and the storage bumped up to 512GB.

The highest configuration has a price tag of RM7,999. Here, the SDRAM is upgraded to 16GB. Samsung flagship promised a sturdier build. However, the battery wasn’t removable, and there was no microSD memory card slot.

The S6 edge came with a display that curved down over the left and right edges of the handset – a first in the smartphone market.

Samsung Galaxy S7 Samsung kept things classic with the 5.1in Galaxy S7 and 5.5in Galaxy S7 edge.

The handsets promised 30% more processor power with

All three configurations come with IntelHD Graphics, a 13.3in QHD InfinityEdge Touch display and oneyear Dell Premium Support with Accidental Damage Protection.

From now till April 30, purchase any of the XPS laptops featured – the XPS 13 2-in-1, XPS 13, and XPS 15

Samsung Galaxy S8 Presented to much hype at an event on March 29, the Samsung Galaxy S8 changes the game once again with its 5.5in Infinity display (2960x1440 pixels), with curved edges and a virtually bezel-free design.

It has 12- and eight-megapixel cameras, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage (and a microSD card slot).

It also features an iris scanner and supports the new Bluetooth 5.0 standard.

What’s more, it’s the first smartphone to get Samsung’s latest intelligent assistant, Bixby. – AFP-Relaxnews – and get a DA200 Dell USB-Type C Adapter worth RM319 free.

Purchasers will also stand a chance to win the new Dell S2718D Infinity Edge Monitor worth RM2,999.

For more, visit the Dell Malaysia website. – Azizul Rahman Ismail