Superphone wars erupt
THIS week at IFA 2013 in Berlin, Samsung and Sony attempted to grab as much media attention as they could ahead of Apple’s launch of its new iPhone next week.
Both Asian companies signalled their intentions to set the bar as high as possible for Apple by stretching the limits of their flagship devices.
Samsung unveiled the Note 3, the third generation of its surprise success “superphone”, as the devices in the 5.5-inch to 6.5-inch range have been dubbed.
The new 5.7-inch version is even larger than its predecessors, and also sets a new standard for video recordings. Its 13 megapixel camera is capable of shooting 4K videos, although the availability of 4K monitors is still limited and their prices out of reach of most consumers.
At the same time, Samsung has expanded the potential market of the Note, announcing both a 4G or LTE model, running on a 2.2 GHz pro- cessor, and a 3G model running on 1.9 GHz processor — and more affordable to lowerincome segments aspiring to own the device.
Further expanding the range, each version has storage options of 32GB or 64GB, along with 3GB RAM and an expandable micro-SD slot.
“One of the secrets of our success is that we go to great lengths to understand how people use technology, “said Boo-Keun Yoon, president and CEO of Samsung Electronics, this week.
Sony Mobile announced the Xperia Z1, a 5-inch dust and water-resistant smartphone sporting a 20,7 Megapixel camera and a “G Lens”: a 27mm wide angle lens with F2.0 aperture.
A massive 3000mAh battery on the Z1, and the larger Samsung Note 3’s 3200mAh, underlines the efforts of both companies to counter criticism of poor battery life on smart devices. — Arthur Goldstuck