Samsung is down but definitely not out, Lenovo offers a clear picture of its future plans and Microsoft makes an offer that may be hard to refuse.
Mobile World Congress smartphone highlights
All images courtesy GSM Arena.
Samsung Galaxy S6:Â A real mobile wallet?
The Galaxy S6 has the potential to truly replace the wallet for many users, if it works as promised. Samsung said the S6 will enable users to pay by holding the phone near a standard magnetic strip credit card reader, once they’ve loaded their credit card information into the phone. That means merchants do not need new contactless payment terminals to accept mobile payments from the S6, giving Samsung a distinct advantage over Google Wallet and Apple Pay.
Wireless charging is another technology that moves to a new level with Samsung’s newest flagship. The S6 works with most wireless charging pads on the market, as does its companion the S6 Edge. The S6 Edge features a display that curves around the phone’s edges and Samsung said it needs just 10 minutes to charge up for a full morning.
Both new phones have glass-and-metal bodies, 5.1-inch screens and Corning Gorilla Glass 4. Simplicity seems to be a key goal; Samsung said the S6 actually has 40% fewer software features than the S5. Other features include a superfast high-performance camera, and a new S6 fingerprint sensor that is part of the home button.
Samsung used its own Exynos 7420 processor for the international version of the S6, and has not named the chip yet for the U.S. version. The S6 will come to all four of the leading U.S. carriers, as well as to U.S. Cellular. It will be offered in white, black, blue and gold.
Samsung is counting on its new phones to reverse its fortunes; the company has been losing market share to Apple and to Chinese rivals. Six was a magic number for Samsung’s biggest smartphone rival, with the iPhone 6 breaking all previous sales records, and Samsung is clearly hoping for the same result from the Galaxy S6.
HTC One M9: If it ain’t broke …
The M9 has been one of the most widely anticipated phones of the year because of HTC’s track record of delivering stunning smartphone designs. Last year’s HTC One M8 may not have been a bestseller, but its design won rave reviews, and HTC has apparently decided to stay the course and hope that the buyers will follow.
Like the M8, the M9 has an all-metal body, and the phone’s dimensions are almost identical to those of its predecessor. It will be offered in silver, gold and gray. The most signficant changes are a power button on the side of the phone and a 20 megapixel camera on the back of the phone that foregoes HTC ultrapixel technology, introduced two years ago.
The M9 features a 5-inch 1080p display and will be powered by Qualcomm’s 64-bit octa-core Snapdragon 810 processor. Four cores will run at 2.0 GHz and four will run at 1.5 GHz.
Microsoft Lumia 640: The phone is just the start
Microsoft is clearly ready to compete on price in order to win smartphone market share. Its newest Lumia 640 smartphone will be priced at roughly $177 off-contract, or $155 for those who can live without LTE. The phone sports a 5-inch touchscreen with 720 by 1280 pixel resolution. The chipset is Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 400 with a quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A7 CPU.
Buyers of the Lumia 640 will get a free terabyte of storage on Microsoft’s OneDrive, 60 minutes of free Skype calls anywhere in the world and a free 1-year subscription to Microsoft Personal 365. The Lumia 640 runs Windows 8.1 but will be upgradeable to Windows 10 when it launches.
Leap of faith?
After saying that it would play to its strengths by focusing on phones with keyboards, BlackBerry launched a new touchscreen-only smartphone this week in Barcelona. The BlackBerry Leap has a 5-inch capacitive screen with 720 x 1280 pixel resolution. The chipset is Qualcomm’s MSM8960 Snapdragon S4 Plus with a dual-core 1.5 GHz Krait CPU.
BlackBerry says it is targeting young professionals with its newest offering, which is priced at just $275 off contract. The phone only comes in black.
Lenovo Vibe Shot:Â A camera with a phone attached
China’s Lenovo, which now owns Motorola Mobility, launched a smartphone that is meant to double as a high-quality camera at Mobile World Congress. The 16 megapixel back camera features a six-piece modular lens and a tri-color LED flash.
“It’s first a fabulous camera that shutterbugs will love, and secondly, a performance-laden, standalone smartphone,” said Lenovo. The phone is not expected to hit the market until June. It runs Android 5.0 and is powered by a Qualcomm MSM8939 Snapdragon 615 chipset.
