Samsung is expected to launch its Galaxy Note 7 phablet at an Unpacked event on August 2. But before that happens, Samsung has launched another Galaxy smartphone in its home market of Korea. Calling it the Samsung Galaxy Wide, the smartphone is priced at KRW 319,000 (around Rs. 18,600), and will be available in a couple of weeks.
The Samsung Galaxy Wide features a 5.5-inch (720x1280 pixels) TFT display. It is powered by a 1.2GHz Snapdragon 410 quad-core processor paired alongside 2GB of RAM. The smartphone offers 16GB of inbuilt storage, with an option to expand up to 128GB through the microSD slot.
On the photography front, the Samsung Galaxy Wide sports a 13-megapixel rear camera with autofocus and flash. There's also a 5-megapixel selfie camera. The smartphone packs a 3000mAh battery that claims to give up to 12 hours of video playback time. Audio playback can last up to 78 hours, and continuous talk time (3G WCDMA) can last up to 21 hours, Samsung claims.
The Samsung Galaxy Wide offers 4G FDD LTE [Bands B1 (2100), B3 (1800), B5 (850), B7 (2600), B8 (900), B17 (700)], 3G UMTS [Bands B1 (2100), B2 (1900), B5 (850)], and 2G GSM [Bands GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900] support. Additionally, connectivity options include GPS, Wi-Fi 802.11 b / g / n 2.4GHz, Bluetooth v4.1, and NFC. It comes bearing an acceleration sensor, and a proximity sensor. The dimensions are at 151.8 x 77.5 x 8.2mm, and the smartphone weighs 171 grams.
Currently, the Samsung Galaxy Wide has been launched only in South Korea, with no information on pricing and availability in other markets. Interestingly, the Samsung Galaxy Wide caries the model number SM-G600S, which is identical to the Galaxy On7 launched last year. The specs are also identical, indicating that the Galaxy Wide is just a rebranded variant for the Korean market.
Meanwhile, Samsung is expected to disclose its estimates for second-quarter earnings on Thursday and analysts are predicting a 13 percent jump in operating profit from the same period a year earlier. The Korean manufacturer is poised to issue guidance for its best quarterly profit in more than two years, propelled by a surge in mobile earnings on the back of robust sales of its flagship Galaxy S7 smartphones.
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