Samsung officially announces the Galaxy S5
It’s official, folks — Samsung has finally taken the wraps off the latest in the Galaxy S series. It’s unsurprisingly named the Samsung Galaxy S5, and improves on the previous iteration in every way. So is this truly the next big thing? All the details below should help paint a better picture.
Samsung Galaxy S5 specs
For starters, Samsung’s new pride and joy features a 5.1-inch full HD Super AMOLED display, a 16 megapixel camera, a fingerprint scanner and more. Here’s the full gamut in case you’re wondering;
- 5.1-inch 1080p HD Super AMOLED display
- 2.5GHz quad-core processor
- 2GB of RAM
- 16 megapixel rear camera with 4K video recording
- 2 megapixel front camera
- 16GB / 32GB of internal storage (microSD up to 128GB)
- 2,800mAh battery
- USB 3.0, NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi AC MiMo, IR Blaster, and Fingerprint Scanner
- Android 4.4 KitKat
Whew. It definitely reads like a champ on paper, though we’ve come to expect nothing less from Samsung’s flagship smartphone which is part of a line that has helped them dominate the charts for years now.
The fingerprint scanner is especially interesting, and while it doesn’t do much beyond giving you a secure way to unlock your device and facilitate Paypal payments, it’s still something we’re glad to see.
Samsung Galaxy S5 Features
Most of the new things Samsung’s touting with the Galaxy S5 are in the camera department — after all, you don’t get a 16 megapixel sensor with 4K video recording capabilities without shouting from the mountaintops about it. Samsung has a lot to get excited about here:
- Phase Detection Auto Focus: Advanced auto focus speeds for capturing a shot quickly – first smartphone with phase detection auto focus, a feature usually found in DSLR cameras
- Real-Time HDR: High Dynamic Range (HDR) preview mode makes it easier to choose when to use HDR – like trying to photograph a beautiful sunset. It also enables users to capture HDR photos or videos with no shutter lag or post-processing.
- Selective Focus Mode: Blur images near or far for a creative, one-of-a-kind shot
- Shot and More Mode: The camera chooses and recommends Drama Shot, Best Photo, Best Face or Eraser shot after the picture is taken to create the best photo
- Studio: Add effects to photos and edit movies with a complete suite of editing tools within the Gallery
Samsung’s also introducing new goods to S Health, with meal tracking and more nutritional information for you dieters out there, and an exercise log and mapped runs for those who like to keep track of where and how far they’ve run.
Samsung Galaxy S5 Availability
As you’d expect, all major US carriers are expected to get the device (including MetroPCS and US Cellular), and you can bet it’ll also be stopping by every other corner of the world. Unfortunately we still don’t have a price or date to look forward to, but Samsung says we should be seeing it launch at some point this Spring. You’ll be able to grab one in Charcoal Black and Shimmery White, with S View flip cases and wireless charging pads accompanying it on store shelves.
