Android By Sal Cangeloso Apr. 17, 2014 4:18 pm
Samsung’s new Galaxy S5 is an impressive Android phone that packs in a ton of features. And, unlike so much of what Samsung crammed into the Galaxy S4, the GS5 has a lot of tool that you’re actually going to want to use. Over the past few weeks we’ve been impressed by its 4K video shooting, Ultra Power Saving Mode, and its handy fingerprint scanner, not to mention a slew of other features that we previously saw ship with the GS4 and the Galaxy Note 3.
This video user guide will walk you through the Galaxy S5 hardware and its software, and then explain some of the cooler apps to you. These are features that all GS5 owners should be familiar with, as they are tools that you’ll want to use, and legitimate reasons to purchase this phone over a competing device. To the videos!
First off, here’s a tour of the Galaxy S5′s hardware. It uses a similar plastic shell to that found on the GS4 and the GS3 before it, but the S5 notably is water- and dust-resistant. The S5 is also sturdier than the previous phones and has a new “Band-Aid” texture to the backplate. Yes, there is a lot of plastic here, but the GS5 doesn’t feel flimsy or cheap.
If you are getting a new phone, you might want to pick up a new case as well. Samsung’s own S-View flip case utilizes of some of the GS5′s built-in tech in order to optimize the experience and make case ownership as painless as possible. The view window takes advantage of the AMOLED technology, specifically the fact that it doesn’t use backlighting (I misspoke in the video), which means that the top half of the display can light up without sucking down too much battery. The case is a fine leatherette but seems quite pricey at $70.
The Galaxy S5 has a fingerprint scanner built into the home button. It’s similar to the one used in the iPhone 5S, but GS5 scanner relies on a finger swipe while the iPhone allows your finger to stay in place. As you can see in the video, the scanner works quite well — it’s accurate, quick, and easy to use. The main downside with the scanner is Samsung’s lack of trust in it, as demonstrated by how often the phone calls for an “alternative password” to be used in place of a fingerprint scan.
Ultra Power Saving Mode gets your Galaxy S5 and turns off almost all the features — even the color in the display — in order to reduce power consumption. Flip the switch and your GS5 will have a standby time of nearly two weeks.
The GS5′s camera is capable of shooting video at up to 3840×2160 — that’s 4K UHD. Here is an unedited video sample of the GS5′s video.
The Galaxy S5 has a 5.1-inch display. That’s not truly huge, but it’s too big for most people to use with one hand. With this issue in mind Samsung put in its One-handed mode — as it did with the Galaxy Note 3 — so that you can dial a number, text, and do other simple tasks with just a single hand.
Download Booster is one of the Galaxy S5′s coolest features. It allows the phone to use WiFi and LTE at the same time to increase download speeds. T-Mobile is the only carrier in the US that currently supports this feature.
The Galaxy S5 has a built-in Easy Mode for people who don’t need all the aforementioned features or who simply aren’t particularly tech savvy. Once you’re in Easy Mode you can enable and, more likely, disable features as you see fit, delivering a streamlined and simplified Touchwiz experience.
We’ll be updating this post with more videos as we shoot them, so be sure to check back. If you have any questions or request, please leave a comment below.
More...
This video user guide will walk you through the Galaxy S5 hardware and its software, and then explain some of the cooler apps to you. These are features that all GS5 owners should be familiar with, as they are tools that you’ll want to use, and legitimate reasons to purchase this phone over a competing device. To the videos!
First off, here’s a tour of the Galaxy S5′s hardware. It uses a similar plastic shell to that found on the GS4 and the GS3 before it, but the S5 notably is water- and dust-resistant. The S5 is also sturdier than the previous phones and has a new “Band-Aid” texture to the backplate. Yes, there is a lot of plastic here, but the GS5 doesn’t feel flimsy or cheap.
If you are getting a new phone, you might want to pick up a new case as well. Samsung’s own S-View flip case utilizes of some of the GS5′s built-in tech in order to optimize the experience and make case ownership as painless as possible. The view window takes advantage of the AMOLED technology, specifically the fact that it doesn’t use backlighting (I misspoke in the video), which means that the top half of the display can light up without sucking down too much battery. The case is a fine leatherette but seems quite pricey at $70.
The Galaxy S5 has a fingerprint scanner built into the home button. It’s similar to the one used in the iPhone 5S, but GS5 scanner relies on a finger swipe while the iPhone allows your finger to stay in place. As you can see in the video, the scanner works quite well — it’s accurate, quick, and easy to use. The main downside with the scanner is Samsung’s lack of trust in it, as demonstrated by how often the phone calls for an “alternative password” to be used in place of a fingerprint scan.
Ultra Power Saving Mode gets your Galaxy S5 and turns off almost all the features — even the color in the display — in order to reduce power consumption. Flip the switch and your GS5 will have a standby time of nearly two weeks.
The GS5′s camera is capable of shooting video at up to 3840×2160 — that’s 4K UHD. Here is an unedited video sample of the GS5′s video.
The Galaxy S5 has a 5.1-inch display. That’s not truly huge, but it’s too big for most people to use with one hand. With this issue in mind Samsung put in its One-handed mode — as it did with the Galaxy Note 3 — so that you can dial a number, text, and do other simple tasks with just a single hand.
Download Booster is one of the Galaxy S5′s coolest features. It allows the phone to use WiFi and LTE at the same time to increase download speeds. T-Mobile is the only carrier in the US that currently supports this feature.
The Galaxy S5 has a built-in Easy Mode for people who don’t need all the aforementioned features or who simply aren’t particularly tech savvy. Once you’re in Easy Mode you can enable and, more likely, disable features as you see fit, delivering a streamlined and simplified Touchwiz experience.
We’ll be updating this post with more videos as we shoot them, so be sure to check back. If you have any questions or request, please leave a comment below.
More...
