Ask us what we love the most about Samsung, and we’ll give you this answer: consistency. We know that every January, Samsung will do a major product dump at CES, and draw a huge crowd while it’s at it. We know that we’ll eventually end up writing about it. And we know that people will line up for everything it introduces on stage, and throughout the year.
The Korean tech giant did the same last week, giving us more than 10 brand-new things to ogle at and wish for. It’s par for the course at this point—and it’s a nice way to rebound from last year’s US$5 billion Galaxy Note 7 disaster, which the company briefly acknowledged at CES. Four computers, a few media components, and a trove of appliances would help get Samsung back on the right track. Because we can’t exactly go through every product in detail, we’ve opted to give you our selections for this year’s mega-launch.
Book it
We’re seeing more Chromebooks lately, and Samsung adds two to the fray: the Chromebook Plus and Chromebook Pro. They’re flexible, and we’re not just referring to their capabilities: their 12.3-inch quad HD screen rotates and can be laid flat against the keyboard to function as a full-size tablet. They’ve also been given their own pens so users can draw and take notes whenever they want. Under the hood, the Chromebook Plus and Pro use different processors and graphics cards, now offer two USB-C ports, and are capable of 4K video streaming. They also provide 4GB of memory and 32GB storage, along with a projected eight-hour battery life.
The Samsung Chromebook Plus will be available in the US market by next month at US$449 (around P22,000). We don’t have any information yet on the Chromebook Pro’s SRP and availability, however.
On to a laptop with more power underneath—and, in a surprise move for Samsung, geared specifically for gaming. The Notebook Odyssey, which has 15.6-inch and 17.3-inch variants, takes on the black-and-red color scheme familiar to gamers, and without the heft and absurd design choices of some of its competitors. (Basically, it doesn’t look weird.) Samsung touts their anti-glare display and optimized keyboard, but we’re also looking at their Intel Core i7 processors, up to 32GB of memory for the 15-inch model and up to 64GB for the 17-inch model, and NVIDIA GTX1050 graphics for the 15-inch Odyssey (no word yet on the 17-inch model’s graphics card).
According to PC World, the 15-inch Notebook Odyssey will have a US$1,199 price tag (around P60,000), and will start shipping next month. However, the 17-inch model doesn’t have an SRP yet.
Let’s move on to more commercial fare. Samsung also launched the 15-inch Notebook 9, which has a “near edge-to-edge” full HD display that can be reclined up to 180˚, a projected 15-hour battery life and adaptive fast charge capability, and built-in fingerprint sensor and Windows Hello support. Underneath, it sports up to an Intel Core i7 processor, NVIDIA 940MX graphics, 16GB of DDR4 memory, and 256GB SSD storage.
Based on this article on Samsung’s US Newsroom, there will be three Notebook 9 variants this year: the EXT (US market only), the standard 15-inch model, and a smaller 13.3-inch model. All, however, don’t have suggested prices right now.
New tubes
Okay, so this new product wasn’t exactly on Samsung’s main CES itinerary, but we don’t mind at all. Its new curved QLED series is sure to make everyone’s wishlists this year: it’s brighter with 1,500 to 2,000 nits, and has better color accuracy and depth thanks to improved Quantum dots. Consumers can also manage content from their other mobile devices and play them on this TV through Samsung’s smart apps, along with its new Sports and Music modes.
The QLEDs will also make home installation much easier, in terms of both labor and aesthetics. Samsung’s Invisible Connection cable decreases the nasty and unwieldy cable mess behind the TV, its No-Gap Wall Mount decreases the distance from TV to wall, and its Studio and Gravity Stands hold the TV up for viewing without taking users’ focus away from it.
The three QLED variants—the Q9, Q8, and Q7—are still unpriced, with unknown availability. Come on, guys.
Samsung’s new Lifestyle TVs also deserve mention here, mainly due to their “stealth” mode when not in use. Instead of showing us a blank screen when inactive, it displays art or photos, making the TV set look like a ginormous frame instead of a home entertainment system.
Pretty… and sneaky.
How does that sound?
We’re ending this roundup with two audio accessories from Samsung: the MS750 Soundbar, and H7 Wireless Speaker. We’re liking the latter’s old-school look (you can see in this post’s cover photo), and the fact that it gives you “32-bit” UHQ sound doesn’t hurt its chances, either. It also goes deep with a 35Hz bass response, in case you were wondering. The Verge also adds that this speaker offers Distortion Canceling for more controlled bass. As for the MS750 soundbar, it can do 32-bit UHQ audio as well, and doesn’t need an additional soundwoofer to do its job.
