After first announcing built-in AI in January, Samsung expanded what it calls the Galaxy AI ecosystem on July 10 at the Galaxy Unpacked event in Paris. The company announced its next two foldable phones, plus new earbuds and wearables.
All products showcased at Samsung Galaxy Unpacked are now available for pre-order and will go on sale internationally on July 24.
Samsung offers seven generations of operating system updates and seven years of security updates, similar to Apple's operating system and security lifespan.
Samsung unveils new Galaxy Z Fold and Flip phones
Samsung's two newest phones are the Galaxy Z Fold6 and Galaxy Z Flip6, both of which use Google's Gemini artificial intelligence for translation, creative features, and cosmetic changes.
Galaxy Z Fold6
The 7.6-inch Galaxy Z Fold6 is “our thinnest and lightest foldable ever,” said Annika Bizon, director of brand and channel marketing at Samsung Electronics UK and Ireland, at Galaxy Unpacked.
The Galaxy Z Fold6’s large, two-column display opens from edge to edge, with thinner borders and improved durability compared to the previous generation. Galaxy AI makes an appearance here in the form of Google’s Circle to Search, which lets you circle items for shopping or to identify natural features like constellations. Google Circle to Search on Samsung phones will be able to translate menus and signs with full-screen translation and solve math problems while showing off your work. Galaxy AI is multimodal, meaning you can speak, type, or gesture to focus the AI’s attention.
“On Galaxy phones, you can simply say ‘Hey Google’ to have Gemini appear on your screen and get quick help,” said Jenny Blackburn, vice president of user experience for Gemini at Google, at the Galaxy Unpacked presentation.
“The large, immersive display is perfect for multitasking, so you can watch a video in full screen, and soon you’ll be able to move the Gemini overlay to a side panel so it can help you with what you’re doing,” Blackburn said.
Of particular interest to businesses is the ability to record, transcribe and export audio with AI in Samsung Notes, which could save a lot of time during meetings or interviews.
For creative and marketing work, Galaxy AI enables Sketch to Image, a way to ask Gemini to generate images based on a drawing you've made. You can also sketch over photos and then make photorealistic changes to them using AI. Galaxy AI will suggest how to reimagine the images.
Inside the Galaxy Z Fold6 is the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Mobile Platform. The Galaxy Z Fold6 has between 256GB and 1TB of internal storage, depending on the model.
Galaxy Z Flip6
Samsung’s new vertical foldable, the Galaxy Z Flip6, also comes with a suite of AI tools powered by Google Gemini and the ProVisual photo editing engine. The 3.4-inch front window lets you use many features, including Samsung Health and Wallet, on the front for quick interactions without opening the phone. The main display is 6.7 inches. Inside, you’ll find the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 mobile platform for the Galaxy. The Galaxy Z Flip6 comes with either 256GB or 512GB of internal storage.
Samsung highlighted photo editing tools that can automatically zoom in, depending on the number of people in view, or generate additional frames to create slow-motion videos.
The large vapor chamber, used for the first time on a Flip phone, improves battery life through more efficient cooling. In response to concerns about the hinge's strength, Chosen says the Galaxy Z Flip6 has improved its durability.
How Google AI is built into Samsung's sixth-generation phones
Galaxy AI will be featured on 200 million Galaxy devices this year, said TM Roh, president of Samsung's mobile division. Galaxy AI can support 16 languages on the device even without an internet connection.
The goal is “safe and inclusive AI so that no one is left behind,” Roh said, with “a hybrid approach that combines on-device security and privacy with cloud-based creative power.” Like Apple Intelligence, Google AI on Samsung devices will connect to the cloud for certain needs and resources.
For security reasons, AI-powered Live Translate and Interpreter features are managed on-device.
SEE: Google's energy-intensive artificial intelligence efforts have put a damper on the tech giant's sustainability claims.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch 7 are on the move
The debut of the Galaxy Watch Ultra brings with it a high-end “adventure” wearable, with water resistance and a durable frame for outdoor enthusiasts and athletes. It features up to 100 hours of battery life in power-saving mode, a titanium frame, water resistance, and performance three times faster than the CPU of the previous watch. The Ultra’s main draws are long battery life, a precision GPS system, and deep health monitoring that connects to the Samsung Health app.
The Samsung Watch Ultra runs WearOS 5 in collaboration with Google. It retails for $649.
The Galaxy Watch 7 is the most common watch, with some Samsung Health app features included and a range of models starting at $299. Health widgets include sleep tracking, heart rate monitoring, and FDA-cleared sleep apnea detection.
The Galaxy Ring is revealed
Speaking of health, the Galaxy Ring seems designed to provide all the guidance one could want on a healthy lifestyle. The Ring syncs with the Samsung Health app and is designed to be worn day and night to monitor sleep and energy.
Galaxy AI also offers insights based on health tracking. Sleep tracking produces an “energy score” calculated from your sleep, heart rate, and heart rate variability. With that score, your devices can suggest when you’re fully rested or when you should “take it easy” or “relax,” depending on your condition.
The Ring battery lasts up to 7 days on a single charge. The Galaxy Ring costs $399.99 and does not require a subscription.
The Galaxy Buds3 and Galaxy Buds3 Pro have a familiar shape and “smart” noise cancellation
Samsung’s next high-end earbuds are the Galaxy Buds3 Pro, which were announced today alongside the next-generation Galaxy Buds3. The Galaxy Buds3 Pro’s blade-shaped lights add a futuristic touch, while the elongated shape is reminiscent of Apple’s rival AirPods.
“Dynamic sound curve tuning and active noise cancellation” make for an “intelligent” sound experience, said Malika Chraibi, project manager for wearables at Samsung Electronics France. For example, the Galaxy Buds3 Pro could provide effective, intelligent noise cancellation for crowded offices — especially if that “intelligence” works as well as advertised. Chraibi said the earbuds can filter out roadwork noise but will let through the sound of an ambulance siren, for example.
The basic Buds3 have some of the same noise-cancelling features as the Pro version, but without the cap on top, some of the “smart” features won't activate.
The Galaxy Buds 3 cost $179, while the Galaxy Buds3 Pro sell for $249.
Ahead of the Paris Olympics, Samsung is betting on health and fitness features
The Parisian style of the summer Galaxy Unpacked event lent itself to a tie-in with the Summer Games, and Samsung emphasized how its devices can track health and wellness. If you’re into that, the interplay between wearables and phones could provide an easy way to monitor your health and energy at work conferences, on long work days, or when traveling to meet with clients.
With AI, health data from your Samsung devices can be combined into “data graphs” that make recommendations and alert you to potential issues. If you have a low energy score on your data graph, your phone can suggest you skip “your 7 a.m. spin class,” Bizon said.
Samsung's efforts here are strikingly similar to those of its main competitor in this area, the Apple Watch and Apple's health data ecosystem.
TechRepublic is covering Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2024 remotely.
