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SAMSUNG GALAXY S4: It''s all about looks [Financial Express (India)](Financial Express (India) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) A big-screen wonder with a great set of features built in The Indian mobile handsets market has seen scintillating action in the past few months, with high-decibel launches of some of the top-end smartphones-BlackBerry Z10, HTC One and Sony Xperia Z. Apple's iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S are currently the world's two most popular smartphone models and are gaining market acceptance in India as well. Therefore, it was time for the South Korean tech major Samsung to come up with something new, especially when demand for the Galaxy S3 appears to have peaked. The Samsung Galaxy S4 is here, in a sleek design and is beautiful from each point of view. It has Android 4.2.2, a fantastic camera, a powerful quad-core processor and software solutions for just about every scenario-including working as a TV remote. It's also comfortable in hand and has NFC, a user-replaceable battery, and a microSD storage slot. I personally believe that bigger screens are better; the more screen space you have, the better. The R41,500-a-piece Galaxy S4 has a large 5-inch display and it is just the right size. But as screen size increases, the way in which consumers interact with the device also needs to be considered. Larger devices are harder to interact with one-handed, and so it is important for user-interfaces and especially on-screen key placements, to be designed to allow for easy interaction. The South Korean major's latest mobile device scores big on this front. It is big on quality and it's that big screen with its vivid display that steals the show. Its 12.7 cm full HD Super AMOLED (1920 x 1080) display provides a visual treat for watching videos, movies, photos and browsing the internet and websites-all in brilliant colour and clarity. Its 5-inch large screen has 441 ppi for stunning viewing quality. I spent about a week with the S4 and let me share some insights on how to get the most out of this Samsung device. Equipped with a 13 megapixel rear camera, the Galaxy S4 enables users to take pictures in several exciting ways. Dual Shot allows simultaneous picture-taking of both front and rear cameras. Users can choose from a variety of frame effects, which blend the two pictures naturally as well as outstanding shooting modes. Drama Shot enables users to see all the action in one continuous time-lapse image. Sound & Shot stores sound and voice in unison as the picture is taken so those special moments are captured in the truest form imaginable. Take a photo and record a few seconds of audio with the sound & shot mode. The audio really brings the photo to life! The device automatically sorts your photos into albums with your specified criteria and you can record details about them. When you take a lot of photos at one location or in a single day, the device prompts you to make an album. The S4 is smart enough to detect your face, voice and motions to enable screen control with no need for finger touch activation. Air Gesture allows users to, for example, change the music track they are listening to with a wave of their hand. Air View will preview photos and e-mails by hovering over the screen with your finger. Samsung Smart Pause enables you to control the screen by where you look. When you are watching a video, the video pauses when you look away then it starts right up again when you are back. With the device's Smart Scroll feature, you can scroll through e-mails up or down. Just by nodding your head, you can scroll through the entire newspaper. Pretty amazing isn't it The device's health app impressed me the most. The S Health app will keep you up-to-date with your health. Basically, the combination of sensors built within the device systematically and automatically monitors your health, food, exercise, sleep and so much more to help you improve your quality of life. In the S Health app, enter physical statistics such as gender, height, weight, and required information to complete the profile. Record the calories you intake each day. You can set a goal for caloric intake and view your progress. The device shows how close you are to your goal and awards you a gold medal when you achieve it. Another interesting feature is the Watch ON feature that transforms the Galaxy S4 into a universal remote control. This provides a whole new world of entertainment on your device and on your TV. It allows you to view TV listings, both on-demand and live broadcasts on your device and transfer these onto a bigger screen. Samsung Hub provides a single entry for Samsung content services, making it easy to use. You can browse through a variety of content across services, be it video, books, games and learning content as well as purchase and manage content easily, from a single Samsung account. Available for free, Samsung Hub attempts to list all the latest and greatest applications, games, and content currently available via Google's Play store. All in all, this phone looks great and works superbly. Specifications * Dimensions: 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9 mm * Display: 12.7 cm full HD Super AMOLED (1920 x 1080) display, 441 ppi * Processor: 1.6 GHz quad-core processor + 1.2 GHz quad-core processor * Operating system: Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean) * Camera: 13 MP (rear); 2 MP (front) * Connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, GPS, NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, IR LED * Memory: 16 GB + microSD slot (upto 64 GB), 2 GB RAM * Sensor: Accelerometer, RGB light, Geomagnetic, Proximity, Gyro, Barometer Estimated street price: Rs41,500 Copyright 2013 The Indian Express Online Media Pvt. Ltd., distributed by Contify.com Credit: Sudhir Chowdhary (c) 2013 The Indian Express Online Media Pvt. Ltd., distributed by Contify.com |