Samsung is set to host the next edition of its Galaxy Unpacked event on July 10 in Paris and the focus will be on artificial intelligence as much as on new devices. The South Korean company has had an advantage in the foldable market space for a few years as there is little competition, like from OnePlus Open and Google Pixel Fold. Lately, Vivo has joined the fray but it’s still largely Samsung all the way. Things are changing because rivals are putting out highly competitive devices but Samsung has an advantage — a partnership with Google is allowing the company to put out generative artificial intelligence features quickly. So, what can we expect on July 10?
The AI wave
Last week, Samsung Electronics estimated its second-quarter operating profit shot up more than 15-fold, as a boom in artificial intelligence computing lifted prices of memory chips. The world’s biggest maker of memory chips expected a second-quarter operating profit of $7.5 billion, up 1,452.2 per cent from a year earlier.
Samsung has been delivering more AI features than its rivals, or at least they are talking about it more than others. In January, when the company launched its Galaxy S24 series, a number of AI-driven features were announced and all of them have turned out to be hits.
Competition, like OnePlus, Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo, were expected to talk big about AI. They didn’t and they are still largely promoting hardware features to win customers.
In 2024, hardware alone cannot deliver hits. Companies can make the camera lens slightly bigger and use more powerful chips but that’s not enough. On the other hand, Samsung has already given features like Circle to Search to make searches easy. What gave the Galaxy S24 series wings is its use of Google Gemini Pro and Imagen 2. Galaxy S24 allowed access to Google’s most capable AI model, Gemini, through apps and services built by Samsung.
The many possibilities on the cover screen of Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5
What’s coming your way in foldable phones?
On July 10, we are expected to see the next Galaxy Z Fold and Galaxy Z Flip phones. The Fold could get a 22:9 ratio 6.3-inch external screen (wider than last year’s) and a 7.6-inch internal screen.
So far we have seen “taller” Fold phones, which don’t feel like traditional smartphones. The new form factor is something many Samsung users have been asking for.
A recent leak from Evan Blass suggests spec upgrades for the Z Fold: an improved Armor Aluminum frame, up to 2,600 nits of brightness, a new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, and up to two hours longer video playback than the Z Fold 5. Needless to say, the new phones are expected to support all of the company’s latest Galaxy AI features, leveraging the larger inner display and S Pen support for Circle to Search, Live Transcriptions, and more.
The clamshell Flip phone needs a boost in the battery department. Tech leaker Evan Blass said that the new model will come with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor and 12GB of RAM (up from last year’s 8GB), a 50MP main sensor, a thinner design, and a larger battery at 4,000mAh.
There could be IP48 rating, which would mean the new Galaxy Z Fold and Galaxy Z Flip are protected against particles over 1mm in size.
Look at the time
We may also get to see Galaxy Watch Ultra and Series 7. In the world of Android, Samsung does a fairly good job with its smartwatches. Several leaked renders are floating online and if these prove to be the final products then we may get two new watch models and the presence of 40mm, 44mm, and 47mm sizes, a 3nm AP chipset for powerful operations, health monitoring like blood oxygen detection and stress and sleep analysis, workout tracking, and more.
Samsung claims that wearing a Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Ring at the same time will yield richer health data
The Galaxy Watch 7 Ultra will reportedly be available in one size, 47mm, and three dial colours. It will support both 4G and Bluetooth connectivity and have the same sapphire and 3D glass as the base version, but come with titanium casing.
The Galaxy Watch may get faster charging and there could be a bit of a difference in battery life across the Galaxy Watch 7 and Watch Ultra, with the leaked specs showing the 40mm and 44mm options for the Watch 7 having a 300mAh and 425mAh battery, respectively, while the 47mm Watch 7 Ultra would come with a 590 mAh battery.
Ring, ring
The world has already caught a glimpse of Galaxy Ring, a new product from Samsung, and it may launch at the event. It will likely offer health and sleep-tracking features and come in multiple sizes. The Galaxy Ring may support ECG functionality and blood flow measurement, which gives data on heart rate and blood oxygen levels. Device control via Samsung SmartThings and wireless payments via Samsung Pay may also be among the top features.
The Samsung Health app will be important when experiencing the Ring, especially in the sleep monitoring department. The Galaxy Ring will also support a My Vitality Score that tracks your physical and mental preparedness.
Sonic treatment
The event may prove to be an ideal platform to launch Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro. A Reddit user reportedly got hold of a pair last week and has shared pictures of it. If we can trust the pictures then there will be improved microphone positioning for calls and voice prompts and a more sturdy fit. But can it challenge Apple’s AirPods Pro?
How to watch the event?
Like previous Galaxy Unpacked events, Samsung is live streaming Unpacked across multiple platforms. You can watch it on the Samsung website, the Samsung Community page, and YouTube. Tune in on July 10 at 6.30pm IST.
Mathures Paul
