Samsung tipped to be releasing foldable smartphone next year

via GIPHY

Hoping to stay ahead and even pull away from the pack, Samsung is rumoured to be releasing an unusually shaped smartphone in 2017. According to Korean tech site ETNews, the device will reportedly look like a regular 5-inch device at first but once unfolded it will expand up to seven inches. It’s not said how Samsung plans to implement this and the company won’t comment on the veracity of the rumour. But Samsung filed a patent back in March for a phone with a “rollable” screen. But then again rumours about flexible displays have been around for a while so make sure to still take this rumour with a grain of salt.

At this point though, it is important for tech companies to think up the next big thing as current flagships are usually more iterations or slightly better versions of previous devices, there is a need to make more innovative device to fuel growth in the market.

Source: The Independent

Samsung and Autism Speaks Canada launches #WhoEyeAm Campaign

By Sonya Davidson

A little over a year ago Samsung successfully launched the "Look At Me" app designed for families with children living on the Autism spectrum. This week the tech company, along side Autism Speaks Canada, announced further expansion of the project raising awareness and sharing real stories from families first-hand in the #WhoEyeAm campaign. 

We were introduced to 13 year old Niam Jain and his family this week to see just how this app has incorporated into their daily lives. "He has a lot of the same interests as other boys his age," said his mom. "But he also has minimal speech ability and this technology has helped him, and our family, tremendously." 

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Mark Zuckerberg talks VR’s role in Facebook’s future

“VR [virtual reality] is the next platform, where anyone can create and experience anything they want,” Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said at Samsung’s event at Mobile World Congress 2016 in Barcelona, Spain. VR has always been something Zuckerberg has been interested in and it’s helping guide him as he thinks about the future of his social media platform. He believes the future for Facebook will be immersive and it’ll bring people even closer together. And that this idea isn’t that far off. Facebook as we know is invested in virtual reality. They do own Oculus and they started working with Samsung to develop their own Gear VR headset, which uses technology from Oculus.

“Pretty soon, we’re going to live in a world where everyone has the power to share and experience whole scenes as if you’re just right there in person,” Zuckerberg said. And with the new 360-degree cameras from the likes of Samsung and LG, it truly can happen sooner. Facebook already supports 360-degree videos on its platform. According to Facebook’s CEO, there are already 20,000 videos of that kind on his platform but work still has to be done. “One day soon, all of us will have the power to broadcast live. To do that, we’re going to have to solve a lot of really complex engineering problems.” But he reiterates that Facebook and Oculus are committed to VR “for the long term” and new VR games are expected to come out this year.

Source: PCWorld

Samsung to stream Galaxy S7 launch on Gear VR

If you own a Gear VR, you can watch Samsung’s MWC launch of the Galaxy S7 in virtual reality. What you’ll need to have is a Samsung device and a Gear VR (of course). You would also need to download the Unpacked 360 View app from the Oculus Store. Once Sunday comes, all you need to do is open the app and watch the new Galaxy devices be presented to you in all its VR glory.

If you don’t have the VR headset and don’t particularly care for it, you can still stream it right from your desktop or download the same app from Google Play. And no, you don’t have to be a Samsung user to access the app.

Source: Droid Life