Samsung Galaxy S4 reportedly caught fire and melted while owner slept

Another alarming incident involving a smartphone battery igniting and catching fire has surfaced. A Samsung Galaxy S4 reportedly caught fire and melted completely while its owner, Texas teen Ariel Tolfree, slept. Source of the fire is likely being attributed to the a faulty battery. Samsung has responded by requesting to examine the charred remains of the Tolfree's phone, which they will replace together with the ruined beddings that the incendiary phone damaged. This is the latest in a series of fire-related incidents involving the Galaxy S4. A UK user found her smartphone sizzling as it was plugged in for the night and a Hong Kong resident claims ina CNet report that his Galaxy S4 exploded and caught fire in his hands. Hopefully whatever is causing these freak accidents can be sorted out and quickly.

Source: Mashable

Update on Monday, July 28, 2014 at 10:31PM by Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

According to the Mashable report, "A Samsung spokesperson told Fox that Ariel's phone had a replacement battery instead of the original Samsung component, and said its products are safe. What's more, the S4's user manual warns that covering a phone with bedding can restrict airflow, and cause a fire or explosion, though some consumers are unaware of this risk."

Screenshots of the Samsung Gear VR Manager app surface

It’s not the easiest thing to keep a secret in tech these days. So, we’re not really surprised when leaked screenshots of Samsung’s reported VR headset have surfaced. The Gear VR is tipped to be unveiled at this year’s IFA and this time we get to see screenshots of the supposed manager app for the headset. Based on these screenshots, it looks like the Gear VR will be getting some pretty nifty features, including S-Voice compatibility, full touch capability with a touchpad, and a see-thru display (when you need it to be). Let’s hope this is legit. If we find out more, we’ll let you know.

Source: Droid Life

Samsung Galaxy Note 4 to get a retina scanner?

Samsung is looking to one up its competition once again by introducing a new security feature: a retina scanner. Samsung Exynos tweeted something about improving security for the future and showed an image of a retina being scanned by a phone with the words “Unlock the future.” This may or may not make its way into the Galaxy Note 4 and it would be interesting to see how this feature might fair in real-life situations. We're curious, would you want a retina scanner on your device?

Security can be improved using features unique to us. That's what we envision. What would you use? #ExynosTomorrow pic.twitter.com/KLgQ1q9GkP

— SamsungExynos (@SamsungExynos) July 12, 2014

Samsung renames app store as Galaxy Apps

Samsung is looking to make its app store more viable with its rebranding. Samsung Apps will now be known as Galaxy Apps and it comes with a new user interface and hundreds of Samsung Galaxy exclusive apps. The apps have been divided into categories such as Top, Best Picks, and For Galaxy. The For Galaxy category is divided further to sections including Galaxy Gifts, Galaxy Essentials, Galaxy Specials, and Apps for Professionals. The Specials apps have been made using Samsung’s SDKs. The new app store is said to give Galaxy users more options to help customize their devices and as a platform to announce promotions and deals.

Source: CNET