Samsung underlines tech leadership at CES

LAS VEGAS — Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. has underlined its technology leadership in TVs, mobile devices and home appliances by launching a range of category-defining products at the 2014 International CES.

“Samsung is the cutting edge of innovation,” said Boo-keun Yoon, co-CEO of Samsung Electronics. “Our approach of combining deep consumer insight, engineering excellence, software innovation, and clever design is making Samsung the global technology leader.”

Outlining his vision for the future of the consumer electronics industry, Yoon said four mega trends were shaping the technology demands of consumers: connectivity, urbanization, aging, and new environmental and societal risks.

“The Home of the Future has to protect, be flexible, and be responsive and needs technology that will connect all the digital dots in the lives of consumers,” Yoon said.

“Samsung is in a better position to deliver solutions for the Home of the Future than anybody else — helped by our broad product range, integrated development and manufacturing, and our large global network of partners.”

Among Samsung’s key products launched at CES 2014 are:

• The world’s largest curved UHD TV, with a 105-inch screen and a truly cinematic 21:9 aspect ratio with 11 million pixels for a 5,120◊2,160 screen resolution.

• Samsung U9000 Series curved UHD TV, the world’s first curved UHD TV, which is a CES Innovations Design and Engineering Awards honoree and Samsung’s flagship TV for 2014. The U9000 series is completed by 65-inch and 55-inch curved TVs, all with an elegant minimal base and ultra slim bezels.

• Samsung also announced partnerships with global media and content companies such as Amazon, Comcast, DIRECTV, M-GO and Netflix, to deliver the best UHD experience. Customers can also look forward to a UHD video pack service that contains UHD content by HDD in cooperation with Hollywood studios.

• A new range of washing machines and washer dryers that helps lighten household workloads by offering the largest capacity on the market — 5.6 cubic feet (or about 25 kg).

• Blazing a path for the Home of the Future, Samsung is demonstrating its new Smart Home service, an integrated platform for appliances and devices that enables consumers to control their home with a single app — from the lights and air conditioning to kitchen appliances and security systems.

• The new Chef Collection of home appliances combines Samsung technology and beautiful design with the kitchen know-how and passion for food of the Michelin-starred team in Samsung’s Club des Chefs.

• The Samsung’s 12.2-inch Galaxy NotePRO and TabPRO tablets present mobile users with an industry-leading WQXGA display, offering crystal-clear resolution with more than four million pixels, for a best-in-class tablet experience for both content consumption and powerful productivity. The Samsung Galaxy NotePRO and TabPRO line is completed by the Galaxy TabPRO 10.1-inch and 8.4-inch as well. All Galaxy NotePRO and TabPRO tablets are running the most recent version of Android 4.4.

• The NX30 interchangeable-lens camera has an advanced 20.3 MP APS-C CMOS Sensor, Tiltable Electronic Viewfinder (EVF) and exceptionally fast 1/8000 sec shutter speed and 9 FPS continuous shooting capability, to create high-quality images with faster than ever performance. The NX30 features NFC and Wi-Fi capabilities, including the “Tag & Go” function, that lets users tap to share memories instantly and easily when paired with NFC enabled mobile devices.

Furthermore, the Galaxy Camera 2 captures images quickly and beautifully with revolutionary technology for instant sharing capabilities, thanks to its 16.3-megapixel BSI CMOS sensor, 21x optical zoom lens, 1.6GHz quad core processor and the Android platform.

The most immersive entertainment experience

Samsung continues to lead the TV industry not just in terms of sales, but also as the first company to offer a broad range of UHD TVs, four of them curved for a bold, theatrical experience.

The company also showed its Bendable TV concept, which allows viewers to switch between a curved and flat screen at the touch of a button. With the introduction of these TVs, Samsung is fundamentally changing the way the world views TVs.

The world’s largest curved UHD TV with a 105-inch screen pioneers a 21:9 aspect ratio and double the enhanced contrast ratio of a flat TV. Additionally, viewers can experience a 3D effect without glasses with the new Auto Depth Enhancer feature.

Samsung’s UHD TV experience is further enhanced through new proprietary technologies that provide incredible image depth, detail and color, including PurColor! technology, which expresses more detailed shades, and a UHD upscaling process that converts HD and Full HD content to near-UHD quality.

Samsung’s revolutionary curved design creates the most immersive viewing experience, and allows everyone watching the TV to enjoy the best seat in the house. What is more, with Samsung’s new Instant On feature, users will no longer have to wait for their TVs to power up.

Research shows that a majority of potential TV buyers worry that they might shop at the wrong moment, just before new technology becomes available. Samsung demonstrated that it still is the only company that offers truly future-ready TVs, releasing its first evolution kit  for UHD TVs.

The evolution kit, available both for selected HD and all UHD TVs, is effectively a brain transplant for the TV, to make sure it works with the latest standards and is powered by the newest technology.

Samsung’s TVs are also becoming even smarter, with a new Multi-Link feature that brings contextual multitasking to the big screen, as well as a newly designed Smart Hub.

The 2014 Samsung Smart Hub includes a Games Panel, which allows users to enjoy big-screen games from leading partners such as Electronic Arts (EA) and Gameloft. Smart TV performance is further enhanced with Samsung’s upgraded quad core processor, QuadCore Plus, which performs at twice the speed of its predecessor.

Through its cooperation with content providers such as Amazon, Comcast, DIRECTV, M-GO and Netflix, Samsung will offer its customers an unrivalled range of UHD content. Film director Michael Bay, who joined Samsung’s CES press event, said the Samsung curved UHD TV will give audiences an all-new way to enjoy movies at home. He also announced that he would exclusively release the first preview of his “Transformers 4” movie on Samsung UHD TV.

Up-leveling your kitchen, living room

This year marks the debut of the Chef Collection, a suite of premium appliances that blends a passion for food with the insights of Samsung’s Club Des Chefs — a group of Michelin-starred chefs who help Samsung develop kitchen appliances that meet the needs of both food enthusiasts and the most demanding chefs alike.

The range encompasses a refrigerator, stove, oven, over-the-range (OTR) microwave, and a dishwasher that features the revolutionary WaterWall! technology for perfect cleaning without missing corners.

While traditional wash systems feature rotary spray arms that do not reach all corners, the WaterWall! technology’s linear mechanism moves along the bottom of the dishwasher tub to provide consistent high water pressure throughout the wash.

Samsung’s premier Chef Collection four-door refrigerator signals a new era of professional food preservation, storage, organization and meal preparation. With Samsung’s Triple Cooling System, the refrigerator is optimized to keep food fresh and tasty.

Additionally, Samsung’s Chef Pantry, a temperature-controlled compartment, maintains optimal temperatures at a constant 30 degrees Fahrenheit, so foods like fish are optimally chilled before cooking.

Also, Samsung’s Chef Pan, a multi-use container located in the refrigerator, can be used for marinating and storing food. It can also be placed directly in the oven and loaded in the dishwasher. The refrigerator also features a versatile Fridge-in-Freezer compartment that can be converted from a refrigerator to a freezer and back again. Boasting a capacity of 34 cu. ft (2014 DOE standard), or 34 full bags of groceries, Samsung’s new offering accommodates more food than any other refrigerator in the market.

In addition to the Chef Collection refrigerator, the company introduced the Samsung Food Showcase refrigerator to the US market. The refrigerator combines outstanding looks with clever internal storage design and innovative fridge technology that keeps food fresh longer and creates more space inside.

The refrigerator is equipped with an exterior door ShowCase compartment for easy access to cooking sauces, drinks and snacks, as well as an interior InnerCase compartment for longer-term storage of larger, fresh foods.

Cutting down on household chores is the idea behind Samsung’s new washing machine and washer dryer, the WF9000. With a maximum laundry capacity of 5.6 cu.ft (or about 25 kg), the WF9000 can wash four times the average washing machine load of a US household in one go — and in record time.

Samsung brings a deeper, quicker and more thorough wash to even the largest of loads with its efficient PowerFoam technology that pre-dissolves detergent into powerful yet gentle foam.

The company’s new EZ Reach washer sports a lower top and shallow, wide tub, and features proprietary AquaJet Cleaning Technology, which penetrates fabrics faster by distributing detergent with a concentrated water spray.

Samsung also introduced the VU7000Motion Sync Upright vacuum cleaner, which is the upright model that features the revolutionary Motion Sync Design that allows for greater agility and superior maneuverability. The model includes an innovative Full Detachable Handheld vacuum that can be detached and used as a separate vacuum cleaner for stairs and tight spaces.

Making the connected home a reality

Samsung’s new Smart Home service puts consumers in control of the devices and appliances in their home with a single application that connects both personal and home devices through an integrated platform and server.

With a single application on a Smart TV, digital camera, smartphone or wearable device like the Galaxy Gear, consumers can control home devices — from washing machines to lights to air conditioners — both at home and on the road.

The device control can be made in an easier way with voice commands, say going out to your Samsung Gear and the TV will switch off and the lights turn themselves off.

Smart Home will initially offer three main services: Device Control, which lets consumers control single or multiple devices at home simultaneously on their mobile device or Smart TV no matter where they are; Home View, a feature that allows users to monitor their home in real-time through built-in cameras on appliances or a digital camera from their smartphone; and Smart Customer Service, which provides service alerts and assistance in after-sales servicing.

New rule for tablet experience

Productivity, performance and portability put the PRO  into Samsung’s new line-up of Galaxy PRO tablets. The Galaxy NotePRO and TabPRO deliver the industry’s best tablet viewing experience with the world’s first 12.2-inch WQXGA display incorporating more than four million pixels. They have a viewing area that is 48-percent wider than traditional 10-inch tablets, allowing users to enjoy stunning Full HD video play and more information at a glance, as well as a new, more intuitive UX design that enhances every type of content consumption imaginable.

Both models sport advanced productivity features like Multi Window that allows users to view up to four windows on their screen at once, Remote PC, interactive e-meetings and video conferencing. The optimized virtual keyboard leverages haptic feedback to produce a more realistic and intuitive typing experience.

For additional value and productivity right out of the box, the Galaxy NotePRO and TabPRO will come with a selection of pre-loaded or free downloadable premium apps, content and services for the ultimate user content gift package.

Samsung continues to let users choose which size of tablet they want with the 8.4  and 10.1 TabPRO models.

Faster than ever image capture

Samsung’s new smart compact system cameras provide the fast connectivity and seamless sharing of pictures that consumers have come to expect from Samsung cameras. The NX30 interchangeable-lens camera includes new and improved technology features, including a powerful DRIMe IV Image processor, 20.3MP APS-C CMOS Sensor and NX AF System II technology, to capture every moment in brilliant clarity and rich color.

Photo sharing is easier than ever with the NX30’s new Tag & Go features, while its tiltable EVF makes it simple to shoot from a different angle and capture shots with a unique perspective.

The Android-powered Galaxy Camera 2 combines the quality imaging of a high-end camera with intuitive sharing capabilities. The next-generation Galaxy camera is a high-performance camera with 16MP and 21x optical zoom and full benefits of the Android platform coupled with improved 28 Smart Mode features.