Samsung Z is the world's first smartphone powered by Tizen

[Shawn Knight]

Samsung is officially the first out of the gate with a Tizen-based smartphone known as the Samsung Z. 

A quad-core processor clocked at 2.3GHz is tucked neatly under the 4.8-inch Super AMOLED display (1,280 x 720) and sits alongside 2GB of RAM, 16GB of flash storage and a microSD card slot for further expansion.

Elsewhere we find an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera, a 2.1-megapixel shooter for selfies, a heart rate sensor, fingerprint scanner, an ultra power-saving mode and even a download booster that uses both Wi-Fi and LTE (when both are available, of course) to accelerate download speeds. The handset packs a 2,600mAh battery and weighs in at 136 grams.

Samsung claims it is the perfect choice for those who want a unique user experience in an efficient and lightweight smartphone. The press release touts it as a premium device but it’s clearly a step or two behind the flagship Galaxy S5.

A premium Samsung smartphone powered by Tizen was expected to launch sooner but a lack of support from wireless carriers kept the handset sidelined through 2013. The delay may not have been a bad thing as it no doubt gave them more time to fine-tune the handset and the software.

Samsung already has quite a bit of experience with Tizen as the company’s lineup of Gear smartwatches and some mirrorless cameras are already running the mobile operating system.

The Samsung Z will be on display at the Tizen Developer Conference in San Francisco on June 3 and will debut in Russia in the third quarter. It’ll be available in black or gold although pricing and carrier availability hasn’t yet been disclosed.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/56957-samsung-z-is-the-worlds-first-smartphone-powered-by-tizen.html

 

[Moxiy]

The interface looks more like android to me... I'll be waiting for your review of it to find out how different it is from android..

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

Meh! I doubt it'll be a game changer but who knows. I'll keep half an eye on it when that half is not too busy.

 

[oldikes]

Would have been nice for a brief explaination of what tizen is.

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

Would have been nice for a brief explaination of what tizen is.

It's Samsung's mobile OS, and it's never been on a phone before, so we don't really know how close it is to Android. Samsung is sick of paying Google's licensing fees for Android, so they made their own OS. Given how Samsung's Touchwiz UI isn't all that great and from what I've read in reviews it's the only reason there's any lag to the Galaxy S3, 4, and even the 5, I'd expect an entire phone that runs Samsung's software to be 2nd rate. Perhaps calling it the Z is appropriate as the Tizen may be the last phone we'd want to buy.

I do assume this thing will run Android apps, right?

 

[Nobina]

It looks like LG L9 and interface is pure TouchWiz, which not many people like.

If somehow Tizen got so popular they could copy Android and do the same licensing fees like Android and Samsung would have to find another OS to stick with.

 

[Jamesbrah]

Samsung is sick of paying Google's licensing fees for Android, so they made their own OS.

Troll?

Android is free.. Google doesn't collect licensing fees.

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

Android is free.. Google doesn't collect licensing fees.

Actually, they charge manufacturers fees for testing etc. Although, you're right, I don't think there's a traditional license like Windows has.
http://www.businessinsider.com/goog...s-free-or-open-source-as-you-may-think-2014-1