Samsung Galaxy Note 4 has just made its entrance into the “phablet” market, sporting a benchmark 5.7” Quad HD screen. With this phone Samsung is moving on to phones with curved displays. The Samsung Galaxy Note Edge, a limited edition curved display phone by Samsung, is all set for its release in the U.S.; it has just secured a pass from the FCC for the Sprint Corporation (NYSE:S) version.
It comes as no surprise that Samsung is the first one in the market to come up with a curved display phablet. In 2011, Samsung launched the world’s first phablet, the Galaxy Note, which sported a 5.3” screen. Initially, the phablet was highly criticized, with critics deeming it “too big” for everyday use. But Samsung stuck to the idea, and released Note 2 in 2012 (5.5” screen), and Note 3 in 2013 (5.7” screen). The Note series is now the most popular phablet brand in the world.
Smartphone brands like Apple have finally jumped the bandwagon, though very cautiously. It took Apple nearly three years to realize that phablets are the future, and it finally released iPhone 6 Plus last month, with a 5.5” display. But with the Note 4, Apple has its biggest competitor in the market; but…
Apple is a big player in the smartphone industry, with a market share of 33% in some parts of the world. With its entrance in the phablet market, Samsung is bound to face tough competition in its previously monopolized phablet market – Apple vs. Samsung continues.
We all know Samsung will not stop competing and it might be onto something yet again with its curved Note Edge. The curved technology has not even been tapped by any other brand of smartphone yet, and Samsung having already secured a pass with the FCC for the Sprint version of Galaxy Note Edge, is way ahead of its competitors.
Still, the Galaxy Note Edge phone is “limited edition”, meaning Samsung is not so sure about it either. A curved display sounds appealing as a concept, but how it will add to an average smartphone user’s utility is still uncertain. Therefore Samsung made a smart move by offering a limited edition release, which will clear any reservations Samsung has with its Galaxy Note Edge phone.
The screen of the Galaxy Note Edge phone is not curved inwards, like many presume. Instead, a separate screen curves outward at the right side of the phone, providing a curved bar. This bar provides dedicated features like music controls, notifications, and many more user-adjustable options, which act independent of the main screen.
The Galaxy Note Edge model already has FCC approval for AT&T and T-Mobile variants. Now with a Sprint (NYSE:S) version approved, the phone is in for a smooth release in the U.S.
The Galaxy Note Edge has a 5.6” curved Super-AMOLED screen, runs Android 4.4.4 KitKat on a 2.7GHz quad-core processor with 3GB of RAM. The release date for the phone has not been finalized as yet.