What’s Next for Smartphones? Samsung’s New Galaxy Line Offers a Few Answers

I use my phone to read NYT. so my phone is a smart phone.

Quit making phones thinner,double thickness which would be more comfortable to hold and they could increase battery capacity 3 or 4 times.

As the owner of a semi-ancient "dumb" phone that only texts and takes lousy minuscule-sized photos, it has been my decision to stick with it. So often people with the "smarties" seem to do nothing but pay attention to it, rather than taking time to actually socialize with other human beings. I am glad that I don't receive or am expected to respond to phone e-mails at all hours of the day, and if I want to check my e-mail, I can use either the tablet or laptop to do so at my convenience. Though this may seem to be a troglodyte attitude, if there is anything that is truly important, an actual phone call or "priority" text is enough to alert me to significant information coming from family or friends. What might be the most advantageous selling point for Samsung, Apple, or others is to produce a relatively inexpensive model of cell phone that has all the features that Andrew Robert's comment suggests: - longer battery life - increased durability - fewer photo/video features Surely one can live happily without endless photos of food, pets, and selfies to prove that they were there. Perhaps a prescient 1968 song by Ray Davies sums up the dilemma of this seemingly universal compulsion at photo-taking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMokVXCVyTw Making a moderately "intelligent" phone at prices that everyone could afford might make the best marketing sense, instead of offering all the whistles and bells that these companies keep adding on to both the phone and its price.

Too expensive as I type this on an Ipad

What we should be looking forward to are lower prices. Apple's greed and Samsung's willingness to go along. The trend in consumer electronics- excepting Apple- is for prices to fall over time. The problem is that there is no good alternative to Apple's iOS in the market. Android is little other than adware pretending to be a mobile operating system and has far too many security and privacy issues to detail in this space. Microsoft withdrew Windows mobile, which is a sad thing for merket competition.

Advertising says it all: every phone ad, whether tv, print or web, features 20-somethings doing oh-so-hip things with their bright, shiny objects. You know, the same 20-somethings loaded with student debt and back home living with their parents, who are ignored by the marketers because they are now wise enough not to be particularly interested in the latest bright shiny object (or just can't afford it because they have to pay for their 20 or 30-something's food...).

Samsung has finally released a phone for people who can afford to drop or lose a $2000 phone. I can't wait to be rich.

Ridiculous to see the high prices of these smartphones. Roughly, $2000 smartphone might be good for millionaires who love trying new stuff but doesn't make much sense for the normal public. Also, the innovation in these devices has been very incremental for the past 2-3 years now. That is expected considering the law of averages and the kind of insane technological disruption that we have witnessed. If you have a phone with good screen, latest software, good processor, what purpose do these new phones serve is beyond me. What can a person owning the new foldable phone do that I cannot with my regular Snapdragon 835 Android? That should be a question asked by phone manufacturers but nobody does. Recall 10-15 years back, we faced something similar to this in laptops. There was nothing new except few gimmicks.

While that folding phone sounds interesting, it's price made my interest fold even faster than the phone. Speaking of prices: An antitrust investigation into these very well coordinated upward spiraling prices might be interesting. This well-coordinated process seems to work like this: Apple goes first with charging previously unheard-of high prices for their newest phones, followed within months by Samsung doing likewise, and pushing the envelope once more. Right now, Huawei is bringing up the rear, but still staying shy of Apple and Samsung pricing, but just by a bit. Next year, same procedure: rinse, wash, repeat. I have long given up on owning the newest and hottest set; a solid performer from last year's lineup of "flagships" for half the price when launched does quite nicely, and lasts for a few years. If we Android users could now just get Google to make it mandatory for it's licensees (phone makers) to provide timely updates for their phones for at least three years after launch, we'd be sorted. Mostly, that is.

I cannot justify the artificially high prices on these new devices. I bought a Samsung S7 with refurbished battery for $300.00 in November to replace a waterlogged S6 that rice couldn't save. My kid dropped the S7 out of the case and shattered front and back. Bought a repair kit and fixed it myself for under 40 bucks. I think a large part of our culture problem is the failure for younger people to learn how to fix things. Companies love the privaleged ignorant masses. Learning to fix the phone took me 10 minutes and about an hour to do the actual repair. I think the opportunity to learn these skills is ripe right now given the enormous amount of options for older phones and the extortion level market prices by Apple and Samsung for the new stuff. The S7 works perfectly.

It makes you wonder why AT & T would unveil 3 diff versions of the 5G capability? After all they are one of the largest corporations in the world. Why not just give everyone the same price on the same speed. Because AT & T has perfected the art of the squeeze. That's why their cell service is the worst, even though they could buy Verizon and T Mobile and Sprint. I want to sit in on board meetings wherein they plot their strategy on denying their customers the full extent of ther service capability. It's corporate greed at its worst, and they are pathetic.

How about sometime really inventive like a decent phone that has a clear sounds and dosen't drop the call. They are called phones after all.

I actually just walk around with my Texas Instruments TI-36X scientific/engineering calculator. I know it's not an actual phone, but it arguably improves the act of human communication by forcing one to interact with the living humans occupying the vicinity, expanding communication into a lucid, authentic experience. It stores useful values, like the speed of light, and it's solar powered. Plus, it's downright hilarious when someone realizes that you've been "texting" on your calculator instead of your smartphone the whole time. Best $40 spent ever.

What will be the solution in the future for people with little to no money, scraping by, but requiring a smartphone to participate in society? Will there still be entry-level, quality phones at a low price? It's the same thing as appliances and the "Internet of Things" embedded everywhere. Will I be able to get a quality, but simple, refrigerator or washing machine that does what it is supposed to do, without all the fluff and without spying on me?

"Some consumer resistance" Why do I repeatedly burst into laughter whenever I read about new smart phone features and pricing? It's really hard to feel much of a pull to get those new features. Have fun, early adopters!

I'd like one that STAYS fast, that doesn't seize up after I install my apps and the bloatware takes over.

Because it has put all its systems on one, 7 nanometer, chip (SoC) Huawei's phones work for three days on a single charge. And since their phones are built to work seamlessly with their cell sites, which also run on 7nm technology, and their servers, also 7nm, they run twice as fast as competitors' phones. We can but dream of having world-class, Chinese technology.

In the article it speaks of 5G technology as something that is going to take another year or even two before it's in common use. Why is the USA so far behind other countries? China has Huawei 5G technology through the country and their phones are less than half the cost of Samsung or Apple. Meanwhile, America blocks their technology, stating that they might glean secrets from us. Like South Korea doesn't? Or Apple? From a Reuters article today: "“American companies must step up their efforts, or get left behind,” Trump said in a pair of tweets. “I want the United States to win through competition, not by blocking out currently more advanced technologies,” he added, although he did not explain what blockage the president was referring to. Representatives for the White House could not be immediately reached for comment. "

And here I am wondering how to get back to the good 'ole flip phone days.

How about a phone that can go days from a single full charge even after moderate to heavy usage? Shatter-proof screen and body without a case is a plus, too!

Interesting article. However, after reading the book "Age of Surveillance Capitalism", I seriously doubt I will purchase an Android device ever again! Don't get me wrong, while I own an iPad and an iPhone, I am not a huge Apple fan... but will choose an iOS device over an Android device any day - the sheer amount of data Google obtains about me (and those AROUND me) through Android devices just creeps me out. I'd LOVE to see a Personal Tech article on that book, and it's ramifications!!!! I use my phone for the following: as a phone, a platform for reading books, music, and browsing the web (news sites, etc...). So if I can get 1 device that will take the place of BOTH my iPhone AND my iPad (fewer devices to worry about), I'm totally game. If Apple comes up with a Samsung Fold competitor, I'm all over it. Now, if Palm comes back with a modern day version of the Palm Treo.... I'll be first in line, and never look back! That has still got to be the best cell phone I've ever had!

I bought a Galaxy J3 (aprox $120.00 +tax)the other day to use as a secondary phone and guess what: It does almost everything as my $1250.00 iPhone does. Usually when a product reaches a market saturation the prices naturally go down. This is not happing in the smartphone industry. About 7 years ago a "premium" smartphones used to cost around $700.00. Now they are reaching the $2k mark. The innovations are always welcome but current ones we've been seeing in the cell phone industry are not breakthroughs . It's time to people be more pragmatic and less passionate when it come to phones. Get a cheap phone and put the rest of your money in your retirement fund.

I have an iPhone SE. The only reason I got it is because of its small size. I really don’t want a giant slab sticking out of my back pocket. My SE fits in my front jeans pocket, and any jacket pocket. My previous smart phones were the HTC droid incredible one, two, and four, - the last one I had two units in succession. I miss the android OS! The Sony Xperia would have been a great phone for me except that it is not supported by Verizon, and I am stuck with Verizon because of my rural location.

$1,980 for a folding smartphone? That will buy a super-light powerhouse laptop plus a top-of-the-line tablet. I guess thinking that way is irrelevant to the wealthy or the debt-ridden tech addict.

We do not need progressively more expensive phones. These items should be getting cheaper. Plus, why is it no possible that the default screen on a phone be a phone. For many people, who do not use a lot of apps, it makes no sense to have to touch 3 buttons just to make a call.

"Bokeh" is not what's described in this artricle as a photographic effect. Depth of Field is what appears to be the result of multiple sensor processing that keeps the subject in focus while blurring the background and surrounding area. Bokeh, as originally used, refers to how the light distributes itself as a result of the type and number of leaves in a shutter mechanism. It is seen, to both good and bad effect, around sources of light and reflection.

What is the most important element of the new technology in new cel phone models? According to NYT: "Of the four new devices, one... can download a movie in seconds rather than minutes." Important developments 2 and 3: larger viewing screens and more powerful cameras. Conclusion: for those who can afford expensive new phones, watching a movie is heaven and making a movie is divine.

This is getting absurd. A marginally bigger screen? Whatever. Slightly less weight? Doubt I'll even notice. An even thinner body? Wonderful, now my hand will cramp up quicker. Smaller bezels? Great, now I can't hold it without accidentally touching the screen. A slightly less obtrusive notch? There's still a hole in my screen. Faster internet so we can download movies in seconds? Because you might need to download one in an emergency? More cameras? None of us are professional photographers, we're just putting vapid nonsense on an endless stream of pointless photo blogs. And it's not even like manufacturers are making these changes because it's what consumers want. What we want is a longer battery life, even if it makes the phone a bit thicker. We want it to be durable, even if that means it weighs a little more. And we want it to be cheaper, even if that means including fewer cameras. But we get none of that. What we get is hype, gadgetry, and exorbitant prices. Calculators used to cost a thousand dollars to do elementary math. Now they cost $15 to do more than you ever learned in high school. Computers used to be so expensive only universities with endowments could afford them. Now I can pick one up on my way home from work for $300 if I want. Phones used to cost $50-100. Now they cost ten times as much. There's something wrong with this picture.

I just bought my newest phone and spent more than I ever have in my life, $169. If it wasn’t for the need to have my house alarm app on it I’d still have a flip phone.

True innovation would be to build a phone that won’t break when you drop it. Companies put all their effort into building incredibly thin and light devices that you’re forced to clamp a cheap block of plastic onto in order to try and protect it from the inevitable drop.

Is any designer considering size of a woman’s evening bag? I have several spendy evening bags that my iphone won’t fit in, very inconvenient as women’s dresses rarely have pockets. Size does matter.

I love tech and phones, but I struggle to see who Samsung thinks is going to pay $1,980 for a phone? Hmm.

I still miss my Motorola StarTAC. Best. Phone. Ever.

Ho-hum. Enormous screens and tiny bezels and the continuous drive to make the screen bigger yet make the phone seem smaller are driving cost up and durability and longevity down. Phones are now designed with the expectation that the first thing the consumer will do after they purchase one is buy a protective plastic/rubber case for it. The UI is designed for this and phones are actually more difficult to use without the case. This bizarre paradigm allows the cell phone manufacturer to show/advertise/promote/sell the most remarkably slim and beautiful product. Consumers are mesmerized into to buying them, then without a second thought immediately snap them into a protective case. What other industry sells such a fragile product with the most essential component missing? Conversely, if they sold the phones with cases, they'd be admitting how fragile they are.