Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S3, but the company that likes to call iPhone owners sheep might as well start "baa-ing" because its new smartphone does little to stand out from the pack.
The Score is a weekly column scoring controversial events in the mobile industry. Want to get to the point? We'll break it down and give you the score.
The Setup: Samsung's Galaxy S line has emerged as the company's flagship smartphone model, responsible for some of the most successful devices on the market. The original Galaxy S laid the groundwork for success against Apple's iPhone, and the S2 continued that work last year by selling more than 20 million units worldwide.
The South Korean electronics giant has marketed its devices for customers who want to be different from the masses who consistently line up for the newest iPhone and other devices. Samsung's reveal of the S3 yesterday was the company's biggest opportunity yet to prove it was a true innovator in the smartphone market by unveiling a device with unique features that Apple and others would be forced to try to catch up with.
However, Samsung's initial presentation of the S3 left many critics wanting. Did the smartphone maker forgot to tell the crowd the S3 also features a camouflage mode? Maybe that's the reason the flagship smartphone from the company that prides itself on being different looks like every other phone on the shelf.
The S3 features a quad-core processor, 4.8-inch screen, 8-megapixel camera and will run on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. It represents some of the very best hardware inside a smartphone to date. Samsung:+1,000 points
HTC's One X features a quad-core processor, 4.7-inch screen, and 8-megapixel camera and runs Android 4.0 and went on sale a month ago. Umm, wait a minute. What happened to different Samsung? So much for innovation. Samsung:-1,000 points
The S3 not only doesn't come to the table with anything that stands out when it comes to specs, but its new software features scream copycat. The S-Voice recognition feature allows users to say commands like "How is the weather?" and the device will find results. Sound familiar? Introducing a voice feature is fine and expected, but acting like you reinvented the wheel in the process? BAAAAAA!!!! Samsung:-500 points
The physical design of Samsung's device is also nothing special. Granted, this isn't the most important thing in the world, but a phone that will likely cost $300 should probably not look and feel as if it's made of recycled plastic. In Samsung's defense, other smartphone makers fall victim to the same thing -- except Apple of course. Oh wait, that's the S3's primary competition! Samsung:-500 points
Final Score:Samsung:- 1,000 points
Is this final score harsh for a manufacturer that just introduced one of the best smartphones ever made? Yeah, probably. But you come to expect more from a company that has the arrogance to call Apple customers brainwashed "yes men." Samsung needed the S3 to be a huge step forward if it wanted to stop people from lining up outside Apple stores for the new iPhone. Instead, the company just matched what's already seen as the best smartphone on the market, HTC's One X. Sorry, that's not enough.
Sure, the S3 is going to sell like hotcakes and Samsung has struck a marketing deal that will make it the official phone of the summer Olympics, so it will be seen and purchased all over the globe. But for customers that may have considered an S3 instead of waiting for the next-generation iPhone, what are they left with? A device that's slightly better than the 4S, but will likely look outdated the second Apple announces its new handset.
Analysts don't expect Apple to launch its new smartphone until October, giving the company time to one-up the S3 anyway -- but Samsung just made it easy.
Samsung grabbed the crown of number-one phone maker in the world, but Nokia's Windows Phones may help the company get back in the game.
The South Korean electronics giant shipped more than 90 million handsets from January through March, dethroning Nokia, which had topped cell phone shipments dating back to 1998.
Samsung rose to the top in part due to Nokia's absences in the market, which helped the company gain over the past year. The Finnish phone company struggled to rebrand itself as a smartphone maker with its first Windows Phone handset, closing the window on opportunity in the transition.
In the meantime, Samsung's Galaxy smartphones raised the company to a new level in the mobile market, but Nokia has big plans for the rest of the year that may help it reclaim its title.
Nokia now has a presence at T-Mobile and AT&T in the U.S. with its Lumia phones and is planning to bring a device to Verizon by the end of the year. As Nokia becomes more established in the smartphone arena, it will become a much more formidable opponent for Samsung.
Nokia works to build its smartphone cache and broaden distribution for its handsets, but it faces tough competition that may stunt its growth significantly. Apple remains the world's top smartphone shipper, and it will be difficult for Nokia's Windows devices to gain a foothold against an established handset like the iPhone.
In addition, Samsung achieved its strong first quarter numbers without the help of the Galaxy S3, which many experts believe will be the company's best-selling device. Even if Nokia does gain momentum, competing with behemoths like the Galaxy S3 and the iPhone may hurt its chance to bounce back.
Samsung's top rank is not etched in stone, as Nokia can attest. And, if Nokia's Windows Phones don't find a sweet spot with consumers, it will have a hard time keeping up, much less climbing back to the top spot.
Samsung's smartphones and tablets are pushing it closer to Apple-level profits, and its strategy of faster, cheaper and in more hands, may overtake the iPhone and iPad maker.
The South Korean company raked in record profits topping $5 billion by using shrewd tactics, timing the release of its products before Apple's launch. Samsung, which makes about third of what Apple pulls in, plans to keep up the strategy, by selling its Galaxy S3, equipped with a faster quad-core chip, ahead of Apple's iPhone 5.
"Samsung and Apple are out-competing most major rivals, and the smartphone market is at risk of becoming a two-horse race," explained analyst Neil Mawston, comparing Samsung's 30 percent smartphone market share with Apple's nearly 25 percent hold, which dwarfs other competitors.
In addition, Samsung is making inroads in China, helping Android beat out Apple in the region despite high iPhone and iPad demand. The company's success lies largely from contracts it signed with all the major Chinese telecoms, including China Mobile, to gain a broader reach over Apple in Asia. By getting more phones and tablets into more locations, Samsung hopes to saturate the market in areas Apple has yet to reach.
Samsung is also seeing success by releasing a wider array of devices at various price points, making them more affordable to middle-class Chinese consumers. By exploiting Apple's weakness, offering just one high-end device, Samsung's strategy of selling cheaper devices in more developing areas, is giving it more volume, albeit at lower margins.
But Apple has an advantage in the tablet market. Samsung has yet to produce a serious competitor to the iPad, despite recent success of the hybrid Galaxy Note. Samsung is hoping a 10-inch version of its Galaxy Tab 2 will lure customers away from the iPad, but Apple's dominance lies with its apps, which dependent upon Google's Android platform.
Regardless, Samsung is maneuvering itself into a strong position by dominating 4G patent holdings, a tactic that will pay off as rivals look to manufacture and market next-generation 4G products.
Samsung's patent skirmishes with Apple have mostly focused on 3G technology, but Apple will have a much harder time to win legal battles against Samsung's stacked 4G arsenal, giving Samsung a potentially big payday if its rivals use and license its patented technologies.
Not to be outdone, the company is attacking all sides, as it releases a 7-inch version of the Galaxy Tab 2 to compete against the Kindle and Nook. While the Android tablet offers a more robust interface, allowing more freedom than Amazon and Barnes & Noble's devices, the challenge will be difficult since Kindle and Nook are well-established in the niche e-reader market.
Google, meanwhile, is preparing to launch its own branded tablets running on Android, posing another challenge to Samsung. Google's tablets will be aimed at the iPad, by the similar Android interface may be a bigger challenge to the Galaxy line.
The South Korean company is poised to draw closer to Apple. A combination of faster, cheaper products, along with a strong portfolio of 4G patents, gives Samsung an advantage in the smartphone race. But the company will struggle to stand out in the tablet market. Regardless, Samsung's market domination threatens to box out other Apple competitors as well, as consumers increasingly see two main choices for high-end mobile devices.
Samsung is beefing up the Galaxy S3 with a quad-core chip for smoother performance for gaming and multitasking, taking aim at Apple and its next-generation iPhone.
The Galaxy S3 will raise the bar for smartphone power with the Exynos 4 Quad processor, which doubles the speed of the S2. Samsung has yet to announced a launch date, but analysts expect it to beat the iPhone 5's fall release by at least a few months.
Samsung is taking a big leap forward by being one of the first companies to launch a quad-core phone -- and doing so with its flagship device, the S3. Over the past two years, the company has emerged as Apple's primary competition in the smartphone business, and releasing a quad-core device before the iPhone maker helps set it up as a true innovator.
Apple is now faced with the task of matching and surpassing its competitor's technology, rather than the other way around.
The Galaxy S3, with the extra power of the Exynos 4, represents a significant leap for smartphones -- by improving every task that users do on their devices. The S3 will easily outperform current top-of-the-line handsets like the iPhone 4S, and the Exynos 4 will make games look and run smoother, load the most complicated websites without a hitch and make demanding tasks like video streaming effortless.
Quad-core chips will go a long way to improve the performance, but the real difference maker will be in multitasking. For example, the Exynos 4 will allow users to stream videos and download apps in the background seamlessly. It's this ability to multitask and offer more true PC-like power that will truly set apart a quad-core device from a dual-core device.
Apple is expected to counter with a quad-core iPhone later this year, but Samsung's ability to launch its device first will go a long way in proving the company is leader in the smartphone industry, not a follower.
In addition, HTC and other rivals have announced quad-core devices later this year, but Samsung's Galaxy S3 is the most high-profile handset confirmed to feature the new hardware.
Apple and Samsung are pouring their resources into new flagship phones, in a heavyweight battle emerging later this year -- but why wait to judge when there are so many rumors flying around?
When Google purchased Motorola, industry experts believed it was a patent-play to shore up Android from lawsuits. But the Internet giant has far greater ambitions -- a line of Google phones -- which is leading to factions, and possibly, the downfall of the Android alliance.
The top execs of Apple and Samsung will meet to resolve a patent infringement case, the first move towards a detente in one of technology's most complicated legal battles.
Samsung's paying out a bundle of money after the Korean Fair Trade Commission found it guilty of not only price-fixing, but impeding an investigation.
AT&T, though, is making plenty of money, marking record iPad sales over the weekend and announcing it's giving out $250 million in grants to help schools keep their students from dropping out.
Meanwhile, Mike Daisey, who gained attention as the so-called top expert on Foxconn abuses in China, is now saying his translator led him astray.
Korean Officials Fine Samsung For Blocking Investigation
The Korean Fair Trade Commission has fined Samsung the equivalent of $356,000 U.S. dollars for obstructing its price-fixing investigation.
The penalty is in addition to the $12.6 million the country's FTC fined Samsung for price fixing, bringing the total to nearly $13 million. According to Korea Joonang Daily, security guards met the FTC investigators when they arrived at the plant to go through Samsung's offices. In addition, employees were ordered to delete data and replace computers with important information.
Also, an executive said he was away on a business trip to avoid an interview, and by the time FTC officials made their way into the Samsung offices, only one employee remained.
The commission has issued a total of $40 million in fines to Korea's tech companies, accusing them of colluding to raise phone prices.
AT&T Fighting Dropout Rate with $250 Million in Grants
AT&T will spend $250 million to help reverse a U.S. student dropout crisis.
Company officials said the company chose to target school drop-outs in response for calls for more corporate philanthropy. The investment is one of the largest corporate investments ever made in education, and expands on a small program the company started in 2008.
Grant applicants must be able to prove they have a dropout-prevention program with a successful track record. Applications that have efforts connected to science, technology, math or engineering will rank higher for the grants, which will range from $100,000 to $300,000 each.
Discredited Daisey Points Finger at Translator
Actor Mike Daisey, who made a now-discredited name for himself by taking on Apple over its plants in China, is challenging the credibility of a little-known Chinese translator who worked with him.
The woman disputes many of his claims about witnessing inhumane working conditions at iPad and iPhone plants. Daisey has recently acknowledged making up several facts about his visit, leading National Public Radio to pull a top-rated report based on his documentation.
Daisey's one-man show, "The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs," helped stir criticism of Apple and Foxcomm. However, rather than taking all the blame, he's now telling audience members he removed material he couldn't stand behind and informs the crowd that his recollections differ from his translator's.
AT&T Sets IPad Sales Record
Apple wasn't the only company making money from its new iPad launch last Friday, as AT&T said it set a record for the most iPad sales and activations in one day.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based company hasn't said exactly how many new iPad 2 tablets were sold last year, but some analysts estimated about one million units were sold on that device's first weekend -- meaning even more than a million new iPads may have been sold this past weekend, just after its launch.
At Apple's flagship Fifth Avenue store in New York city, an estimated 13,000 new iPads were sold during the first 12 hours of its launch, for an average of about 18 per minute. The store's daily revenue, usually falling between $700,000 to $1 million, was up to $11.5 million on launch day.
Apple Hits with Suit from Chinese Authors Over Piracy
A group of prominent Chinese writers want millions of dollars in compensation from Apple over allegedly selling pirated versions of their books in its iTunes store.
Twelve authors have filed three separate lawsuits in a Beijing court, saying 59 of their titles were sold unlicensed through Apple's iTunes online store. The three suits together demand $3.5 million from Apple.
The case is one of several legal battles for Apple in China. The company was recently targeted by Proview, a Chinese monitor and LED light maker, which says it registered the iPad trademark more than a decade ago and now seeks compensation as well from the Cupertino, Calif.-based company.
Legal action about Apple's slide-to-unlock technology is on hold, while protesters greeted iPad buyers at several stores.
Also in the news, Google disclosed it uses recycled water from toilets and showers to cool its Georgia computer center, Pinterest users are seeing a different profile page and iPhone users are among the happiest smartphone owners of all, though they don't like the battery life.
Court Suspends Slide-to-Unlock Trial
A trial to determine whether Samsung copied the slide-to-unlock technology of the iPhone and iPad is on hold, pending the outcome of a separate lawsuit.
A Mannheim, Germany regional court said it would wait for a decision in continuing procedures in Munich over the feature, which allows users to turn on a smartphone by swiping over a touchscreen. The pending decision in Mannheim comes two weeks after the same court dismissed a lawsuit on the technology's patent.
Apple is also locked with Motorola Mobility in a separate legal battle over the patent.
Google Uses Old Toilet Water to Cool Center
Google is using recycled toilet water to cool its data center in Douglas County, Ga., after realizing the water used by its cooling system didn't need to be clean enough to drink.
When Google first opened its Georgia computing center, it cooled the equipment using the same water people drink. However, it now uses 100 percent recycled water.
"When the residents of the county take showers and flush their toilets, they're helping to cool our data center," Joe Kava, who runs Google's data center operations and construction team.
While Google saves money with the recycled water, the main focus for using old toilet and shower water is to make sure the company isn't a drain on local water supplies -- and that the center can survive a drought, if need be.
IPhone Owners are Happiest
IPhone owners are still the happiest with their smartphones, but they're still disappointed with the devices' battery life.
According to J.D. Power's most recent study, Apple owners had a satisfaction show of 839 out of 1,000, and the iPhone took top marks for performance, ease of operation, features and physical design.
HTC took second place, with a score of 798; Samsung had 769 and Motorola had 758. Most smartphone owners, though, said battery life was the worst part of having a smartphone, and 4G smartphones were the worst of all.
Pinterest Changing Profile Pages
Pinterest revamped its users profile pages, making the content itself the cetner of attention.
Now, a profile photo is displayed on the upper left, with the side bar items pushed to the center. The user's description and contact information is now next to the profile photo, along with names of people they've repinned.
The boards are also different. Users don't just look at nine small thumbnail-sized photos, but are able to see a larger image of one pin and thumbnail photos for the rest.
Protesters, Meet IPad Buyers
Protesters marched outside Apple stores Friday to protest the new iPads, which they say come from factoriess criticized for their labor practices.
The protests were organized by the same group that mobilized consumers to deliver two online petitions from Change.org and SumofUs.org to Apple employees at stores in Washington, New York, San Franciso, London, Sydney and Bangalore.
Protesters were outnumbered by people who were standing in line to buy a new iPad.
IPads and IPhones will still be available in the Netherlands, after a judge rejected yet another Samsung bid to ban the devices, and Verizon now owns another small regional carrier in its quest to tie up more spectrum.
Meanwhile, politics is in tech news, with Sir Jonathan Ive, Apple's creative designer, invited to a state dinner tonight at the White House and former President Bill Clinton tagged as the keynote speaker for this year's CTIA converence in New Orleans. Nokia also touched on plans to build a tablet it hopes can compete with the iPad.
Court Rejects IPhone, IPad Ban
A Dutch court has rejected Samsung's bid to ban iPhone and iPad sales in the Netherlands, but Samsung said the court ruled it can still seek a ruling over Apple's use of Intel chips.
The Hague court Wednesday ruled Samsung can't assert its 3G patent claims against Apple's products that use Qualcomm's baseband chips, as Samsung has a licensing deal with the chipmaker.
The Dutch ruling comes as Apple returned to Samsung for the initial supply of touch-screen panels to make its latest iPad, which hits stores Friday and deepens the companies' business ties.
Verizon Snaps Up Pennsylvania Carrier
Verizon is buying Cellular One of Northern Pennsylvania, which won't add a lot of customers but will give it some more sought-after spectrum.
Financial terms haven't been disclosed, but the deal includes a spectrum license covering 114,000 Pennsylvania residents. Subscribers affected by the deal won't see changes for a while, but eventually, they'll become Verizon customers as well, which could change calling plans and device availability.
Apple's Ive Dining with Obama
Sir Jonathan Ive, Apple's senior VP of industrial design, will attend a White House state dinner tonight in honor of British Prime Minister David Cameron's visit to the U.S.
He'll join other British dignitaries, such as actor Hugh Bonneville from "Downton Abbey," golfer Rory McIlroy, actor Damien Lewis from "Homeland," Richard Branson and U.K. rock band Mumford & Sons, for the state dinner. Other guests include actor George Clooney and billionaire Warren Buffett, as well as New Orleans-based actor Wendell Pierce.
They'll all dine on bison Wellington, salad from first lady Michelle Obama's garden and other gourmet food on the lawn of the White House under a tent, a departure from the usual White House dinner procedure.
Nokia Working on IPad Competitor
Nokia design chief Marko Ahtisaari is working to create a tablet that will stand out among the other iPad challengers.
Nokia's CEO Stephen Elop said tablets are an interesting development for the Finnish company, but said a different approach needs to be taken to compete against the iPad. Nokia is expected to launch a tablet using Microsoft's Windows 8 software later this year.
Clinton To Deliver CTIA Keynote Speech
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton will be the final keynote speaker at this year's International CTIA Wireless event, planned for New Orleans the weekend of May 8-10.
Clinton will "share his unique perspective on preparing leaders to meet the challenges of global interdependence and implementing innovative solutions to some of the world's most pressing issues," officials said. His address will come on the final day of the event.
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