A plethora of new smartphones are about to be released on the market but Samsung’s release on August 19 of its new Galaxy Note7 is expected to create a stir.
Samsung New Zealand commercial head Stefan Lecchi said larger-screen devices were popular in New Zealand because of the way people wanted to use their phones.
"Kiwis love using their smartphones for work and play and the awesome creative and entertainment features of the Galaxy Note7 will only see this increasing."
Asked whether there had been a deliberate move back to larger devices, Mr Lecchi said New Zealand customers had moved to larger screens to view web pages, and watch videos and movies in clearer resolutions.
Although most people used smartphones, people continued to be keen to upgrade to the latest device, at a reasonable price.
For older people, the devices provided larger numbers.
The Corning Gorilla glass on the screen was robust and new technology made it easier to see images in either low light or sunshine.
The device, which has a recommended retail price of $1599, has a 5.7-inch, or 14.5cm-wide screen with features based on the Samsung Edge7.
The Note7 has a metal body and is water and dust resistant, meaning it can operate under water to a depth of 1.5m.
That provided "heaps of room" to take a lot of notes with the new S2 pen which made the user feel "like you are writing on paper", he said.
In an effort to make the writing process as smooth as possible, darker black lines could be provided on the screen by pressing the pen harder, just as it was possible to press harder with a pencil on paper and get a darker, thicker line, Mr Lecchi said in a phone interview.
For those users wanting to take advantage of the water resistant features of the smartphone, it could be lifted out of water and written on immediately.
One of the most innovative features for the Note7 was the introduction of new content security, he said.
The addition of an iris scanner bolstered the Note7’s other security features, including fingerprint scanning and Samsung Knox.
Iris scanning was regarded as the most difficult security feature to crack, he said.
"The Note7 offers more authentication options that can be used interchangeably depending on how people use their phones, wherever they are or whatever they are doing."
The smartphone had 4GB RAM and 64GB of internal memory but offered expandable storage and microSD support up to 256GB.
The rear camera was dual pixel 12 megapixel and for those wanting "selfies", Samsung had increased the front camera to 5MP.
Asked about the important issue of battery life, Mr Lecchi said the Note7 was equipped with a 3500mAh battery, easy power management through Smart Manager and charged quickly using the new USB type-c port.
Wireless charging was also available.
The Note5 charged in 90min and the 7 in 95min but it had an extra 500mAh capacity.
