The long awaited Samsung’s snazzy new Galaxy is out to put a world of hurt on Apple’s iPhone.
The South Korean tech titan “unpacked” its new Galaxy S4 smartphone Thursday night before a nearly packed Radio City Music Hall that had several users vowing to switch from their iPhones.
The Samsung Galaxy S4 smartphone features touch-free control, which allows users to maneuver apps by hovering their fingers over them.
Before an estimated 4,500 invite-only media guests — and 400,000 viewers watching on Samsung’s live YouTube feed — the company unveiled a nifty new upgrade to last year’s S3 device that won over the audience with several innovative features, including the S4’s advanced 13-megapixel camera and a feature that pauses video when the user takes his eyes off the display.
Several guests who had a chance to test-drive the device after the hour-long presentation were comparing the S4 to the iPhone — saying it made Apple’s flagship brand seem so 2012.
“This makes the iPhone seem outdated, really,” said Evron Auyeung, 24, of Astoria.
The Samsung Galaxy S4 lets users remove unwanted background objects from their photos.
“I’m going to switch from my iPhone,” said Sarah Culha, 24, of Harlem. “The S4 is so seamless, it honestly feels like the future.”
The S4 comes with an advanced app that translates about a dozen languages, plus touch-free control, which lets you maneuver apps on the screen without ever touching it — you simply hover your finger about an inch above the screen.
“While the new phone falls short of being revolutionary, it brims with clever capabilities,” said Consumer Reports’ tech editor Mike Gikas.
Chief among them was the camera that comes with a myriad of features, most of them new to smartphones or an improvement on existing technology.
With the Galaxy S4, photographers will have a 13-megapixel camera available and can take dual-shot photos.
Dual-shot mode, for example, allows users to take still photos or video using the 13-megapixel rear lens and the front-facing 2-megapixel lens so that the shooter’s face appears in the frame.
Another mode lets you record a voice or ambient sound that plays over a still photo, while “Drama shot” takes a multitude of frames in just a few seconds to create an artsy composite photo of, say, a person running.
Attendees try out the new Samsung Galaxy S4 smartphone, which will be available in 155 countries in April.
And an “eraser” feature lets you delete background objects from a photo with a swipe of a finger — or an annoying photo-bomber.
The S4’s 5-inch diagonal display is considerably larger than the iPhone’s 4-inch screen, but at least one Radio City audience member wasn’t about to trade in her iPhone just yet.
J.K. Shin, president of Samsung, shows off the new Samsung Galaxy S4 smartphone at Radio City Music Hall.
The S4 is “complex, revolutionary and visually appealing, but I'm not getting one," said Kasia Krzoska, 24, of Upper Saddle River, N.J.
“The features are cool, the dual cam is really neat, but the phone is too overwhelming.”
The S4 will be available in 155 countries at the end of April. Samsung would not disclose the price.
