By David Ponce

Samsung is on a roll with their commercials poking fun at Apple fanboys. Their commercial that aired during yesterday’s Superbowl continued on the theme with a 90 second smorgasbord that featured The Darkness playing “I Believe In A Thing Called Love” while hordes of previously brainwashed Apple hipsters were freed from the line-up chains to celebrate in hyperbolic euphoria. There’s a Galaxy Note somewhere in there, but the overarching theme isn’t so much the features of the device as much as a not so subtle poke at fanboy mentality. It’s fun to watch.

VIA [ UberGizmo ]

By David Ponce

CES is a big place. Much too big for my feet to canvas in it’s its entirety, so above is a video of a Samsung device. It’s a video I should have taken, because damn it, it’s pretty awesome. It’s a transparent smart window. It looks, to use the overused analogy, like it’s straight out of Minority Report. Not only is it a one-way window (you can only see out, not the other way around), but it’s touchscreen and very interactive. As you can see in the video, you can use it to check on many things, like the quintessential Twitter and Facebook. And you can also draw blinds, selecting just how much outside light gets through.

It’s a fun video to watch and it’s catching on because, well, there’s a cute girl talking about cool tech. But I can totally see this being the future, replacing our boring old perv-friendly windows of today. But as most cool prototypey tech, there’s no price or availability. Although the girl says “coming months”… That could be, like, years!

VIA [ Teh Intertubes ]

By David Ponce

A while ago we posted a video of Samsung’s commercial for the Galaxy S II. We liked it a lot because, well, it was funny and true. It depicted stereotypical Apple customers lining up for hours for an upcoming launch, only to be made to feel stupid by the sudden appearance of Samsung’s device. Well, here’s another one. It’s just as clever and hopefully marks the start of a new campaign, like Apple “Mac v. PC”.

VIA [ UberGizmo ]

By David Ponce

It’s an iPhone world out there but that thing isn’t the only kid on the block (a new one’s coming out tomorrow, by the way). There are people who make a point not to buy the latest from Cupertino, and if you’re one of them, perhaps the Samsung Galaxy S II is down your alley:

AT&T Galaxy S II i9100 features a 4.3″ 480×800 super AMOLED display, 3G/4G connectivity, 1.2GHz dual-core processor, dual-facing cameras (8MP rear, 2MP front), 1GB RAM, 16GB built-in storage (expandable via microSD), TouchWiz UI, HDMI, microUSB, Bluetooth, GPS, Android 2.3OS, and more.

If you’re willing to subsidize the heavy hardware with a 2 year contract, you can knock $500 off its regular $600 price. That’s $100 shipped to you for free.

[ $500 Off On Samsung Galaxy S II ] VIA [ LogicBuy ]

By David Ponce

I have this TV. And it’s gorgeous. I bought it 18 months ago (though this one is the new 2011 model). I didn’t use money. I used debt. Yeah… quite a bit of debt to be honest, since at the time the thing was a cool $3k! But when I saw it in person, I couldn’t resist. I’m still paying for it every month and will for some time too and don’t mind so much. Though to be honest, patience really is a virtue since you can now own this for all of $1,499 with a Blu-Ray player thrown in. That’s after a 36%, $830 rebate.

Let me tell you, the UN55D6000 (sexy name) is slim like you wouldn’t believe. You can actually hang it like a painting, without needing one of those bulky metal mounts. The image is sharp and the contrast and color just take your breath away. True story. The fact that this post is sponsored has nothing to do with it. So get on it, only a few days left on this deal.

[ Samsung 55-Inch LED HDTV At $830 Off ] VIA [ LogicBuy ]

By Colin Ackerman

I know what you’re thinking: why would anyone, anywhere, ever want a foldable TV if it doesn’t fit in your pocket, which this concept definitely doesn’t? Samsung says that by folding (or “flexing” might be more accurate) their display, they can target the 3D sweet spot to viewers anywhere in the room. My guess is that the TV would have some way of detecting the general distance and orientation to viewers, and then the screen (an AMOLED panel) would flex to optimize the 3D experience.

Samsung says that something like this might show up in 5-10 years, but it seems like that’s going to be way, way too late to solve the 3D sweetspot issue, which is just one of the many problems plaguing 3D TV. If you remember, 3D TV was one of the things being flogged last year at CES, and it seems like this year is probably going to be no different, no matter how reluctant consumers might be to buy into the questionable hype.

VIA [ Akihabara News ]

By David Ponce

I have a Romanian friend who’ll get a kick out of this. See, the Samsung Galaxy Tab is a great product and everything, but what really sets it apart is a snazzy “Porn” button. While awesome (and incredibly juvenile… lulz), pressing it won’t take you, well… where you might think. In fact, a closer inspection of the above picture might alert you to the fact that this particular Galaxy Tab is not in English. In fact, it is set to Romanian, and in that language the word “Start” translates to “Pornire”. The device shortens it, and young adults everywhere giggle a little.

[ Mobilissimo (Romanian site on Google Translate) ] VIA [ UberGizmo ]

Today Samsung announced the follow-up to their NX10 APS-C sensor mirrorless camera with the new 14.6MP NX100 that includes ISO settings up to 6400, a 3-inch AMOLED display, 720P ‘HD’ video recording and an interesting new i-Function lens control mechanism. When the extra i-Function button on the lens is pressed, the manual focus wheel does double duty allowing a user to adjust parameters such as shutter speed, aperture, EV, white balance and ISO. It’s actually not a bad idea given how cramped these smaller interchangeable lens cameras are, allowing users to adjust settings without having to look away from the viewfinder.

When available (those details are currently MIA) the NX100 will have a couple of lens options including a 20-50mm compact zoom, followed shortly by a 20mm wide pancake lens. By the first half of 2011 a 60mm macro and 18-200mm super zoom lens will also be hitting the market. And by the second half of 2011 users will also have the choice of 16mm, 85mm and 16-80mm lenses.

By David Ponce

If you’ve never heard of Swype, it’s a company that’s looking to change the way we enter text into mobile devices. So far, you’ve had two options: T9 and iPhone-like qwerty keyboards. Three options, really, if you count Multitap, but who uses that anyway? All these methods involve tapping distinct buttons. Swype however has you moving your finger from one letter to the next, without ever lifting it. This makes for one-handed text input that’s supposed to feel natural and intuitive. The system essentially makes out what you’re trying to say from what looks like a bunch on unintelligible squibbles. Early reviews were positive and now the company has announced that the first Swype-enabled phone to hit the market will be the Omnia II, on Verizon, on December 2nd.

The above video shows a side by side comparison of Swype versus someone typing on the iPhone. Never mind that the iPhone user is obviously challenged and types slower than my grandmother would. What’s interesting is to see Swype in action, and keep in mind that it’s one-handed.

[ Swype ] VIA [ Techcrunch ]

Article courtesy of John Beck, from The Processor.

Have you ever wished your phone was a little more environmentally friendly? I haven’t because I’m a thoughtless oaf, but for tech-savvy eco warriors who have, Samsung has launched the Blue Earth handset.

The touch screen eco-phone is made from material extracted from water bottles, and is free from nastiness like bromine-based flame retardants, PVC and phthalate esters. It also sports a built in solar panel to take advantage of what Samsung helpfully points out, is one of the most eco-friendly energy sources.

The Blue Earth ships with a “unique user interface designed to draw attention to preserving our fragile environment.” Less impressive than it sounds, this basically amounts to the option of switching to energy efficient settings for screen brightness, backlight duration and Bluetooth at the touch of a button. For the environmentally conscious app-addict, there’s even a built in pedometer, which allows users to smugly calculate the number of trees they’ve saved from an untimely death by walking instead of driving.

The green theme extends to the packaging, which is easy to recycle and printed with tasty soy ink. It is also adorned with what Samsung describes as “a simple DIY idea” and I’d describe as “clutching at straws” – reusing the box as a photo frame or a pencil holder.

Of course all this of this is for naught if the phone is horrible to use, something which no one seems to be in a position to confirm or deny at the moment. Specs look fairly average (3 inch capacitive screen, up to 16GB of external memory, 3.2 Megapixel camera), and given that its eco-friendly credentials will likely add a premium, it may struggle to find customers away from dedicated environmentalists.

The Blue Earth is set to launch in Sweden this month followed by rollout across other European and Asian countries.

[ Press Release ]