Samsung Electronics has unveiled a flexible display along with new developer tools for its Bixby and SmartThings platforms.
The Korea vendor introduced at Samsung Developer Conference 2018 in San Francisco on November 7 what it called new mobile experiences with One UI and Infinity Flex Display.
The Infinity Flex Display together with One UI offers a compact smartphone that unfolds to reveal a larger immersive display for multitasking and viewing content, according to Samsung. The app experience seamlessly transitions from the smaller display to the larger display as the device unfolds. In addition, users can browse, watch, connect and multitask simultaneously using three active apps on the larger display.
Because the Infinity Flex Display is a next generation platform, Samsung said it invites developers to participate in this journey from the beginning. Working collaboratively with Google and the Android developer community, Samsung will maximize the potential of this new form factor to create an optimized foldable user experience.
"The foldable display lays the foundation for a new kind of mobile experience. We are excited to work with developers on this new platform to create new value for our customers. We cannot wait to see where the technology and collaboration takes us," said DJ Koh, president and CEO of IT & Mobile Communications Division at Samsung.
The new interface design called One UI is a clean and minimal design that keeps the most relevant content on the bottom half of the screen, making it more natural and comfortable for one-handed use, said the vendor. The experience was reengineered to reduce clutter and distractions, allowing the user to better focus and quickly navigate their phone.
Building a Scalable Intelligence Platform
"We have achieved significant advancements in AI and IoT, which will be crucial to bringing our connected living vision to life," said Koh. "The progress made to Bixby and SmartThings opens a new chapter where third party products and services can be integrated to the AI and IoT platforms at scale."
Bixby started as an intelligent interface, a practical way to use one's voice to interact with the phone. Now, Samsung said it is evolving it into a scalable intelligence platform to support the diverse products and services in a consumer's life.
To make it easier for developers to scale services powered by Bixby, Samsung is introducing the Bixby Developer Studio. The collection of tools provides an intuitive way for developers and partners to infuse intelligence into more services and devices, according to Samsung. Developers will be able to create Bixby Capsules - features or services created for Bixby - and make them accessible to consumers in the Bixby Marketplace. The Bixby platform will allow developers to adapt their capsules from mobile phones and televisions to home appliances and other products across the Samsung ecosystem.
As part of its efforts to scale Bixby services, Samsung is expanding support to five new languages in the coming months, including British English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
Delivering a Connected Lifestyle for Everyone
Samsung's connected living vision is centered around an open IoT ecosystem that unites the growing number of connected devices on a single platform. Available in more than 200 markets around the world, SmartThings delivers a connected experience in a single app, bringing IoT beyond the smart home, into the car, office and everywhere in-between, said Samsung.
Samsung is now offering a new suite of tools in the redesigned SmartThings Developer Workspace. These enhanced tools include SmartThings Cloud Connector, SmartThings Device Kit and SmartThings Hub Connector. Developers can build and launch on the platform, as well as easily integrate cloud-connected, Zigbee and Z-Wave devices.
Additionally, the upgraded Works with SmartThings (WWST) certification program gives developers direct access to SmartThings experts and resources. WWST helps ensure devices and services are fully optimized for the platform, so consumers enjoy the best possible experience.
Samsung unveils Infinity Flex Display
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