Most mobile phones, Galaxy line included, have an FM radio, but Samsung has decided to leave it out of their flagship Galaxy S4, here’s why:
According to Samsung, the majority of people listen to the radio using online streaming services, such as TuneIn (which costs data).
Apple has never included an FM radio, but that’s always been the case. However its become quite a tradition for Samsung to include FM radios on their devices, so why the sudden change?
Here is Samsung Russia’s explanation:
Our studies show a trend shift of interest to digital broadcasting, specifically – focus on listening to music content in social networks or on YouTube. The flagship model of our products are focused on customers who use digital content, which use modern formats and channels of information consumption.
Although this is probably the case for most users, and almost definitely the case for users looking to purchase the S4. The S4 is a high-tech, flagship smartphone. I think its safe to assume that Samsung are expecting users that pick up an S4 to not only be “tech-savvy” but also be the type of users that have big data packages, hence the expectation of using an on-line radio.
Is this a good idea from Samsung, or have they got an ulterior motive such as saving space on the motherboard? Either way I don’t think Samsung are going to avoid negative feedback by leaving out what has been considered a standard feature for mobile phones for quite some time.
This could also be a step forward in terms of how we use our smartphones. If other manufacturers follow suit, we may see some big changes as to how we listen and interact with our music and other streaming services. With companies such as Spotify, Pandora and Rdio are already offering services such as personalized “Radio” based on your listening habits and trends.
[Source: SamMobile]