Samsung is preparing to release a new smartphone powered by its own internal platform, Tizen, as a follow up to the Samsung Z1. The first Tizen-powered smartphone was an entry level, sub-$100 device but the Samsung Z2 appears to be a notch more desirable and powerful. However, at this juncture the information that is known about the device is somewhat sparse. It’s understood that the handset will be based around either a 4.0-inch or a 4.5-inch Samsung AMOLED panel of unknown resolution, which is good news. Under the screen there will be a quad core processor but we do not know the type or specification, although it will come with 1 GB of RAM. This is unlikely to be the same handicap with Tizen as it might be with Android, as Samsung’s home grown operating system has a lighter footprint and is less demanding of the hardware. There will be a 2,000 mAh rechargeable battery and the handset has dual SIM slots, supporting 4G LTE networking and VoLTE, Voice-over-LTE, technology. We’ve no word on internal storage or if there is a MicroSD card slot although it is hard to imagine Samsung not including one. We also do not know the specification of the cameras included on the device.
Three pictures have surfaced of what is believed to be the Samsung Z2 at the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 launch event, showing below the article. The device as a distinctively Samsung look about it although it has thicker bezels and a squared off rear camera. The Tizen-powered Samsung Z2 is expected to be officially announced later this week according to the source website, which also reports that the device will be cheaper than its predecessor at 4,499 rupees, under $70, but it might not be released until October 2016. For the money, customers will also receive the Jio 4G Preview offer valid for 90 days. This Jio 4G Preview provides customers with unlimited downloads, HD voice, texting and access to the Jio Apps Suite on the device, which includes Jio Play, Jio Music, Jio Drive and Jio Money.
Samsung’s own platform, Tizen, has its origins in Bada. If the Samsung Z2 comes with Tizen 3.0 at launch, given that Samsung are not expected to showcase the third version of their platform until September, this gives credence to a October launch. Tizen 3.0 is a technological upgrade to the platform, which brings with it support for 64-bit architecture (both ARM and Intel x64 chipsets), plus significantly improved graphics performance and support for the new Vulkan API. Until now, Tizen has been a lighter operating system compared with Android but we will see how well the third version performs on existing platform. The second generation Tizen-powered smartphone certainly sounds like it’s offering a lot for the money.
