Samsung Electronics filed to trademark the term “DeX Pad” last Friday, having submitted its application to do so to the European Unity Intellectual Property Office. The same name has already circulated the industry in recent months, with the gadget being rumored to arrive as a direct successor to the original Samsung Desktop Experience (DeX) station which debuted alongside the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus last spring. The new device is expected to accompany the Galaxy S9 lineup but should also be compatible with all of Samsung’s Android flagships released over the course of 2017. With the first DeX being advertised as an accessory for the Galaxy S8 series and the Galaxy Note 8, its successor is expected to follow suit and also be offered alongside the Galaxy Note 9 in the second half of the year.
Much like its name suggests, the DeX Pad is likely to be designed as a jotter on which a compatible Samsung-made handset is meant to be laid, whereas the previous gadget functioned as a traditional dock used for sitting supported smartphones. It’s still unclear how the design change will affect the positioning of ports used for connecting Samsung’s devices to the DeX Pad and having the latter communicate with external hardware like monitors, keyboards, and mouses, though the change is expected to be significant. Alternatively, the gadget may not require a wired connection with a smartphone in order to communicate and could instead exchange data wirelessly while also doubling as a wire-free charger. Such a possibility is even more plausible in the context of Samsung being one of the largest pioneers of contemporary wireless charging solutions for Android smartphones.
The South Korean tech giant is expected to offer the DeX Pad at a price point comparable to the one associated with the original DeX station which launched at $150. The accessory is also likely to be bundled with Galaxy S9 pre-orders in certain markets, though it remains to be seen whether it manages to gain more traction than its predecessor did. Phone-to-PC solutions are not a new idea but only recently became viable for everyday use thanks to major technological advancements, i.e. the fact that modern smartphones are significantly more powerful than handsets released a few years back. Besides Samsung, such platforms are now also being developed and promoted by Huawei, as well as a number of independent phone accessory makers.