All members of Samsung’s Galaxy S10 family will be capable of Netflix HDR playback from day one, the video streaming service confirmed as part of an update to its support pages.
HDR 10 capabilities have been touted as one of the main selling points of the newly launched Android flagships which Samsung is trying to advertise as multimedia powerhouses, both in terms of capture and playback.
The latest version of the Netflix Android app also brings support for HD playback to Samsung’s Galaxy M10, M20, and M30 lineups. Announced earlier this year, the new product family is meant to succeed the Galaxy J range and blur the lines between the company’s entry-level and mid-range products. With the addition of Netflix HD support, that goal is bound to be all the more achievable, though there are currently no indications of Samsung planning to bring the Galaxy M series to the West.
The update to Netflix’s support pages indirectly also reveals how many Galaxy M configurations Samsung is planning in total as it places that number at twelve, or four specifications per device. This particular information has yet to be officially confirmed by Samsung as the company was so far reluctant to talk about concrete figures, insisting it will launch as many variants as needed if the market demands so.
Netflix has not forgotten about Qualcomm’s latest chips either as the new update to its mobile app makes its HD service compatible with the Snapdragon 855, Snapdragon 710, and the Snapdragon 675. The change guarantees every single Android smartphone fueled by one of those silicon modules will support the feature, so it’s unlikely Netflix will be mentioning individual models set to be released later this year in its future updates as HD support will be a given. The same applies retroactively, so e.g. many contemporary Nokia handsets from HMD Global can deliver HD-quality Netflix streams despite not a single mention of them being found on the video company’s pages.
The last generation of Samsung’s Android flagships offers the same level of Netflix integration but the Galaxy S8 series was never given the same treatment, having only received HD support without HDR playback. That injustice is unlikely to be repeated as the two companies are cooperating much more closely these days.
The Galaxy S10 family will officially become available for purchase later this week, with Samsung preparing a global release. Not all of the company’s target markets will receive all colors and memory configurations that are in the works but the most popular (read: cheapest) choices are expected to be readily available in virtually every part of the world. The South Korean tech giant is hoping for a strong pre-order performance and has already invested plenty in maximizing early-order figures. Among other things, many of its subsidiaries are offering $130 gift certificates or free Galaxy Buds (value at around the same) to all early adopters.
In terms of multimedia relevancy, the Galaxy S10 line is likely to be the final series of Samsung‘s Android flagships to be equipped with 3.5mm headphone jacks, according to a number of previous reports.