Samsung Z First Look: Built on the roots of Bada, This Time it's Stark

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Although Samsung shares a great repo with Google, however, the South Korean giant has confirmed its plans to support the Tizen OS. The company sees the Tizen operating system, as an alternative to Android, iOS and Windows Phone.

 

Tizen has been development for years. Samsung wholeheartedly adopted the new mobile OS platform when it unveiled the Tizen OS-powered Samsung Gear 2 and Gear Fit.

 

Now, the company aims to sell its first ever Tizen OS-powered smartphone- the Samsung Z, in select countries later this year. The new Tizen OS based smartphone from Samsung was originally announced at the Tizen Developers Conference in San Francisco in June this year.

Samsung Z First Look: Built on the roots of Bada, This Time it's Stark

Back then, it was said that the device would be made available in Russia, though that didn't happen to date. Again, it is being actually said that Samsung hopes to sell a slew of Tizen OS-based phones in India. In fact, there have also been reports Samsung will release a low-end Tizen OS-powered phone in December this year.

Samsung Z First Look: Built on the roots of Bada, This Time it's Stark

Coming back to the Samsung Z, the Tizen OS-based handset is largely a mid-end device. It comes with a 4.8-inch Super AMOLED 720p HD display, and is equipped with a quad-core Snapdragon 800 processor under the hood. While the spec sheet isn't that fascinating, meanwhile, the success of the phone is largely dependent on how intuitive experience the Tizen OS will provide to users.

At the ongoing Samsung Developers Conference in San Francisco, we got a rare chance to spend some time with the Samsung Z smartphone. Here our first impressions.

Samsung Z First Look: Built on the roots of Bada, This Time it's Stark

Samsung Z: Form Factor, Design, Display and Operating System

The handset itself has a sleek looking design. It might not look as cool as the Galaxy Alpha, but it does have an appealing personality. In fact, the phone is identical to the Samsung Galaxy S5, at least, in terms of design.

Similar to the Galaxy S5, the Samsung Z has an oval-shaped button beneath the screen. Along the top edge, you'll notice an infrared port (IR). The right-hand side of the phone houses the power button, and at the left, the volume rocker. Notably, the Samsung Z has the same faux leather back cover that new seems to be regular on Samsung's devices.

The handset measures 38.2 x 69.8 x 8.5mm. In comparison, the Samsung Z is slightly thicker than the Samsung's Galaxy S5. At 136g, it is lighter than the Galaxy S5 (145g). The Samsung Z comes in two colors: Black and Gold.

Samsung Z First Look: Built on the roots of Bada, This Time it's Stark

The screen size is 4.8-inches (Super AMOLED). Although the phone's screen resolution looks dated, at 1280 x 720 pixels; still it appears bright and vibrant. Technically speaking, the display resolution stands on where compared to other handsets in the same class. When tested in real world, the screen looks bright and is certainly fantastic.

Samsung Z runs on Tizen OS out-of-the box. Yes, you hard it right! It's not running Android. The OS has a flat look, with widgets that appear on the four available home screens. Visually, though, you'll definitely find similarities to an Android mobile OS.

Samsung Z First Look: Built on the roots of Bada, This Time it's Stark

At the bottom of the screen sits a dock with eight circular icons; all you need to swipe up to reveal all apps installed on the handset. Those eight icons remain visible at the top of the screen, even as you swipe through the multiple screens showing installed apps. The basic UI setting on the Samsung Z doesn't look entirely different from a TouchWiz-layered Galaxy S5.

The Tizen OS has a handful of apps at the moment. Interestingly, the Tizen OS will support native and web apps. S Note, S Voice and S Health are among the few apps come pre-loaded on the Samsung Z.

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