Since smartphones began to emerge as devices that could change the way we go about our daily business, the technological advances coming from companies like Apple and Samsung might appear to have slowed down a shade.
This isn’t necessarily true. The great leaps forward in terms of touchscreens, huge processors, GPS, and voice control were flamboyant and impressive, but perhaps advances now are subtler and certainly more health conscious.
The Samsung S5 will have fingerprint recognition which is becoming more prominent on the modern phone, as are features like waterproofing, dust proofing, complimentary ‘smart health products’, and a metal chassis.
Fingerprint recognition on the S5 will be used for its link-ups with corporations like PayPal. You’ll be able to buy things online and pay with a swipe of your finger, taking much of the labour out of the transaction.
The brightness and clarity of the modern phone screen are practically supernatural. The Samsung S5 sports an impressive 415ppi (pixels per inch) on a huge 5.1inch screen. The HTC One – the phone which many considered to be 2013/2014’s benchmark modern phone – has a phenomenal 468ppi on its slightly smaller 4.7inch screen. That’s generally accepted as more than a human eye can actually discern.
Phones such as the highly acclaimed Moto X display 316ppi on a 4.7inch screen and this is more than enough for most users. The Moto X is highly affordable and does have a good camera, but the cameras on the new Galaxy S5 and the HTC One are truly astounding. The focusing and motion sensors on modern phone cameras are incredible and particularly relevant to sports fans taking action shots.
Perhaps the biggest breakthrough area in the modern smartphone, exhibited on the Samsung S5 is the heart rate measurer. This doesn’t involve shoving the phone up your jumper, but rather placing your finger on the back of the phone on a small panel which measures your pulse.
The best use of this kind of technology is probably in a more passive sense, and this is where complimentary devices like the Samsung Gear Fit become useful. The Gear Fit is a wristband which includes colour screen, pedometer, heart rate tracker and MP3 shuffler, lookout for phone manufacturers developing complementary products in the future.
