Samsung has launched the first Tizen-based smartphone dubbed Z1. The new arrival is a budget unit available exclusively in India for approximately $90. Given Samsung’s huge success in the Android field, the launch of the new smartphone OS might seem a somewhat surprising move for the Korean company.
What is Tizen OS?
Tizen is an operating system developed by a consortium of companies comprised of mobile network operators, OEMs and manufacturers. The platform is targeting a wide variety of devices, including smartphones, smartwatches, smart TVs, digital cameras, etc. Samsung has already implemented Tizen in its high-end smartwatch Gear S, as well as in its cameras.
Just like Android, Tizen is a Linux-based open source platform. This allows phone makers to tinker with the software customizing the OS to their needs. Tizen allows app developers to use HTML5 which makes app development relatively accessible, but it hasn’t got much support from developers. Whilst Samsung developed a selection of apps to make the Indian launch possible, Tizen's early adopters will need to make do without some popular apps and games.
Why is Samsung investing in a new mobile OS?
Although Samsung is still the world’s largest manufacturer of Android smartphones, it finds it hard to differentiate its offer from the competition. This has resulted in Samsung’s recent market share loss. Tizen-based handsets might help Samsung stand out from the crowd in developing markets by offering faster website load times and longer battery life in comparison to their Android-equipped budget counterparts.
According to Ben Wood from the telecoms consultancy CCS Insight, India is “a logical place for Samsung to bring Tizen because it's such a cost sensitive market. If it can successfully ramp up volume in the country, there would be little reason for it not to bring it to other low-cost markets this year.”
Detecting Tizen-based Samsung Z1 with DeviceAtlas
With the release of the first Tizen-based device, more low-end users might be able to access websites on-the-go. Hence mobile web developers need make sure that they’re capable of detecting Tizen-based devices. You can do it with DeviceAtlas’s database which has already been updated with Samsung Z1 specs.
via: samsungtomorrow