By Sonia Su
BU News Service

LAS VEGAS—Samsung Electronics announced a major upgrade from 4k Ultra HD to the new SUHD TV that runs on the Tizen operating system at a press conference Monday afternoon at the Mandalay Bay convention center.

Tizen OS will serve as the backbone for all of this year’s smart TVs, offering three new series of SUHD TVs in nine screen sizes from 48 to 88 inches. The sets will include a new user interface and Quick Connect to link various devices to the TVs, said Tim Baxter, president and COO of Samsung Electronics America. Tizen’s features include the ability to stream PlayStation Now games.

SUHD TVs are 2.5 times brighter than conventional TVs, with two times the color adjustment, offering a visual experience with striking colors.

Samsung’s platform powered by Tizen allows Samsung Smart TVs to become part of a much larger content ecosystem, allowing easy collaboration with a number of partners for ultimate flexibility and unparalleled access, according to a press release.

Baxter stressed the company’s responsibility to create new markets in three ways: providing the largest UHD TV line, partnering with content providers such as Amazon and Netflix to provide more than 500 titles and pushing major marketing campaigns to have more than 8,000 UHD “retail experience zones.”

About half of UHD TV sales are now curved sets, with the market expected to quadruple in 2015, Baxter said. In fact, Samsung announced the UHD Alliance to support the UHD ecosystem by creating, mastering and delivering UHD content with industry leaders. The alliance hopes to establish standards and guidelines for the UHD ecosystem.

Samsung also emphasized its approach to the TVs’ designs, which are inspired by contemporary art and architecture. TVs start with picture quality, but design also plays a large role, with both modern and minimalist features—including the new chamfered bezels, which make the SUHD sets “stylish from any angle,” digital colorist Stephen Nakamura said.

Boo-Keun Yoon, Samsung’s co-CEO and head of the electronics business, is scheduled to speak at the keynote at 6:30 p.m. PST. Follow #bunsces on Twitter for live updates.

By Sonia Su
BU News Service

LAS VEGAS—LG Electronics announced its G Flex smartphone successor G Flex2 Monday morning at the Consumer Electronics Show at the Mandalay Bay convention center. Following the curved screen trend, the G Flex2 has a 23-degree arc and is available in platinum silver and flamenco red.

Equipped with the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor, the 5.5-inch smartphone possesses features similar to its older models—such as the curved battery, flexible display and Knock Code from G3 that provides swipe access to display key information without unlocking the phone.

New updates include Gesture Shot with laser auto focus and better image stabilization, a 20-percent increase in screen durability from its Dura Guard Glass and an advanced self-healing process in under 10 seconds for scratches to its back. The ease and convenience of taking selfies was stressed during the press conference.

With the increase in resolution from 720p in its predecessor to 1080p full HD, G Flex2 boasts a crisp display with OLED technology and runs on Android 5.0 Lollipop—although a Lollipop 5.1 update is expected to “launch in February ahead of a summer 2015 release,” according to IT Pro.

Other topics covered during LG’s press conference included innovation in the Internet of Things (IoT) that are “centered around our life,” said Dr. Skott Ahn, president and CTO of LG Electronics.

It is not just about the apps or devices that control IoT, but rather “what connects everything we value and goes through our phones,” he told the audience of about 1,000 reporters and photographers.

LG’s Head of Product Development Tim Alessi also announced that seven OLED TV sets are scheduled to release in 2015. Advantages of OLED include “unmatched contrast levels” and “perfect viewing angles,” Alessi said, and added that LG Display invested $600 million to expand OLED technology. 8K demos will be available at the LG booth at CES.

Available starting at the end of January in Korea, the LG G Flex2 is expected to release in global markets shortly after, according to its press release.

For more updates on everything happening at CES, be sure to follow #bunsces on Twitter.