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Samsung Pay to remain free to lessen Apple Pay’s expansion
Samsung Pay is a popular online payments platform in South Korea. Earlier, Apple Pay launched in the market, which is becoming the second biggest option for consumers who have iPhone devices. As part of lessening Apple Pay’s expansion, Samsung Pay will remain free.
Earlier, Samsung announced that it will not charge any fees to card issuers in South Korea for the Samsung Pay service. KoreaHerald reports that the company will soon sign a new contract with card companies, however, the details regarding the duration or terms of the new agreement are not clear.
South Korean credit card issuers welcomed Samsung’s decision.
“We have decided to keep Samsung Pay commission-free,” a Samsung official said in a statement. “Samsung Electronics is dedicated to enhancing the development of the domestic payment ecosystem by maintaining ongoing partnerships with local card companies, all while delivering the finest Samsung Pay service to consumers.”
Samsung Pay is Korea’s top offline mobile payment provider with a market share of 23.5 percent in the first half of last year in terms of users’ transactions. It also accounted for about 80 percent of all offline digital payment transactions here.
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Samsung US partnered with Technogym to bring a fitness app to Daily+. The Technogym introduces personalized fitness routines with equipment-based and bodyweight exercises for a comprehensive home workout experience.
A study* says more than half of Americans say their favorite place to exercise is at home. Grabbing this opportunity, Samsung joined forces to launch a new Technogym app on the Daily+ platform for 2024 Smart TVs in the US.
Samsung says Technogym will offer more than 130 sessions to help you reach your goals. The fitness application on Samsung Daily+ is set to elevate your at-home workouts and makes it easy to keep wellness at the center of your routine.
Additionally, the app provides a broad and diverse library of video training sessions, including strength, yoga, cardio, Pilates, meditation and body weight-based exercises. It offers workouts for different skill levels, from beginner to advanced.
The platform will also refresh the workouts feed by regularly publishing new workouts. Users can also download the Technogym mobile app to access personalized profile and effortlessly track workout history across devices.
The newly released Technogym app on Samsung Daily+ is available in a basic version that’s free for all users, with the option for a premium subscription that provides access to exclusive, more in-depth workout content.
* Source: Statista: Home fitness in the United States – statistics & facts
Samsung has unveiled a new feature for its SmartThings platform called Home Insight at SDC24. This feature makes smart home management easier and more efficient by using artificial intelligence (AI).
Jaeyeon Jung, the Executive Vice President of SmartThings, explained that Home Insight is designed to understand how people live in their homes. It provides helpful home reports and personalized recommendations based on how you use your devices, your preferences, and even the time of year.
Samsung Home Insight makes it easier for people to manage their smart homes. For example, if you often forget to turn off the lights during the day, Home Insight can remind you to do so.
To make these features easy to access, Samsung introduced the Home Insight Widget, which will be available on the new Galaxy Tab S10. This means users can turn their tablets into a controller for managing various smart devices, all from one app.
It is expected that Samsung will soon expand the SmartThings Home Insight feature through a new update. Currently, you can access this feature in the Galaxy Tab S10 series.
Last month, Samsung launched the Galaxy Tab S10 series. The Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra features a massive 14.6-inch panel, while the Tab S10 Plus sports a 12.4-inch screen. Both models have premium Dynamic AMOLED 2X displays and offer a vibrant yet natural viewing experience.
Galaxy Tab S10+/Ultra unveiled: Samsung shows Apple the ‘REAL’ anti-reflective screen
Samsung will be expanding a selection of new One UI 7-powered Galaxy AI experiences beyond its flagship devices into the Galaxy A series and continue to bring Galaxy AI to the entire Galaxy ecosystem.
At SDC24, Sally Hyesoon Jeong announced the expansion of new Galaxy AI features to A series with One UI 7. Not all, but a selection of new Galaxy AI experiences included in the upcoming software will be shared with A series.
Galaxy A36 and A56 could be launched around March next year. New features of these phones will be expanded to select older models such as the Galaxy A35 and A55. You can expect much more to come to your phone in the first half of next year.
Recently, Samsung released the Circle to Search feature for Galaxy A35 and A55. The company will debut new Galaxy A phones next year. These devices could be equipped with even more AI-powered features as per hardware specs.
Samsung has not revealed much at the Developer Conference yesterday. The One UI 7 is still under development, with Beta will be releasing later this year. The final version will go official with the Galaxy S25 series next year.
The company is exploring a brand new UX design. The Android 15-based One UI 7 will bring a fresh new look to the entire interface. The company is also integrating AI across its portfolio to enhance customer experiences.