Report: Galaxy S IV to pack 'floating touch' tech
updated 05:34 pm EST, Sat March 9, 2013
More GSIV features leak ahead of launch
Samsung's much-anticipated Galaxy S IV handset, due for launch on March 14, may feature technology allowing users to control items on the screen without physically touching it. A new report says that the South Korean conglomerate will pack even more previously unrevealed features into its next flagship model, including a new display material that is said to be much more efficient.
SamMobile reported on Friday that the Galaxy S IV would feature floating touch technology. A screen technology that appeared last year in Sony's Xperia Sola smartphone, floating touch tech allows users essentially to use their fingers like a mouse cursor. "Floating" one's finger above the display allows for interactions different from what happens when directly touching the display.
Previous Samsung applications of the technology have required that the device have S Pen capability, as is the case with Samsung's Galaxy Note series. Should floating touch materialize on the S IV, it will mark the first time that the tech will be available on Samsung's main flagship device.
In addition to floating touch, the S IV is said to use a new kind of display. The so-called "Green PHOLED" is said to rely on different color arrangements and to produce AMOLED displays that are 25 percent more efficient. SamMobile's source does not go into details, but such an advance would greatly improve the battery life of the GS IV over its predecessors.
Other features likely to appear in the handset include "eye scrolling" and "Smart stay," both of which use the device's front-facing camera to allow users to interact with content by tracking eye movement.
The GS IV is expected to have an Exynos 5 Octa eight-core CPU, 2GB of RAM, and an even bigger screen than had the S III. It is possible, though, that Samsung has opted for a Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 processor.
