Samsung has finally jumped off the fence, now one hundred percent sure it wants to sell a Tizen OS based phone. Tired of restricting the OS to smartwatches, TVs and (defunct) refrigerators, the company is shipping the Z1 smartphone, letting the Tizen chips fall where they may. Bloggers now head to India, to see if Samsung's gamble will pay off.
In IT Blogwatch, bloggers touch it to see if its real.
Filling in for our humble blogwatcher Richi Jennings, is a humbler Stephen Glasskeys.
Against all odds, Sam Byford finds a unicorn:
Samsung's first Tizen phone has been a unicorn for years. In early 2013 a high-end model was promised for later in the year, but never arrived. ... It was looking like [Tizen] would be confined to smartwatches and TVs...until today -- the company has both announced and delivered an honest-to-goodness Tizen smartphone. MORE
It's debatable, but Aaron Souppouris might have found one earlier:
Where were you when Samsung launched its first Tizen phone? That's debatable. The company proudly revealed the "Z" last year, [later scrapping it] before it ever reached customers...instead choosing to refocus on creating budget devices. ... We're now seeing the first fruits of that effort, as Samsung has just announced the Z1, a low-end Tizen smartphone for India. MORE
Steven Musil pitches, strangles and embraces:
[Tizen was pitched] nearly two years ago as an alternative to the stranglehold that Google's Android and Apple's iOS has on the smartphone industry.
…
The operating system, which is open-source but has Android elements that the company licenses from Google, promised mobile carriers a chance to embrace an open operating system that they could customize to better directly serve their subscribers. MORE
Straight from the horse's official global bloggy mouthpiece:
The user interface on the Samsung Z1 is simple and easy to use, offering faster and smoother device performance when combined with the lighter Tizen platform. ... The battery life has been further enhanced with the unique 'Ultra Power Saving Mode' which lets the phone remain operational in important situations, even at minimal battery levels. MORE
But Aimee Chanthadavong listens to music:
[The] Samsung Z1 will offer consumers free access to content available on Club Samsung. At the same time, the company has partnered with Hungama.com to deliver a selection of [streaming music].
…
Despite all of the content that Samsung Z1 [users will have access to], Samsung has recently been shutting down [many of its content hubs], including its Movie Hub, Music Hub, and Readers Hub. MORE
Jon Russell gets the official word about Android compatibility:
Samsung declined to say how many Tizen apps there are, but it did confirm that the Z1 cannot run Android apps MORE
Meanwhile, Florian T. discovers a workaround:
Yesterday, we showed you images of WhatsApp running on the Z1. As it turns out, that was WhatsApp for Android ... Tizen does not officially support Android apps, but there's a workaround thanks to OpenMobile's Application Compatibility Layer. MORE
You have been reading IT Blogwatch by Richi Jennings and Stephen Glasskeys, who curate the best bloggy bits, finest forums, and weirdest websites…so you don't have to. Catch the key commentary from around the Web every morning. Hatemail may be directed to @RiCHi or itbw@richi.uk. Opinions expressed may not represent those of Computerworld. Ask your doctor before reading. Your mileage may vary. E&OE.
