Surprise: Samsung Is Making AirPods For The Galaxy S8

Yes, Samsung launched its own wireless earphones a while ago, the Gear IconX, so it’s not like Samsung is now looking to copy Apple’s wireless AirPods. But that doesn’t change the fact that Samsung continues to get its inspiration from its biggest rival — it’s not like the IconX has been flying off the shelves.

Unnamed sources told SamMobile that Samsung is looking to launch a wireless headset alongside its next flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S8. It’s unclear at this time whether they will be sold separately like the IconX or Apple’s AirPods, or whether they’ll be included in the Galaxy S8’s box.

Furthermore, it’s not known if the headphones will have Harman internals. In fact, it’s not even clear if Samsung is going to launch an IconX v. 2.0 generation, or whether it’s going for a brand new design for the newer model. The IconX headphones are also fitness trackers and come with built-in storage for music.

The Galaxy S8 is rumored to come without a traditional 3.5mm headphone jack just like the iPhone 7 and other Android handsets, which means Samsung wants customers to use either USB-C headphones or wireless ones.

Apple’s AirPods, announced together with the iPhone 7, generated plenty of interest and excitement in spite of the criticism Apple received for its “courageous” killing of the standard audio jack. It’s likely Samsung wants some of that attention for the Galaxy S8. Given that the Galaxy S8 will be a brand new product, Samsung is also working on brand new accessories for it, and the IconX may be too old to compete with the AirPods cool factor.

Samsung Galaxy S8 Sensors: Eyes, Fingers, and Touch

As smartphone technology has evolved, more sensors have been added to devices. In the early days of smartphones, sensors would include accelerometers and touch displays, and whilst there are these features in newer smartphones, there are plenty of new features too. In this article we’re going to talk about the various Samsung Galaxy S8 sensors that you will be able to make use of.

Eye Sensors

Perhaps the newest addition to the Galaxy range is the eye sensors. Out of all of the Samsung Galaxy S8 sensors, this one is perhaps the most interesting. With an eye sensor, it’s possible to create a new lock screen authentication method. The Galaxy S8 can also keep track of your eye movement to know exactly when to turn off the display.

Fingerprint Sensors

Fingerprint sensors have been the norm on flagship smartphones since 2015, and they aren’t going to go anywhere. Now that the security of fingerprint sensors have been improved, they work as one of the safest and quickest lock screen authentication methods. The fingerprint sensor on the Samsung Galaxy S8 can also be used to authenticate Samsung Pay, and will integrate seamlessly with the rumored retina eye scanner.

Touch Sensors

When we say touch sensors, we don’t just mean the capacitive touch screen display of the Samsung Galaxy S8. The Samsung Galaxy S8 sensors pressure in your screen presses and this means it can determine a ‘light’ touch from a ‘hard’ touch and these two touches can now be used as different input methods. Touch sensors have been in iPhones since the iPhone 6S, but it’s good to see them in Android now too.
The Galaxy S8 has been designed to make use of these sensors more than any other device before it and we now have plenty more reasons why Android smartphones are very useful, convenient devices to use in 2017.