By Nikhael Ezekiel Chetty

The Samsung Galaxy S5, the follow up to its successful predecessor the Samsung Galaxy S4 is set torelease this April. Samsung developers have chosen to focus on what users want rather than useless gimmicks. The latest itineration seems to be accompanied with less fanfare than its predecessors. You will be waiting a little more for the Samsung Galaxy S5. Samsung isn’t doing an Apple-style one week turn around.

The smart phone has a better camera, a brighter screen, a faster processor and a more solid design. The South Korean company promised faster connectivity for web browsing, fitness tracking, protection and a glamorous look.

The structure of the phone is more solid and bigger compared to the S3 and S4.  The Samsung Galaxy S5 iscompletely resistant to dust and waterproof to a depth of 1m (meter) for 30 minutes. The only port cover is the one holding the USB 3.0 socket closed. There was talk of a whole new design language for the Galaxy S5 with some hoping that Samsung would break away from the similar styling of the Galaxy S3 and S4.  This hasn’t happened as such. Samsung has taken various elements from the previous S3 and S4 smart phones, adding slightly upgraded features and calling it new.The metal surround is almost identical to the Note 3.

Screen

Samsung was a victim of its own hype. We were all expecting a great leap forward- the 1^st manufacturer to bring 2K screen to the masses, but it’s just a full HD version.  The screen is measured at 5.1 inches. In higher resolution. The display is sharp, clear, and when placed next to the S4, it is clearly a step forward.

Interface

The notifications bar is the biggest change. The whole heads up display looks a lot different to the standard version that Samsung has employed with Touch Wiz over the years.  There are now quick links to the S Finder and Quick connect, which allows you to theoretically move through the phone at a greater speed.

Fingerprint Scanner

No one expected Samsung to bring fingerprint scanner to the mix for the Samsung Galaxy S5, as there were signs that it hadn’t nailed the technology just yet. The scanner is pretty accurate and gives an added level of security.  On the other hand, you still have to wake the phone by pressing the home or power button before you can scan, which adds an extra step that Apple doesn’t make you go through.

The rear view of the Samsung Galaxy S5. Picture by: www.v3.co.uk

Camera

The camera on the Samsung Galaxy S5 is probably one of the most improved elements of the handset, and that’s because it’s step forward to a 16 MP sensor.  The megapixel count these day is largely irrelevant, but the hardware’s ability to process and take pictures should be considered a much larger part, and Samsung has managed that well. On the S5 you’ve got a super-fast anti-focus that Samsung claims can capture a photograph in around 0.3 seconds.

Will it be a success?

Yes it will! The unstoppable marketing machine means it could rebadge a carrot with a shiny screen and it would still get modest sales, but that would do a disservice to this phone. The Samsung Galaxy S5 is the result of a company going back to the drawing board, scrapping the pointless gimmicks that so infuriated on the Galaxy S4 and bringing out a smart phone based on the tenets it reckons users really want.