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On an otherwise quiet news day, consumer electronics giant Samsung opted to try to draw eyeballs with a tantalizing teaser campaign on its Website that promotes the June 20 launch of a new member of the Galaxy family of mobile devices and a new ATIV product, which is Samsung’s foray into Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system.
The product launch will take place at 7:00 p.m. GMT at the Earls Court Exhibition Center in London and will also be broadcast via live streaming from Samsung’s YouTube page, the press invite noted.
ATIV is the branding used for personal computers and mobile computing devices produced by Samsung running the Windows 8, Windows RT and Windows Phone 8 operating systems. The brand was originally used for Samsung’s Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8-based tablets and smartphones, but in April Samsung announced that it would extend the brand to all of its future PC products, including conventional laptops and desktop computers such as its ATIV Book 5 and ATIV Book 6.
The ATIV S was Samsung’s first device to run Windows Phone 8, and with its unveiling at IFA 2012 in Berlin, it was also the first Windows Phone 8 device to be officially unveiled as well. The handset features a 4.-inch Super AMOLED display, a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, an 8-megapixel camera, near-field communications and support for HSPA+ networks.
The release of a new ATIV handset could be a boost for the fledgling Windows Phone operating system, which has seen its best adoption levels through Nokia Lumia smartphones. In March, Samsung mobile chief J.K. Shin gave an interview with The Wall Street Journal in which he admitted that smartphones and tablets based on the Windows operating system aren’t selling very well, noting there was a preference for Google’s Android operating system.
Android is what the new Galaxy device will most certainly be running. Rumors have been persisting that Samsung will introduce a smaller version of its popular Galaxy S 4 smartphone. While no official confirmation has yet come from Samsung, a TechRadar report spotted the smaller S 4’s appearance on the UK Content & Services Website, suggesting a European-only launch, at least to start.
The rumored handset’s big brother, the S 4, is available in Europe and the United States, among other places, and has been a major hit with consumers. Last week the company announced that sales of the S 4 have surpassed 10 million units—all sold in less than one month after its commercial debut. Launched globally on April 27, the phone is estimated to be selling at a rate of four units per second.
This sets a new record for Samsung, with the S 4 generating sales quicker than any of its predecessors. For comparison, the Galaxy S III reached the 10-million mark 50 days after its launch in 2012, while the Galaxy S II took five months and the Galaxy S seven months to reach the same milestone.
Samsung said it is planning to introduce more color variations of the S 4 to meet various consumer tastes and preferences. In addition to the currently available White Mist and Black Forest, new color iterations will be added this summer, including Blue Arctic and Red Aurora, followed by Purple Mirage and Brown Autumn.