Hasta La Gadget!

Its not unusual to see mobile devices receive price cuts, but that normally happens when the product has been out for too long or if its simply not selling. Price cuts are a great way to get rid of inventory. One might not expect such a big cut on a hotly anticipated device that was released less than a week ago. A Verizon Galaxy S5 sale has kicked off on Amazon. Customers who waited to purchase the latest Samsung smartphone can now get it for $100 off the usual price.

As of now the Verizon variant of Samsung Galaxy S5 is being sold for $99 on Amazon. Customers will have to sign up for a new service contract with this purchase. On all other carriers the smartphone is being sold for $199 upfront along with a new contract. Even Verizon’s own website is selling it for $199.

It is unclear how long this sale is going to last. Those who have been holding out on buying a new Galaxy S5 can now grab one for a full $100 cheaper, it doesn’t get any better than this. It is possible that stock might run out soon so if you’re interested in purchasing, better hop on over to Amazon right away.

Verizon Galaxy S5 Sale On Amazon Kicks Off , original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Cellphones, Amazon, galaxy s5, Samsung, Verizon,

Samsung jumped on the biometric bandwagon as well this year. It put a fingerprint scanner in the home button of its 2014 flagship, the Samsung Galaxy S5. Its a bit different from its counterpart on the iPhone 5s. Users have to swipe from top to bottom whereas on the iPhone 5s they simply have to place their fingers on the home button. Initial reports suggest that the fingerprint scanner seems to be working fine for most users. One might expect that the scanner offers an additional layer of protection, but as it turns out, its not that hard to spoof it.

The folks at SRLabs have been able to spoof the fingerprint scanner of Galaxy S5 by using a lifted print. Within minutes they were able to create a “dummy finger” which was then used to gain access. Now there’s nothing inherently wrong with the scanner, even the scanner on iPhone 5s can be spoofed this way.

Implementation of the scanner can prove to be a risk though. Unlike Apple, the scanner on Galaxy S5 can even be used to authorize PayPal payments. Apple doesn’t allow developers to tap into TouchID, all it can do is provide access and authorize purchases on iTunes. Moreover, Apple requires users to punch in their password one time before using fingerprint for authentication. So if a device is powered off, users will first have to enter the password after they boot it up, before they’re allow to use the scanner. Galaxy S5 doesn’t have this gatekeeping mechanism.

A video of this spoof has also been posted online, showing us just how easy it is to trick these fingerprint sensors. Paranoid users might want to wipe the scanner down after every time they use it, but that’s just too much of a nuisance.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Fingerprint Scanner Spoofed , original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Cellphones, galaxy s5, paypal, Samsung,

The Samsung Galaxy S5 is currently priced at around $660 when sold without a contract. For those planning on getting it via a carrier, it will cost around $200 and will require you to sign a contract with said carrier. That being said, exactly how much does it cost Samsung to build a single Galaxy S5 unit?

According to a teardown analysis by market research firm, IHS, they have estimated that the phone will cost around $256 to build. Naturally Samsung has declined to confirm IHS’ findings, with the report expected to be released later today. (more…)

Galaxy S5 Costs $256 To Build, According To IHS Teardown original content from Ubergizmo.

It was just yesterday that T-Mobile CEO John Legere showed the world the existence of a 24kt gold-plated HTC One (M8), announcing to the world that it exists via Twitter. What of the Galaxy S5, does it come in a shade of gold? It seems that Samsung were the ones behind this generous move of giving Legere his very own golden Samsung Galaxy S5 – although I am quite sure that other CEOs in other industries would far prefer a golden handshake as opposed to a golden handset, considering the vast difference in the monetary value.

The photo that Legere tweeted certainly showed off the Samsung Galaxy S5 in all of its golden glory, being shiny and all that. I do wonder whether it picks up fingerprints all too easily, and would it be recommended that you carry around an extra pack of tissues or a hanky to make sure that your gold Galaxy S5 remains in pristine condition all the time.

So far, we have not heard from Samsung concerning any actual gold versions of the Samsung Galaxy S5 rolling out in the future, but considering how the gold version of the HTC One (M8) exists, this ought to be produced in extremely limited quantities, if ever. After all, the asking price for the gold HTC One (M7) stood at £2,750 ($4,600 thereabouts), which would clearly put it out of reach for the average consumer.

T-Mobile CEO Reveals Gold Samsung Galaxy S5 , original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Cellphones, galaxy s5, Samsung, T-Mobile,

On April 11th, the Samsung Galaxy S5 was released in more than 125 countries. This included crucial markets like North America and Europe, as well as emerging markets across Asia. Safe to say that it was one of the biggest coordinated smartphone launches of this year, one that was bound to eclipse that of its predecessor. A report coming out of Korea suggests that Galaxy S5 launch day sales have surpassed Galaxy S4′s sales on its launch day last year.

(more…)

Galaxy S5 Launch Day Sales Beat Galaxy S4 [Report] original content from Ubergizmo.