Samsung Pride: First Tizen 3.0 OS Powered Phone From Company

Joshua King, Tech Times 25 January 2017, 07:01 am

Samsung has a few handsets that run on its Tizen operating system and now rumor has it that the company has Tizen 3.0 in the works.

According to a report from SamMobile, the company has a device dubbed "Pride" in the pipeline, which will be the first smartphone from Samsung to run on the impending Tizen 3.0 OS.

"The company has just started the development of its first smartphone running Tizen 3.0 operating system," shared the publication.

The rumored Samsung smartphone allegedly bears the model number SM-Z250F and will reportedly make its way to countries which saw the arrival of the Samsung Z2, the third tizen-powered handset from the company, which was powered by Tizen 2.4 OS.

What Is Tizen?

Tizen is a Linux-based OS working on the Linux API. It supports a wide range of devices, such as smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, a variety of home appliances, etc. It aims to offer a smooth user experience across multiple platforms and devices. It has been developed by Samsung to possibly decrease its dependence on Google's Android ecosystem.

Since Tizen is an HTML5 based operating system, there is good news for content creators and developers, as the platform allows for short development cycles and works spontaneously with the World Wide Web. This results in a decrease in the cost of making apps for the same.

What Are Samsung's Plans With Tizen?

Reports suggest that Samsung will follow the same marketing tactics for the Pride as it did for the Samsung Z2. Apart from the model number being leaked, no other details on the alleged handset - including its specs - are available at this point.

However, it is believed that Samsung intends to propagate Pride's voice control feature more than its hardware. The Tizen 3.0 OS offers support for this features and, therefore, it will make business sense for Samsung to market and advertise the same.

Samsung had recently acquired AI startup Viv Labs, which has created Samsung's very own virtual assistant Bixby. Therefore, the OEM may also look to incorporate AI in the Pride in some way.

What Else Runs On Tizen?

Samsung has the Z1, Z3 and most recently Z2 running on the Tizen OS. The Z2 was the first gadget working on the Tizen OS to incorporate a 4G network. Several smartwatches have been also powered by Tizen.

Release

The exact date for the launch of the Pride is not known, but Samsung has made it clear that it will launch the Tizen 3.0 smartphone in emerging markets like Bangladesh and Nigeria. India may also see the device make its way to the country owing to its large smartphone user base.

It is expected that the only European country to benefit from the SM-Z250F will be Russia. Samsung is reportedly not considering a U.S. launch for the device immediately upon its debut, but things may change closer to the release.

Photo: Kārlis Dambrāns | Flickr