Week 6 in review: Galaxy S22 series is here, Meta facing problems in the EU
Welcome to your weekly recap. It was a busy week with Samsung’s Unpacked event where we finally got the long anticipated Galaxy S22 series and a trio of Galaxy Tab S8 tablets.
Galaxy S22 is the small flagship that Android fans are waiting for, the S22+ offers a middle ground option while the S22 Ultra is the ultimate S Pen wielding non-foldable in the maker’s lineup. All three phones will be available with either Exynos 2200 or Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipsets depending on the region. Galaxy S22 starts at $800/€850/£770, the baseline S22+ is $1,000/€1,050/£950 while the S22 Ultra starts at $1,200/€1,250/£1,150.
The brand-new Tab S8 Ultra comes with a giant 14.6-inch AMOLED screen and also uses the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip. If that screen is too large there’s the 12.4-inch Tab S8+ and the 11-inch Tab S8 which also feature flagship specs and bundled S Pen styluses. Samsung also announced its plans to offer four OS updates and five years of security patches for its 2021 and 2022 flagship smartphones, tablets and wearables.
Facebook and Instagram’s parent company Meta found itself in the hot seat after a new EU law requires companies to keep and process user data on local European servers. The conglomerate issued a statement in one of its reports that it may be forced to shut down Facebook and Instagram services in the EU due to the new measures but it’s still highly unlikely that we get to that scenario.
Xiaomi brought its Redmi Note 11 and Redmi Note 11S to India. Huawei’s P50 Pro and P50 Pocket are now on open sale in global markets. We also saw the debut of Honor 60 SE unveiled with a familiar camera design and Dimensity 900 5G chipset.
Infinix announced its Zero 5G which also relies on the Dimensity 900 chipset. Xiaomi Redmi K50 Gaming Edition is coming on February 16 and we got its flashy design in official posters. Nvidia’s acquisition of Arm is officially terminated, as the chip designer’s CEO stepped down.
These were the trending topics of the week, feel free to check them the complete list below and we’ll see you in seven days!
A new EU regulation is messing with Meta’s data processing.
Galaxy S21 and S21+ are still available, though.
Meta needs to process its user data on European servers if it wants to continue doing business in the EU.
S Pen and new chipsets underscore what is otherwise a very incremental update.
Check out some of the best hardware and software announcements from past Galaxy devices.
No more plastic, new 50MP cameras and more compact bodies.
All three are powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1.
The Great Chipset Divide continues.
The phone is powered by a Dimensity 900 chipset.
The Mi 10 Ultra also charged at 120W, in fact, it was the first to do so. The Mi 11 Ultra reverted to a “mere” 67W.
Infinix’s first 5G smartphone is here.
SoftBank also confirmed that ARM is going public.
Realme has a dedicated page where users can compare photos in different scenarios.
The battery will be 4,450 mAh with a 65W fast charging.
The phone has been posted on the company website with no specs sheet.
It will be likely joined by at least one more Redmi K50 series smartphone.
The prices of the phones are the same as last year, though getting a 5G tablet will cost you.
The first sale is scheduled for February 11.
OnePlus will also introduce two new smart TVs next Thursday.
This includes the new Galaxy S22 and Tab S8 series, but also the S21 models and the Z3 foldables from last year.
That would be a change from the company’s previous strategy.
It’s powered by the Dimensity 1200-MAX SoC and features a 50MP camera.
From what we’ve gleaned through leaks, the phone will have the same camera and battery too.
The P50 Pro starts from €1,199, while the foldable is at least €1,299.
The Galaxy S22 and S22+ are neglected for whatever reason.
