Tech giants look at accessories to boost profits

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23 Sep 2013

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Samsung launches Note 3 and Galaxy Gear smartwatch to set itself apart from the crowd

Dubai: Mobile phone manufactures are scanning the horizon for the next big thing as profit margins from smartphones are getting smaller.

Both Sony and Samsung are both going beyond smartphones and launching new accessories to add value to products.

Sony will soon be launching its DSC-QX10 and DSC-QX100 standalone camera lenses for handsets while Samsung launched its Galaxy Gear smartwatch on Sunday in addition to the Galaxy Note 3.

“Everybody knows that global smartphone sales have declined, except in the Gulf. Everybody is trying to come out with new gadgets to increase sales and so vendors can take higher margins,” Hayssam Yassine, head of telecommunications Group at Samsung Gulf Electronics, told Gulf News on the sidelines of a press conference.

He said that margins from phones are getting smaller due to tough competition and Chinese vendors entering the segment.

This is “survival for the long term” and is a must for manufacturers, he said.

“Smartwatches are a new category. The objective we are trying to deliver is freedom and wearable connectivity. It adds value [to products] and we see a great potential for these kinds of devices,” he said.

“We don’t expect everybody to buy the watch. There are certain people who are tech savvy. For example, if the phone is in your pocket or in a bag and it suddenly rings, instead of searching for the phone users can answer it with the watch or send a SMS. It is especially useful when you are driving as the microphones are very powerful,” Yassine said.

The Gear is currently compatible with Note 3 and Samsung Tablet 10.1.

The 1.63-inch device is powered by a 800MHZ processor and has a super Amoled display with 320 x 320 resolution with 4GB storage and 512RAM.

Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Spec & Photos

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