Samsung officially launched the Galaxy S5 Mini keeping intact core features including fingerprint scanner, heart rate monitor and a lot more.
Samsung, the world's largest producer of smartphones, is adding a new variant to its existing flagship lineup. The Korean tech giant adopted a new strategy for its flagship variants when it launched the Galaxy S5 LTE-A in Korea and a dual-SIM S5 in China.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini is nothing like its predecessors, the Galaxy S4 Mini and S3 Mini.. The previous mini models were criticized for lacking several specs. But Samsung has packed the flagship's advanced features such as the fingerprint scanner, heart rate monitor, IP67 rating and more in Galaxy S5.
"We always strive to develop devices that appeal to a range of consumer tastes and styles," JK Shin, CEO and Head of IT & Mobile Communication at Samsung Electronics, said in a press statement, Tuesday. "The Galaxy S5 mini allows consumers to enjoy the iconic design and essential and useful features of the Galaxy S5 through a maximized minimalism approach."
The Galaxy S5 Mini comes almost two months after the smartphone was listed on the company's official Finnish website. Another leak followed last month, when Sam Mobile tipped the S5 Mini to be similar in features to its elder sibling.
Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini is a trimmed down version of the Galaxy S5 flagship smartphone. It features a 4.5-inch HD Super AMOLED display compared to S4 Mini's non-HD 4.3-inch display. Other hardware specs include a 1.4GHz quad-core processor, 1.5GB RAM, 8-megapixel rear camera, 2.1MP front shooter, 16GB internal storage along with microSD card support. The S5 Mini also packs upgraded 2100mAh battery along with Ultra Power Saving Mode for lasting battery life.
The S5 Mini is based on Android 4.4 KitKat, featuring support for the latest Android Wear smartwatches. It has a IP67 certification, which makes it water and dust resistance.
Like the Galaxy S5, the S5 Mini will arrive in four color options, Charcoal black, Shimmery white, Electric blue and Copper gold. Russia will receive the handset first in early July with other markets to follow. Specific dates and pricing details are yet to be announced.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 variant portfolio includes Galaxy K Zoom and Galaxy S5 Active announced earlier this year.
