Samsung unveiling Galaxy S9 at MWC

DJ Koh, president and head of Samsung's IT and mobile communications divisions, unveiling the new Galaxy S9 and S9+ ahead of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on Sunday.

Samsung is now unveiling the new Galaxy S9 and S9+. Follow our blow-by-blow coverage here. (All times UAE.)
Welcome to our live coverage. Alternatively, you can watch the entire thing here.
 
9:02PM
As usual, DJ Koh, president and head of Samsung's IT and mobile communications division, kicks things off. He's touting the 'intelligence of things'.
His view: "I believe we overestimate our impact... it's not tech companies that change the world - it's people." Profound.
"It's you," he tells the audience, "that opens the door to new experiences... and there's no better proof than the mobile phone; it started out as a simple device... and you wondered what was possible".
 
9:08PM

"Complexity will become a thing of the past," Koh says. "Powerful software and services to manage every facet of connected life."
An advanced optic sensor has been added to the new devices to track you heart is working.
"Nothing is more important how images are replacing words." Yep, he's talking about the camera. "Say what you want to say in an instant."
"Clearly, the social media generation has revolutionised the way we communicate," he says. Trivia: five billion emojis were sent out last year.
 
9:11PM - HERE WE GO: INTRODUCING, OFFICIALLY, THE SAMSUNG GALAXY S9 AND S9+

Samsung just unveiled the "first smartphone built for the way you use your phone today," he says. Time for a new breakthrough camera, he adds.
Well, sorry about that; we'll get a better shot later on.
 
9:16PM
Justin Denison, SVP for product marketing, next up. And here's that 'better' shot:

He takes a shot at Apple while touting the Infinity Display: "There's no notch!" Savage.
 
9:19PM
The S9 just turned the media's badges in to a phone. Wow.

Basically, Denison is touting the new Infinity Display, which extends almost end-to-end.
 
9:22PM
Camera "completely reimagined", just as Samsung teased it in its invite.
"What if the camera could just like be the human eye," Denison asks, or something to that extent.
Jonathan Wong, director of product marketing, next up.

"We turned into an incredibly powerful imaging tool: the human eye," he says.
Basically, what he's trying to say here is the cameras, with dual-aperture, on the S9 automatically adjusts to the lighting conditions.
Camera can process images four times faster than before.
And here's a sample of a shot taken with the S9 while the lights were dim at the venue in Barcelona:

 
9:27PM
As expected, here's the super-slow-mo feature on the cameras at 960fps:


 
9:32PM
There's your dual-camera lens. Wide-angle and telephoto, plus OIS. And, of course, the S9 is protected from all the elements.

 
9:35PM - Animoji, meet AR Emoji
As expected. Just take a selfie, customise it and you're ready to go. Big thing: AR Emoji works across any smartphone, and can be used with third-party apps, like WhatsApp. Great.

Oh, and there's a partnership with Disney as well. Want to become Mickey Mouse?
 
9:41PM
Bixby is now more intelligent; it can instantly translate certain languages, plus it can do some make-up samples for you.

 
9:45PM
The S9 has a screen of 5.8 inches, while the S9+ has 6.2 inches. Nothing much has changed.

The Infinity Display is now even brighter, and there are speakers now both on top and below. A demo proved that - it was really loud.

 
9:55PM
Koh's back on stage, and looks like we're nearing the end.
The Galaxy S9 and S9+ will be available starting March 16. And if you're really excited to get it, pre-orders will be starting soon. No dates given, as well as any info on the pricing.
Trade up and save! "High trade-in values," Koh says, referring to Samsung's upgrade programme.

 
 
10:00PM
And the dancers are in, teasing everyone with the Galaxy S9s in their hands. The media are about to make their way into the experience area, much to our envy here.

And that's it. The new smartphones look really promising, but we have to hold our horses until we actually test them out.

Thanks for bearing with us. We'll be giving you the latest as soon as we learn them, especially with regards to pricing and availability here in the UAE. Good night, everyone!
 
UPDATE: Pre-orders are now apparently live in certain territories.
The Galaxy S9 and S9+ will retail for $720 (Dh2,644) and $820 (Dh3,085) - not as high as initially feared and staying well below the iPhone X's price points.
 
UPDATE 2: Pre-orders now starting in the UAE, and we have the actual prices. Find them here.
- alvin@khaleejtimes.com
 

• Mobiles