Samsung Newsroom’s Top Stories of 2019

Samsung Newsroom — Mon, 23 Dec 2019 16:00:17 +0000

Is 2019 over already? Samsung Electronics’ 50^th anniversary year passed like a whirlwind, with announcement after announcement revealing innovations designed to take our experiences with technologies like AI, 5G and mobile devices to the next level.

To help you catch up with some of the biggest updates from the company’s jam-packed year, we proudly present the top 15 stories – spanning various categories – that were covered right here in the Samsung Newsroom. Click on the thumbnails in the graphic below to view the stories for yourself, and read on to learn more about what made each one so meaningful.

Samsung Newsroom’s Top Stories of 2019

Mobile

TV ∙ Home Appliances

Semiconductors

Technology

Corporate News

Perhaps unsurprisingly, some of the most popular content featured in the Newsroom this year was centered on Samsung’s latest mobile devices. An article presenting a short video of the Galaxy Fold’s folding test drummed up considerable attention before the device’s launch. The Galaxy Note10’s in-depth series, which included an infographic and article outlining the new flagship’s most exciting features, along with a piece offering useful information regarding One UI 2 on the Galaxy S10, were also particularly popular.

Other eye-catching content demonstrated how Samsung constantly evolves its TV and appliance offerings to better suit consumers’ lifestyles. The articles featured above discuss how customizable innovations like The Wall 2019 and Samsung’s Project PRISM home appliances, as well as the Samsung Flip digital flipchart, are transforming the way we work, enjoy content, and enhance our décor.

Highlights in the semiconductor category include content describing what makes Samsung’s first-of-its-kind 64Mp ISOCELL image sensor a game-changer for mobile cameras, and a video showcasing how the company’s newest memory solutions are steering the future of autonomous driving. One of the most popular articles explored Samsung’s wide-ranging SSD selection, and walked readers through finding the perfect drive to suit their needs.

There was also a great deal of content that focused on Samsung innovations that are shaping the future of tech. Standout articles include our exclusive look at the Samsung Bots, our recap of the top themes that were discussed at this year’s Samsung Developer Conference, and our enlightening ‘AI Expert’ series, in which we interviewed seven distinguished leaders of Samsung’s global AI centers.

Last but not least, some of the most meaningful content that was featured in the Newsroom this year examined Samsung’s efforts to strengthen its commitments to sustainable innovation through packaging and recycling, and to nurturing bright young minds in communities across the globe. Click on the links above to see how the company is tackling e-waste by recycling resources safely and efficiently, how its decision to replace plastic packaging with paper and other eco-friendly elements will help minimize its plastic footprint, and how employee volunteering initiatives like Samsung OneWeek are bringing smiles – and education – to communities in need.

[Essay] Samsung OneWeek: Sharing the Gift of Education with Children in Kazakhstan

Samsung Newsroom — Thu, 19 Sep 2019 16:00:08 +0000

This article is based on an original essay by Eunsung Lee from Samsung Electronics’ Mobile Communications Division,
and was edited by Samsung Newsroom

Last February, Samsung Electronics announced its vision for its global citizenship program – Enabling People. The company has been running numerous volunteer youth education programs for over a decade, and since the recent announcement has been strengthening the programs it offers in the interests of enabling young citizens the world over.

For Samsung’s employee volunteer initiative OneWeek, around 200 Samsung employees traveled to six different countries – Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Nepal and Hungary – to engage in collaborative activities with local communities.

I was part of the second volunteer team to travel who visited Kazakhstan, a country 27 times the size of my native Korea but with less than half the population. There, we participated in activities like showing children how to use computers and teaching them about coding. I was pleased to have been given the opportunity as, in order to take part in Samsung OneWeek, employees have to be ready to use up five days of their annual leave – but competition for the program was still fierce.

Getting to Know the Kazakh Community

Despite extensive preparation and constant review of our education materials during the long journey to Kazakhstan, we were still inevitably nervous once we arrived to greet the children we would be volunteering for and spending time with.

At first meeting, they appeared cautious, but even as we formulated the best way to introduce ourselves, they quickly broke out into boisterous cries of welcome.

Following that, the local students entertained us with songs and dance performances they had prepared. Us OneWeek members provided snacks and toys to the mix, and quickly, our nervous first meeting had become a party.

One member of our team even broke into funny faces to make the children laugh, and soon enough we were chatting and having fun as if we had known each other much longer than a matter of hours.

Education Against All the Odds

After this opportunity to get to know the children, we busied ourselves with immersing ourselves in their daily lives. By contrast to the school start times we were accustomed to back in Korea, we learnt that these Kazakh children arrived to school around 10am.

In order to fully understand this daily routine, we traveled on the school bus that departs their area, a village near the border, at 6am every morning. Having traveled along a dirt road for hours to reach the Mynjylyk area, we encountered a military barrack complete with guard checks, an obstacle in this daily journey that is due to the proximity of the border. Having gone through this sobering experience, we were happy to finally greet the children and join them as they began the school day.

Technology for Good

Once at the childrens’ school, our volunteering activities began in earnest. We taught children how to use Scratch, a universal coding methodology. Despite the difficulty of the subject, the language barrier and the resulting slow rate of progress, the children were enthusiastic and eager to learn throughout – we found ourselves often conveying key messages to each other through body language alone.

Given that a primary means of employment in this mountainous area of Kazakhstan is livestock rearing, we also held educational IT sessions for local nomads, many of whom had never even seen a computer before but who approached the task with just as much enthusiasm and determination to learn as the children had.

Experiences from the Heart

Our time in Kazakhstan was a gift to all of us who went, but we were especially touched when, upon the conclusion of our time with them, one child brought us a gift of hand-milked local horse milk. Such generosity inspired us to return, and to work harder at our next volunteering opportunities to give back and share as much as we can.