The Best of Galaxy Store awards launched in 2018 when the company recognized five winners for the best App, Game, Theme, Galaxy Watch App and Galaxy Watch Face.

Samsung expanded the awards this year, recognizing 25 developers and designers of games, apps, watch faces, and smartphone themes. The award celebrates both the top performing apps of the year and those who best embrace the Samsung spirit of innovation, quality, and creativity.

Best of Galaxy Store Awards winners were invited to SDC to participate in the Best of Galaxy Store Awards Ceremony, where they received their Best of Galaxy Store 2019 Award.  Winners also receive a Best of Galaxy Store Award 2019 banner, featuring on the Galaxy Store as well as other benefits.

This year saw the Galaxy Store get a makeover, bringing with it a new look and a rebrand along with a number of improvements and new features. Better personalized recommendations, enhanced search capability, and integration with Samsung Rewards give users a much better experience. But perhaps the most exciting new feature are the editorial pages to more effectively promote the content and apps available in the Galaxy Store to more than 400 million monthly active users around the world.

“We believe the hardworking and dedicated community of developers are the heart of the Galaxy Store,” said Chris Jo, VP & GM, Head of Store Mgmt., Biz Dev & Biz Operations. “Over the last few years the store has made some incredible strides forward and our developers have contributed to this success. Therefore, we wanted to both recognize and reward the best work that this community has to offer.”

Here are some of the winners from the Best of Galaxy Store 2019.

Best Racing Game 2019: Asphalt 9: Legends

Put the pedal to the metal and race the streets in the latest edition of Gameloft’s blockbuster racing game, Asphalt 9: Legends. Gamers can pick their dream car from a roster of cars based on real vehicles from the world’s top race car manufacturers.

The immersive graphics bring a console-like experience to the palm of your hands, taking full advantage of Samsung’s best-in-class display technology to deliver a premium mobile gaming experience. The game also features social elements, such as the racing club, to allow players to connect and collaborate.

Download from the Galaxy Store here.

Best Social App 2019: TikTok

Celebrating the internet’s most authentic moments, TikTok is a popular short video app for creating and sharing bite-sized content. From videos showcasing creative entertainment, dances and sketches, to DIY skills, TikTok has taken the world by storm.

The app allows users to create short videos, often including music, which can be enhanced with a variety of filters and in-app editing tools. Videos are typically 15 seconds long and can be shared directly on TikTok or on other social media apps.

“Millions of creators use TikTok to showcase their creativity and skills in short videos that are exciting, spontaneous, and authentic,” said Edward Chou, Head of Marketing, TikTok US. “We’re honored to be recognized by Samsung’s Galaxy Store Editorial Team and excited to continue delivering creative opportunities and a joyful experience to our global community of users.”

Download from the Galaxy Store here.

Best Themes Brand Collaboration 2019: Cogul Planet MLB Theme

Partnering with US Major League Baseball, Korean digital content provider, Cogul Planet, launched MLB smartphone and watch themes on the Galaxy Store in April 2019. The themes celebrate the World Series winning teams, featuring ringtones of broadcaster commentaries from major game moments to recreate the excitement of the championship games.

“We are expanding MLB’s brand power in the US with over 100,000 downloads since the release of the MLB theme in the Galaxy Store last April,” said a CEO Bo-mook Choi. “In the future, we are planning to release more diverse MLB themes so that we can get closer to fans around the world.

Download from the Galaxy Store here.

Best Watch Designer 2019: Matteo Dini

Featuring a range of digital and analog watch faces for Tizen smartwatches like the Samsung Galaxy Watch, Matteo Dini is celebrated by users for his mix of modern and classic designs.

“Working with Samsung is something exceptional,” said Matteo Dini, Designer and CEO. “Every day I am in contact with people from all over the world who appreciate my watch faces and use them daily. It’s very exciting!”

Download from the Galaxy Store here. http://galaxy.store/matteodini, http://apps.samsung.com/gear/

The culmination of ten years of industry-leading smartphone innovations, the Galaxy S10 line places a laundry list of industry-first and best technologies at users’ fingertips that allow them to do more with their phone than they ever could before.

Our previous articles examined how the new flagship line’s groundbreaking display, camera and performance innovations raise the bar for smartphones to follow. Now, using Gameloft Barcelona’s Asphalt 9: Legends as an example, we’ll show you how the Galaxy S10+’s supercharged specs take the gaming experience to the next level.

Buckle up, folks. You’re in for a ride.

The Need for Speed

In a game like Asphalt 9: Legends, a split-second decision can mean the difference between capturing a race and crashing out of contention. That’s why it’s important that your phone’s processor is capable of handling graphics-heavy games without slowing you down with lag or frequent FPS (frames per second) drops.

Featuring up to 12GB of RAM and a next-generation application processor (which improves CPU and GPU performance by up to 29 and 37 percent, respectively),¹ the Galaxy S10+ allows you to leave the days of dealing with spotty FPS, lag, and long load times in your rearview mirror. When playing Asphalt 9: Legends, the Galaxy S10+’s high FPS rate makes details truly pop, and makes each 360-degree spin and slow-motion moment that much more enjoyable.

So whether you’re drifting through a turn or tearing down a straightaway, you can trust that the Galaxy S10+ will keep your gameplay snappy and smooth.

A Smooth Ride

The Galaxy S10+ also features a built-in, AI-based Smart Performance Adjuster that analyzes game playing patterns to make gameplay even smoother. As you’re racing down each track, it’s working to provide stable GPU and CPU performance – and eliminating frustrating peaks and valleys that could potentially slow you down.

The smartphone’s stable performance makes it abundantly clear that it’s built to handle the best mobile games that the industry has to offer. And that includes 64-bit games as well, which represent the future of mobile gaming.

In fact, the Galaxy S10 variants are the first Android devices to feature 64-bit game support. That means better battery drainage and thermal management when playing graphics-intensive games like Asphalt 9: Legends, Fortnite and other popular 64-bit titles that will be released throughout the year.

These days, nearly half of all new mobile games are created using the Unity game engine.² In order to offer users the best possible mobile gaming experience, Samsung specially optimized its newest flagships for running Unity-built games. So when you play these titles on your Galaxy S10+, you’ll be playing them in their best form.

The smartphones are able to deliver a more seamless and stable gaming experience because they’re the first mobile devices to be optimized to work with Unity’s new Adaptive Performance feature.³ Adaptive Performance support means that when playing high-performance games on your Galaxy S10 line, you’ll enjoy better battery life and smoother, faster performance – without having to worry about your phone overheating. If the game you’re playing was built using the Unity engine, Adaptive Performance will boost its overall performance by approximately 10 percent.

Keep It Cool

Just like cutting-edge supercars feature the latest and greatest in terms of engine technology, the Galaxy S10+ features hardware and software that have been optimized to support truly incredible gaming experiences.

Take, for instance, Samsung’s Vapor Chamber cooling system, which allows the Galaxy S10+ to stay cool during heavy gaming sessions. This innovative technology improves GPU efficiency, which means that 3D games are smoother and more immersive than with the Galaxy S9. So as you breeze through each course in Asphalt 9: Legends – burning rubber at one picturesque location after another – you can rest assured that your phone is designed to keep cool when the pressure’s on.

Stunning Visuals, Immersive Sound

As anyone who’s put the pedal to the virtual metal with the Asphalt series knows, when it comes to high-octane mobile racing games, it doesn’t get any better than this.

The game’s scenic courses and nitro-fueled racing mayhem look absolutely stunning on the Galaxy S10+’s 6.4-inch, high-resolution Infinity-O Display. The display’s vibrant, lifelike colors add depth and realism to everything from your supercar’s glossy contours to the game’s astoundingly detailed city- and landscapes. It’s also been optimized by Samsung to be easy on the eyes, which makes it perfect for those extended gaming sessions.

From the moment you take your mark for the start of the race to the moment you cross the finish line, the Galaxy S10+’s first-of-its-kind⁴ Dolby Atmos for Gaming technology immerses you in rich sound. Accessible in-game via the Game Tools menu, this clever innovation carefully optimizes each level of sound – from background music to sound effects – to create a well-rounded soundscape⁵ that enhances the overall gaming experience.

The results are some truly heart-pumping audio effects that ramp up your adrenaline with every turn.

Game On!

Offering easy access to over 30,000 exhilarating games and counting, the Galaxy S10 line’s built-in Game Launcher is your one-stop hub for all things mobile gaming.

The convenient app, which allows you to view all of your installed games at once, is packed with intuitive tools designed to help you get the most out of your gaming experience. These allow you to, for example, instantly mute your games’ sound before you begin to play, and make detailed adjustments to game settings in order to optimize performance or save power.

The in-game accessible Game Tools menu offers users even more ways to take their gaming experience to the next level. The handy menu includes options to disable calls and notifications while gaming – to minimize distractions – and makes it easy to snap in-game screenshots, record gameplay, lock navigation buttons, and activate the Galaxy S10+’s Dolby Atmos for Gaming mode.

To introduce users to more games they’ll love, Game Launcher also offers game recommendations based on users’ usage patterns. Each game’s in-depth rundown includes insights into how the game is trending with Galaxy users worldwide, as well as the average amount of time that users are playing.

¹ Varies by model and region.
² The Unity game engine is utilized by over 6.5 million developers, and has served as the framework for approximately 40 percent of the world’s top 1,000 most popular mobile games.
³ Adaptive Performance is slated for release in the second half of this year. Availability may vary.
⁴ On a smartphone.
⁵ Approximately 30 percent clearer than the Galaxy S9 according to Samsung Electronics’ internal tests. May vary depending on conditions.