A Theatre In Your Pocket

Innovative sound technology brings an immersive experience that’s changing the face of personal entertainment

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, 28 May 2018 – As far back as the late 1880’s, great inventors such as Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell, among others, were working on a way to record and play back music.^[i] Before then, the only music that could be enjoyed had to be played live. Fast forward 100 years and the advent and popularity of the boom box exploded onto the scene, with youths from around the world sporting massive boxes on their shoulders.^[ii]

Today, it’s difficult to imagine a life without a personal go-to-list that can be enjoyed whenever, wherever, privately. From joggers enjoying a motivating session or office workers immersing themselves in inspirational tunes, to teenagers bopping to the latest pop sensation or a grandmother listening to an e-book, the personal playlist has become an integral part of everyday life.

Craige Fleischer, Vice President of Integrated Mobility for Samsung South Africa, says, “Samsung always invests an enormous amount of time developing innovation that is relevant to our customers and can enhance their daily lives. The volume of work and investigation that went into the sound capability of the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ bears testimony to that. In fact, we spent a year modifying the kinetic structure of the speaker to make enough room for it.^[iii] The results are an intense sound experience that’s unmatched in any other device available today.”

The Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ feature an additional speaker at the top of the phone for stereo sound with much better bass performance, less distortion at high volumes and access to Dolby Atmos surround sound technology. The devices also allow users to set up their own preferences for listening and once the Dolby Atmos feature is activated, there are three presets, for Movie, Voice and Music. The movie sound mode is out of this world, especially when combined with the 18.5:9 edge-to-edge ratio display, which curves over the phone, offering a fully cinematic view.

The Adapt Sound feature optimises the sound settings for a user’ ears. All that needs to be done is a quick sound check under one of the settings and the difference is immediately noticeable. The Samsung Galaxy S9 is also backed by the in-house SoundAlive, which lets users’ amp up the audio output. It comes with a 9-band equalizer, which lets you adjust the frequency from 63Hz to 16kHz and from a range of 10dB to -10dB.^[iv] The Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ include a number of accessories, including a pair of AKG headphones worth R999, which take the personal theatre experience to the next level.

“The edge-to-edge display curves over the sides for a view that is boundless and free from visual distraction. Couple that with the incredible sound capabilities and you have your very own personal theatre that easily fits in your hand,” adds Fleischer.

Edison, Bell and other inventors of their class would likely consider being able to walk around with a theatre in their pocket nothing short of magical. Although the modern world is used to the speedy advancement of technology, the innovation of such immersive mobile sound and visual capabilities certainly brings a little magic back to the world of entertainment.

^{[i] http://www.charm.rhul.ac.uk/history/p20_4_1.html}

^{[ii] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boombox}

^{[iii] http://www.trustedreviews.com/news/samsung-explains-why-the-galaxy-s9-speakers-are-so-much-better-3446118}

^{[iv] https://www.guidingtech.com/samsung-galaxy-s9-audio-settings/}