We’ve told you before about a new Samsung smartphone bearing the model number SM-Z150, known as the Samsung Z1 (2016). It’s only been a week since we mentioned the new Z1, but the Z1 (2016) has appeared on an Indian import/export website that confirms the product is indeed headed to market.
Import/export site Eximpulse has caught the phone in question, being used “for R&d purpose and evaluation & not for retail sale,” with the individual parts such as the battery, battery cover, front assembly, and rear case being mentioned. The product list tells us little about what we can expect from the device, however, so we’re still left with little to give in the way of compiling a spec sheet.
While it seemed that the Samsung Z1 (2015) would be retired after the arrival of the Samsung Z3 late last year, it seems as though the second-generation Z1 is the start of a tiered series for Samsung, where the Z1, Z3, and Z5 (with model number SM-Z510FD and possibly a metal chassis) will represent different tiers of the company’s “Z” series – and each tier has varying price points. Samsung said as much about its 2016 Tizen-powered smartphones.
Though Samsung has been criticized heavily for its slow updates on its high-end Android handsets, the Korean giant hasn’t been slow to update its Tizen-powered devices. The Z3 for example, just received a minor update last month in India, around the same time that the Z1 was updated to Tizen 2.4, the latest in its mobile operating system that brings features such as Maps and Geofencing, NFC mobile payments, voice control, and third-party keyboard support. Tizen has now surpassed BlackBerry to become the world’s fourth-largest mobile OS.
Though we’ve yet to see how Samsung’s 2016 Tizen-powered smartphones will fare in the global market, the Samsung Z3 surpassed expectations last year, giving the company hopes that a new year, its global brand value, and improved smartphone specs and features (hopefully, the inclusion of the Galaxy S7's Always On Display) with the entire Z series will continue to boost sales.
