From being mocked for its utilitarian designs to turning into a benchmark for premium smartphone design, Samsung has come a long way in the last few years. It showed its design prowess once again with the recently launched Galaxy S10 series that has been receiving praise from all quarters. The Korean company took its critically-acclaimed flagship design from last year and refined it further to stay ahead of the rivals.
In an interview published on Samsung Newsroom, the design team behind the Galaxy S10 lineup sheds some details on the thinking and the process that went into making the latest flagships. Much of what is published is vague and PR speak, but it also reveals a bit about the thought process behind the design of the new flagships.
The Galaxy S10's design motto is ‘Radical, Magical'
The team says the central motto behind the Galaxy S10 design is “Radical, Magical.” It used premium materials, attractive colors, and sleek design to make the Galaxy S10 feel like a “radical change with a magical feel.” It focused on “prism colors” to enhance the gradient effect by generating “a vast spectrum of colors.”
“To create Prism White, we overlaid around 1,000 sheets of nanofilms together, each with different reflectivity. It was especially difficult to fine-tune which colors would stand out the most,” said Duyeong Choi from Design Team’s CMF Group that oversees color. The team also introduced bold new colors like Canary Yellow and Flamingo Pink to appeal to the Millennials and Gen Z.
Moving beyond glass, Samsung also introduced luxurious ceramic backs for select Galaxy S10+ variants. The team says the ceramic finish is a 200 hour-long process and offers increased durability and scratch resistance, some of which we have already experienced in actual use. They also talk about the position of the front camera and how it enhances the overall design with minimal bezels.
The Galaxy S10’s design may not look like a big leap forward at first glance, but the seemingly minor improvements it brings to the table are hard to achieve as easy gains in design are over. “In smartphone design, continual innovation is no easy task, but we are always listening to users, and are committed to pushing the boundaries of design to create Galaxy devices that everyone can enjoy,” said Seungho Jang from the Flagship Product Design Group in the Design Team.
SamsungGalaxy S10e
SamsungGalaxy S10
