Rumor: Samsung to introduce Tizen-powered Galaxy smartphone
When it comes to Android, Samsung has been one of the platform’s biggest supporters (and more often than not, Google’s surrogate in courtroom battles targeting devices running the OS), but the smartphone and tablet maker has never fully written off the idea of dabbling in other mobile operating systems. Most recently Samsung has launched a series of Windows Phone devices and in the past event attempted to launch their own mobile OS dubbed Bada.
Through all their endeavors their Galaxy brand has remained synonymous with Android, thanks in no small part to the success of the Galaxy S line of smartphones. This might change soon. A report from Digitimes claims that Samsung will soon launch a Galaxy device running an alternate OS to Android, the Linux-based Tizen.
You may recall that Tizen is the very platform that Samsung rolled their Bada OS into. It is a platform backed by the likes of Intel. If and when a smartphone running the OS comes to market, it will have an uphill climb to the top in light of Android, iOS, and Windows Phone, but the Galaxy name could provide a big boost. And perhaps this is why Samsung is considering the option. If any company has a chance to build up a userbase from scratch, Samsung has the influence. Even Verizon’s CEO agrees.
So what would a non-Android Galaxy phone spell for the rest of the line? Could we someday see a flagship Galaxy S device running a different operating system then Android? It is hard to imagine, but definitely not out of the question. Samsung’s loyalty is to producing great hardware that interfaces with a great OS to provide a great user experience. Samsung might one day decide that this means moving on from Android. But it’s all rumor for now. While there is little doubt Samsung will someday launch a Tizen-based phone, whether or not it earns a Galaxy logo is something we’ll leave to rumor for now.