Samsung rebrands store as Galaxy Apps, eyes up Google Play customers

Samsung has changed the name of its apps store from “Samsung Apps” to “Samsung Galaxy Apps”, which essentially competes against Google's Play. The term “Galaxy” – which was once solely the high end brand in the Samsung range – now embraces all of its Android phones, with the Ace and Grand Neo now becoming the Galaxy Ace and …

[Dan 55]

Samsung unclear about why the rebrand had taken place

I suppose it was because they just knocked their App store's Bada support on the head, leaving just Android support.

Now, are they planning on having Tizen apps?

Samsung themselves probably don't know, they just seem to periodically throw stuff at a fan and see if it sticks.

[Michael Habel]

Re: Samsung unclear about why the rebrand had taken place

>Implying that anyone uses these things save to get the One, or Two Free Games that you get when you register the Device for the first time.... I don't know how "good" the Samsung "App Store" is... Going by what a utter steaming pile that it was... I'd say the Amazon App Store would give it a good thrashing.... And, Amazon can't even begin to hold a candle to Google Play...

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Samsung unclear about why the rebrand had taken place

because the previous one was such utter tripe they needed to start over again.

[SuccessCase]

Re: Samsung unclear about why the rebrand had taken place

"The term “Galaxy” – which was once solely the high end brand in the Samsung range – now embraces all of its Android phones, with the Ace and Grand Neo now becoming the Galaxy Ace and Galaxy Grand Neo."

Most probably because with their sales dip the brand distinction was making it clear they have been getting their arses whooped by Apple in the high-end market. They were selling at best 2/3 the number of Galaxy handsets as Apple have iPhones and now, with their ongoing sales dip and going from a vintage S4 release to a not so vintage Galaxy S5 release, while Apple have gone from a not so vintage 5 release to a vintage 5S release, it will have dropped to more like about 1/2 the number. They also know Apple seized the initiative in a number of technology areas: 64 bit computing, full finger finger print scanner, iBeacons, soon to be released handover features. They also know with the forthcoming larger iPhone the battery life will be massively improving, because one of the advantages of a larger handset is a relatively larger compartment space for the battery.

However they are still killing it with cheaper handsets (though of course facing stiffer competition in China), so I suspect this is a typical bit of Samsung obfuscation of the shipment figures to help protect their credentials with the tech press (they have already reported their sales dip as temporary and recovering by next quarter for two quarters in a row and can't say the same thing next time). Expect them to now make all sorts or press releases with implied (but invalid) comparisons of Galaxy sales figures.

[Captain Hogwash]

Re: Now, are they planning on having Tizen apps?

My first thought was that Galaxy Apps is likely going to stay Android only and another store will open using whatever name they come up with for their Tizen based range of devices. I hope I'm right but I haven't successfully predicted the future, as it relates to phones, since I said ring tones would eventually be polyphonic.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: ...they just seem to periodically throw stuff at a fan and see if it sticks.

Periodically? That's their whole R&D methodology in a single sentence. That and copying taking inspiration from everyone else. It boggles the mind that it costs them so much.

[Frankee Llonnygog]

Galaxy Grand Neo

What a classy name! If it was a car, it would denote an underpowered people-carrier with a beige vinyl interior

[Michael Habel]

Not that I care much, having owned both the Galaxy S, and the Original Tab (Oh why didn't they at lest use the same TW Gingerbread UI on that!). It all sadly becomes rather meaningless the moment you install something less invokingly Eyeball-bleeding as the latest Touch-Wiz Laucher on such devices, by installing something more sane like CyanogenMod. or even better OmniROM. Which break those few TW Apps. Such as their Store App. Let alone how they manage to break their own Apps more or less the same way.

Samsung Galaxy.... Good Hardware... Great Numbers --- i.e. great community support! Let down by their own crappy Launcher.

[Anonymous Coward]

Oh great

more crapware that'll be automatically downloaded to my S4... Still it can't be as bad as the random pay app that arrived without warning a few weeks ago and automatically downloads itself everytime you remove it...

Ah well maybe this weekend is the weekend where I back up my photos and throw Cyanogen mod on this thing

[BigAndos]

Re: Oh great

I finally did that last week. All great so far, the phone loads a lot quicker and I think the stock android UI is actually slicker than touchwiz. And no more "system" apps from Samsung like Flipboard, which plainly don't have anything to do with the system but can't be uninstalled!

The Samsung app store is terrible, there is hardly anything decent in it. Still at least it is good that you can have competing app stores in principle!

[Lamont Cranston]

"Galaxy Essentials" ... you have to ask yourself why they were left off the phone to begin with

If Samsung could leave all of their apps of the phone, it'd make a more pleasant experience for all concerned - particularly those with a Galaxy Ace (hasn't it been called that for quite a while, now?).

[David Gosnell]

Re: "Galaxy Essentials" ... you have to ask yourself why they were left off the phone to begin with

Galaxy Ace (hasn't it been called that for quite a while, now?)

Yes, since about launch if I remember rightly...

[Mark Lawson]

Re: "Galaxy Essentials" ... you have to ask yourself why they were left off the phone to begin with

The horribly underpowered stuff like the Galaxy Ace and Galaxy Y have had Galaxy in their name for at least two years. Galaxy doesn't mean high-end.

Whatever Samsung call the store it will still suffer from being stocked with stuff you wouldn't want to buy at all or that you wouldn't want to buy from Samsung (and tie to just their devices).

[CRConrad]

Re: "Galaxy Essentials" ... you have to ask yourself why they were left off the phone to begin with

More like four or five years for the Galaxy Y.

[Anonymous Coward]

ToughShit

Dear Samsung.

How about an app that downloads and flashes stock Android over the crappy bloated stock ROM?

[cs94njw]

“At Samsung, we continuously strive to create value for our customers by providing differentiated solutions and services coupled with innovative devices,"

Show me the value. Please. Where? The S Health app on the S3 was perhaps value, then you made it only compatible with the S4 and S5. So again, where is the value?

[DarkWalker]

No, thanks

One of the main advantages I see in using Android is exactly that I'm not tied to a manufacturer.

So, unless Samsung does away with the "exclusive" bit, I will only ever look at completely free apps inside its store, and even then I will give preference to equivalent apps from the Play store, or even from other third party stores that don't attempt to tie me to a single manufacturer.

[Peter Storm]

Re: No, thanks

Meet the new boss same as the old boss.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: No, thanks

"One of the main advantages I see in using Android is exactly that I'm not tied to a manufacturer."

Apart from Google, or as I like to call it the public facing front of the NSA.

[Anonymous Coward]

But the important question.... do they sell Galaxy Chocolate?

[Anonymous Coward]

'...promote customer loyalty.'

'...implement vendor lock-in.'

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: '...promote customer loyalty.'

Exactly, the Samsung Walled Garden is just like the Apple One.

Sure you can load apps from all manner of sources (even the dubious ones) freely but frankly the upgrade situation for Samsung, is very simple, buy a new frigging phone if you want the new shit that we've probably disabled anyway.

The recent actions by Google to rein in the variances of the Android ecosystem is while admirable, almost certain to fail. The cat out of the bag and all that.

IMHO, Samsung is losing the plot ralidly but configuring your phone to run apps that you don't want and can't remove. That was why I tossed them into the bin.

What are they going to do? My guess is give Google two fingers and move to Tizen (with an Android runtime) because they think they are big (and bad) enough to go it alone.

Pass the popcorn please, this is going to get interesting.

[Kunari]

The UI of Samsung's app store is terrible, there isn't even a search function. Rebranding it won't help if the UI isn't improved and I have no desire to get a app from Samsung's store if it's in Google Play.

[Craigie]

No interest

None at all. Third party app stores are completely pointless. I installed a keyboard as a free app from the amazon one once, then found I had to re-install the app store itself, and login to amazon again, just to install the keyboard after a wipe. Utter pain in the arse. I doubt I will ever again use a 3rd-party app store, and certainly not the Samsung crapware one.

[Turtle]

I knew it!

“'At Samsung, we continuously strive to create value for our customers by providing Apple's solutions and services on hardware inspired by Apple's innovative devices,' said Won-Pyo Hong (known to his friends as Ste-Won Chobs), president of the Apple-Watch Center at Samsung Electronics.”

I knew it! I KNEW it!

[lsces]

Having had to switch to Android following the loss of the N900 Linux based phone, what is irritating is the pre-loading with 'google' locked applications. I've managed to unlock the S4 and get rid of much of the advertising crap and get a set of apps that almost mirror the linux desktop. I'm looking at the S6 upgrade. Apart from the problem of Vodafone insisting on 'G4' tariff for a free upgrade when they have never provided G3 in this area and even THAT is going down. I don't want to loose the current desktop on the phone which also matches my tablet. So just like a laptop, it would be nice to have a 'no-OS' option rather than having to take all of the pre-loaded 'facilities' ...