Samsung talks up the S10 in Dubai: Our first impression and review in an unboxing video

Dubai: Samsung didn’t hold back on the claims at the launch of the S10 range, calling it the “best phone” the company has made ... ever.

With a vastly improved camera, a lush AMOLED display and impressive processing capabilities, the Samsung S10 and S10+ start at Dh2,599 and go up to Dh3,599. As for the foldable phone, it will be made available soon, according to Tarek Sabbagh, the company’s regional head of mobile and IT products.

He did not specify if this meant the Galaxy Fold would go on sale or simply be available for testing by the media and Samsung’s partners. Sabbagh described the folding phone, which was first unveiled at an event in San Francisco in February, as a “luxury device.”

The device’s estimated price tag, according to internet reports, is $1,980, which when converted in to dirhams amounts to Dh7,272. The official price, when announced, may differ from this, however.

The executive said that the Fold would have six cameras and a host of other — exclusive — features that would make it the optimal device for business people and consumers intent on multitasking. At around 8 inches, the phone is closer in size to a tablet when unfolded.

At the event, held Wednesday evening at the new Caesars Palace hotel in Dubai, Samsung invited a number of influencers up on stage to talk about the benefits of the S10.

Photography was one area that received plenty of attention, with the specs of the phone’s dual rear lenses on show. Samsung told the audience that the cameras would allow them to take photographs almost indistinguishable from that of a professional camera.

Also highlighted was Samsung’s partnership with Instagram, which allows users to upload a photo directly from their photo album to the photo-sharing network. “This partnership makes the Samsung S10 the best phone for using Instagram on,” the company said.

Gaming too was on the agenda, with a particular emphasis on the phone’s cooling systems, which help prevent the phone from overheating after excessive gaming.

The Galaxy S10 uses an “advanced heatpipe” cooling system, while the pricier Galaxy S10+ uses a vapour chamber cooling system. And for all of these functions, Samsung was keen to highlight just how much memory the new phones have: Up to 1 terabyte (TB), or 1,000 gigabytes (GB), of space, with room for a further 500GB of added storage. Perfect, they say, for taking high resolution photographs, or playing expansive mobile games.

The 1TB version of the phone comes with a huge 12GB of RAM.

The company unveiled its new rival to Apple’s AirPods — the Galaxy Buds.

The wireless, Bluetooth earphones have been developed by AKG, Samsung’s longtime audio partner, and will be an “excellent way to listen to music, movies, or podcasts,” according to the company.