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Netflix will now be the official mobile entertainment partner of Samsung. That’s based on an announcement made today on the Samsung Unpacked 2020 event stage by Netflix Chief Marketing Officer Jackie Lee-Joe. The executive used her time on stage to describe how that will change the entertainment experience for users on Samsung devices.
The overarching goal of the partnership is to “make the Netflix viewing experience on Samsung mobile the absolute best it can be,” according to the executive. But the biggest change to be revealed is likely the introduction of Netflix integration into Samsung’s One UI 2 ecosystem.
Samsung says that users will now be able to search in the standard search bar for Netflix shows or movies. Those will pull up from the bottom as results, complete with secondary recommendations. Looking for something new will be easier too. The Samsung Daily page will now showcase recommendations based on shows users watch. For clarity, that’s the page that replaced the Bixby page, typically found to the left of the main home screen.
Made for and, in some cases, shot with the new Samsung Galaxy S20
Beyond the integrative features, in the coming months, Samsung mobile users will have access to a range of bonus content from some Netflix creators. Those will be made accessible through Samsung Daily and other Samsung channels.
At least some of those creators will be given a brand new Samsung Galaxy S20 series smartphone to use. Specifically, those will be used to shoot the content in question. Samsung and Netflix aren’t giving away which of the creators will receive the devices. But Ms. Lee-Joe has indicated that will include the creators behind Narcos, Sintonia, Elite, and Netflix is a Joke.
The key purpose of that will be to provide Netflix users with new content to view on the Galaxy S20 series’ new OLED HDR+ display panels. In particular, the content should take full advantage of those screens’ 120Hz refresh rate.
Samsung’s Galaxy S20 cameras
The content, where it’s shot on the new Samsung devices, will also showcase the video capabilities of the new Galaxy-branded flagships. Not only does Samsung ship its latest premium gadgets with brilliant displays. They also ship with 8K video-capable cameras to take full advantage of on-device and connected displays.
That all starts with a standard, ultra-wide, 12-megapixel, 120-degree lens with an f/2.2 aperture. That’s available across all three variants of the Samsung Galaxy S20. However, while the wide-angle lens in the standard Galaxy S20 and S20 Plus variants is a 12-megapixel f/1.8 aperture lens, that’s a 108-megapixel lens on the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra.
The Ultra version of the Samsung Galaxy S20 also packs in a 48-megapixel f/3.5 aperture lens instead of the 64-megapixel f/2.0 snapper found on its counterparts. That allows for up to 100x “Super Res” zoom and 10x hybrid optic zoom on the top-tier variant.
The Samsung decision to partner with Netflix is meant to show off those three new gadgets. It’s also deliberately being announced alongside them. So the new features will undoubtedly be launching there first. Samsung will most likely bring those back to some older handsets via software updates in the future.