Samsung admits cameras on it its flagship Galaxy S5 phone are 'dying'

• Firm says 'very limited' number of handsets are affected - but won't say how many
  
• Verizon forced to tweet about issue after customer complaints
• Problem causes the camera to stop functioning

By Mark Prigg

Published: 12:50 EDT, 28 April 2014 | Updated: 23:12 EDT, 28 April 2014

Samsung has admitted a bug in its newly launched Galaxy S5 phone is causing the handset's camera to die.

The Korean giant said the number of its flagship Galaxy S5 smartphones shipped with non-working cameras was 'very limited' and that it has taken measures to ensure the issue does not recur in new shipments.

However, operator Verizon was forced to take to Twitter to make customers aware of the flaw, which renders the camera useless.

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The move would place it in direct competition with the recently-launched Samsung¿s Galaxy S5 (pictured) which also features a plastic shell. The M8 is also expected to have almost identical features to its competitor, including a 5-inch 1080 pixel display plus a 2.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon 801 processor

Reports of the problem surfaced last week and come less than a month after the phone's global launch, with Samsung banking on the S5 to outdo its predecessor and rebuild momentum for the brand in an increasingly competitive market.

The South Korean firm has warned profits are likely to have fallen in January-March from a year earlier, its second straight quarter of decline.

'We have discovered that the issue has been seen in a very limited portion of early production Galaxy S5 units, and was caused by complications in the ROM (Read Only Memory) component which stores the information necessary to operate the camera,' Samsung said in an e-mailed statement.

A company spokeswoman on Monday declined to specify the number of phones affected but said the problem had been reported in the United States and a few other countries.

Customers affected by the S5 camera failure should contact Samsung's customer service or the mobile service provider, she said.

Users on the XDA-Developers forum confirmed the problem, with one warning it was 'Either a bad batch or something larger is looming.'

Samsung's Galaxy S5, Gear Fit, Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo watches were launched in 125 countries across the U.S., Europe, Middle East and Latin America last month.

By releasing four products on one day, the South Korean firm has made a major play in its consumer war with rival Apple - and experts claim it cements the company's place at the top of the smartphone market. 

Samsung has admitted a bug in its newly launched Galaxy S5 phone is causing the handset's camera to die. Operator Verizon was forced to take to Twitter to make customers aware of the flaw, which renders the camera useless

Andy Betts, editor of UK-based Android Magazine said: 'The Galaxy S5 is not a massive upgrade over last year's S4, but what has been improved should be more than enough to ensure that Samsung retains its dominance of the market.

'With an improved camera, much longer battery life and water resistance, Samsung has targeted areas that, while not necessarily producing eye catching headlines, will deliver real benefits for users.'

'It's undoubtedly going to be a very, very popular phone. Over to you, Apple,' added T3 magazine's Jeff Parsons.

Prices for a SIM-free Galaxy S5 start at £570 in the UK and $649 in the US, while the Gear Fit costs £169 and $199 and the Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo start at £199 and $199. 

In the UK, Germany and the Netherlands, customers who buy the Galaxy S5 additionally get a free six-month subscription to music service Deezer Premium+.

This service usually costs €9.99 (£8) a month. 

All handsets come with FIFA 14, available exclusively on the Galaxy S5 and other Galaxy devices.

The devices were unveiled during February's Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona.

Like Apple's iPhone 5S, Samsung's fingerprint scanner, 'provides a secure, biometric screen-locking feature'. However, the real innovations come inside with super-fast Wi-Fi and a host of fitness functions, claimed the company

The S5 features a built-in heart monitor, pedometer, fitness apps and fingerprint recognition.

It is at the head of a move by tech giants to turn the ever more sophisticated mobile phone into a substitute doctor and personal trainer.

Samsung’s S5 has its own health functions, but it will also connect to the company’s second generation smartwatch, the Gear 2, as well as a new wearable band device, the Gear Fit, which will play a role in measuring fitness. 

The watch and fitness band can pick up the pulse through the skin on the wrist, and display it on the small screen throughout a normal day, or during a workout.  

All of the information gathered by the devices can be used to calculate the number of steps taken, calories burned and general fitness. 

Samsung's Galaxy S5 and Gear Fit and Gear 2 watch range, pictured, have launched in 125 countries

The firm’s ‘S Health 3.0’ software creates graphs or tables of the results to track changes in activity and health over time. 

Samsung’s apps can then develop a fitness regime, including a range of activities from jogging to climbing the stairs rather than using the lift, to help people improve their health.

'We’ve decided to go back to basics with the Galaxy S5 and focus on the features and things that matter the most to our customers - namely the camera, ability to view and download data and content quickly and their health and wellbeing,' said Simon Stanford, vice president of IT and mobile division, Samsung Electronics UK and Ireland. 

'People want a smartphone that enhances and enables their mobile life.

'The Galaxy S5 represents just that and we’re excited to see the response to our latest flagship smartphone device.' 

The watch and fitness bands, pictured, can pick up the pulse through the skin on the wrist and display it on the small screen throughout a normal day, or during a workout. All of the information gathered by the devices can be used to calculate the number of steps taken, calories burned and general fitness

The S5 has a 16MP camera - an improvement on the 13MP camera seen on the S4 - and features a number of advanced editing and focus tools similar to those on the 5S.

The new camera has twice as many megapixels as Apple's iPhone 5S, for example.

This camera has phrase-detect, as well as contrast-detect autofocus, which Samsung claims is the fastest autofocus in any smartphone.

Samsung's Galaxy S5 has also got a better battery life than its predecessor.

Even when the battery is on 10 per cent, it has 24 hours of time left before it gives up the ghost, said the firm.

The smartphone is also the first with Wi-Fi MIMO, which Samsung claims nearly doubles Wi-Fi connection speeds.

MAILONLINE'S VERDICT - AN IMPRESSIVE DEVICE

During the launch event, Samsung’s president and CEO JK Shin stressed to the audience that the firm had focused on ‘simple, practical’ enhancements, rather than trying to reinvent the wheel – but that almost plays down the Galaxy S5’s achievements.

It’s an impressive device with a wide range of impressive features.

Samsung has gone almost back to basics by focusing on three areas – battery life, durability and the camera. During our brief hands-on we couldn’t fully test the battery claims, but on durability, the device feels much sturdier than the Samsung S4.

The Galaxy S5, pictured, has handpicked features from it's competitors and taken it's lead from the professional photo industry to launch an outstanding device

It’s still a large device and this takes a little getting used to, but compared to some of the larger models launched at today’s Mobile World Congress, the S5 feels comfortable and natural to hold.

The heart rate scanner seems like a gimmick - especially when sold alongside the Gear Fit designed especially for, and more suited, to fitness – and the novelty wore off quite quickly. It’s also slow; it took almost nine seconds to take a reading every time we tried. The position of the scanner felt awkward too.

The overall design, though, is a vast improvement.

It’s still made of plastic, so doesn’t have the premium feel of say an Apple iPhone, but its weight and smooth casing puts it on the right path.

We were also surprised with the quality of the display, colours appear sharp and bright, and noticeably brighter than on the iPhone 5S and Nokia Lumia 1020 when side-by-side.

We were unable to fully test the water resistance, camera features and power modes.

On to the design of the Galaxy S5, its case has a perforated pattern on the back cover creating a 'modern glam look'.

Its new shape comes in Charcoal Black, Shimmery White, Electric Blue and Copper Gold. It is dust and water resistant.

Like Apple's iPhone 5S, Samsung's latest handset has a fingerprint scanner, providing a secure, biometric screen-locking feature.

VP of electronic communications at Samsung, Jean-Daniel Amye, said: 'The finger scanner uses your fingerprint as the ultimate password to your identity.

'All it takes is a simple swipe of your finger to make secure payments.

'Also finger scanner unlocks Private mode where secure files can be stored. I can now keep my passport in a secure way'.

The Galaxy S5, pictured left, has a 16MP camera - an improvement on the 13MP camera seen on the S4 - and features a number of advanced editing and focus tools similar to those on the 5S and 'flattened icons', pictured right, similar to its high-end Apple counterpart

Samsung Galaxy S5	Apple iPhone 5S
5.5 x 2.85 x 0.31 inches; 5 oz	4.87 x 2.31 x 0.30 inches; 4 oz.
5.1-inch full-HD IPS; 1,920x1,080 pixels; 431ppi	4-inch Retina Display; 1,136x640 pixels; 326ppi
16 Megapixel, UHD Video	8-megapixel;  1080p full-HD video
Fingerprint Scanner	Fingerprint Scanner

Rob Skinner, director of PR at PayPal UK, said the world is moving away from passwords that are a hassle and easily forgotten.

'Combining Samsung's fingerprint authentication with PayPal means users will no longer need to remember passwords or login details when they shop. This new method strikes the perfect balance between convenience and security and we believe this will be the future for 2014 and beyond,' he said.

JK Shin, president and CEO of Samsung Electronics said: 'Samsung has been one of the major contributors of the mobile industry's high growth. Especially, the Galaxy S series has been a key driver of smartphone growth.

'A total of 200 million people use Galaxy S devices, he added.

'People are easily excited about technology - disruptive and breakthrough. We're interested in meaningful innovation. It's surprisingly simple. 

The Galaxy S5's shape is available in Charcoal Black, Shimmery White, Electric Blue and Copper Gold. It is dust and water resistant. The colours can be seen here on show at the launch event in Barcelona in February

'Our customers don't want eye-popping technology, they want design. Our consumers want a simple yet powerful camera.

'Our consumers want powerful and seamless connectivity and our consumers want a phone that helps them stay for,' he said.

Elsewhere, the Gear Fit gives users notifications about SMS, missed calls, while also serving as a way to monitor their heart rate while exercising.

The Samsung Gear Fit is designed to 'comfortably contour to the wrist while offering a vivid Super AMOLED display,' Samsung said.

The company claims it provides 'much more' than other fitness bands.

For example, it keeps users up to date with incoming calls, emails, SMS, alarm, S-planner and third party apps while they are on the move so they can stay connected.

For style-conscious wearers there are changeable straps in black, orange and grey and it's water resistant.

Samsung's CEO JK Shin unveiled Samsung's Gear Fit in February by simply pulling back the sleeve on his left arm. The wearable device, pictured, gives notifications about SMS, missed calls, and the like, while also serving as a way to monitor a person's heart rate while exercising

Weighing 27g, the Gear Fit offers real-time fitness coaching and personalised workout advice and is compatible with 20 Galaxy devices.

Interestingly, there are built-in heart rate monitors in both the Gear 2 and Gear Fit and the company admitted that users would have an 'overload' of sensors if they had both the Gear 2 and Gear Fit.

Mr Shin said: 'Gear 2 and Gear Fit - quite a team. 'Well, if you buy both and the S5, you'd have an overload of heart rate monitors. Surely one is sufficient.'

While there appears to be a fair amount of overlap with Samsung's new products, it's clear that the firm is making each one marginally different to attract the widest range of users as possible.

It's unlikely one customer will buy all three but Samsung is undoubtedly hoping that by attracting a new user to one or two of its devices it will develop a loyalty that will last into future releases.

The Gear 2 smartwatch, unveiled at the weekend, lasts three times longer than the first watch, which was criticised for being chunky and expensive at £300.

Interestingly, there are built in heart rate monitors in both the Gear 2 , pictured centre, and Gear Fit, pictured right, and the company admitted that users would have an 'overload' of sensors if they tried to use both the Gear 2 and Gear Fit alongside the new handset, pictured left

However, experts said the phone maker could still struggle to persuade users to upgrade.

The updates are so minor that on first glance most consumers would be hard pressed to notice that it has changed from the previous version,' Nick Dillon, senior analyst at Ovum said.

'Still, this should come as no great surprise, given the maturity of the smartphone market and the pressure on the Samsung not to mess with its winning formula.

'Samsung reminded us quite how successful this formula has been, noting that it has sold 200 million Galaxy S devices since launching the franchise in 2010.'

SAMSUNG'S SMARTWATCH - THE GEAR 2

The Gear 2, and sister device the Gear 2 Neo, pictured, lets users track their heart rate while exercising

Samsung unveiled its latest smartwatch at the weekend which will work alongside its new Galaxy 5 smartphone.

The watch will double up as a TV remote and a fitness tracker as it tries to overcome the problems which plagued its first offering.

The Gear 2, and sister device the Gear 2 Neo, will let users track their heart rate while exercising, offer fitness coaching and allow people to design their own workout routines.

A built in LED will also let people control other electrical devices, such as their TV.

Sales of Samsung's first attempt, the Galaxy Gear, have been disappointing due in part to its poor battery life, clunky camera built into the strap and limited selection of apps.

On the new Gear the camera has been moved on to the watch face, but it is unclear what customers will make of other improvements and additional features, such as a range of colours and customisable clock faces.

Samsung's first Gear watch cost £300 and it is not known whether the second generation model will be any cheaper.