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Meet Samsung’s new water-resistant speaker and portable printer
Samsung’s latest portable speaker provides up to 30 hours of music playback, and its all new portable wireless printer fits right inside your pocket.
‘Tis the season: during CES, almost all major companies showcase their latest gadgets and innovations. And Samsung is no exception, of course. The company gave us a glimpse of the all new 2017 Galaxy A family, and now it’s time for some accessories. With the Level Box Slim and the Image Stamp, Samsung wants to “introduce new ways to enjoy music and memories.”
Measuring 148.4 x 79 x 25.1mm, the Level Box Slim – they could’ve named it better, tbh – is a water-resistant portable speaker from the South Korean electronics giant. Although the market is already saturated with the likes of Bose, Beats, and Sony, Samsung hopes the IPX7 rating could be a differentiating factor. In fact, this is the same rating found in the Apple Watch, meaning the speaker can withstand immersion in water up to one meter for up to 30 minutes. So while you shouldn’t worry about splashing water by the beach or melting snow in your igloo, you probably shouldn’t dunk it in a pool.
Although the market is already saturated with the likes of Bose, Beats, and Sony, Samsung hopes the IPX7 rating could be a differentiating factor.
The 8W speaker has an impressive 2,600 mAh battery, which according to Samsung, should provide up to 30 hours of music playback. Battery life is something that’s plagued all my portable speakers, so I’m curious to see how the new Level Box Slim will fare in this regard. Another nifty feature is that the speaker functions as a portable charger, so if your device’s battery is low, you can hook it up to the speaker and voila, the music continues.
Accompanying the Level speaker is the Image Stamp. It’s essentially a portable wireless printer – not unlike what LG’s been offering for quite some time now. Via NFC or Wi-Fi, you can print photos taken from your smartphone, and unlike other mobile printers that require the 3:2 ratio, Image Stamp’s 16:9 ratio “ensures that photos are printed exactly as they’re presented on a user’s screen.”
The printer will also give you an option to add a QR code to your photo for information like where the photo was taken, etc.
It looks like Samsung’s latest gadgets are perfect for your summer beach parties, but the question is “How much will these cost?” The speaker is said to be available currently in select markets (I couldn’t find it on the US website yet), and the printer will be available beginning in early 2017.
Will you be buying the Level Box Slim or the Image Stamp? Let us know by leaving a comment below!