Samsung TriFold Sells Out, Google OS Leak Revealed
▼ Summary
– Samsung’s new Galaxy Z TriFold phone sold out quickly; it features a 10-inch tablet screen and costs $2,899, marking the West’s first such device.
– Google’s upcoming Aluminium OS, glimpsed in leaked materials, blends Android and ChromeOS interfaces but may not feel drastically different from existing systems.
– Vivaldi’s latest browser update explicitly rejects AI integration, focusing instead on enhanced human-centric tools like improved tab tiling via drag-and-drop.
– Samsung has developed a sustainable display housing using phytoplankton-based bio-resin, which reduces carbon emissions by over 40% compared to conventional plastics.
– Availability of the Galaxy Z TriFold is limited, with future batches announced via Samsung.com notifications and select U.S. stores, while ChromeOS will eventually be replaced by Aluminium OS over several years.
Samsung’s groundbreaking Galaxy Z TriFold made its debut last Friday, vanishing from virtual shelves in a matter of minutes. This innovative device sets itself apart from the familiar Galaxy Z Fold7 by featuring a screen that unfolds to an expansive 10-inch tablet-like display. This capability comes with a premium cost, carrying a price tag of $2,899. While it represents a first for Western markets, a similar concept exists from Huawei in China. Interested customers must now register on Samsung’s website for alerts regarding the next restock. The company also notes a very limited number of units are available at select Samsung Experience Stores in several U.S. states, including New York, Texas, California, and Minnesota.
Meanwhile, a new leak offers a preliminary look at Google’s ambitious project to merge its operating systems. Internally referred to as Aluminium OS, this platform aims to converge Android and ChromeOS into a unified experience. A few official images and a video, extracted from a now-removed bug report, provide a glimpse of the interface. The early visuals suggest Aluminium OS is indeed a hybrid, blending the windowing system and browser elements from ChromeOS with an overall interface that draws heavily from Android. The taskbar and start screen, for instance, bear a strong resemblance to the desktop mode found in Android 16. The brief video demonstrates a split-screen view with two Chrome windows, a classic Chromebook setup, before switching to show the Google Play Store in a separate window. Based on this early peek, the new OS may not feel like a radical departure, a strategic choice likely aimed at maintaining continuity for the crucial education market where Chromebooks are dominant. Although Aluminium OS is expected to eventually replace ChromeOS, that transition is projected to take years, with an official unveiling of the cross-platform system rumored for later this year.
In the browser space, Vivaldi is taking a distinctly different path from its competitors. The company’s latest update enhances its tab organization tools while pointedly avoiding the integration of any AI features. Vivaldi’s CEO, Jon von Tetzchner, has openly criticized the industry’s rush to embed AI assistants, positioning Vivaldi as a browser that champions powerful tools for human users over algorithmic assistants. The update refines the existing Tab Tiling feature, introducing an intuitive drag-and-drop method to arrange two or more web pages side-by-side within a single window. Users can simply drag a tab onto another and position it to tile left, right, top, or bottom. Additional improvements include easier access to Vivaldi’s built-in mail client and a new option to restrict pinned tabs to a single domain. Vivaldi 7.8 is available for download directly from the company’s website.
On a separate sustainable note, Samsung has unveiled a display innovation that incorporates eco-friendly materials. The company has developed a new color e-paper display that uses a housing made with 45 percent recycled plastic and 10 percent phytoplankton-based bio-resin. This bio-resin serves as an alternative to traditional petroleum-based plastics. According to Samsung, certified by the safety organization UL, this material innovation can reduce carbon emissions during the manufacturing process by more than 40 percent, marking a significant step toward more sustainable consumer electronics.
(Source: Wired)
