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Samsung’s secret weapon for its 2014 Smart TVs: Your finger

Published Dec 23rd, 2013 2:35PM EST
Samsung Smart TV 2014

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As rumors of Apple’s mythical “iTV” with Siri swirled in mid and late 2012, Samsung looked to get the jump on its rival by introducing a range of voice and motion controls alongside its 2013 smart TV lineup, which debuted just over one year ago at CES 2013. The new controls felt a bit rushed though, and they didn’t work as well as they should have in some cases. We saw this happen elsewhere in Samsung’s 2013 gadget lineup, of course, but it looks like the company will look to make amends in 2014.

According to a post on Samsung’s blog on Monday morning, the company’s Smart TV lineup is about to get “easier and more convenient to use.” That means more intuitive and responsive voice controls that will, for example, let users change channels and launch apps with simple voice commands. Enhanced gesture controls are also on the way that will apparently support a variety of finger commands such as the ability to change channels, adjust the volume or select on-screen items with a single finger. Another example Samsung provided: Going back a screen will now be as simple as rotating a finger counterclockwise.

“Samsung’s 2014 Smart TV models deliver significantly improved voice interaction and motion control features so that our consumers will be able to enjoy our Smart TV more intuitively,” said Samsung’s Senior Vice President of the Service Strategy Team of Visual Display Business, Kyungshik Lee. “We will continue to develop content that integrates voice and motion recognition for added convenience.”

Samsung’s new Smart TV line will debut during the company’s press conference next month at the annual CES trade show in Las Vegas.

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 10 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.