TouchWiz

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

TouchWiz is a front-end touch interface developed by Samsung Electronics with partners, featuring a full touch user interface. It is sometimes incorrectly identified as an operating system. TouchWiz is used internally by Samsung for sophisticated feature phones and tablet computers, and is not available for licensing by external parties. The Android version of TouchWiz also comes with Samsung-made apps preloaded.

The latest version of TouchWiz is TouchWiz Nature UX 2.0, has been released on the Galaxy S4 and TouchWiz Nature UX 2.5, on the Galaxy Note 3. It features a more refined user interface as compared to the previous version, TouchWiz Nature UX, on the Galaxy S III. The status bar is now transparent during home screen mode in TouchWiz Nature UX 2.0 and TouchWiz Nature UX 2.5. In TouchWiz 4.0 on Galaxy S II and the Samsung Galaxy Note (both later updated to Nature UX) some of the features added[1] include panning and tilt, which makes use of the accelerometer and gyroscope in the phone to detect motion.

Samsung Galaxy S4 using TouchWiz Nature UX 2.0

TouchWiz is used by Samsung's own proprietary operating systems, Bada and REX, as well as phones based on the Android operating system. It will also be present in phones running the Tizen operating system.

TouchWiz was a central issue in Apple v. Samsung.

Versions

TouchWiz 3.0 Lite (Supports Android 2.1 - Android 2.2) (2010)

The Lite version of 3.0 was the "plain" edition of the original 3.0. The first device with TouchWiz 3.0 Lite is Samsung Galaxy Proclaim.

TouchWiz 3.0 (Supports Android 2.1 - Android 2.2) (2010)

The original version of TouchWiz was first introduced by the Samsung Galaxy S.

TouchWiz 4.0 (Supports Android 2.3 - Android 4.0) (2011)

The Second Version of TouchWiz was improved with hardware acceleration. Samsung Galaxy S II is the first device preloaded with TouchWiz 4.0. It also has an optional gesture-based interaction called 'motion' which (among other things) allows users to zoom in and out by placing two fingers on the screen and tilting the device towards and away from themselves to zoom in and out respectively. This gesture function works on both the web browser and the images in gallery used within this device. "Panning" on TouchWiz 4.0 allows the movement of widgets and icons shortcuts between screens, by allowing the device to be held and moved from side to side to scroll through home screens. This gesture-based management of widgets is a new optional method next to the existing method of holding and swiping between home screens.

-Preloaded Apps (Selected Devices only)-

  • Diary
  • Samsung Apps
  • Voice Command
  • AllShare Play
  • Samsung Kies Air
  • Samsung Social Hub
  • Samsung Music Hub
  • Samsung Readers Hub
  • Samsung Game Hub

-Preloaded Apps (Samsung Galaxy Note Devices only)-

  • S Note
  • Diary
  • Samsung Apps
  • Voice Command
  • AllShare Play
  • Samsung Kies Air
  • Samsung Social Hub
  • Samsung Music Hub
  • Samsung Readers Hub
  • Samsung Game Hub

TouchWiz Nature UX Lite (Supports Android 4.0) (2012)

The Lite version of the Nature UX of TouchWiz was the "plain" edition of the original TouchWiz Nature UX. The first device with TouchWiz Nature UX Lite was the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0.

-Preloaded Apps-

TouchWiz Nature UX (Supports Android 4.0 - Android 4.1) (2012)

The third version of TouchWiz was renamed to TouchWiz Nature UX along with the complete redesigned look and feel. Samsung Galaxy S III and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 are the first devices preloaded with TouchWiz Nature UX. The "Nature" version used by the S III and Note 10.1 has a more "organic" feel than previous versions, and contains more interactive elements such as a water ripple effect on the lock screen and brand new system sounds. To complement the TouchWiz interface, and as a response to Apple's Siri, the phone introduces S Voice, Samsung's intelligent personal assistant. S Voice can recognize eight languages including English, Korean and French. Based on Vlingo, S Voice enables the user to verbally control 20 functions such as playing a song, setting the alarm, or activating driving mode; it relies on Wolfram Alpha for online searches. New eye tracking functions such as Smart Stay can be found on selected TouchWiz Nature UX devices.

-Preloaded Apps (Selected Devices only)-

  • ChatON
  • Samsung Apps
  • S Voice
  • Samsung Game Hub
  • Samsung Video Hub
  • Samsung Social Hub
  • AllShare Play
  • Samsung Music Hub
  • S Suggest
  • S Memo

-Preloaded Apps (Samsung Galaxy Note Devices only)-

  • ChatON
  • Samsung Apps
  • S Voice
  • S Note
  • Samsung Game Hub
  • Samsung Video Hub
  • Samsung Social Hub
  • AllShare Play
  • Samsung Music Hub
  • S Suggest
  • S Memo

TouchWiz Nature UX 2.0 (Supports Android 4.2) (2013)

The fourth version of TouchWiz is still based on the "Nature" version used by the S III with some slight design changes. Samsung Galaxy S4 is the first device preloaded with TouchWiz Nature UX 2.0. Even more eye tracking abilities were introduced with the S4 such as Smart Scroll. The settings menu is now split into four sections: Connections, My Device, Accounts, and More (phones only).

-Preloaded Apps (Selected Devices only)-

-Preloaded Apps (Samsung Galaxy Note Devices only)-

TouchWiz Nature UX 2.5 (Supports Android 4.3) (2013)

TouchWiz Nature UX 2.5 is also slightly changed in design. Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition are the first devices to be preloaded with the new TouchWiz. The brand new version of TouchWiz now completely supports Samsung Knox security function. The new settings menu (Connections, Device, Controls, General) from the Note 3 (with the four categories at the top of the screen) now supports tablets, such as the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 10.1, while preserving the traditional two panel layout since the original Galaxy Tab 10.1. This reduces the amount of scrolling needed for a user to go to a specific item on the left panel. Also noteworthy to remember is the new search box, located just above the first item and below the category.

-Preloaded Apps (Selected Devices only)

-Preloaded Apps (Samsung Galaxy Note Devices only)-

Phones running Samsung TouchWiz

Proprietary

Bada

Windows Mobile

  • Samsung Omnia II

Symbian

Android

Cameras

Smartphones

Phablets

Tablets

References

  1. ↑ What are the features that TouchWiz has that stock Android does not have?
  2. ↑ "Samsung Solstice II SGH-A817 (AT&T)". CNET. November 17, 2010. 
  3. ↑ "Samsung Corby". Samsung. Retrieved July 5, 2011. 
  4. ↑ "Specs - AT&T Cell Phones SGH-I997 | Samsung Cell Phones". Samsung.com. 2012-12-15. Retrieved 2013-07-11. 
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