This is Samsung's Display Dock clone that will power its Continuum rip-off on the Galaxy S8
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Samsung is all set to launch its upcoming flagship, the Galaxy S8 later this month. We already know pretty much everything about the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S8 after all the glorious leaks that have been happening for the past month or so. One of the most interesting leaks, however, was the Galaxy S8’s upcoming Desktop Experience feature or DeX.
As we reported earlier this year, Samsung DeX is essentially a clone of Windows 10’s Continuum for phones feature that allows users to get a desktop-like experience from their phone by connecting it to an external monitor, keyboard, and mouse. With Continuum enabled, users can enjoy UWP apps and games just like they would on a real PC. Samsung’s DeX, in comparison, also seems to be a similar feature that will allow users to get a desktop-like experience powered by the Galaxy S8.
Similar to Continuum for phone, Samsung DeX will require a special dock to power the feature — and Samsung is calling that the DeX Station. This is similar to Microsoft’s Display Dock or HP’s Desk Dock that allows users to utilize Continuum with their phone. The folks over at WinFuture got their hands on some details for the DeX Station and it looks very similar to some of the docks that are available for Continuum. Here’s a picture comparing Samsung’s DeX Station for the Galaxy S8 with HP’s Desk Dock for the Elite x3. We also have the Display Dock below, which doesn’t look a lot like the DeX Station but the idea behind it is obviously the same as the DeX Station.
In case you are wondering, the DeX Station includes an embedded cooling fan which will help cool down the Galaxy S8 if it gets too warm — but that’s not included in the HP Desk Dock or the Microsoft Display Dock. The DeX Station costs 149,99 euros and it probably won’t come bundled with the Galaxy S8. For comparison, the Elite x3’s Desk Dock costs 138 euros but it also doesn’t come bundled with the device.
Samsung’s DeX seems a more powerful than Continuum as it includes multi-window support. It will be interesting to see how Android apps actually perform in the desktop environment, but Continuum lacking multi-window support is definitely a big let down for Windows 10 Mobile users. Microsoft is working on adding multi-window support to Continuum, but that won’t arrive anytime soon for users.
