Samsung’s new smartphone feature keeps calls at bay, enables bikers to stay focused

A newly developed smartphone feature has the potential to enable two-wheeler riders in India to ride safely, without being disturbed by telephone calls.

Making this possible is the latest mobile offering from Samsung – a Galaxy J3 smartphone equipped with the S bike mode feature which is targeted mainly at the commuter bike segment. To be marketed exclusively through Snapdeal starting today, the Galaxy J3 is priced at Rs 8,990.

Sample this: A rider activates the S bike mode at the start of the ride. Thereafter, the smartphone automatically informs the caller through an automated answering machine that the user of the Samsung smartphone is riding the bike and cannot take calls. The smartphone does not allow the incoming call to get answered due to the presence of the motion lock, a safety feature that encourages responsible riding. Thus the rider can have an uninterrupted and safe ride.

However, in the event of an emergency, the caller can press ‘1’ to talk to the biker for which the biker will have to bring his two-wheeler to a halt in order to answer the call.

Enabling this application, the Galaxy J3 smartphone has an in-built NFC hardware and the device is shipped across to the buyer with an S bike mode NFC tag. The tag can be affixed on the dashboard of the bike or helmet or even the fuel tank.  The user has to gently tap the device on this tag to activate or deactivate S bike mode. Alternatively, the user can use the quick panel to activate or deactivate the feature.

The S bike mode also sports an intuitive user interface where users can see a log of call notifications while the mode is enabled. It also contains a smart reply feature where selected contacts will receive an auto-SMS with an estimate of when the user is likely to be available for a call on the basis of the trip and destination entered by the user. There is also a dashboard of time and distance travelled using the S bike mode where users can win up to Rs 1,500 per month from Freecharge for being a responsible rider.

Interestingly, the Samsung Galaxy J3 is equipped with a 1.5 GHz Quad core processor and a 1.5 GB RAM for easy multi-tasking and fast speed. It comes with an 8 megapixel rear camera and a 5 mega-pixel front camera for taking selfies and videos calling.

Asim Warsi, senior VP, Samsung India Electronics, said that the S bike mode feature will be extended  across all 4G-enabled Galaxy J series devices over a few weeks.

“While studying consumer phone usage behaviour, we realised that incoming calls are a major distraction for bikers. Now we have something that will benefit millions of two-wheeler users and promote responsible riding.”

The company claims the S bike mode feature is an industry first in the world. It can also be applicated on a four-wheeler. Samsung had launched its J series of smartphones with the ultra-data saving mode in September 2015. The company claims the feature helped consumers save upto 50 percent of mobile data usage. Carrying forward the innovation, the S bike mode was developed in the company’s Indian R&D centres for India.