Here’s the low-down on the accessories available for the new phones

Along with the Galaxy S8 and S8+, Samsung has also announced a bevy of accessories for the new flagships. The new accessories include the requisite cases, along with a brand new version of the Gear 360, Gear VR and the Dex. Let’s begin:

While Samsung’s flagship phones have always enjoyed healthy support from after market case makers, the company has always made it a point to offer a few of their own cases along with the launch of their flagships. This year is no different, with the company offering four unique cases for the new phones. First off is the weird and unique minimalist case, or bikini case as we like to call it. These are basically two strips of plastic to go on top and bottom of the phone that can be color coordinated depending on your taste. Not really something we’d trust to protect our phone with, but whatever.

The next case on the list is the case made out of Alcantara, a material that’s usually used on high-end bags and cars, anything that needs that extra touch of style. The case feels nice to hold in the hands and is equally easy on the eyes, and comes in a slew of different colors.

Probably the most interesting of the cases is the LED view case. This particular case has a small, LED display embedded in front, and is powered by NFC and induction technology. When closed it displays the time, notifications and other information on the front. It’s an uber cool case to be honest even if it does look a little gimmicky. There’s also a Clear View case that can be used to prop up the phone when you’re watching content on the display.

Moving on to the new Gear 360 (2017), you’re looking at higher resolution stills as well as the ability to record in 4K video. The camera can also do landscape HDR as well as time lapse video as well. Samsung’s also introducing a new version of the Gear VR which now ships with its own controller which coincidentally gives it the same featureset as Google’s DayDream VR platform.

Finally, we come to the Dex. It’s a desktop solution developed by Samsung that allows you to use the Galaxy S8 and the S8+ as a stand-alone desktop. You simply plug the phone into the USB Type-C connector on the Dex, connect a mouse, keyboard and a display via USB and HDMI respectively and you’re all set. The phone’s interface changes to a desktop-friendly version when you plug it in, and you’ll be able to access all the important productivity tools that matter. Samsung says that you won’t be able to run all apps when the phone is connected via Dex, so your dreams of playing Mobile Legends on a big screen will have to wait.

Pricing for the accessories are as follows: the Dex will retail for Php 7,599, while the new Gear 360 (2017) will retail for Php 10,990. The new, improved Gear VR with the controller is Php 5,990. The LED case is Php 2,999, while the Alcantara case is Php 2,099.