The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 hits shops today, and Samsung has an extra incentive for customers to choose its latest phablet over the iPhone 6 Plus or Nexus 6 – free OnLive gaming for three months.
OnLive is a service that allows you to stream high-end PC desktop games to an internet-connected display, such as a tablet or a smartphone. All of the intensive processing happens on OnLive’s servers – you just view and control the action from your local device.
OnLive is funded by a subscription model whereby you pay a flat monthly fee for access to hundreds of games. It’s kind of like the Spotify of gaming, in that sense.
Purchase a Galaxy Note 4 and you’ll get three months free access to that subscription service through the PlayPack bundle.
All you’ll need is a decent, stable internet connection, a game controller (OnLive sells one if you need), and the free OnLive app from the Google Play Store or Samsung Galaxy Apps store.
You’d expect modern high definition games to look great on the Galaxy Note 4’s 5.7-inch QHD AMOLED display, although it’s worth remembering that OnLive only provides its video streams at 720p, so it might not look super-sharp.
All in all, though, this could be just the lift that both companies need right now. Samsung’s meteoric rise seems to have stalled recently when it comes to smartphone sales – its biggest source of income.
Meanwhile OnLive is struggling against opposition from big traditional consoles like the Xbox One and PS4 – the latter of which acquired and assimilated OnLive’s biggest direct competitor in the game-streaming market, Gaikai, two years ago.
Read More: Samsung Galaxy S6 release date
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
