There’s a pretty straightforward answer to the question “what is Samsung DeX?”
DeX stands for “Desktop Experience”, and the device itself is a docking station; a small, pocket-sized piece of hardware you can carry around alongside your Samsung phone, which will allow you to plug said phone into it.
This phone and dock combo can then link up with the typical components you use on a desktop PC - a keyboard, mouse, and monitor - to then use the phone like a computer.
After that straightforward answer, things start to get more complicated.
Samsung has produced two DeX docks so far, both of which are compatible with the Samsung Galaxy S8 series, Samsung Galaxy S9 series, and the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.
The first-gen DeX is called the DeX Station and looks like a hockey puck. It has two full-size USB 2.0 ports, an HDMI port, an ethernet port, and a USB Type-C port.
The second-gen DeX is a flat square-shape called the DeX Pad. Functionally they’re mostly the same, though the DeX Pad ditches the ethernet port in favour of Wi-Fi for internet connectivity.
What Can Samsung DeX Do?
The DeX software is still based on Android, so you’re not suddenly gaining access to Windows or macOS, or anything like that, but you are getting an Android overlay designed to make interacting with it with keyboard and mouse easier, and to put a focus on productivity features on-the-go.
When you’ve connected the DeX dock to a keyboard, mouse, and monitor, and plug in your Samsung handset, the desktop experience will fire up on the monitor, you’re able to navigate using the mouse (including right-click and drag-n-drop), and input text, numbers, and commands using the keyboard (including shortcuts).
You can run multiple applications at once, and use windowed mode to have them sharing the screen. The interface has more than a passing resemblance to the Chromebook OS and somewhat similar functionality, though here the apps are Android ones - there’s even an imitation Start bar in the bottom left and the option to add app shortcuts to the desktop.
Being Android, you can use the Google app suite (Drive, Docs, Sheets, Keep etc.) for productivity tasks, or alternatively you could use Microsoft’s Android versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, OneNote and Outlook, as well as many third-party options.
The phone doesn’t stop being a phone when you’re in DeX mode, as calls, texts, and the like will appear as notification drop-downs on the screen’s right-hand side, allowing you to dismiss or interact with them as you wish. You can take the calls in this mode, you don’t have to undock the phone.
Not all apps are supported just yet, but Google’s, Microsoft’s, and Adobe’s are all covered, which accounts for a good chunk of the kind of on-the-go productivity DeX is aiming for.
Should I Buy Samsung DeX?
It’s hard to say. On the one hand, having this kind of portable desktop capability can certainly have its uses, but on the other, when you start looking at the kind of scenarios where it might fit in, it ends up raising many more questions with each one you answer…
For example, although it’s easy to imagine the Samsung DeX slotting into your working life nicely as a more lightweight and portable office, in reality it’s unlikely to replace your laptop any time soon. Why? Well it is limited by the availability of those other desktop peripherals - monitor, mouse, and keyboard - which in one form or another are all built-in to a laptop or hybrid tablet device.
You aren’t, for instance, going to have access to a spare monitor and keyboard in your average coffee shop, even if they do have WiFi. And make no mistake, without those components, you’re kind of up the creek.
The appeal of DeX is surely that it opens up those productivity apps that have been available for Android for a long while now, but which, due to the limitations of interaction via touchscreen alone, many users don’t make as much use of as perhaps they otherwise would.
However, there are still practical limitations of the DeX system. At best, it adds another layer of flexibility to your working life, offering you a backup desktop in your pocket if you need to work on the go and haven’t got your laptop to hand.
The DeX can potentially be a massive boon for some tasks we’ve all wanted to achieve with a bit more finesse on mobile - longer, formal emails, and more extensive document editing via the likes of Google Docs.
There are limits, however - you’re probably fine if your work primarily involves text and spreadsheet stuff, but even though Adobe tools are ready for DeX, extensive image and video editing is probably not that realistic for professionals.
Samsung DeX Price
The older Samsung DeX Station has an RRP of £129 via Samsung's webstore, but it can be found much cheaper via third-party retailers online. It’s £89 at MobileFun, while outlets on eBay are selling it for as little as £49.99 including free delivery.
The new DeX Pad isn’t actually listed on Samsung’s UK-facing retail site (it’s $99 in the US), however, several retailers list it for around the £70 mark. MobileFun has it listed at £75 and quotes an RRP of £100, giving you a saving of 25%.
