The Smartphone That Can Survive a Toilet Plunge

By Walter Mossberg

How do you get consumers excited about yet another expensive high-end smartphone, in a U.S. market that seems to be maturing? Maybe the answer is to simplify the thing, and stress just a few interesting new features, like the ability to survive being submerged in water, or to act as a heart-rate monitor.

That’s the strategy that Samsung, the global smartphone leader, hopes will work for its latest top-of-the-line model, the Android-based Galaxy S5, which goes on sale in the U.S. on Friday at all major carriers.

The S5 will cost $200 with a two-year contract at AT&T and Sprint, and $660 without a contract at T-Mobile. Verizon, in a somewhat unusual move for a new, premier big-name phone, is offering a buy-one-get-one-free deal for $200 with a two year contract (after rebates) — making the up-front cost just $100.

I’ve been testing the new S5 for a couple of weeks, and...

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