user: How Samsung stacks up against Apple, HTC

Read MoreSamsung unveils curved Galaxy S6 Edge, payments

The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus helped Apple beat out Android's share of the market for mobile operating systems, though by a slim margin, according to technology research firm Kantar Worldpanel. In December, iOS owned 47.7 percent of the smartphone operating system market, while Android took 47.6 percent of the market, according to the firm's research.

Samsung's new phones will be available worldwide on April 10, the company said.

Both Galaxy S6 phones will come with wireless charging technology built in, according to Samsung.

Watch: With S6, Samsung still faces 'uphill task': IDC

In terms of hardware running the Android operating system, the Galaxy S6 will compete closely with the HTC One M9, but each have their pros and cons.

For example, while the Samsung phone has a screen resolution of 2560 x 1440, the HTC phone shows 1920 x 1080.

Watch: Good design, but can Samsung's S6 beat iPhone 6?

And while the Samsung phone no longer has expandable storage, as previous Galaxy models have, the HTC phone's storage space is expandable with a microSD card slot, according to company specifications.

Summary: Samsung's new Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge phones versus Apple's iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.


Oil price plunge forces spending cuts in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia is ordering a series of cost-cutting measures as the slide in oil prices weighs on the kingdom’s budget, according to two people familiar with the matter.

The finance ministry told government departments not to contract any new projects and to freeze appointments and promotions in the fourth quarter, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information isn’t public. It also banned buying vehicles or furniture, or agreeing any new property rentals and told officials to speed up the collection of oil revenue, they said.

With income from oil accounting for about 90 percent of revenue in the Arab world’s largest economy, a drop of more than 40 percent in crude prices in the past 12 months has put pressure on the nation’s finances. While Saudi Arabia’s public debt is one of the lowest in the world, with a gross debt-to-GDP ratio of less than 2 percent in 2014, the kingdom’s net foreign assets fell for a seventh month to the lowest level in more than two years in August.

Saudi Arabia is OPEC’s biggest oil exporter. Brent, a benchmark for more than half the world’s crude, was trading at $51.47 per barrel at 12:08 p.m. in London, down 10 percent this year.

The finance ministry declined to comment on the circular. The government was working with advisers on a review of capital spending plans, people familiar with the matter said in August.

Summary: Saudi Arabia is ordering a series of cost- cutting measures as the slide in oil prices weighs on the kingdom’s budget, according to two people familiar with the matter.


Why I Proposed To My Husband

In honor of Women's History Month, here's a challenge to you women who would like to be married to the person you're dating but are waiting for the proverbial pop of the question.

You know who you are. You and your partner have discussed marriage but always stop short of definitive plans. You've reached the point where you expect it will happen. Maybe you're hoping for next Valentine's Day.

In the meantime, every time you and your lover dine in a cozy restaurant, you discreetly wonder if a piece of the rock will appear in concert with your crème brulee.

Or maybe it will be frantically fumbled out of your intended's pocket in a taxi or a tent or on the subway or a ski lift, in an awkward but romantic moment, which will be lovingly retold at every major anniversary.

Those proposals are beautiful, too. But there's another way that gives the woman a bigger role.

How about this: Instead of waiting for your life history to happen to you, set it in motion yourself. If you know you've found the right person and you're reasonably sure the time is right, go ahead and ask.

Television and movie characters have been doing it for years, now. And according to a 2004 survey conducted by champagne maker Korbel, almost one-third of 1,000 respondents knew of a woman who had proposed to a man; about two-thirds said it would be socially acceptable.

How would a woman's proposal work, exactly? I can tell you, because I did it.

I was 30 and I knew what I wanted. I had reservations, of course. If I had to ask, didn't that mean my guy wasn't ready, or that he didn't know what he wanted? Or that if he did know what he wanted, he wasn't decisive enough to say so?

Summary: I knew what I wanted, and I didn't want to wait.


Ad break: Luis Suárez sheds bad boy image and the first of the year’s Super Bowl ads

Even his fiercest detractors have to admit that Luis Suárez is one hell of a footballer. The bitey Uruguayan’s seesawing contrition has done little to rehabilitate his image, but he’s still box office as far as Adidas are concerned and this playful film turns his bad boy image into a positive as he takes his place in a line-up that also includes Gareth Bale, James Rodríguez and Karim Benzema. Agency: Iris LondonDirector: Ernest Desumbila

This vibrant slice of life positions the Vauxhall Corsa as a car we might find at the centre of normal human existence … a life utility vehicle helping young drivers taking their first steps into the world of adult responsibility. It’s a canny move: the vehicles of yesteryear previously occupying this space – the Mini and the VW Beetle – have been seriously upgraded in the last 20 years and, although they are superior to their automotive forebears, they are well beyond the financial reach of many youngsters.Agency: 101Director: Bob Harlow

A stressed mother puts on a cheerful face when her young son comes home from school, but is immediately drawn back into her anxiety by a phone call and ignores the piece of paper he hands to her. What follows is a lovely example of advertising ability to tell an emotionally engaging story on a relatively small canvas.Agency: Joe PublicDirector: Greg Gray

Big tobacco is like a predator according to the sharp piece of work which casts a light on the marketing of cigarettes. It features a beautifully over-the-top performance from an actor playing a creepy executive who’s looking forward to the next generation of customers willing to exchange their health for his product.Agency: Anomaly LondonDirector: Sara Dunlop

This campaign has delivered some memorable ads, but this has to be the best yet for sheer eyeball-grabbing, attention-seeking mischief. A guy gets out of his car and strides down the street with a purposeful twinkle reminiscent of John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever. What’s he looking so pleased about? He’s saved money by using the advertised price comparison site … but that’s not all.Agency: MotherDirector: Fredrik Bond

The first of this year’s Super Bowl commercials to appear on Ad break is an unapologetic piece of innuendo-laden sexist silliness for US fast food joint Carl Jr. While this has been made by an American agency for an American audience, the decision to hire British director Jake Scott (son of Ridley) to direct implies the statesiders know which nation’s filmmakers are best at creating a bit of a “Carry On”.Agency: 72andSunnyDirector: Jake Scott

Jason Stone is the editor of David Reviews

Summary:

assistant: The Barcelona and Uruguay striker lines up in an ad also featuring Gareth Bale and James Rodríguez and Carl’s Jr gets in early for the grid iron showpiece