Samsung will be launching the Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ at MWC 2018. With the recent leaks and renders, there is barely anything left that can surprise us. However, Flipkart has started teasing the smartphone before the launch. So, Flipkart could be the exclusive online e-commerce partner in India.
Samsung recently teased the Galaxy S9 and S9+ which emphasised a lot on the camera. This further confirmed that the new flagship devices will have a much more improved camera setup. The teaser has a big “9” accompanied by text that reads, “The. Camera. Reimagined”.
Flipkart, on of India’s biggest e-commerce websites has made the Galaxy S9 page live. This means that just like its predecessor, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ will also be Flipkart-exclusive devices. On the main page, it says “9OnFlipkart” coming on 25th February 2018. It looks like Galaxy S9 and S9+ will go on sale in India along with other major markets like the US.
Specifications:
The Samsung Galaxy S9 and the Galaxy S9+ are expected have a 5.8-inch and 6.2-inch QHD+ Super AMOLED display. Depending on the market, these phones will feature either Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 or Exynos 9810 chipset with 4GB or 6GB RAM and 64GB or 128GB storage.
In terms of camera capability, both smartphones will have a primary 12 MP shooter with the variable aperture from f/1.5 to f/2.4. However, leaks also suggest that the Galaxy S9+ might come with an additional camera with an unknown functionality. These smartphones will run on Android 8 Oreo OS with custom Experience UI on the top, along with IP68 water and dust resistance certification.
Conclusion:
It is great that the company will launch the Galaxy S9 devices in India along with other markets. However, the company will have to get the pricing spot on for its new flagship smartphones.
Samsung has been the number one smartphone maker in the world for a while and Apple has always been a close second. Recently, Huawei overtook Apple as the second largest smartphone maker because of the sales in Q2 of 2017. Apple is expected to take that position back and challenge Samsung once again with the launch of the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus and the iPhone X. Samsung has been riding high on the success of its flagship Galaxy S8 and S8+ and the newly launched Galaxy Note8 has already received record breaking pre-orders in the United States and South Korea.
With the Samsung Galaxy S8+, iPhone 8+, iPhone X and the Galaxy Note8 competing for the best flagship of 2017, let’s see how each of them stack up against each other.
Apple iPhone X
The iPhone X has a 5.8-inch 2436 x 1125 px OLED True Tone Super Retina display with minimal bezels around it. The phone runs iOS 11 and is powered by a 3,000 mAh battery which charges through the Apple signature lightning port placed at the bottom of the phone. Because of the all-glass design, the iPhone 8 also has wireless charging. Under the hood, the smartphone has the Apple A11 Bionic chipset with a neural engine, a hexacore processor, 3GB of RAM and storage options of 64GB, and 256GB. Apple has also gotten rid of TouchID and replaced it with facial recognition called FaceID which Apple claims has a security breach chances of 1 in a million.
On the optics front, the iPhone X has dual 12-megapixel rear cameras, and it’s equipped with dual optical image stabilization. The main camera is equipped with a wide angle lens and has an f/1.8 aperture while the secondary telephoto lens has an f/2.4 aperture.
Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+
The Samsung Galaxy S8 has a 5.8” 2960×1440 px display with a 570ppi while the S8+ has a 6.2” 2960×1440 px display with a 529ppi density. Both have Samsung’s own super-AMOLED display. The Galaxy S8 is powered by a 3000 mAh battery while the Galaxy S8+ has a 3500 mAh battery. Both the smartphones run Android 7.1.1 Nougat out of the box and Samsung has confirmed an update Android 8.0 Oreo soon. Under the hood, both the smartphones have Exynos 8895 chipset, 64GB or 128GB onboard storae options which is expandable up to 256GB via microSD card. The Galaxy S8 has 4GB RAM while the Galaxy S8+ has 4GB or 6GB RAM variants.
For cameras, both phones get a main Dual Pixel 12MP OIS (F1.7), Front: 8MP AF (F1.7). While the battery on the Galaxy S8 is 3000 man, the S8plus has a 3500 mAh battery. Both support fast charging and wireless charging as well.
Apple iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus
The Apple iPhone 8 has a 4.7 inch 1334 x 750 px True Tone display and the iPhone 8 Plus has a 5.5 inch 1920 x 1080 px True Tone Display. Under the hood, the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus have the A11 Bionic chipset with a hexacore processor and the new Apple GPU. Both the phones now have wireless charging capabilities. Both the phones run iOS 11 and the battery of the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus is identical to the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus respectively.
On the camera front, there’s a 12-megapixel sensor on the iPhone 8 that is larger, faster and has optical image stabilization. The iPhone 8 Plus also has new 12 MP sensors. The main camera is equipped with a wide angle lens and has an f/1.8 aperture while the secondary telephoto lens has an f/2.8 aperture. The dual cameras on the iPhone 8 Plus also have a new “Portrait Lighting” feature to adjust the lighting for portrait shots.
Samsung Galaxy Note8
The Galaxy Note8 has a 6.3 inch 2960 x 1440 px Super AMOLED display with an 18.5:9 aspect ratio, which is the same aspect ratio found on the Galaxy S8 and S8+. Powering the device is a 3300 mAh battery which is smaller than the 3500 mAh battery found on the Galaxy Note7 with wireless charging capabilities, and runs Android Nougat 7.1.1 with Samsung’s custom skin on top. The device has the Exynos 8895 chipset, 2.3GHz Quad-Core (Custom CPU) + 1.7GHz Quad-Core (Cortex-A53) processor, 6GB of RAM and 128GB onboard storage, which is expandable up to 256GB via microSD card. The graphics are handled by the Mali-G71 MP20 GPU.
The new Note8 has a 12MP dual-camera setup, one of which has a wide lens and the other a telephoto. The telephoto lens allows a user to zoom in losslessly for an up to 2x magnification. The use of dual camera allows for the ability to blur out the background for professional looking bokeh effect shots, something that seems to be common in smartphones in 2017. The Galaxy Note8, Samsung claims, is the first smartphone to feature OIS in both the cameras at the back.
With the markets flooded with the likes of Siri, Google Assistant, Alexa etc. Samsung’s Bixby is the latest to join the mixer. The company recently announced that the voice support of its smart assistant is out in US, available to Galaxy S8 and S8+ owners. Samsung states that an opt-in Beta test in US on Bixby’s voice support which will be later available in other markets and an eventual release in India. Over 100,000 Galaxy users issued about 4 million voice commands in the early access programs. The test led to faster response time, improved understanding of phrasing the same query differently, better hands-free functionality and ability to read messages and emails aloud, provided you use its stock apps on Galaxy S8.
Similar to its competitors, Bixby can be launched with a push of a button (dedicate to Bixby) on the side of S8 or S8+ or by simply saying “Hi Bixby”. Very much like Siri, Google Assistant and the likes, Bixby can set alarms, send messages, read the news along with image recognition and barcode scanning. But what sets it aside from its contendors is the ability to access the granular phone setting and switch between different menu screens to run commands.
Samsung had earlier planned on making Bixby more aware of the user’s wants and needs, as to customize the user experience. Samsung believes that Bixby will gradually improve as it continues to recognise and learn user’s preferences and adapt accordingly. Choosing not to limit itself to smartphones, Samsung also added Bixby to its line of smart refrigerators last month though without voice support for now.
Samsung may be hard at work readying their next big smartphone/s but the world can hardly wait. These are possibly the most leaked Samsung smartphones till date, and whether one agrees or not, Samsung has some serious flagships getting ready to face the world. If leaks have told us anything, the Samsung Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8+, will both have impressive displays, cameras and internal hardware. Let’s quickly do a roundup of everything we know so far.
Two Phones
It is known that Samsung is launching two phones, the Samsung Galaxy S8 and the Samsung Galaxy S8+. While the Galaxy S8 will have a 5.8 inch display with a QuadHD+ resolution, the larger Samsung Galaxy S8+ will have a 6.2 inch display with the same resolution. Apart from the difference in sizes and battery the two phones may not offer up any additional differences.
Design
Samsung has taken a new approach towards design this year, while the aesthetic of the Samsung Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8+ will remain identical to the edge variant of the Samsung Galaxy S7 edge, the phones will be dominated by the display. Samsung has had to remove the physical button from the front of the phones, which also means that the fingerprint sensor will be removed from the ideal front location to a rear location next to the camera module. Samsung will most likely retain the IP68 aspect of the Galaxy S7 on the Galaxy S8 and S8 plus, which was one of the biggest reasons for Samsung’s success with the Galaxy S7.
Display
The Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ will both have curved edge displays, with a QuadHD+ resolution. However, the screen to body ratio on the new phones will be more than 85%, letting the display rule the front of the phone, eliminating unnecessary bezels and including from the top and bottom of the phone.
We also know from leaks that the Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8 plus will have curved corners of the display. We have already seen this with the LG G6, where the company claims the rounded edges make the display survive better in cases of drops and prevents it from cracking at the corner.
Samsung is also said to be working on a 3D Touch type of technology that will allow the user to press down on the display to mimic the home button or open contextual menus. The displays of the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8 Plus are also expected to support S-Pen input, so the Galaxy Note fans don’t have to wait for the company to launch the Galaxy Note 8.
Cameras
Looks like there is no special magic trick this time around. While Samsung had one of the best cameras on smartphones in 2016, the company may not make big changes to the cameras on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 plus . Both the phones will be fitted with 12 MP sensor equipped main cameras with a Dual Pixel technology and the ability to shoot 4k video.
Hardware
Despite the fact that Samsung has an impressive chipset, the Exynos 9, which is capable of heavy multitasking and shooting 4k video at upto 120 fps while supporting a 4k display. Samsung may just save all that power for the Note 8 and since the South Korean tech giant has placed the largest order of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset, it is highly unlikely that Samsung will have an Exynos variant going out to market. There are also no leaks or reports that suggest otherwise.
Samsung will also stick to 4GB of RAM and not jump the gun with 6 GB which at this moment seems like overkill by all standards, despite the fact the OnePlus 3/3t have it, there is not much use for it in real world applications.
Battery Safety and Charging
Samsung has learned a lot from the Galaxy Note 7 battery failures, and even though the company just shrugged off the cause and problem of the batteries in the Note 7 devices. Samsung has designed a new 8-point program to ensure battery safety. What Samsung will also do is a leave space around the batteries themselves allowing for certain expansions, which would print a battery puncture, that may be caused by hitting some other component inside the phones.
The Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 Chipsets support the latest Quick Charge 4 which is capable of offering 5 hours of usage in just 5 minutes of charge. Samsung may not leverage this feature for their upcoming Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 plus as rapid charging degrades the battery, and Samsung cannot afford another battery fiasco. Samsung may stick to adaptive fast charge offered by Galaxy S7 which is more in like with Quick Charge 3.0 standards.
The Galaxy S8 and S8+ will also support wireless charging with the Qi standard, and wireless fast charge using Samsung proprietary charging pads.
Virtual Home and Bixby
Since Samsung will remove the physical home button from the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+, a virtual home button will take palace on the front around the center of the bottom portion of the display. If the phones do support a 3D Touch type interface, the virtual button could simply be a placeholder for the press point to go back to home.
Samsung is also working on a new virtual assistant called Bixby, said to launch with the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 plus. Leaks have also shown off an additional physical button on the sides of the phones, which remains different from the power and volume button. This is possibly a direct launch button for the Bixby assistant. However the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ will support the Google Assistant out of the box, which would cause confusion as to which assistant you should use on your phone.
USB C, Headphone Jack and Iris Scans
The Samsung Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8+ will have a USB C port of charging and syncing and will also retain the 3.5 mm headphone jack. Samsung may not be ready yet to explore removing the audio port as a large audience of it’s buyers may not be ready for the switch. Leaks also suggest that the audio will be tuned by AKG, and there is a high possibility that the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ with come bundled with AKG earphones as well.
Samsung will also retain the Iris Scanner seen in the Galaxy Note 7 as a new security standard in the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+. meaning users will be able to lock certain files, folders and apps, along with their phones with a simple retinal scan.
Operating System
The Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ will most likely launch with Android 7.1 along with Samsung’s own layer of Touch Wiz type interface which will allow for things like Briefing to sit on the left of the home screen. This will also allow for Samsung Knox security, S-Pay and the whole array of Samsung Apps to work with the phone. Samsung has cleaned up the UI in the past and the Galaxy S8 is expected to launch with a slight redesign to the look making it cleaner and more minimal.
Launch Date
Samsung has confirmed that it is holding a launch event on the 29th of March in New York city, it is traditionally where Samsung launches the Galaxy S series phones. Samsung may also however launch other products at its event, like the improved Gear VR headset designed to work with the new smartphones, which does come with a new controller and a new design.
In markets like India Samsung will hold launches as early as second week of April, to launch and announce the phones.
Networks and SIM cards
Samsung will retail two models of Both the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+, for markets like US and Canada Samsung will sell a single SIM card variant with a second slot for micro SD card expansion of the storage. The second variant will allow for two SIM cards on a hybrid setup, i.e. it will either accept two SIM cards or one SIM card and one microSD card.
Availability and Price
Initially Samsung was supposed to start selling the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 plus mid April, the date has now been shifted to April 29th and may further be shifted to early may. Reports indicate that Samsung wants to run additional tests before launching this phone to prevent any Galaxy Note 7 type failures.
Pricing pundits are pricing the Galaxy S8 starting € 799 ( approx Rs. 56000 ) and Galaxy S8+ at € 899 ( approx Rs. 63000) as a starting price for the 64 GB variant, Samsung may also launch 128 GB variants of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ which will be priced higher by €100.
In India the Galaxy S8 is expected to start at Rs, 59,990 for the Galaxy S8 and both the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ are expected to go on sale early May.
Samsung has made a lot of official announcements for the launch of the Galaxy S8 and possibly the S8 Plus, the phones that will mark a comeback after a 6 month lull for the company. The phones are expected to launch on March 29th, and if leaks are anything to go by the phones are going to be pretty impressive.
— Samsung Mobile India (@SamsungMobileIN) March 1, 2017
Samsung is working on a design that will stretch the display on both sides making the screen to body ratio of the phone pretty impressive, and near the 90% mark. The Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 plus will also have the latest Snapdragon 835 along with 4 GB of RAM and 64 Gb of onboard storage with microSD expandability.
The company may not launch the S8 with dual cameras, and keep that feature an exclusive for the Galaxy S8 Plus. A new image leaked by evleaks points to what is possibly the best look yet at the new Galaxy S8 . If we merge Samsung’s teasers with the image tweeted by evleaks, the similarities are uncanny. Check out the merged image below.
The Samsung Galaxy S8 will be an important phone not only for Samsung fans, but also for Samsung. The company has had a bad half year, with the Note 7 blowout, barely in the rear view mirror for the South Korean company, the word looks on to the S8 and S8+’s arrival.
According to new reports Samsung will launch the phone on March 29 and the Samsung Galaxy S8 along with supposedly the larger Samsung Galaxy S8+ will go on sale on April 21st in certain parts of the world including the US market, UK and UAE. The Indian counterpart is expected to arrive early may according to our Samsung sources.
Samsung has put in motion a large marketing plan and their largest push promo budget yet, to make the Galaxy S8 a success. In India, the company will finally look for Brand Ambassadors for the flagship phone, signing on celebrities that target the youth.
The news report from a Korean publication suggests that Samsung will have ample supplies of the phone to have sales steady by May – June 2017. The company has reportedly invested large sums of capital in battery design and management making the phone safe, which will be explicitly demonstrated during their global launch. Samsung’s new phones have also raked in the largest order of Snapdragon 835 chips from Qualcomm limiting supplies for other brands like LG and HTC.
Samsung is expected to launch the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ with different screen sizes – 5.7-inches and 6.2-inches respectively. The phones may feature their new Assistant Bixby and 6GB of RAM as standard. The S8 and S8 plus will also be available with upto 256 GB of storage and microSD expandability like the S7 edge, along with IP68 or better water resistance. Wireless charging and new wireless charging accessories are also expected.
A new leak has also shown off the New Gear VR from Samsung which comes with a remote controller built into the body. The Gear VR is expected to be priced at US $ 199 in India retailing for Rs. 14999.
LG will try to one up the Samsung Galaxy S8 by launching the LG G6 as early as 26th Feb at MWC in Barcelona with the phone hitting the markets by 10 March. The company has already teased some features of the LG G6 including an all new design, QuadDAC support FullVision display and the LG UX 6.0 running Android 7.1.
Tipster Evan Blass also recently leaked the image shown above, which are from case manufacturer Speck showing both the LG G6 and Samsung Galaxy S8 in their full render glory.
Fresh new information coming in for the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S8. New reports suggest that the new Samsung Galaxy S8 will feature an iris scanner along with an autofocus front camera. The Samsung Galaxy S8 will be the first big phone from the company after the failure and recall of the Galaxy Note 7.
The new Samsung Galaxy S8 is already expected around MWC in February sporting a large display to body ratio crossing 90% and a new buttonless fingerprint sensor that sits behind the display. Samsung is pulling all stops to ensure that the Samsung Galaxy S8, just like the Galaxy S7 is a huge success. The company will also be removing the 3.5 mm headphone jack and bundling wireless earphone inside the box of the Samsung Galaxy S8.
The Samsung Galaxy S8 will be available in two sizes according to reports, that include the 5.7 inch Samsung Galaxy S8 and the 6.3 inch Samsung Galaxy S8 plus. The phones will also see S-Pen compatibility and Samsung is expected to introduce the S-pen as an extra-optional accessory. Samsung will also launch more accessories, including a keyboard case and new s-window flip cases for the phones.
The Samsung Galaxy S8 is expected to hit markets including the US, UK and India in March of 2017 sporting a price tag of US $799 for the base model Samsung Galaxy S8. the phones will offer storages upto 256GB, something that Samsung has already done with the recent launch of the Black Pearl Samsung Galaxy S7 in select markets.
Samsung’s upcoming 2017 flagship the Galaxy S8 along side the bigger rumoured brother set to replace the Samsung Note 7, the Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus will come without a 3.5mm headphone jack if rumours are to be believed.
Samsung will also replace the dated micro-USB port with the new USB-C port along with include the new powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipsets. Samsung will follow Apple’s lead to remove the 3.5 mm headphone jack in order to make the phone slimmer. The Galaxy S8 is now an edge only variant, which means no flat screen Samsung Galaxy S8 will be launched, same seems to be the case with the Galaxy S8 plus.
Samsung will also finally make the jump to 6 GB of RAM on the new S8 and S8 plus phones along with 128 and 256 GB storage options. The Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus sold in Asia will carry a new Exyos chipset.
While earlier reports suggested that Samsung will use a 4K display on the S8 , this may not come true in this iteration of the smartphone and may be the case with 2018’s flagship Samsung phone. In an attempt to kill the Note series, the Galaxy S8 plus will be sold with an optional S Pen accessory which will give it all the functionality of the Note phones.
Samsung will focus heavily on aesthetics and camera with the Galaxy S8 and S8 plus, so a slight new reduced bezel design is in the works. Especially after Xiaomi has shown off that it is possible. The Galaxy S8 and S8 plus will feature new style of fingerprint sensor that sits behind the main glass of the phone, allowing for additional security while keeping the front surface clean.
Samsung is utilising two sensors of 16 MP capability in the Galaxy S8 and with allow new “depth” effects, and unlike the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus, where only the plus variant got the two camera setup, in Samsung’s case both the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 plus will feature the dual camera setup.
The Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus will also feature the iris scanner shown off in the infamous Note 7 handset.
