With the Galaxy S9 and S9+ launch around the corner, it is easy to forget that Samsung does make other smartphones as well. The company recently launched the Galaxy A8+ in India at a price of Rs. 32999 and the budget-friendly Galaxy On7 Prime. In early-2017, Samsung launched the Galaxy C7 Pro and its successor is due as well. It appears that the Galaxy C10 Plus could be that successor.
In a recent AnTuTu listing, the Galaxy C10 Plus showed up, revealing a few key specifications. The smartphone in question carries the model number SM-C9150. According to the listing, the alleged Galaxy C10 Plus will be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 chipset. Along with 660 chipset, it will have 6GB of RAM and run Android 7.1.1 Nougat.
This hints at a possible early launch, right after the Galaxy S9 launch. Samsung is expected to launch all smartphones running Android 8 Oreo post the Galaxy S9 launch. For the Galaxy C10 Plus to still run Android 7 Nougat means the launch of the device might be on the fore.
Another big takeaway from the listing is the display and possible design of the device. It reveals that the smartphone will have a 1920 x 1080 px resolution which translates into a 16:9 aspect ratio. This aspect ratio might become archaic in the coming months. This means that the Galaxy C10 Plus might be launched as part of the Galaxy J series in India.
At MWC 2018, Xiaomi is expected to make a few announcements. While there are reports that the Mi Mix 2S is expected to be announced before the mobile congress, Xiaomi has not hinted at any launch event as of now. This means that if the Mi Mix 2S is indeed real, MWC 2018 could be the platform where it is launched. The Mi Mix 2S could also be the first or one of the first few devices to run on Snapdragon 845 chipset.
A new leaked image apparently reveals the benchmark scores of a Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S running on Snapdragon 845 chipset. If true, this device blows the competition out of the park with its benchmark scores. For starters, the latest version of Antutu is used for the test. The alleged Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S on the same app gets a whopping score of 270,461. To put things into perspective, a Huawei Mate 10 Pro running on the Kirin 970 chipset scores around 218,000 on the same version of this app.
An interesting bit to notice here is the notification panel. Usually, the clock on top is on the right but, in the screenshot, the clock is placed on the left. This looks very similar to the iPhone X which has a notch on the top. On the iPhone X, the information on top is distributed in the two corners while the middle is filled via software while taking a screenshot.
Mi Mix 2s Render
At the end of the day, there are no guarantees that this is a credible image. It is very easy to doctor benchmark results like this. Hence, we suggest that you take this leak with a grain of scepticism.
Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S
An earlier render of the Mi Mix 2s showing a notch on the display looked a photoshopped iPhone X photo. Recently though, a new render has emerged which reveals a design worthy of a new variant.
Mi Mix 2s Early Renders
The image shows evenly trimmed bezels all around the display. The Mi Mix 2 had a small chin which housed the front-facing camera. The front facing camera here is placed in the top right corner. It is fitted awkwardly which results in a weird notch on the top right corner. Although this looks like a design prototype that would’ve been buried in the back burner, the design does look like new and different.
Samsung will launch the new Galaxy S9 and S9+ at MWC 2018 on the 25th of February. Hands down two of the most anticipated smartphones of 2018, the Galaxy S9 and S9+will be Samsung’s early year flagships until the Galaxy Note9 is launched in August/September. While there is hardly anything left to the imagination of a consumer, a new leak has revealed that the two new smartphones will arrive in a fascinating new colour variant.
Samsung Galaxy S9+ Lilac Purple
In new leaked renders of the Galaxy S9 and S9+, we can see the Lilac Purple colour variants. In the times when OEMs are launching ‘limited edition’ red colour variants of their popular smartphones, Samsung’s move to launch a different colour is refreshing. The Lilac Purple will surely stand out from the ocean of black, rose gold and gold smartphones currently prevalent in the smartphone market.
A new leak claims that the Sony IMX345 will be used on the Galaxy S9+. The same can be expected for the Galaxy S9. On the bigger sibling, there will be a combination of a 12MP camera with an f/1.4 aperture and the other will be a 12MP camera with an f/2.5 aperture. We already know that the Galaxy S9 will have a 12MP camera with an f/1.5 aperture.
Rumour Roundup:
The Galaxy S9 will have a 5.8 inch Super AMOLED display while the Galaxy S9+ will have a 6.2 inch display. Both the devices will have a 2960 x 1440 px resolution.
Press Renders
Similar to its predecessor, the Galaxy S9 will have a single 12MP SuperSpeed Dual Pixel camera. This time around, however, the camera will have an f/1.5 aperture and record super slow motion videos at 480fps. The Samsung Galaxy S9+ will become the second phone from Samsung to feature a dual-camera setup on the back after the Galaxy Note8. The Galaxy S9+ will have a 12MP camera with an f/1.4 aperture along with another 12MP camera with an f/2.5 aperture
Case Leaks Of Galaxy S9+
Owing to the launch of the Samsung flagship phones, a lot of companies have restrained from making significant announcements. It was recently revealed that Xiaomi could skip the Mi 7 launch at MWC as well, similar to what Huawei and HTC will do. The Galaxy S9 will be priced at Rs. 69000 in India.
HTC is expected to launch the HTC U12, its next flagship Android smartphone right after MWC. While not a lot is known about the smartphone as of now, the device might have been shown off at a 5G event held by a local carrier in Taiwan. The Taiwanese tech giant has not acknowledged that the smartphone in question is indeed the HTC U12.
HTC U12 Render
A famous tipster on Twitter has conceded that apparently, the device that was shown off could be the HTC U12. The images from the event do hold up with the rest of rumours of the HTC U12. According to recent leaks, the HTC U12 will have thin bezels and an 18:9 aspect ratio, similar to what the device in question has.
Apparently this lightly obfuscated handset on display at a 5G industry event is none other than HTC Imagine, aka "U12," aka the company's next flagship. https://t.co/f89KjGjEyX
At the event, HTC conceded that the particular handset is capable of delivering download speeds of 809.58 Mbps, close to 1Gbps. This means that it could be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset.
HTC U12 Specifications
Some rumours claim that the HTC U12 will have a 4K resolution display.
The Snapdragon 845 will power the new flagship. Like a lot of flagship devices in 2018, the HTC U12 will have 6GB of RAM and expandable onboard storage. The fingerprint sensor will be placed on the back of the phone as Clear ID seems unlikely to feature this soon in an HTC device.
HTC U11+
The device will also have Edge Sense, a feature that allows users to launch an app or action by squeezing the frame of the device. The Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL had the feature as well which could only launch the Goog Assistant. HTC, however, allows for a lot of customisations pertaining to the use of Edge Sense.
The HTC U11 EYEs had a dual-camera setup on the front as well as Face Unlock. The HTC U12 is expected to have a better implementation of that along with a dual-camera setup on the back.
After the deal with Google, a lot of people speculated that the HTC U11 would be the last smartphone from the HTC brand. However, in its subsequent statement, Google hinted that HTC would continue launching smartphones. Since then, HTC has launched more than a couple of smartphones, the latest being the HTC U11 EYEs.
A few days ago, news of the Nokia 7 Plus came about. At the beginning, it appeared that it would be an incremental upgrade to the Nokia 7. Apart from the Nokia 7 Plus, the company is expected to launch the Nokia 8 Sirocco Edition, Nokia 1 and a concept phone with a Penta-lens.
A new leak has revealed the design of the Nokia 7 Plus which is expected to be launched at MWC 2018. The Nokia 7 Plus might be the first device from the company to feature an 18:9 aspect ratio. The image also reveals a few key details about the camera on the Nokia 7 Plus. The camera will offer 2x zoom thanks to a wide-angle 12MP and telephoto 13MP lens. Similar to the Nokia 8, the device will also have the “Bothie” feature.
Nokia 7 Plus Expectations
The Nokia 7 was launched barely three months ago. To expect a completely overhauled 7 Plus might be a bit foolish. Also, “Plus” variants launched after the regular variants usually just feature minor upgrades. The Nokia 7 plus will also feature a dual-tone design thanks to a few gilded bits and pieces like the fingerprint scanner ring, the dual-camera casing and the Nokia logo on the back.
The Nokia 7 has a 5.2 inch IPS LCD display with a 1920 x 1080 px resolution. The Nokia 7 Plus will have a 6 inch display with an 18:9 aspect ratio hence, the “Plus” moniker. The fingerprint sensor will be placed on the back, just like the Nokia 7 although, the device had a 16:9 aspect ratio and thick bezels.
Nokia 7
The Nokia 7 Plus will have a 12MP wide-angle lens along with a 13MP telephoto lens. The front of the smartphone is expected to house a 16MP camera with no LED flash. The primary camera setup will also have a Nokia Pro mode along with the Bothie feature.
The Nokia 7 Plus is expected to be launched at MWC 2018. However, HMD Global could launch the smartphone in China first and then announce its global availability at MWC.
Xiaomi is expected to make a few announcements at the upcoming MWC 2018. Apart from smartphones, the company could also announce the new Surge S2 chipset as well. That chipset is rumoured to power the Xiaomi Mi 6X. However, the marquee announcement was expected to be that of the Xiaomi Mi 7. That fell off the rails a bit and it appears that the Mi Mix 2S could be launched before the Mi 7.
The Mi Mix 2S launch seems more imminent now after the Mi Mix 2 has received a price cut of CNY 800 in China. The Ceramic variant of the Mi MIX 2 is now available at a price of CNY 3899 instead of its regular price of CNY 4699. This could be a possible hint at the launch of the Mi Mix 2S and that the device will be launched in 8GB RAm variant only.
There are rumours that the Mi Mix 2S will be launched before MWC 2018 and will be the first device to be powered by the Snapdragon 845.
Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S
So far, there has barely been any chatter about a possible Mi Mix 2 refresh. The Mi Mix 2 was launched back in September and Xiaomi doesn’t really launch new variants of flagship devices like OnePlus does. So, a possible Mi Mix 2s launch seems improbable. However, that hasn’t stopped people to post renders of the phone.
An earlier render of the Mi Mix 2s showing a notch on the display looked a photoshopped iPhone X photo. Recently though, a new render has emerged which reveals a design worthy of a new variant.
Mi Mix 2s Early Renders
The image shows evenly trimmed bezels all around the display. The Mi Mix 2 had a small chin which housed the front-facing camera. The front facing camera here is placed in the top right corner. It is fitted awkwardly which results in a weird notch on the top right corner. Although this looks like a design prototype that would’ve been buried in the back burner, the design does look like new and different.
We could see the launch the Mi Mix 2S happening in the coming weeks especially since MWC will begin on the 26th of February.
For the past few weeks, the Xiaomi Mi 6X has been in the news for multiple leaks. Its first ever leak revealed a design on the back similar to the iPhone X with a vertically placed dual-camera. Interestingly, even the LED flash appears to be placed between two cameras like the iPhone X. The Mi 5X was launched in mid-2017 so it looks like the Mi 6X launch is a few months away as of now.
However, that doesn’t stop more leaks from surfacing online. A new leak has revealed that the upcoming Xiaomi Mi 6X will have a metallic, possibly aluminium, unibody build and design. This is very similar to the build of the Xiaomi Mi 5X and a lot of other mid-range devices. As expected, the fingerprint sensor is placed on the back of the device.
Apart from the design leaks, there hasn’t been a lot of information about the specifications that have been leaked. Even if the Mi 6X is launched with this design, there is no guarantee that India will see a launch of this smartphone. The Mi 5X was launched in India as the Mi A1 with stock Android OS and was well-received. If the Mi 6X comes to India, it will be a successor to the Mi A1 with stock OS again.
What Do We Know About The Xiaomi Mi 6X So Far?
A few days ago, two leaks of the Xiaomi Mi 6X revealed that the device will continue the trend of having dual cameras and a tall display. The new images seemingly confirm that and it appears that the Mi 6X will have an 18:9 5.99 inch display. The company could use an IPS LCD panel, similar to its predecessor and a lot of other Xiaomi mid-range devices.
The Xiaomi Mi6X will be powered by the recently leaked Surge S2 chipset. The Surge S2 will have an octa-core CPU with four Cortex-A73 cores running at 2.2 GHz and four Cortex-A53 at 1.8 GHz. Accompanying the chipset will be the Mali-G71 MP8 GPU which is a great improvement over the Mali-T860 from the Surge S1.
Previous Leaks
The Xiaomi Mi 5X was launched in July of 2017 and the Mi 6X is expected to be launched at a similar time. If so, then the Mi A1 (2018) or Mi A2will be launched in India in September.
Huawei will be launching a new smartphone on the 27th of March. Everyone is anticipating the company to launch the Huawei P11 or P20. The latest leak reveals the design of the upcoming smartphone.
According to the new leaked images of the protective cases for the Huawei P20, the smartphone will have a tall display and a triple-lens camera. An interesting aspect in the images is the placement of the fingerprint sensor. According to these images, Huawei will place the fingerprint sensor on the front, housed inside the bottom bezels.
Other than that, a good news is that the company will retain the headphone jack for the P20. These images also confirm that the Huawei P20 will come with a triple-lens camera.
A recent advertisement design was leaked which revealed that an upcoming Huawei phone will have a triple-lens camera at the back. According to the images, the next generation P11 will feature a 40MP Leica triple-lens camera setup with 5x hybrid zoom and a 24MP front-facing sensor.
Huawei announced its new facial recognition technology and claimed that it is faster and more accurate than Apple’s Face ID. While it did not reveal which smartphone will be the first one to feature this technology, many speculate that the Huawei P11 might be the first phone to come with Huawei’s own rendition of Face ID and the famous animojis.
There were rumours that just like the iPhone X, Huawei P20 will also have a notch at the top of the display to house all the sensors required for facial recognition.
With a launch date confirmed, the Huawei P20 seems more or less confirmed. More leaks are expected to be revealed as we move closer to the launch.
HTC will skip the launch event at MWC 2018 due to the Galaxy S9 and S9+ launch. While HTC will launch the HTC U12 right after MWC, a new mid-range device has been leaked.
The smartphone has appeared on GeekBench with an HTC model number: 2Q5W1. Based on the details leaked, the device will run on Snapdragon 625 chipset and come with Android 8 Oreo out of the box. No other details were revealed in the listing. This could be a new mid-range smartphone lineup that HTC has in the pipeline.
However, HTC has a few smartphones in the ‘U11’ moniker. The HTC U11, the U11+ and the U11 Life. With the HTC u12 expected to be launched soon, this mid-range smartphone could be a follow up to the HTC U11 Life. The HTC U11 Life runs on the Snapdragon 630 chipset and this mysterious smartphone could be a ‘Lite’ variant of it.
Apart from this, HTC could spring a surprise and launch a whole new series of mid-range devices especially after the relative success of the HTC U11 Life. The Android One variant of the U11 Life was well-received and this upcoming device could also be an Android One smartphone. Right now, this is just a listing on a benchmarking website and no other details are available.
HTC U11 EYEs
More details will follow as and when more information about the device is leaked.
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 is one of the most successful smartphones in the Indian market. Launched in early-2017, it hit the sweet spot of great performance and great price. Its successor, the Redmi Note 5 is expected to be launched in the next month, similar to the Redmi Note 4. So far, there have been a few renders but, nothing too concrete has come out from the leaks.
A few renders of the alleged Redmi Note 5 have now surfaced, which reveal a new design and a dual-camera setup. With the Redmi Note 5 expected to be priced at around Rs. 12000, this design with good specs could make it a worthy follow-up to the Redmi Note 4. The latest renders reveal that the Redmi Note 5 will have extremely top and bottom bezels with minimal bezels on the side.
To the back will be a dual-camera setup and a fingerprint sensor below it. So far, these renders look the closest to a finished product.
The Redmi Note 5 came under a lot of speculation when Xiaomi launched the Redmi 5 Plus in China. On its forum, a moderator said that the Redmi Note 5 won’t launch this year. He then said that the Redmi 5 Plus will be launched in other markets under the Redmi Not 5 moniker. It looks like that was just a false alarm and that the Redmi Note 5 will indeed be launched.
The leaked images, however, look too good to be true. While the Redmi Note 5 will come with an 18:9 aspect ratio, the design will be similar to the Redmi 5 Plus. This means relatively thinner bezels all around the display.
Early Redmi Note 5 Renders
What Do We Know About The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 So Far?
The smartphone is expected to have a 5.99 inch display with a 2160 x 1080 px resolution which translates into an 18:9 aspect ratio.
Under the hood, the phablet will have two variants. One will run on the Snapdragon 630 chipset, have 3GB RAM and 32GB of onboard storage. The other one will be powered by the Snapdragon 636 chipset, have 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. Both the variants are expected to support storage expansion via microSD card.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 Launched Early-2017
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 will run MIUI 9 out of the box. There is still no word on whether it’ll run Android 8 Oreo or Android 7 Nougat.
The Redmi Note 5 could also be the first Redmi phone to feature a dual-camera setup. It is expected to have a 16MP primary sensor that will be accompanied by a 5MP sensor. To the front will be an 8MP camera.
Xiaomi knows that once launched, the Redmi Note 5 will be met with a lot of demand. Hence, there are reports claiming that it is stocking as many units of the Redmi Note 5 as possible. The rumoured price could be a bit off, especially for the Indian market. Xiaomi would want to launch the Redmi Note 5 at a price of about Rs.11000-12000, similar to what it did with the Redmi Note 4.
For the past couple of weeks, the Xiaomi Mi 6X has been in the news. The mid-range device from Xiaomi will succeed the Mi 5X from 2017 and might even be launched in India as the Mi A2. After the initial leak, two live images of the smartphone revealed the design of the smartphone and a new leak corroborates with all the previous information about the phone.
The new leak of the case of the Mi 6X reveals an iPhone X-like dual-camera setup on the back along with a fingerprint sensor. The initial images did not reveal a fingerprint sensor which led many believe that Xiaomi could use Clear ID this time around. However, that will not happen and Xiaomi will continue to use a rear-facing fingerprint sensor.
A fingerprint sensor on the back doesn’t guarantee thin bezels, not in the case of Xiaomi at least. Even phones like the Redmi Note 4 or the MI A1 had a rear-facing fingerprint sensor while maintaining giant bezels on the front. But, the Mi 6X could be a mid-range smartphone from Xiaomi to sport an 18:9 aspect ratio although the current leaked image doesn’t reveal any details about it.
What Do We Know About The Xiaomi Mi 6X So Far?
A few days ago, two leaks of the Xiaomi Mi 6X revealed that the device will continue the trend of having dual cameras and a tall display. The new images seemingly confirm that and it appears that the Mi 6X will have an 18:9 5.99 inch display. The company could use an IPS LCD panel, similar to its predecessor and a lot of other Xiaomi mid-range devices.
The Xiaomi Mi6X will be powered by the recently leaked Surge S2 chipset. The Surge S2 will have an octa-core CPU with four Cortex-A73 cores running at 2.2 GHz and four Cortex-A53 at 1.8 GHz. Accompanying the chipset will be the Mali-G71 MP8 GPU which is a great improvement over the Mali-T860 from the Surge S1. A report claims that Xiaomi is looking to par the Surge S2 with the Kirin 960 by Huawei.
Previous Leaks
There has been no information leaked regarding the battery capacity or the camera setup as of now. However, with the launch of the smartphone still a few months away, we could see a lot of other information about the device being leaked as well.
Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+will be launched on the 25th of February in Barcelona. So far, almost every aspect of the two smartphones has been leaked, while there are few details which are predicted to retain their place from the predecessors. A recent leak revealed that the battery capacity of the two devices will be the same as that of their predecessors and now, images of several components of the Galaxy S9 and S9+ have been leaked.
The battery images do not reveal anything that we don’t know so far. The S9 will have a 3000 mAh battery while the Galaxy S9+ will have a 3500 mAh battery. These are the same capacities as their predecessors. Both the smartphones will also support QuickCharge 4.0 and wireless charging.
Along with the battery, other interesting components leaked are the camera and fingerprint sensor of the Galaxy S9. As we know, the S9 will retain a single camera on the back while the Galaxy S9+ will have a dual-camera setup. The leaked components corroborate with that.
The leaked image of the fingerprint sensor doesn’t necessarily confirm the placement of it on the phone but, that also has been confirmed in several separate leaks. One thing to notice here is the size of the fingerprint sensor. It is slightly wider than the one found on the Galaxy S8 which indicates that it will have a different position to retain the symmetry.
Updated: A report claims that the Samsung Galaxy S9+ and its smaller sibling will have the ability to make 3D emoticons using the front-facing camera, similar to Apple’s Animojis. This does seem plausible as Samsung is expected to have an advanced facial recognition system as well. Also, both the devices will have dual speakers, one at the top and one at the bottom of the phone.
Samsung will launch the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ on the 25th of February in Barcelona. Two of the most anticipated flagship devices of 2018 are expected to go on sale in the first week of March. Samsung is expected to announce the release schedule as well as the first batch of countries that will receive the two devices.
The Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ became extremely popular for their infinity display, sleek design and terrific camera performance. Even though the camera was not much of an upgrade over the Galaxy S7, it was enough to be one of the best in class in early-2017. The quad HD resolution coupled with Samsung’s Super AMOLED panel meant that even today, the Galaxy S8 has one of the best smartphone displays on the market.
Early Galaxy S9 Concept
A similar level of superiority is expected from the Galaxy S9 and its bigger sibling. This time around, even though it looks like the design won’t see much of a change, the camera department is expected to see a vast upgrade. With enough leaks out on the internet so far, here’s what we know about the 2018 flagship devices from Samsung so far:
Price
Surprisingly, one of the least talked about aspect of the Galaxy S9 and S9+ has been the price. With the price of flagship smartphones touching new heights in 2017, this year doesn’t seem to be any different. However, if the latest reports from South Korea are anything to go by, Samsung could nail the pricing of the Galaxy S9 and S9+.
Press Renders
In South Korea, Samsung’s native market, the Galaxy S9 will cost KRW950,000, while the S9+ will be KRW990,000. This amounts to about US$ 883 for the S9 and US$ 920 for the Galaxy S9+. It is worth noting that Samsung always prices its smartphones higher in South Korea.
This means that the company will launch the two phones at a price similar or same as that of their predecessors. For context, the Galaxy S8 was priced at KRW935,000 (around $875) in South Korea. Its global price was US$ 720.
Design
Even a year later, the Galaxy S8 and S8+ are still two of the best-looking smartphones in the market right now. All the renders and leaks have suggested that Samsung will retain the design for the upcoming Galaxy S9 and S9+. This should not be disappointing, owing to the superior design of the 2017 flagship phones. The new smartphones will have a glass back with an aluminium frame.
Fingerprint sensor placement on the Galaxy S8
The top and bottom bezels will be slightly smaller while the edge-to-edge infinity display will be present as well. The fingerprint sensor will now be placed below the camera module, a much better position than the one on the Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy Note8. Interestingly enough, Samsung will also retain the Bixby button on the left-hand side.
Display
As mentioned before, the Galaxy S8 and S8+ had two of the best displays of 2017 and it won’t be different with the S9 and S9+. Unlike the majority of “bezel-less” smartphones of 2017, the Galaxy S8 devices had an 18.5:9 aspect ratio and the Galaxy S9 and S9+ are expected to retain that. The Galaxy S9 is expected to have a 5.8 inch Super AMOLED display with a 2960 x 1440 px resolution. The Galaxy S9+ might have a 6.2 inch Super AMOLED display with a 2960 x 1440 px resolution.
Galaxy S8
On top of the display will be Corning Gorilla Glass 5 for protection. The same glass will also be used on the back.
What’s Under The Hood?
The Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ will run on the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset in the US and South Korea. As is with other Galaxy devices, rest of the markets will receive the Exynos 9810 chipset running Galaxy S9 and S9+.
According to a leak, Galaxy S9 will be offered in two options, 4GB RAM/64GB storage and 4GB RAM/128GB storage. The bigger sibling of the two, the Samsung Galaxy S9+ will be available in 6GB RAM/64GB storage, 6GB RAM/128GB storage and 6GB RAM/256GB models in major markets across the world. The same tipster also claims that Samsung will launch a special edition Samsung Galaxy S9+ with 512GB of storage.
Unless Xiaomi beats Samsung to it, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ will be the first smartphones ever to run on the Snapdragon 845 chipset.
Camera
The camera department is expected to see the most noticeable upgrade this time. Unlike what happened in 2017, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ are expected to have much more superior cameras than their predecessors. In a recent leak of the retail box of the Galaxy S9, it was revealed that it would have a 12MP camera with an f/1.5 aperture. Interestingly, the camera would support a variable aperture.
Galaxy S9+, S9 rear components layout
Taking a route Apple has tread so far, the ‘Plus’ model of the new flagship will have a dual-camera setup. In order to justify a higher price tag, Samsung Galaxy S9+ will now offer something substantial that the regular S9 doesn’t.
OS
The Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ are expected to run Android 8 Oreo out of the box. While so many OEMs have already rolled out Android 8 Oreo update for their existing flagship phones, Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and Note8still run Android 7.1 Nougat. This will change once the Galaxy S9 phones are launched.
Experience UI
As is with every other Samsung smartphone, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ will have the Experience UI on top. Samsung’s Experience UI has come a long way since its inception and is miles ahead of the TouchWiz UI. As every custom skin does, Experience UI has a divided opinion as well. But, you can always use a launcher if you want a stock OS look.
Bells And Whistles
The Essential Ph-1 was probably the most stock Android phone when it was launched. No whimsical features of any sort, just pure stock Android OS. Even Google’s own Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL had features like Active Edge and Now Playing that came in handy at times. The Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ will be nowhere near to what the Essential Ph-1 was.
Pixel 2 Now Playing
A recent leak suggested that the upcoming flagship devices will have a ‘Smart Scan’ feature. This will basically combine iris and face scanning for a more accurate authentication system. However, since this will use Samsung’s API, the Smart Scan won’t be utilised for activites like banking. Face ID on the iPhone X has replaced Touch ID which means it is used for storing sensitive data and even banking.
Smart Scan
The smartphones will also have an IP68 rating for water and dust resistance. Thanks to a glass back, wireless charging will again be a feature on the new devices.
Conclusion
On the 25th of February, the Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ will be launched. As two of the most high-profile smartphones of early-2018, a lot will be riding on the success of the devices for Samsung. Even though the design is similar to their predecessors, it, by no means, a bad decision. If the renders turn out to be true, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ will again be two great looking devices with top-notch specifications.
With the Galaxy S9 sporting a single camera and the Galaxy S9+ with a dual-camera setup, consumers might be drawn towards the bigger sibling. It will be interesting to see how big of a difference the camera performances will make.
The Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ will be announced on the 25th of February. At the event, Samsung is expected to unveil the global price of the devices along with the first batch of countries where the two phones will go on sale. While there hasn’t been much said about the price of the two phones, the latest news from South Korea sheds some much-needed light on it.
Galaxy S9, S9+ Expected Design
In South Korea, Samsung’s native market, the Galaxy S9 will cost KRW950,000, while the S9+ will be KRW990,000. This amounts to about US$ 883 for the S9 and US$ 920 for the Galaxy S9+. It is worth noting that Samsung always prices its smartphones higher in South Korea. This means that the company will launch the two phones at a price similar or same as that of their predecessors.
For context, the Galaxy S8 was priced at KRW935,000 (around $875) in South Korea. Its global price was US$ 720.
Pre-orders in South Korea will commence on the 2nd of March, five days after the official launch. The phones will be shipped six days later, on March 8th, with market availability expected in the following days. The waiting period this time around is much shorter. The Galaxy S8 started shipping two to three weeks after the pre-orders began.
Rumour Roundup:
The Galaxy S9 will have a 5.8 inch Super AMOLED display while the Galaxy S9+ will have a 6.2 inch display. Both the devices will have a 2960 x 1440 px resolution.
dbrand listing for Galaxy S9 skins
Similar to its predecessor, the Galaxy S9 will have a single 12MP SuperSpeed Dual Pixel camera. This time around, however, the camera will have an f/1.5 aperture and record super slow motion videos, probably at 960fps. The Samsung Galaxy S9+ will become the second phone from Samsung to feature a dual-camera setup on the back after the Galaxy Note8. Similar to the Samsung Galaxy Note8, the Galaxy S9+ will have a wide-angle and a telephoto lens setup.
Press Renders
Owing to the launch of the Samsung flagship phones, a lot of companies have restrained from making significant announcements. It was recently revealed that Xiaomi could skip the Mi 7 launch at MWC as well, similar to what Huawei and HTC will do. The new devices from Samsung are expected to be priced similarly to the original price of the Galaxy S8 and S8+. More details are expected to follow until the official release of the phones.
There is no denying that 2017 was the year of bezel-less smartphones. In 2018, machine learning and AI are expected to be the trend-setters in flagship smartphone at least. A trend that hasn’t caught on is that of beefy RAM and storage options which would be an overkill for a smartphone. When the OnePlus 3T was launched with 6GB of RAM in 2016, many expected smartphone makers to take this figure and ride with it. That, however, did not happen.
Even the Razer Phone, a smartphone designed for gamers had 8GB of RAM. The OnePlus 5Talso has an 8GB RAM variant which is priced at Rs. 37999 in India. However, it appears that a smartphone maker is ready to take the RAM/storage configuration up a notch. Vivo, the first company to embed a fingerprint sensor inside a smartphone’s display could soon launch an Android smartphone with 10GB of RAM.
Vivo Xplay 7
The Vivo Xplay 7 is expected to be the next high-end offering from the Chinese smartphone maker. While previous reports claimed it will have a completely bezel-less design, the new images reveal a different story. According to the latest leak, the Vivo Xplay 7 will have a 4K display panel. It will also sport an impressive 92.9% screen-to-body ratio.
Under the hood, the Xplay 7 will have the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset. It will also have a whopping 10GB RAM which seems like an overkill for any smartphone right now. For storage, Vivo will offer two variants, one with 256GB onboard storage while the other one will have 512GB of storage. There were reports that even Samsung will launch a special edition Galaxy S9+ variant with 512GB of onboard storage.
Making sure that it is up-to-date with all industry trends, the Xplay 7 will also feature facial recognition. Reportedly, it will have the Face Unlock 2.0 which is the next generation of Vivo’s facial recognition technology. The smartphone will also come equipped with a dual-camera setup on the back which will be capable of 4X lossless zoom.
Thanks to its nearly bezel-less design, the fingerprint sensor will be embedded inside the display. This essentially means that the Vivo Xplay 7 will have a 4K AMOLED display panel. Vivo will use the Clear ID technology which was first introduced in the Vivo X20 Plus UD.
The Vivo Xplay 7 will be announced in spring similar to its predecessor.
