Samsung's smartphone launches are always highly anticipated events, but this year's Galaxy S8 launch is set to be even more interesting. The company has a lot to prove with its newest product, as it's the first device to be launched since the exploding Galaxy Note 7 grabbed headlines last year.
Still, we're expecting big things from the Korean giant. Its last few phones have been best-in-class devices - in fact, until it started exploding, the Note 7 was one of the best phones ever made. The company looks set to continue this trend and recent leaks look very promising indeed.
The leaked image confirms several longstanding suspicions about the forthcoming flagship, including the loss of a home button to make way for a virtually edgeless display.
Also present is Samsung's signature curved screen, which rumours indicate will be the only option for the new device as the traditional 'flat' model is abandoned.
Eagle-eyed observers will also spot an iris scanner on the top edge of the handset - this biometric authentication feature was first introduced in the short-lived Note 7, but it's no surprise that it's been integrated into the company's main product line.
The date on the phone's clock is 29 March - which just so happens to be the Galaxy S8's launch date. It also bears a lightning bolt-shaped wallpaper, which looks to be the official banding of the S8 family.
These leaks are not confirmed, and this image could simply be a very well-made hoax. However, Blass has a reputation for being highly accurate with his leaks, so we would be very surprised if this doesn't turn out to be the finished article.
Release date
Although Samsug has announced previous devices at the same time as Mobile World Congress in February, it's switched things up this year and will instead be launching the device on 29 March, as announced in this teaser video, at 4.00pm BST.
As for when the device will actually hit shelves, it's likely to show up around 21 April. That's based on previous launches like the Galaxy S7 and Note 7, which took about two to three weeks to go from announcement to retail release.
Price
Samsung generally prices its flagship Galaxy phones at around £550 inc VAT, with the fancier 'Edge' variants costing a little bit more. Ordinarily, we'd use this as a basis for predicting the Galaxy S8's launch price, but rumours that Samsung may be ditching the vanilla, non-Edge versions of its devices altogether complicates this slightly.
If Samsung chooses to make the Galaxy S8 Edge the default option for its new device, we could see the entry-level price rise to between £600 and £650. If the company continues its current trend of releasing both curved and non-curved models, however, expect pricing to be broadly in line with previous years.
Specs & hardware
Unsurprisingly, Samsung looks set to continue using its own Exynos CPUs in its smartphones, and reports indicate that the Galaxy S8's processor will be the Exynos 8895 - octa-core chips built with the company's 10nm FinFET architecture.
Elsewhere, it's likely to have a minimum of 6GB of RAM, a figure that's rapidly becoming the standard for this year's crop of flagship devices. There's also been talk of the Galaxy S8 having an 8GB memory chip; we'd dismiss this, were it not for the fact that the company manufactures 8GB mobile DRAM modules itself. Still, we're putting our money on 6GB for now.
Screen size
Rumours suggest that Samsung will return to a release strategy previously seen with the Galaxy S6, releasing both a Galaxy S8 and a larger Galaxy S8 Plus. The two models are rumoured to have 5.7in and 6.2in screens respectively, but Samsung has supposedly managed to achieve this without making the device footprint any larger than the S7's.
It's apparently done this by abandoning the physical home button, opting instead to slash the S8's screen bezels down to the bone and use software buttons instead. Judging by the extensive leaks that have come courtesy of various case manufacturers, the S8 will be seriously eye-catching, with a front panel that's virtually all screen.
4K display
As with every new phone, there have also been suggestions that the Galaxy S8 will see Samsung make the jump to a 4K display. However, there's no practical reason to move beyond the current QHD standard.
Not only is a 4K panel excessively power-hungry, there's very little practical difference in terms of visual fidelity on a screen that size. Considering that Samsung already opted not to make that jump when developing the Note 7, we'd be surprised to see the company do it now.
Battery & safety issues
Speaking of which, all eyes will be on the Galaxy S8's battery, following the unfortunate debacle which saw Samsung's last device explode in people's hands. Power management and safety are certain to be highlighted by Samsung, which will surely be eager to shake the stigma of having had to do a full product recall of all Note 7 units.
This could well result in the Galaxy S8 having a smaller and less powerful battery than previous Samsung devices in the name of safety. While that may disappoint consumers, the company could compensate with more power-efficient internal components, so how much battery life suffers - if at all - remains to be seen.
Fingerprint sensor & Iris scanner
If Samsung really has ditched the physical home button, the fingerprint sensor will have to be moved, as it currently lives in the home button as well. It will likely be moved to the rear of the device - the spot it occupies on most other phones.
In addition to the now-standard fingerprint scanner, Samsung will could also incorporate iris-scanning biometric authentication technology into its new device. It was first introduced in the ill-fated Note 7, where it worked well, so we'd be surprised if it wasn't brought over into the company's main flagship range.
USB Type-C
Another feature that looks set to return from the Note 7 is the use of a USB Type-C charging port, rather than MicroUSB. The improved connector standard is rapidly becoming the norm among the industry's big hitters, and it brings proven advantages over its predecessor.
There are rumblings that Samsung might use the inclusion of a USB C port as an opportunity to do away with the headphone jack, too. Other manufacturers – most recently Apple – have used this tactic in the past, and it could allow Samsung to shave a few precious millimeters off the phone's profile.
Bixby
Samsung is jumping on the AI bandwagon this year, and will be including its own Alexa-style digital assistant - named Bixby - into the Galaxy S8. How sophisticated Bixby is remains to be seen - machine learning is the cornerstone of a good AI helper, and we doubt Samsung has enough cloud power or raw data to get Bixby up to the standard of Alexa or the Google Assistant.
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