When it comes to so-called leaks relating to upcoming smartphone and tech releases, it’s usually the brands behind these innovations that are responsible for sharing information.
It’s therefore strange that we have yet to see many images relating to the upcoming Galaxy S9, particularly with Samsung expected to release the product in the spring of 2018. The cynical observation here is that the phone probably has a great deal in common with the S8, and is likely to represent little more than a minor, incremental upgrade in the mould of the iPhone 7.
In this post, we’ll take a look at this handset and ask what customers should expect when purchasing it.
The Galaxy S9 – What’s Different with the New Handset?
Samsung have definitely not reinvented the handset’s displays, with the sizes of the S9 and S9+ models remaining fixed at 5.8-inches and 6.2-inches respectively. We do expect to see a high-resolution Infinity display on both models, however, although this will only offer a marginal improvement on the typical viewing experience.
The S9 will also include a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, which represents an incremental upgrade on the Snapdragon 835 processor used in the S8 and S8+ models. It’s interesting to note that the S9+ has recorded a multi-core score of 8351 points in Geekbench during testing, which is exceptionally fast even by modern standards.
One particularly interesting development has seen the Samsung brand follow a trail previously blazed by Apple, with the latter having minimised the top bezel with the coveted iPhone X in order to revolutionise the viewing experience. This will have a huge impact on streaming content and playing games, with casino titles from the likes of Gamblingkingz expected to provide an even more immersive experience on the S9 and the S9+.
For those with an eye for design, there are also suggestions that Samsung will launch the phone in a brand new, purple colour. The reports that the brand are likely to introduce the S9 with a modular design seems far less likely, however, despite some articles revealing that magnetic pins will be placed on the back of the phone to allow the attachment of external modules.
This may be something that features in future releases, but probably not in the S9 or the larger S9+.
The Last Word
Not only will the S9 range bear numerous similarities to its S8 predecessor, but the pricing is also expected to remain unchanged. The S8 and the S8+ sold for £689 and £779 respectively, but these costly prices reflected the levels of innovation that had gone into the handsets.
The minor upgrades featured here are unlikely to justify further increases, however, while the prevailing economic climate will also prevent Samsung from charging too much more for its new phones.
With this in mind, all that is left is to watch this space and wait for the spring release date in 2018. The official launch was pencilled in for 25th February, but it will probably be a little later this with March the most likely month of release.
