Samsung is one of the top players in the smartphone industry and the company has been doing a great job lately with their Galaxy S as well as the Note series. After the tragic recall of the Note 7 phablet, Samsung took over the market with the Galaxy S8 earlier this year, which is hailed by many as the best Android phone right now.
And now, with the launch of the Galaxy Note 8 an event of the past, the next big thing to arrive in the market from the company is the Galaxy S9, which could be launching as soon as January 2018 if rumors are to be believed. Recent rumor shave pointed to February unveiling, followed by March release in major markets, which looks legit, and thus highly believable. It is also worth noting that the next flagship device from the company does have some really big shoes to fill in.
Although it might look like it’s quite early to discuss Galaxy S9, however, the rumor mill has already started pushing out reports about the device, including its suggested codename, which is said to be the star.
Keeping a track of all these rumors, leaks, etc. could be quite difficult and hence we decided to aggregate all of that in one place. So if you are interested in the next big release from Samsung, the Galaxy S9, then be sure to place a bookmark on this page, and keep on reading to learn everything that we know about the Galaxy S9 so far.
Samsung Galaxy S9 Release Date
- January release was rumored earlier, with release set for February
- new rumors point to March release, with Feb unveiling, which looks very legit
There have been few more tidbits breaking out on the web suggesting that Samsung would follow is normal release cycle with the Galaxy S9. Which is, February-end unveiling of the device, followed by the release in mid-March in major markets. We expected Galaxy S9 to launch around this time, which is in perfect sync recent Samsung Galaxy S series releases, except Galaxy S8 of course, where the launch was delayed by a month because extra testing and all required following the giant Galaxy Note 7 battery — and thus recall — fiasco.
The Galaxy S9 has now made it to FCC, as model no. SM-G960F. It is accompanied by its larger brother too, as expected, which comes as model no. SM-G965F. This basically confirms that the S9 and S9+ are out of the laboratory, and have been tested and approved by the FCC. We won’t be surprised if upcoming leaks give us a glimpse of a prototype, too.
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Samsung Galaxy S9 Specs
Galaxy S9 Display
The Samsung Galaxy S8 was one of the most beautiful smartphones of the year 2017. The glass body and the ‘Infinity Display’ certainly did stand out in the market amongst other competitions. That said, we can expect Samsung to use same approach for the Galaxy S9 as well, if not better. Who knows? We may end up seeing a ‘Infinity Display 2.0‘ as well, codenamed sunflower. Or, if rumors are to be believed, then we could see Galaxy S9 sport an Y-OCTA display.
Regardless of the name, there is no doubt that Samsung will further push the envelope and try to achieve a better screen-to-body ratio. Well, if they manage to do that, then naturally the size of the display will increase in the given body size, or, the size of the body will shrink even further, for good, for the same display size. While it’s impossible to have a final word on the design and display just yet, because there have been no solid leaks on this so far, we think it’s safe to assume that the golden size of 5.8″ for the Galaxy S9, and about 6.2″ for the S9 Plus, would make it — same as that of Galaxy S8 and S8 plus.
Galaxy S9 Design
The display on the back plays a major role in the overall appearance of the smartphone. There have been no rumors about Samsung opting for the ceramic display for any of its devices yet, and given Samsung’s love for the glass-back display, we’re sure Samsung would stick with that kind of display for the Galaxy S9 too.
Now, a glass back could be a lot different from traditional Samsung glass-back, if Samsung could do any customization — something we see on the Honor 8, or even better, the HTC U11. Have you ever looked at the solar red HTC U11, or the blue Honor 8? If yes, you know how much cool a glass display can be.
That said, we expect them to hold on to glass body construction. Not only does this allows them to keep the wireless charging feature, but it also gives it a premium feel.
And while talking about the specs and hardware features, it is hard not to acknowledge the rumors about the company implementing an on-screen fingerprint scanner. They apparently tried it with the Galaxy S8 and Note 8, which clearly didn’t work and hence this time around, the Galaxy S9 can be expected to feature such kind of fingerprint sensor tech.
For what it’s worth, the Galaxy S9 could feature modular accessories, something that would be Samsung’s first.
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Galaxy S9 Processor
- Snapdragon 845 could power about 40% Galaxy S9 sets
- Exynos 9810 powers the rest
The Galaxy S9 is rumored to be powered by the Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 845 SoC. Rumor has it, that Samsung has already reserved a bunch of units for the Galaxy S9, however, this is something on which we will never have an official word.
Another rumor has it that for the Galaxy S9, Samsung could ditch the Qualcomm processors in favor of its own Exynos brand, and it says here that only 40% of the S9 handsets will be powered by the Snapdragon 845 chipset. Rest 60% are expected to be powered by Exynos 9810 SoC, that we believe will go toe-to-toe with Snapdragon 845 easily.
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RAM and Storage
- 6GB+64GB
- 8GB+128GB
Samsung Galaxy S8, as well as the S8+, was initially launched with just 4GB of RAM, which is not necessarily a bad thing. However, later the company launched yet another variant of the S8+ with 6GB of RAM.
The Galaxy Note 8, on the other hand, comes with 6GB of RAM and hence we expect the company to fit the next Galaxy S device with the same amount of RAM as well, if not more. Hence, it’s safe to bet that Galaxy S9 would feature 6GB RAM at the minimum, along with 64GB storage, while the higher model could be easily expected to feature a combo of 8GB RAM plus 128 GB storage – something how OnePlus 5 is lined up.
The support for the microSD card should stay, allowing you to add up to probably 256GB of storage to existing capacity.
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Software
- Android 8.0 Oreo
- Samsung Experience custom skin over 8.0
The software is one of those things which we can simply take for granted and assume that the company will launch the smartphone running on Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box. Yes, of course, it will have their own custom skin on top, but considering the fact that the skin is much more subtle now, it should not be a deal breaker at all.
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Camera
- Dual camera looks probable
Apart from the trend of fitting the smartphones with a bezel-less display, manufacturers are also focusing on implementing dual cameras on their smartphones. Although Samsung entered late this party — launching the Galaxy Note 8 and Galaxy C8/Galaxy J7+ with dual-camera at the rear — we do believe that Galaxy S9 would definitely feature a dual-camera at back, with some great bokeh capability.
The dual camera system on the Galaxy Note 8 appears to be quite promising. It sports a standard as well as a telephoto lens, which works independently. It is expected that Samsung will go for a similar setup on the next Galaxy S smartphone as well.
Galaxy S9 Battery
- 3,200-3,500 mAh battery for S9
- 3,400-3,800 mAh battery for S9+
The battery on the Galaxy S8 is rather small-ish. It gets you through a day easily, however, you would definitely wish that it could run a more than it does.
Given the run Note 7’s battery gave Samsung, we’re sure the Korean mobile giant won’t risk a bit when it comes to battery. They would want to play it very, very safe, and which is why we expect them to fit a battery whose size is anything between 3,200-3,500 mAh. Samsung fitted a 3,500 mAh battery in the Note 7 but didn’t try to scram that much in the Note 8, which is powered by 3,300 mAh battery.
Though Samsung did use a 3,500 mAh capacity battery with the S8 Plus, so it does know how to fit in 3,500 battery when it has the space on its side. Which is why we think they could fit in a larger battery on S9 Plus, while about Note 8’s size in the S9.
Samsung Galaxy S9 Price
- Could break $1000 price barrier
The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is priced at about $930 for the unlocked variant in the U.S. That said, it is definitely more than what the Galaxy S8 was priced at. And usually, as the smartphone is fitted with more and more features, the price also gets higher.
To sum it up, if you are expecting the Galaxy S9 to come with top of line specs, improved display, battery, etc. then get ready to spend a lot of money, as it could potentially cost close to a $1000. However, this is something which we can predict close to the launch date.
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Galaxy S9 rumor round-up
- Snapdragon 845/Exynos 9810 processor
- 5.8″ display for S9; 6.2″ display for S9 Plus
- Android 8.0 Oreo pre-installed, with Samsung Experience custom skin
- 6/8GB RAM coupled with 64/128GB storage
- Dual camera
- 3,300 mAh battery for S9; 3,800 mAh battery for S9 Plus
- Glass-back design
- Maybe, under-the-display fingerprint sensor
With all that being said, this is everything we know so far about the Galaxy S9. Do make a note that this particular post will be updated regularly as we get to know more about it and hence we suggest you keep a track of this to stay up-to-date. Also, if you feel that we missed something, then be sure to leave them down below in the comments section.
