The dust has barely settled on the Samsung Galaxy S9’s launch, but there’s no rest for the wicked. We all know that Samsung is already working on next year’s model, and since this year saw a refinement of everything that made the S8 special, we’re expecting a radical redesign in 2019.
So whether that means an even more advanced camera, jaw-dropping good looks, or — in Samsung’s most potentially radical move — an increased battery capacity, we’ve gathered all the rumors, leaks, and news into one place so you can quickly find out everything you need to know about the Samsung Galaxy S10.
Face-sensing technology
While the Galaxy S9 is an impressive beast, the front-facing face-sensing tech on the front of the camera might be its weakest area. While the S9 still has the Intelligent Scan tech that scans a hybrid of your face as well as iris data, it’s not secure enough for purchase verification and a far cry from the highly advanced and secure Face ID that Apple introduced on the iPhone X. As a double-whammy of disappointment, this underpowered facial sensing also means that AR Emoji, Samsung’s AR-powered emojis that follow your facial movements, aren’t anywhere near as accurate as Apple’s Animoji. Tests from across the Digital Trends office led to some — er — fairly disturbing uncanny valley creations.
While seeing Andy Boxall transformed into AR Moby is amusing and disturbing in equal measure, we expect that the Galaxy S10 will see some major improvements in its front-facing camera tech. Samsung is apparently teaming up with 3D camera startup Mantis Vision to provide 3D-sensing camera tech for Samsung’s upcoming smartphones — a list that we assume will include the Galaxy S10. The implementation of this tech will hopefully bring Samsung back up to Apple’s level where front-facing sensor tech is concerned, since the Galaxy S9 is definitely playing second fiddle to Apple’s finest in that regard.
Design
Bezel-less is the new name of the smartphone game and we expect that the Galaxy S10 will break new ground in this area. A patent granted by the World Intellectual Property Organisation has revealed that Samsung is working on phone designs that are as close to bezel-free as possible, with fingerprint scanners placed beneath the display tech.
via IndianExpress
It’s currently unclear whether this tech is meant primarily for the Galaxy S10 or the long-rumored Galaxy X foldable smartphone, but we’re willing to bet that Samsung will be trying to place this tech in as many pies as possible, should it succeed in making it.
Specifications
It’s a fair bet that the Galaxy S10 will feature a new iteration of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chip, most likely the Snapdragon 855. Samsung has sunk $5.6 billion into a foundry for rumored 7mn chipsets for the Galaxy S10 and Note 10 phones. Risk trials for those chips will begin later this year, with Samsung expecting that mass production would be possible in early 2019 — just in time for a likely S10 release date.
Name
Numbered iterations are great until you start hitting the big numbers. Then it starts to look a little silly.
While we’ve tentatively named this article the “Galaxy S10”, there’s no guarantee that’s what Samsung’s next generation of S-range phone will be called. Some early rumors point that Samsung will be looking to ditch some of its longstanding branding in favor of a fresher name. Most money would be likely to go on “Galaxy X”, but Apple has already claimed that for the iPhone X, and long-running rumors of a foldable flagship called the Galaxy X continue to persist, making that name unlikely. Still, a lot can change between now and the actual release.
Release date
Are we fools for expecting Samsung to stick to its previous release schedule? Perhaps, but we’d still take that wager.
That said, while Samsung launched the Galaxy S9 at MWC 2018, the Galaxy S8 was launched at its own “Unpacked” event in 2017 — and if the Galaxy S10 is likely to be as big a redesign as the S8 was, then it’s likely that Samsung will choose to reveal its newest at its own special event.
We’ll be keeping a close eye on Samsung in the coming months, so watch for our updates on the latest Galaxy S10 news.
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