The S10 was incredible. Here’s what Samsung’s doing to improve for 2020.
Samsung’s Galaxy S series is always one of the most anticipated smartphone releases year after year. Following a modest upgrade with the S9 series, 2019’s Galaxy S10 lineup shook things up with an all-new Infinity-O design for the display, triple rear cameras, and even a third “budget” model.
In just a few short months, it’ll be time for Samsung to take the wraps off of the Galaxy S11. The S11 has big shoes to fill, but knowing Samsung, it’ll be up to the task.
Without further ado, here’s everything we know about the Samsung Galaxy S11!
- There will probably be three versions
- The S11’s design remains a mystery
- Here are the specs we’re anticipating
- Expect a high price
- It should be announced in early 2020
- Don’t count out the Galaxy S10 just yet
Flagship in every way
Samsung Galaxy S10
From $900 at Samsung
Samsung’s 2019 flagship is still worth a look.
The Galaxy S11 is bound to be a great phone, but if you need a handset right now, the S10 is more than worth picking up at this point in 2019. It continues to have a stunning display, blazing-fast performance, and very capable triple rear cameras.
How many models are we expecting?
Most years, Samsung’s Galaxy S lineup has consisted of two releases — the regular model and a Plus one. With the S10, however, Samsung shook things up by launching the Galaxy S10, S10+, and S10e.
Looking forward with the Galaxy S11, we’re expecting Samsung to stick with that three-phone release. If the naming scheme also stays the same, that means we’ll be getting the S11, S11+, and S11e.
With the S10, Samsung also launched a fourth model in the form of the Galaxy S10 5G to offer access to 5G networks for early adopters in supported parts of the country. Seeing as how 5G should be much more widely available when the S11 comes out compared to the S10, it’s possible we’ll see 5G functionality included in the S11, S11+, and S11e by default with no need for a separate 5G one.
What will it look like?
At this point, we aren’t entirely sure.
The above render is of the Galaxy Note 10, and we’re showing it here as it could offer some insight as to what we’ll see with the S11.
In regards to the display, the most significant difference with the Note 10 compared to the S10 is the fact that the camera cutout is now in the center of the screen rather than pushed to the far right. I expect we see something similar with the S11, but there are some folks out there that believe the phone will have a completely uninterrupted front with a pop-up selfie camera.
It’s also safe to assume that the S11 will come with three rear cameras (although the S11e may still be limited to two) and could see the addition of a time-of-flight sensor similar to what’s found on the S10 5G.
No credible renders/leaked photos of the S11 have been seen quite yet, but as soon as that changes, we’ll update this post ASAP.
Any idea what the specs will be?
Right off the bat, there are a few assumptions we can make about the S11’s specs. There will be an AMOLED display, it’ll be powered by Qualcomm’s next-gen processor (Snapdragon 865?), and there will be at least 6GB of RAM.
Expandable storage should be sticking around, but with the Note 10 likely getting rid of the 3.5mm headphone jack, we aren’t sure if the legacy port will be present on the S11 or not.
One thing that does seem inevitable, however, is that the Galaxy S11 will have a seriously impressive camera package.
Back in May, Samsung unveiled its new camera sensor — capable of capturing 64MP images with an impressive pixel size of just 0.8μm and support for both real-time HDR and 480FPS video at 1080p Full HD.
The new sensor should be a massive improvement over the 12MP primary camera that’s been present in all Galaxy flagships dating back to the S7, and on July 16, Samsung tipster Ice Universe tweeted, “starting from S11, Samsung camera will be a new beginning.”
On the software side of things, SamMobile reported that the Galaxy S11 will ship with Android Q and One UI 2.1 out of the box.
How much with the different S11 versions cost?
Next, let’s talk about everyone’s favorite subject — price.
For comparison’s sake, here’s the retail pricing of the S10 series:
- Galaxy S10e — From $750
- Galaxy S10 — From $900
- Galaxy S10+ — From $1000
- Galaxy S10 5G — From $1300
Phones tend to get more expensive with each year that passes, and that’ll probably be the case for the S11 series.
The severity of those potential price increases remains unclear, but expect next year’s handsets to be more expensive in some capacity.
When will the phones be released?
For the last two years, Samsung’s announced its Galaxy S phones in late February right before MWC. The Galaxy S10 was revealed on February 20, and the S9 had its unveiling on February 25.
With no reason to believe that Samsung is changing anything for the S11, it’s safe to say we’ll once again get a February announcement with pre-orders opening up shortly after.
Samsung sent out invites for the S10 Unpacked event a month prior in January, and that’ll also probably be the case with the S11.
What about the Galaxy S10?
While it’s fun to get excited about what the Galaxy S11 will have to offer, that doesn’t mean you should already be counting out the Galaxy S10.
The S10 is still one of the best Android phones that money can buy, and now that it’s been out in the wild for a few months, it isn’t uncommon to find some pretty sweet deals for it.
You can certainly wait a few more months and hold out for the S11 if you prefer, but if you’re in the market for a new phone right now, we absolutely still recommend picking up the S10.
Flagship in every way
Samsung Galaxy S10
From $900 at Samsung
Samsung’s 2019 flagship is still worth a look.
The Galaxy S11 is bound to be a great phone, but if you need a handset right now, the S10 is more than worth picking up at this point in 2019. It continues to have a stunning display, blazing-fast performance, and very capable triple rear cameras.
