Samsung mobile chief DJ Koh has already confirmed that the South Korean smartphone maker will launch its Galaxy S9 flagship at Mobile World Congress next month. Now we have more details including the launch date, pre-order and official shipments for the flagship smartphones.
According to Evan Blass, Samsung will announce the Galaxy S9 and its larger sibling Galaxy S9+ on February 26. Blass claims the information is corroborated from a C-level executive at a major casemaker. The Galaxy S9 and S9+ is expected to be available for pre-order starting March 1 and shipments are likely to begin from March 16.
After the Galaxy Note7 debacle last year, Samsung pushed back the launch of Galaxy S8 by a month but this time, the company is returning to its usual launch timeframe. It is also worth noting that Samsung is returning to MWC after launch Galaxy S8 at a dedicated event in New York last year.
Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ are expected to bring minor design improvements with most rumors claiming it will have thinner lower bezel compared to its predecessor. The smartphones will retain the 5.8-inch and 6.2-inch Quad HD+ Super AMOLED display found on existing Galaxy S8 series but focus will be on improving peak brightness and contrast ratio.
According to a C-level executive at a major casemaker, the go-to-market schedule for Galaxy S9 / S9+ is as follows:
Launch – 2/26
Pre-orders – 3/1
Ships/releases – 3/16— Evan Blass (@evleaks) January 16, 2018
The Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ will be the first smartphones to launch with Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 mobile platform but it will be limited to the US market. The Galaxy S9 duo will use company’s own Exynos 9810 SoC globally and might offer 6GB RAM on standard variant as well. One of the major improvement is expected to come in the imaging department.
Rumors claim that only Galaxy S9+ will get dual rear camera setup while Galaxy S9 will have only camera at the back. However, the single rear camera on Galaxy S9 is expected to have variable aperture between f/1.5 and f/2.4. The camera will use wider f/1.5 aperture in low-light scenario while the aperture will be raised to f/2.4 in brighter conditions. The idea is plausible but the success of it will depend on implementation.
Samsung is also expected to improve the iris recognition system with improved image sensors and support to authenticate mobile banking. The smartphones are also likely to retain the 3.5mm audio jack and include stereo speakers. Since the Galaxy S9 and S9+ are incremental updates, they are expected to be priced like its predecessor.
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