The first big smartphone launch of 2018 is edging closer, with Samsung expected to announce its hotly anticipated Samsung Galaxy S9 in less than a week.
The Samsung Galaxy S9 is the latest phone in the company’s series of flagship smartphones, with high-end specs, an edge-to-edge display, its own version of Animoji and a dual camera.
Samsung has sent out invites to an event on February 25 at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona to unveil the Samsung Galaxy S9, its latest high-end smartphone that will look to take on Apple’s iPhone X.
Last year, the Samsung Galaxy S8 proved a huge success for the company. Its new device is expected to incorporate a dual camera, continue its all-screen edge-to-edge display and feature improved processors. There have even been rumours of an advanced dual screen design that could be coming to future Samsung phones.
Here is a breakdown of all the latest we know about the Samsung Galaxy S9:
When will the Samsung Galaxy S9 be announced?
One thing we know for certain about Samsung’s next phone is that it will be announced just before the international trade show Mobile World Congress at 5pm UK time on Sunday 25 February. Samsung has sent out invites to its unpacked event with a number “9” on the picture.
The phone is expected to launch on 16 March, with pre-orders opening on 1 March, according to VentureBeat reporter Evan Blass.
Samsung Galaxy S9: How much will it cost?
Samsung phones normally cost in the region of 25 per cent more than their predecessors and the Samsung Galaxy S9 is also expected to be slightly more expensive than the old model. Techradar reports that industry sources are saying the phone will be in the region of £739 in the UK, although this has yet to be confirmed by Samsung.
What will the it look like?
The Samsung Galaxy S9 is set to look fairly similar to the older S8. It is expected to have a 5.77-inch display, according to South Korea’s ETNews, while the Galaxy S9+ will have a 6.22-inch display.
This makes it smaller than the Samsung Galaxy S8, which had an 5.8-inch display. It is expected to keep its rear fingerprint scanner while still having an edge-to-edge display seen on recent Samsung smartphones.
VentureBeat’s Evan Blass, who revealed the latest renders of the Samsung Galaxy S9, reports the phone will come in four colours: Midnight Black, Lilac Purple, Titanium Gray, and Coral Blue.
Samsung Galaxy S9 specs breakdown
While the iPhone X raised the bar in terms of smartphone performance, most industry watchers expect the Samsung Galaxy S9 to improve on last year’s S8 offering.
The device is expected to ship with Android 8.0, the latest version.
The Samsung Galaxy S9 will include a Snapdragon 845 chip in the US and China, and Samsung’s own advanced Exynos 9810 chip in the rest of the world, according VentureBeat. Inside, it will have 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage on the regular S9, and 6GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal storage on the larger S9+.
The Samsung Galaxy S9 is, for now at least, believed to be an upgrade on the old Samsung Galaxy S8, rather than a total redesign. We also know it will be the Galaxy S9, as can be seen from Samsung’s invite to the phone launch.
The company has been touted as releasing a dual screen smartphone model, but this is not expected until early 2019.
