The Galaxy S8 developments are stacking up this week, with Samsung already confirming its ambitions to include a new AI assistant on the upcoming phone.
Now, a new rumour contradicts previous talk of a 4K screen on the Galaxy S8, suggesting the handset will arrive with a Quad HD (2,560 x 1,440) Super AMOLED display instead, just like the Galaxy S7.
The latest speculation comes via Chinese social media site Weibo (as reported by SamMobile), and seems to negate the idea of the S8 offering a vastly improved VR experience over its predecessor, which also had a QHD display.
Related: Galaxy S8 – Everything we know
On top of that, the rumour also suggests that no component vendor has yet received orders for home button parts, which seems to confirm earlier talk of Samsung ditching the home button on its upcoming flagship.
The company has long-been rumoured to be working on a design similar to Xiaomi’s recent Mi MIX, with an almost full-face, edge to edge display that does away with the home button.
Of course, as with all these rumours, there’s no way to tell whether this is legitimate or not, which is also the case with this next piece of S8 speculation.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, Samsung is considering adding a new button to the S8 design, which will allow users to access its already-confirmed AI assistant – based on the Viv platform that the firm recently acquired.
Related: Galaxy S7
The report states the most recent S8 prototypes come with a dedicated button for accessing the assistant on the side of the device – though it’s noted that the prototypes are not final.
Following Samsung’s announcement it will be adding a new AI assistant to its upcoming flagship, it doesn’t seem all that implausible that the firm would test out new ways of activating the function.
Whatever the case when it comes to the S8’s design, the WSJ claims fans might have longer to wait for the new handset than originally thought.
Samsung is expected to unveil the phone at MWC 2017 in February, but according to the report, the launch could be pushed back to April.
This could be down to the company wanting to ensure it doesn’t repeat the mistakes of the Note 7 and its overheating issues – though, again, this is all speculation at this point.
There’s sure to be more developments in the very near future so stay tuned for the latest.
WATCH: Galaxy S8 – Everything we know so far
Let us know what you think of the rumours in the comments.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
