Samsung’s next-gen flagship smartphone Galaxy S7 is just a few months away. The device is expected to bring a lot of under-the-hood improvements. But it will likely disappoint those expecting a new design. Sources familiar with Samsung’s plans told the Korea Times that the Galaxy S7 will retain the design elements of its predecessor. That’s not a big surprise given Samsung wants to keep costs down.
Samsung trying to cut costs
Retaining the design of Galaxy S6 in the new phone makes sense. The Galaxy S6 design was a radical departure from that of the Galaxy S5. Samsung’s biggest rival Apple has also used the same strategy of coming up with an impressive design and then refining it. Sources told the Korean publication that overhauling surface design of the flagship products may further increase costs.
Samsung’s smartphone division is operating on razor-thin margins. And most of the sales growth is coming from the low-end segment. Under pressure, the Korean electronics giant has replaced mobile division head JK Shin with Dongjin Koh, who most recently oversaw the company’s mobile R&D operations. JK Shin will remain Co-CEO of Samsung to focus on the “long-term business strategy.”
What changes to expect in Galaxy S7
Following the success of Galaxy J series, Samsung seems to have realized that good pricing and hardware specifications were more important than an appealing design. Users will see changes in display, camera quality, performance, and software enhancements. Recent reports suggest that the Galaxy S7 will feature a microSD card slot and BRITECELL camera technology that enhances sensitivity in low-light conditions.
Recently, the Galaxy S7 running Exynos 8 Octa 8890 processor appeared on AnTuTu benchmark, breaking all the previous performance records. The new Exynos processor garnered 103,692 points on AnTuTu. The US and Chinese version of the device will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 SoC, while Exynos 8 Octa 8890 will power the Galaxy S7 models sold in rest of the world.
Samsung is expected to unveil Galaxy S7 and its dual-edge sibling S7 Edge on February 21, a day before the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona.
