The sudden demise of the Galaxy Note 7 might have hit Samsung’s reputation hard and cost it billions of dollars, but the company is confident to make a strong comeback. Many experts have suggested that Samsung should kill the Galaxy Note line altogether because the Note brand has become synonymous with overheating and explosions. But the Korean company has already started working on the next-gen Galaxy Note 8. And it is internally codenamed “Great.”
Galaxy Note 8 model number is SM-N950F
Often reliable SamMobile has learned from inside sources that the Galaxy Note 8 carries the model number SM-N950F instead of N940. Samsung apparently chose to skip N940 because the number ‘4’ is considered unlucky in Korean culture. For reference, the last year’s ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 had model number SM-N930. SamMobile did not reveal the upcoming phablet’s features or specs.
Past rumors claimed that the Galaxy Note 8 was codenamed “Baikal.” Samsung has already confirmed that it would launch the successor to the Note 7. The Galaxy Note 7 was recalled twice due to faulty batteries that would cause the phone to overheat and explode. Samsung has since taken a series of initiatives to prevent any such incident in the future.
The Note 8 launch is still several months away. Before that, Samsung will have to regain consumer faith with its Galaxy S8, which is set to be unveiled on March 29th in New York. But the road won’t be any easier for the Note 8. The Note 8 would launch around the same time as Apple’s 10th anniversary iPhone 8, which is rumored to have a radical new design, a 5.8-inch bezel-less OLED display, and wireless charging.
Samsung to launch refurbished Galaxy Note 7 in Korea
SamMobile added that Samsung was planning to launch a refurbished Galaxy Note 7 in the Korean market. The company is sitting on a pile of more than 4.3 million recalled Note 7 handsets. Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 3 event at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) was interrupted by Greenpeace protesters who urged the company to recycle the recalled Note 7s responsibly.
Sources told SamMobile that the refurbished Galaxy Note 7 would have model number SM-N935 instead of the original Note 7’s SM-N930. The company would replace the phone’s battery with safer ones before launching them at a relatively lower price point. The refurbished Note 7 is internally codenamed “Grace R,” where “R” presumably stands for ‘refurbished.’
Last month, there were rumors that Samsung would launch refurbished Note 7s in emerging markets like India, Vietnam, and Indonesia. However, a Samsung India spokesperson promptly refuted the rumors, saying the company had no plans to sell refurbished Note 7s in India.
