It has been assumed for a while that Samsung will produce a Galaxy Note 8 before the calendar year is out, and the Korean corporation now seems to have confirmed this eventuality. Samsung accompanied some excellent financial results with a statement that seemed to confirm the existence of the Galaxy Note 8.
Official statement
“The company will strive to maintain profitability through robust sales of the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus and the launch of a new flagship smartphone in the second half,” the statement noted. Although this stopped short of specifically naming the Galaxy Note 8, it is rather easy to read between the lines and see that the next generation of the phablet range is currently being developed.
Samsung also announced that it believes market demand for smartphones will increase slightly in the next year or so, with solid replacement demand growth in the mid to high-end segment. This would naturally provide an environment in which the Galaxy Note 8 can flourish, and must have played some part in the decision of the Korean manufacturer to develop this next generation phablet.
This cannot have been an easy decision to make following the disaster of the exploding Galaxy Note 7. Samsung has been on a PR offensive since this fiasco, but has managed to restore its reputation and brand image to some extent. This has been reflected in its recent sales and financial figures, which were surprisingly encouraging considering that the company has just absorbed one of the most difficult periods it will surely ever experience.
With the Galaxy Note range having garnered a positive image and reputation prior to the release of the Galaxy Note 8, it is only logical for Samsung to expand the series still further. Indeed, the Galaxy Note 7 had acquired outstanding reviews prior to its lack of stability being revealed. And Samsung’s mobile chief DJ Koh has already confirmed the intention of the company to construct a superior, more durable and innovative Galaxy Note 8 later this year.
IFA debut?
This week it has also been suggested that Samsung will reveal the Galaxy Note 8 at the IFA event in Berlin. This news came courtesy of a quotation from the IFA Executive Director Jens Heithecker, who suggested that the trade show would be the ideal place for the Korean company to take the wrapper of this next generation phablet.
“My personal perspective is that IFA would be the better place [to unveil the new Note smartphone]. The big advantage is that we have a lot of media and journalists from all around the world in Berlin. It is not possible to bring them all together in other cities wherever it is, in August. That’s our offer,” Heithecker commented.
While this is not an official confirmation of the unveiling date and location for the Galaxy Note 8, it does give keen fans of the Android device a clue as to when we may see the next generation phablet for the first time. A timeframe around September is thus possible, with IFA running between September 1 and 6 this year.
This would mean that the Galaxy Note 8 would run straight into the next generation iPhone 8, which is expected to release in September. However, there have also been reports that the forthcoming Apple device will be delayed, so Samsung will obviously be monitoring this possibility carefully. Perhaps the ideal scenario for Samsung would be to unveil the device in Germany, release it later in September, and see the iPhone 8 delayed until October, providing a convenient release window for the Note 8.
While Samsung has restored its reputation to some extent since the Galaxy Note 7 debacle, there is no doubt that the Korean company needs to deliver some new functionality when the Galaxy Note 8 finally arrives. And central to this, based on early rumors, has been the suggestion that the camera capabilities of the smartphone will be seriously bumped up.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Concept image
This possibility is absolutely reflected in a concept image produced by the graphic designer Muhsin M. Belaal Auckburaully, working in collaboration with with YouTube channel DBS Designing. This imagining of the Galaxy Note 8 suggests that Samsung will build on the stellar visage of the Galaxy S8, while imbuing the phablet with an even sleeker design, and outstanding photographic capabilities.
Auckburaully imagines a Galaxy Note 8 build with extremely slim bezels, with a powerful dual-lens camera included on the rear of the device. This latter feature would be a way of distinguishing the phablet from the Galaxy S8; certainly something of a challenge considering that arguably Samsung no longer produces a smartphone-sized mobile. Samsung will also retain the S Pen stylus in order to achieve this goal, with reports indicating that an innovative speaker system could be included in the peripheral on this occasion.
Kuo weighs in
KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has stated that the dual-camera system, which somewhat resembles those already included in the iPhone 7 Plus and LG G6, will be the most important update in the Note 8 generation. 3x optical zoom, optical image stabilization on both lenses, and the ability to take both 12-megapixel wide angle and 13-megapixel telephoto shots will also be central to the functionality of the snapper, making it more than a match for any smartphone already available on the market.
In accordance with this, Kuo claims that the “Note 8’s dual-camera will be much better than that of iPhone 7 Plus and likely match that of OLED iPhone,” the latter of these devices being the anticipated iPhone 8. Apple is expected to embrace OLED for this handset when it is unveiled later this year.
With a raft of rumors, leaked images and official statements from Samsung all emerging, the next generation Galaxy Note 8 is beginning to take shape. The Bixby AI assistant should also have been significantly improved by this time, meaning that the flagship phablet from Samsung will be ready to reinvigorate this damaged, but not fatally wounded, brand.
