Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S9 at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) a few days ago. The company executives also shared a lot of details about Samsung’s upcoming products with the media during MWC. Samsung’s mobile business chief DJ Koh revealed that the company would launch an upgraded Bixby 2.0 AI assistant with the Galaxy Note 9 later this year. Now DJ Koh has indicated that Samsung is planning to change the naming pattern with the next year’s Galaxy S10. The Galaxy S10 may launch under a new moniker.
During a Q&A session on the sidelines of MWC, DJ Koh said Samsung would stick to the ‘Galaxy’ brand with the next year’s flagship. But the company is evaluating whether it needs to keep the ‘S’ moniker or the numbering system. The Korean company cannot afford to ditch the ‘Galaxy’ name because its smartphones have become synonymous with the ‘Galaxy’ brand. It takes years of hardwork and a lot of investment to build a brand as popular as the Galaxy smartphones.
It makes sense for Samsung to change the ‘S’ moniker or the numbering system. If the electronics giant sticks to the current numeric pattern, the names of future smartphones would sound a bit weird. The name Galaxy S10 seems fine, but imagine a phone called Galaxy S17 or Galaxy S19. So, what will the Galaxy S10 be called? Samsung hasn’t revealed the new naming scheme yet, but the rumor mill has come up with a few theories.
Last year, Apple skipped the ‘iPhone 9’ moniker to launch the iPhone X. It also launched the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, but the 2018 iPhones will not be called iPhone 9, according to industry analysts. The names of the upcoming iPhones would be based on the iPhone X rather than iPhone 8. The rumor mill claims that Samsung’s 2019 flagship might be called ‘Galaxy X.’ The Korean electronics heavyweight had trademarked the name Galaxy X in March 2017, long before the iPhone X launch.
There is only a small issue with the Galaxy X naming scheme. The name Galaxy X has long been linked to a foldable smartphone that Samsung is expected to launch later this year or early next year. One scenario where both the reports would become true is if the Galaxy S10 is renamed as Galaxy X and sports a foldable OLED display. We will just have to wait and see if Samsung unveils a Galaxy X with foldable display as Galaxy S9’s successor at the MWC 2019.
In fact, Asian publication GizChina reported a few weeks ago that the 10th generation Galaxy smartphone could be called Galaxy X rather than Galaxy S10. If it turns out to be true, the future flagships might simply be called Galaxy X1, X2, and so on. It also means that Samsung might be planning to change the naming pattern for the Galaxy Note series. To recall, Samsung had skipped the Galaxy Note 6 and launched the Galaxy Note 7 in 2016 to bring its naming in sync with the Galaxy S series.
DJ Koh also discussed the foldable smartphone with Korean publication The Investor. Koh said he can’t say with confidence when the foldable smartphone would hit the store shelves. However, Samsung did say in its latest quarterly earnings call that it would start making foldable OLED screens later this year, which means the foldable phone could be launched in late 2018 or early 2019.
Koh told The Investor that the company would release the product when it is working properly. He assured that it would not be a gimmick. “I need complete confidence that we’re delivering the best user experience when we’re launching a new category,” said Koh. Recent rumors suggest that Samsung is still working to fix the user experience-related issues on the device. Since it will have a new form factor with a foldable OLED display, it would require a highly customized software experience.
We can expect the foldable device, whether it’s called Galaxy X or something else, to be a fully functioning, polished, and useful product rather than just a proof of concept. Koh said Samsung doesn’t want to be first in everything. Instead, it would focus on making useful products that consumers would want to buy. His comments indicate that the foldable smartphone will be worth the wait.
