Galaxy S7 Leak Suggests Snapdragon May Be Retained

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According to recent reports emanating from Korea, Samsung is already working on the Galaxy S7. This sequel to the Galaxy S6 that was released earlier this year has apparently been codenamed “Jungfrau”. This is not particularly unusual in itself, as there is typically a 12 month cycle for the Galaxy S series. However, what is interesting with regard to the latest rumors from Korea is that Samsung has already made some significant decisions about the construction of the smartphone.

The Korean tech blogging site ET News suggests that Samsung is currently testing units that feature a Qualcomm chipset, as well as devices that are built around its proprietary Exynos technology. This suggests that the Korean consumer electronics giant has yet to decide whether Snapdragons or Exynos processors will feature in its next generation smartphone, or possibly that they will remain a region-specific elements of the device.

With considerable time until the Galaxy S7 enters production, either of these two possibilities is feasible. It is certainly plausible that Samsung is testing the water with both processors before deciding which one of the two variants will ultimately feature in the Galaxy S7. Certainly the region-specific policy that the company has operated in the past has come in for some criticism in the West. There is a suggestion that East Asia has received the superior Galaxy models in the past, although the Western versions of Samsung smartphones have certainly performed adequately.

Galaxy S7 Edge

What complicates the picture regarding the Galaxy S7 is that reports have already suggested that Samsung could push the release date of the smartphone forward to 2015. This would be a pretty big surprise anyway, but now looks extremely unlikely based on the latest leaks. With Samsung seemingly yet to make a final processor decision at the time of writing, then a 2016 release date, in line with previous policy related to the Galaxy S range, seems far more likely.

This would suggest that the Galaxy S7 Edge phablet that is expected to replace the Galaxy Note variant will not emerge during this year, and there must be question marks regarding whether Samsung will indeed choose to brand the phablet this way at all. The Galaxy Note Edge was a successful device for Samsung last year, and thus it was always expected that consumers would see a sequel to this handset appear in Q3 of 2015.

But as reports suggested that Samsung was readying itself to release a Galaxy S7 Edge device before the end of 2015, the expectations among Android and Samsung following fans have changed somewhat. This latest news seems to muddy the waters, though, and it will be interesting to see what Samsung’s strategy is as 2015 continues to develop.

Design

Despite the fact that the Samsung boffins are evidently working on the Galaxy S7 as we speak, the general consensus of opinion is that the Korean corporation will not significantly change the design of the handset. Samsung experienced a significant amount of success in the last iteration of the Galaxy S range, with the Galaxy S6 generally being well received in design terms.

It is thought that Samsung will thus not radically alter the design of the Galaxy S7, and that any significant changes to the device will take place internally. It is already expected and strongly rumored, though, that Samsung will upgrade the Galaxy S7 significantly over the previous version of the smartphone.

Specs

Although testing is still evidently taking place with regard to the Galaxy S7 processor, rumors have indicated that Samsung is considering a 64-bit variant of this proprietary technology. This would give the Galaxy S7 real punch and ensure that it can include some of the outstanding specifications that Samsung clearly has planned for the device.

This will be backed up with an outstanding amount of memory, with reports indicating that at least 4 GB of RAM will be included. This double-whammy of processing power and memory will ensure that the Galaxy S7 is one of, if not the most, powerful smartphones on the market.

Samsung is also expected to standardize the 32 GB storage version of the Galaxy S7 and ensure that this is the most affordable version of the smartphone. It is possible that the Korean electronics giant will also upgrade the premium version of the smartphone to 256 GB, although analysts generally believe that it will stick with 128 GB for the Galaxy S7 generation.

Numerous rumors have surrounded the Galaxy S7 camera, with feverish speculation indicating that it could be a 30-megapixel snapper. This would be a massive upgrade over the Galaxy S6, and so it could be more realistic to expect a 16-megapixel featuring optical image stabilization.

And the display of the Galaxy S7 will be absolutely critical to the success of the device, as is usually the case with smartphones. It has been strongly suggested that Samsung might embrace 4K resolution when it releases the Galaxy S7, and there certainly seems to be time to implement this with the best part of a year for the Korean company to prepare for its release.

It has even been suggested in some quarters that there will be no standard version of the Galaxy S7, or rather that even the bargain basement version of the device will feature a curved display. If this might not seem too likely, it can at least be asserted that the curved model of the Galaxy S7 will be far more prominent in this generation, as sources from Korea indicate that Samsung is preparing to hugely step up production of this device.

If Samsung is to deliver all of these outstanding specifications then there will be serious impact on the battery life of the device, and this could incite Samsung to include a much bigger battery cell in the handset. Of course, this will pose logistical issues for Samsung, and the company will unquestionably be working on these right now.

The Galaxy S7 is taking shape, and at present promises to be the most advanced smartphone in the world.

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