Samsung is presently working on its next generation flagship smartphone the Galaxy S7, and some new images offer us an impression of this handset. Steve Hemmerstoffer of nowhereelse.fr has produced these particular renders in an attempt to imagine what the Galaxy S series will deliver when the Galaxy S7 hits the market.
Unquestionably this will be a massive release for Samsung, as the Galaxy S series has fallen significantly behind the iPhone in sales terms. Even though the Korean manufacturer continues to deliver a first-class smartphone, Apple seems to have captured the cultural zeitgeist with the iPhone series, and that the Galaxy range faces a tough challenge to catch up with the runaway success of the California-based company.
Galaxy S7 new renders emerge
Hemmerstoffer has released a video of his impressions of the Galaxy S7, and we can draw some conclusions from this footage. Firstly, it is notable that the Home button has been made more rectangular than in previous releases in the Galaxy S series. With constant rumors that Apple will eventually abandon the Home button in the iPhone range completely, it is interesting that the designer envisages Samsung making alterations here as well.
Secondly, it is perhaps surprising to note that this Galaxy S7 image does not feature a USB Type-C port. This technology that is now being included in Apple devices is considered to be extremely flexible, and many analysts have been speculating that Samsung may indeed introduce it into the Galaxy series sooner rather than later. But the main connector port in this render appears to be asymmetrical, which would rule out the idea that it is USB Type-C.
Additionally, the images produced by Hemmerstoffer also feature no microSD slot, which obviously suggests that the technology may continue to be absent from the Galaxy S range. This is certainly something that Samsung fans would love to see included in the Galaxy S7, considering that it has been omitted from recent iterations. If Samsung is going to significantly boost the specifications of the Galaxy S7, it would make sense to offer users the opportunity to similarly upgrade memory.
Base measurements
uSwitch made an estimation of the base dimensions of this render, and believes that it measures in at 163.4 x 82 x 7.82 millimeters. This contrasts with a smaller version of the Galaxy S7 which has been rendered previously, expected to be around 143.37 x 70.8 x 6.94 millimeters. Nonetheless, the design and capabilities of both devices are similar.
The larger render produced by Hemmerstoffer suggests that Samsung may release a Galaxy S7 Plus device when this next flagship smartphone hits the stores. There has been a lot of discussion in the media regarding the number of Galaxy S7 models that Samsung will release when the technology goes public, and this render perhaps suggests that three versions are likely.
It is increasingly expected by media analysts that the Galaxy S7 will release in February of next year. This is significantly earlier than previously devices have hit the stores, but there is pressure on the Korean corporation to eat into the market lead that Apple has established. It is thought that by releasing the Galaxy S7 earlier in the year that Samsung will be able to gain a larger market lead over the expected iPhone 7, as well as picking up some post-Christmas sales from the iPhone 6s.
This means that the Galaxy S7 would debut before the annual Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, suggesting that the latest flagship handset from the Korean company could be debuted at the trade show. In recent years, the Galaxy S range has been unveiled in Barcelona, but it seems increasingly unlikely that the handset will be on sale by the time that the Mobile World Congress rolls around.
Aside from the latest render, rumors about the next generation Galaxy S7 are beginning to accelerate. One of the most prominent new additions to the iPhone series was 3D Touch; a pressure-sensitive mechanism that enables users to access extra options in a very fluid and convenient fashion. It would hardly come as a surprise were Samsung to include a similar technology in the Galaxy S7, and indeed reports have been suggesting over the last few weeks that the Korean corporation will introduce similar functionality with the Galaxy S7 handset.
Reports from close to the Samsung supply chain, leaked via the Chinese social networking site Weibo, suggest that Samsung is currently assessing Synaptics’ new ClearForce technology, which uses a comparable force-sensitive technique. It is rare that Apple gets the jump on Samsung in technology terms at nowadays, and the Korean consumer electronics giant will be keen to ensure that the Galaxy S7 is armed with similar functionality to the iPhone series. So this ClearForce technology can certainly be pencilled in for the next generation handset.
Display innovations
Elsewhere, other patents applied for by Samsung suggest that even a holographic display in the device could be possible. 4K resolution has also been promoted with regard to the Samsung smartphone for some time, and the expectation to include this may be intensified by the release from Sony of the world’s first 4K resolution smartphone.
Reports from earlier this year also suggest that Samsung will place a greater emphasis on curved screen technology with the Galaxy S7. This has been an extremely popular innovation for Samsung, as well as a way for the company to significantly distinguish its devices from the iPhone range. Samsung television sets have sold extremely strongly for the corporation, and it is now expected that the curved screen variant of the Galaxy S7 will become as mainstream as the flatscreen model, with more units being produced and ultimately sold.
Increased battery life, a powerful new processor, with Snapdragon and Exynos variants being released in different territories, and a new camera provision are all also expected when the Galaxy S7 releases. It all adds up to an extremely powerful smartphone competitor that should finally see the light of day in the latter half of February next year.
