With Samsung due to release the Galaxy S7 on February 21 ahead of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, it is not surprising that this handset is garnering a large amount of attention. But another release from Samsung could in fact be the highlight of the year from the Korean manufacturer, particularly based on recent devices.
The Galaxy Note range has been particularly critically acclaimed in recent years, and the phablet nature of the device has encouraged Samsung to pack it with some of the most impressive specs in the industry. And the Galaxy Note 6 is set to continue this trend later this year, delivering a package that will be extremely attractive to both consumers and business users.
Galaxy Note 6 release
It is typical for Galaxy Note devices to be released in the third quarter of a calendar year, and this is expected to be repeated with the Galaxy Note 6. The Galaxy Note 5 launched on August 13 last year, alongside the Galaxy S6 Edge+, but Samsung is expected to simplify its product range in 2016. This will mean that the Galaxy Note 6 will be a standalone device when it is released, although it is probable that there will be a curved version of the handset that will carry the same moniker.
Sources close to the Samsung supply chain indicate that the Galaxy Note 6 will follow this precedent and launch in the Western marketplace in August 2016. This would mean that Samsung would continue to diverge from its previous practice of launching the device at the beginning of September at the IFA trade show.
Design
Samsung is unlikely to depart significantly from the Galaxy Note 5 when its next generation smartphone is unveiled, considering the positive impression that both consumers and critics have had of the previous smartphone in the series. The all-metallic build of the Galaxy Note 5 moved away from the leather and plastic materials utilized by predecessors in the range, and this was a welcome modernizing of the Galaxy Note phablet.
It is extremely likely that the Galaxy Note 6 will also be metallic, and other physical features from previous devices, such as the S-Pen stylus, are also like to reappear. Reports have also indicated that a fingerprint sensor is likely to be included in this phablet, as security becomes increasingly important for mobile manufacturers.
Display
This will be one of the most interesting areas of speculation with regard to the Galaxy Note 6, as it has been widely predicted that Samsung will include 4K resolution in this next generation phablet. The Galaxy Note 5 offered a 2,560 x 1,440 resolution that delivered a pixel density of 515ppi, but with the Galaxy S7 also providing quad HD resolution, it is suggested that Samsung will bump up the Galaxy Note 6 to the increasingly mainstream 4K resolution.
It is also believed that Samsung will slightly increase the size of the display in the Galaxy Note 6 to 5.8-inches.
Camera
There is a lot of debate about the camera technology that will be included in the Galaxy Note 6, and already expectations about the phablet have varied significantly. Some weeks ago, it was widely believed that Samsung would look to significantly increase the 16-megapixel rating of the Galaxy Note 5, but this is now thrown into doubt by plans that the Korean corporation apparently has for the Galaxy S7.
BRITECELL technology has been linked with the Galaxy S7, as Samsung attempts to improve the low-light shooting capabilities of its flagship smartphone. In accordance with this, it is naturally expected that this innovative technology will also be included in the Galaxy Note 6, but if this is the case then we shouldn’t necessarily expect to see a megapixel rating that is through the roof in comparison to the Galaxy Note 5.
Early predictions indicate that Samsung will downgrade the megapixel rating of the Galaxy S7, instead improving the camera’s capabilities by indeed including BRITECELL. This could mean that the corporation will also follow suit with the Galaxy Note 6, and include a 12-megapixel camera capable of shooting much higher grade pictures in darker conditions.
If Samsung really intends to impress, however, it could consider improving the megapixel rating in the Galaxy Note 6, while also embracing BRITECELL. Or at the very least, the phablet’s camera could be frozen at 16-megapixels.
Hardware
It is early days to discuss the processor and chipset that is to be included in the Galaxy Note 6, particularly as Samsung has been making changes in this area recently. It has been widely predicted, although not explicitly confirmed by the Korean consumer electronics giant, that Qualcomm will be introduced back into the fold with the Galaxy S7, which could obviously have a significant influence over the Galaxy Note 6.
So the octa-core Exynos chipset that was included in the Galaxy Note 5 could be reserved solely for the East Asian marketplace, while the Galaxy Note 6 intended for the West could instead be fitted with a Qualcomm Snapdragon unit. Undoubtedly, the clock speeds of the processors included in the Galaxy Note 6 models will be increased significantly from their predecessors, particularly if Samsung does indeed decide to embrace 4K resolution.
One technical challenge for Samsung with the Galaxy Note 6 will be the possible reintroduction of micro SD. Support for this was dropped with the Galaxy Note 5, something that was not exactly enthusiastically welcomed by Android fans. Reports have indicated that the corporation will indeed include Micro SD with the Galaxy S7, which would then create something of an anomaly if it was not part of the makeup of its most high spec device.
However, the aluminum body caused issues for Samsung with including micro SD in the Galaxy Note 5, and this must be solved if Samsung is to include this technology in the Galaxy Note 6.
Finally, Samsung is expected to offer 128GB of storage with the Galaxy Note 6, bump the memory up to 6GB and ensure that the battery is at least as large as the one included in the Galaxy Note 5. It all adds up to a powerful phablet contender later this year.
