We were introduced to the iPhone X last week and, since then, our focus has been squarely focused on the latest offering from Apple. Everyone is talking about FaceID, the bezel-less display, and the powerful processor. However, the official revealing of the iPhone X is really just one more step in the growth of the smartphone industry. More smartphones will be coming in the future and all of them will be looking for new ways to beat their competition.
One of the ways we are seeing manufacturers separate their smartphone from the rest is with the camera. The Galaxy Note 8 was Samsung’s first dual sensor camera and packed a lot of interesting features in. The iPhone X gave us another step forward in camera technology with 4K video shooting at 60fps. Now, the Galaxy S9 camera is rumored to be taking things to another level in 2018.
A new report claims that Samsung is working on a new, in-house camera sensor that will be featured in the upcoming Galaxy S9. This camera sensor will reportedly work in a similar fashion to the camera sensor on the Sony Xperia XZ1 which can shoot video at 960fps. If Samsung is able to top that at 1000fps then it would truly be an impressive achievement. According to some, the biggest challenge facing Samsung right now is the patent that Sony holds for the layered camera technology. Samsung will have to create their own design that avoids any patent infringement issues with Sony.
It’s starting to feel like we are nearing a point in smartphone development where features like the camera will become the main selling points. Displays have become so good that you literally have to hold the device right against your eye (not recommended operating procedure) in order to see any pixels. Smartphone chips are powerful enough to run most applications for years without any noticeable lag. The Galaxy S9 camera is what will be used to compare against the iPhone X. I mean, look at how much time Apple spent showing off their front facing camera that lets you turn your face into animated poo. Cameras are one of the main features where small changes can show huge improvements whereas a new, faster chip shows marginal improvement that likely won’t be noticed by the average user.
That’s not to say that Samsung won’t put the best hardware into their upcoming flagship. Alongside the 1000fps Galaxy S9 camera, Samsung is rumored to have already placed an order for the first batch of Snapdragon 845 chips. That’s obviously not great news for companies like LG who tend to release new smartphones early in the year but end up having to use last generation chips.
If the Galaxy S9 camera is able to shoot 1000fps that will make it the best camera on the market for shooting slow motion video. Of course, that’s not a feature that, on its own, will convince users to spend their hard earned money on a brand new flagship device. We will also likely see a dual sensor camera in the Galaxy S9. The Galaxy Note 8 was Samsung’s first dual sensor camera and I would expect that trend to continue in their upcoming flagship devices. The dual sensor setup should help make the Galaxy S9 camera much better at taking shots in low-light situations and allow for more depth detection features – similar to the portrait mode you see in the iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 8 Plus.
Price, however, could be the ultimate factor when people decide to make the upgrade to the Galaxy S9. We saw Apple stop just short of the $1000 mark with the iPhone X. Could the Galaxy S9 end up around the same price? I imagine we will see the Galaxy S9 price end up closer to the price of the iPhone 8 Plus while the Galaxy Note series is priced to compete with the iPhone X. Could next year be the year we start to see smartphone prices of base storage models pass that symbolic $1000 mark? I hope not but innovation like what is rumored to be in the Galaxy S9 camera doesn’t come cheap. Luckily, if you are the type of person who is fine with a one year old smartphone in your hand then there should be a lot of great deals on the Galaxy S8 by then.
Why are the Galaxy S9 camera rumors already starting with the usual Galaxy S release date in the spring? Some reports suggest that Samsung has already started ordering camera components in order to have a flexible delivery timeline for their upcoming devices. If sales of the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus take a nose dive in the holiday shopping season then Samsung may aim to push up their launch and get the smartphone world’s attention back on them.
What do you think? Would the rumored Galaxy S9 camera be enough to get you to upgrade or are you happy with the device you have now? Let us know!
