This Is Our First Look At A Functioning Galaxy S8 [PHOTOS]

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The official unveiling of Samsung’s next-gen flagship Galaxy S8 is still more than a month away. Dozens of leaks over the last few weeks have revealed the phone’s design. In all those leaks, the device’s screen was almost always off. Now Twitter user Ice Universe has posted photos of a functioning Galaxy S8 that show a bezel-less display and on-screen navigation keys mimicking the layout of physical buttons.

Galaxy S8
Image Credit: Ice Universe (@UniverseIce) / Twitter (screenshot)

Galaxy S8 has on-screen navigation keys

The images show how thin the bezels are. There is no room for Samsung’s logo on the bottom bezel. Ice Universe said they obtained images from a screen protector manufacturer. Unfortunately, none of the photos show the home screen with all the on-screen buttons. But you can see that the back button is on the right side, which would make it easier for loyal Samsung users to adopt to the Galaxy S8’s on-screen navigation buttons.

Separately, Android Police has obtained three images from the system dump of yet-to-be-announced Galaxy Tab 3. The images depict the Galaxy S8 with many of its features, rather than showing the Galaxy Tab 3. Samsung might have added images of the S8 in the Tab 3 tutorial artwork to show functions where the two devices work together or sync data, says Android Police.

One of the photos shows the demo of the heart rate sensor on the back of the handset. You can also see the fingerprint scanner sitting next to the main camera. Some experts have complained that placing the fingerprint sensor near the top of the rear panel isn’t optimal.

Galaxy S8 Twitter
Image Credit: Android Police / Twitter (screenshot)

Another image shows the on-screen navigation buttons in their full glory. The back arrow is located on the right side. The square-ish home key sits in the center, while the multi-tasking key can be seen highlighted by a tip. This order of the keys is typical of Samsung, but differs from almost every other Android smartphone out there. Only time will tell if users would be able to swap the order of the virtual keys.

Galaxy S8 to come with DeX

Android Police has also obtained an image showing the Samsung DeX dock for the Galaxy S8. The next-gen flagship is rumored to come with a Continuum-like feature that would allow you to turn the phone into a computer by connecting it to a monitor, a keyboard, and a mouse. Android Police reports that the DeX dock has an HDMI connector at the rear that connects to the monitor. The dock flips open to accommodate your smartphone.

A few days ago, SamMobile found a mockup of the Galaxy S8 inside Samsung’s yet-to-be-released Secure Folder app for Android Nougat-powered Galaxy S7. Images from both Ice Universe and Android Police match the one found by SamMobile.

Samsung is expected to release a Galaxy S8 teaser video at its Mobile World Congress (MWC) event.

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