With the Galaxy Note 4 now in the public domain, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (LON:BC94) (KRX:0059935) will already be ruminating on its next raft of mobile devices. And it’s not only the Korean manufacturer that is considering the successor to the Galaxy Note 4; the Internet is already buzzing with one rumor in particular related to the forthcoming Galaxy Note 5.
Galaxy Note 5 to go 4K
Lovers of high definition technology could really crave this Samsung handset, as murmurings are already circulating that Samsung will choose to make the Galaxy Note 5 the first 4K mobile. This has been a breakthrough that has been rumored for sometime, but up until now it has yet to materialize. But with technology steadily developing, Samsung could decide that the time is right to make the some Galaxy Note 5 the first mass-market 4K mobile.
This is not merely gossip, there is already a source tipping this as being a major part of the Galaxy Note 5 release. It is rumored in-line with this that Samsung will start mass-producing a 5.9″ Ultra HD Super AMOLED display with 700+ppi sometime next year, with a likely 2015 release of the Galaxy Note 5 being around the same time in 2014 that the Galaxy Note 4 hit the stores.
Although Samsung is a very long way away from corroborating these rumors, it has itself already confirmed during its Analyst Days presentation slides that it is currently working on a UHD 2160×3840 pixels AMOLED display. It seems certain that such a display is intended for release in 2015, and the Galaxy Note 5 would be a natural fit with such a screen, given the large phablet size of the Galaxy Note series.
It would also be a logical move for Samsung given its focus on high-quality visual displays. Samsung’s range of televisions has been both critically lauded and commercially successful, and there is a lot of buzz around the curved design that its top of the range sets have adopted recently.
Samsung profits plunge
The fact is that Samsung requires some outstanding specifications and features with its next range of mobile devices. The reason for this is quite simple; Apple is currently walloping Samsung in the marketplace. This has led to the Korean manufacturer announcing that profits have tumbled by as much as 60 percent recently, and if the East Asian electronics giant is ever to fulfil its stated remit of seriously challenging Apple then it must find a way to distinctly brand itself in the marketplace.
Other major electronics companies have already mentioned similar specifications to the rumoured 4K screen. For example, LG has previously stated that 600ppi, and even 700ppi smartphone panels are perfectly achievable in the near future, so it shouldn’t come as a massive surprise to Samsung fans that the Korean company is currently investigating the possibility of releasing such a device.
Most analysts believe that Samsung needs to produce something outstanding with its next range of smartphones if it is too mark them out as something special and distinct in the manner of the iPhone. There is no doubt that Samsung delivers a very solid range of high performing mobile devices, but somehow the iPhone retains a cachet and street credibility that Samsung is yet to come close to matching.
Thus, a 4K display would be highly valuable to the corporation, and probably something that they will strive to achieve in the coming months. However, it will not be a silver bullet for the Galaxy Note 5 in itself, so it will be interesting to see as 2015 develops what sort of functionality, feature set and specifications the Galaxy Note 4 is armed with.
Screen size increase
Aside from the resolution of the display, it is already being speculated that Samsung will in fact increase the screen size in the Galaxy Note 5 to 5.9-inches. This could be viewed as a risky strategy, as the phablet marketplace has dried up a little recently, even though Apple has just produced its first phablet in the shape of the iPhone 6 Plus. Many analysts have stated that Samsung’s range of devices has become a little samey, and even the corporation itself has conceded this in recent statements.
So if Samsung is to include a 5.9-inch screen in the Galaxy Note 5, it surely must also consider some other alterations, and possibly a significant change in design parameters to ensure that the device is smaller while still accommodating this increased display size. There are already rumors circulating that Apple has a unique design for the iPhone 7 in the pipeline which will enable them to increase the screen size while making the device even more compact than it is already.
More Galaxy Note 5 specs
Samsung will also doubtless beef up some of the specs included in the Galaxy Note 5. Therefore, we can expect the device to be armed with 4 GB of RAM in order to complement a more powerful processor. The camera in the Galaxy Note 5 could be as powerful as 21-megapixels in resolution, while there are also murmurings that the device will pack a very powerful front-facing 6-megapixel camera capable of full HD video capture. The device is also expected to feature a 4000 mAh battery with features like ultra-battery saver mode.
The Galaxy Note 5 may be a long way off, but it is already clear that Samsung will up the ante with this device in its ongoing battle with Apple.
