Samsung's Galaxy Note 8 Release Date is right around the corner, so it is time to take a closer look at the phablet's rumored specs, features, and price.
The previous installment, the Note 7, was a catastrophe since the company had to issue a global recall due to the phone's unprecedented extent of battery issues. It was so severe that some airlines prohibited passengers from bringing their Note 7 on the flight.
The particular incident allowed the iPhone 7 Plus to dominate the phablet fragment of the market. Apple fully seized the opportunity.
With that in mind, Samsung has put a lot of effort into the making of the forthcoming device.
They had to eliminate any possibilities of such a drama taking place this year as well.
Galaxy Note 8 specs and features: The king of power or just an oversized S8?
Starting from the front, the Note 8 will pack a curved Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 2,960 x 1,440 pixels and 18.5:9 aspect ratio. Though, we expect the new generation to surpass the Note 7's 5.7-inch threshold, and size up to a whopping 6.4-inch.
Generally speaking, the 6-inch plus form factor is perfect watching or movies on your phone. But when it comes to daily use, it will definitely prove quite impractical.
Underneath the hood, we are confident that the Note 8 will be powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 835 CPU or the next-gen Snapdragon - in the US.
As far as the overseas are concerned, Samsung will most likely opt for the Exynos 8895 CPU, in both Europe and Asia, which powers the Galaxy S8 as well.
Moreover, according to most reports out there, the Galaxy Note 8 will come with at least 4GB of RAM on board, while 6GB versions could be available as well. Additionally, a dual camera setup will be installed on the back, featuring a "12 MP wide-angle lens and a 13 MP telephoto lens that will offer a 3X optical zoom." as Android Authority have mentioned in their recap.
Selfie lovers will be pleased to know that we expect an 8MP shooter on the front end of the phone.
To accommodate the humongous 6-inch+ display, Samsung will be including a non-removable 3,500mAh battery. That's the same capacity as the last installment - let's hope not the same build, though.
Extra features include IP68 certification, Iris scanner, the S Pen and Bixby, Samsung's virtual assistant.
The Galaxy Note 8 will come with Google's Android 7.1.1 Nougat straight out of the box, skinned under Samsung's TouchWiz UI.
All that's nice. But what about the Note 8's fingerprint scanner?
Here is where things get a little bit tricky. There is no doubt that the Galaxy Note 8 will come with a fingerprint scanner, as it is a standard feature for all high-end smartphones. Though, the expected thin-bezel based design render the case of a fingerprint sensor built into the screen impossible.
Therefore, we'll most likely see it mounted on the rear end of the device, adjacent to the camera, much like in the Galaxy S8.
Note 8 price and release date info: Will it cost me a fortune?
As far as the Galaxy Note 8 release date is concerned, there are two scenarios that we reckon.
Samsung will either take the wraps off sometime in August, thus getting a head start on Apple's iPhone 8 or during the annual IFA event, which takes place in Berlin, Germany and kicks off on September 1st.
Pre-orders should begin a short while after the launch. International retailers will start offering the device a couple of weeks later.
Samsung did launch the Note 7 in mid-August. Though, the company is pretty fond of the IFA event, during which it has announced a bunch of products, including smartwatches, VR headsets, and tablets.
Pricing wise, as the headline prompts, the Galaxy Note 8's price will certainly not be budget-friendly. The Note series is known to be one of the most expensive smartphone line-ups in the marketplace, and the Note 8 will be no exception.
Relying on the data at hand, we estimate an $900 retail, off-contract, since the Note 7 came at $850 when launched in the US.
What are your thoughts on the Samsung Galaxy Note 8? Feel free to sound off in the comments below.
