Samsung Announces Galaxy S8 And S8+ With Snapdragon 835 And Curved Infinity Display, Preorders Open 3/30
Samsung Galaxy S8 And Galaxy S8+ - Live from NYC - Hands-On Coming Soon!
As expected, the Galaxy S8 has a 5.8-inch display, while the Galaxy S8+ pushes the screen size to 6.2 inches. The screen takes up nearly the entire front of the smartphones, something that Samsung calls an “Infinity Display”. Although the bezels aren’t completely gone, it is still a rather breathtaking design. Both displays are Quad HD+ Super AMOLED with a resolution of 2960x1440. On the Galaxy S8, that means 570 pixels per inch (PPI), while the Galaxy S8+ is slightly less dense at 529 PPI.
For the U.S. market, both the Galaxy S8 and S8+ are powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 octa-core processor running at 2.35GHz. Samsung says that this new SoC is 10 percent faster than the one powering the Galaxy S7/Galaxy S7 Edge, while the GPU is 21 percent faster. This new Snapdragon 835 is paired with 4GB of RAM (LPDDR4), while you’ll find 64GB of onboard storage (UFS 2.1), plus a microSD slot for additional storage expansion.
The rear camera has been upgraded to a 12MP dual-pixel design with optical image stabilization, while the front-facing “selfie” camera has been upgraded with an 8MP sensor and autofocus to zero in on your gorgeous mug. On the security side of things, Samsung has brought over the iris scanner from the Galaxy Note 7 which allows you to unlock your S8 instantly with your face. If you want to still use the fingerprint sensor, you can, although it’s been moved to the back of the device.
When it comes to connectivity, the new Galaxy devices don’t disappoint. You’ll find Category 16 LTE, 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5.0 LE. On that last point, the new Galaxy S8 and S8+ introduce a new feature called Dual Audio. This allows you to connect two Bluetooth devices to your phone at once and play audio to those devices simultaneously. The microUSB port has also finally been chunked in favor of USB-C.
Other features include IP68 dust and water resistance, NFC/Samsung Pay, wireless charging, Qualcomm Quick Charge and a 3,000 mAh battery for the Galaxy S8 (3,500 mAh on the Galaxy S8+). Software wise, the new Galaxy smartphones will ship with Android 7.0 along with Samsung’s new Bixby personal digital assistant.
Preorders for the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ open up tomorrow, March 30th, and will begin shipping in the United States on April 21st. Both phones will be available in Midnight Black, Orchid Gray, Coral Blue, Arctic Silver and Maple Gold.
As for pricing, T-Mobile is the first U.S. carrier to give us information on this front (we'll update this as more information comes in):
- The Galaxy S8 will have a $30 down payment and cost $30/month for 24 months on the T-Mobile Equipment Installment Plan (FRP: $750). JUMP! On Demand customers can snag the device for $0 down and just $33/month.
- The S8+ will be available for $130 down and $30/month for 24 months on EIP (FRP: $850), with the same down payment and monthly payment amount for JUMP! On Demand customers.
