Update: New rumors suggest the Galaxy Note 8 is still in the works and will get a big resolution upgrade to 4K, for better VR, along with an improved iris scanner.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 will go down in smartphone history for all the wrong reasons, which is a shame, because when it wasn’t causing property damage and injuries it was a very good phone.
Fortunately, it looks as though the brand might live on, with rumors of a Samsung Galaxy Note 8 already beginning to emerge.
Other than its possible existence almost nothing is known about it so far, but we’re sure to start hearing more soon, and when we do you’ll be the first to know (as long as you regularly check this article).
In the meantime, you’ll find all our hopes and dreams for the phone below, along with a healthy dose of educated guesses at what form it might take.
Cut to the chase
- What is it? Samsung's next flagship phablet
- When is it out? Probably late 2017
- What will it cost? A lot, the Note 7 cost $850/£749/AU$1,349
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 release date
Samsung tends to stick to a rough schedule with its flagship phones, and that schedule suggests that the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 will arrive a few months before the end of 2017, but at this point we can’t get any more specific than that.
The Galaxy Note 7 launched in September, but the Note 5 arrived in August, and the Note 4 landed in October.
Then again, Samsung might break with its usual release date schedule, given that it had to kill the Note 7. It could make sense for the company to push the Note 8’s release forward, to avoid going two full years without a new phablet flagship on the market.
And this all assumes the phone exists at all, as there was some suggestion that Samsung might kill at least the name given the bad press now associated with it, but two things suggest it’s in the works.
First, there’s the presence of a Note 8 listing on Samsung’s ‘Galaxy Upgrade Program’ page, and second, there’s a claim by reliable leaker Evan Blass that a phone with the model number SM-N950 is in the works – that’s the number we’d expect the Galaxy Note 8 to have.
TechRadar’s take: Although an early release is possible, there’s been no suggestion yet that there will be one, so for now we wouldn’t expect to see the Note 8 before August 2017.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 screen
Hottest leaks:
- A foldable screen
- A 4K resolution
- No home button
As a phablet, we know that the Galaxy Note 8 will have a big screen. From the Note 3 onwards they’ve all had 5.7-inch screens, so it seems Samsung has settled on that being the optimal size.
As such, that’s our best guess for the Note 8’s size, but it’s possible that it could get bigger, especially as it’s rumored that even the Samsung Galaxy S8 could grow to 6.2 inches.
And the physical dimensions wouldn’t necessarily need to change to accommodate that growth, as it’s also rumored that the Galaxy S8 could ditch the home button and be almost all screen on the front – potentially with the fingerprint scanner built into the display.
Another, albeit less likely possibility, is that the Galaxy Note 8 could have a foldable screen. Samsung has been working on this tech for years, and it’s rumored that the company will launch two foldable phones in 2017.
We’d take that rumor with a huge pinch of salt, and even if it does pan out the company might not want to risk folds on a mainstream handset - we have been hearing word of a new phone called the Samsung Galaxy X. But it could test the waters with a foldable Note 8 variant, much like it tested curved screens with the Samsung Galaxy Note Edge.
As well as the size and form, the resolution of the screen could also change. The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 – and various other recent Samsung flagships – have QHD screens, which are plenty for most uses, but don’t quite cut it for VR, which Samsung is pushing with Gear VR.
In order to give that a boost, and to add a bullet point to the box, it’s possible that the Note 8 will get a 4K screen. In fact, that's now been rumored, with a source adding that the Note 8 will connect to a new Gear VR, suggesting virtual reality will be a big focus for Samsung with the Note 8.
TechRadar’s take: Don’t count on folds, but less bezel and even the removal of the home button are distinct possibilities. If so the screen could grow, otherwise we’d expect a 5.7-inch screen again, but a 4K resolution isn’t out of the question.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 design
Nothing is yet known about the design of the Note 8, or even the Galaxy S8, which is arriving sooner and could sport a similar design.
For now, our best guess is that it won’t stray too far from the metal and glass sandwich that’s proved so popular for the company, but refinements are sure to be made.
TechRadar’s take: A similar look, but perhaps slightly slimmer, or with less bezel.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 camera and battery
Hottest leaks:
- A dual-lens camera
As with so many things, we can look at the Galaxy S8 for clues at what to expect from the Note 8’s camera. Currently there are various rumors attached to the S8, ranging from a dual-lens 12MP and 13MP pairing all the way to a 30MP single-lens camera.
But, given the current trend for dual-lens cameras, and the fact that there seems to be an unspoken agreement among phone manufacturers that more pixels does not equal better, a dual-lens camera is our best guess right now. The dual-lens rumor has also popped up more times than any other, albeit in reference to the Galaxy S8.
We’d also imagine that whatever camera it gets will have optical image stabilization, given that the Note 7 does.
The battery is likely to be big, and support fast charging. The juice pack in the Note 7 is 3500mAh and we’d expect at least that much from the Galaxy Note 8.
TechRadar’s take: A dual-lens camera and a big, long-lasting battery are both likely inclusions.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 OS and power
Hottest leaks:
- A powerful 3GHz+ octa-core processor
- Android Nougat or Android O
Samsung tends to either use its own Exynos chips, or Snapdragon chips, or a combination of the two, with different regions getting different processors.
But in the Note range it always uses one of the best available chips, which by the Note 8 is likely to mean at least the Snapdragon 830, which is rumored to be a 3.2GHz octa-core processor, or the Exynos 8895, which is supposedly a 3GHz octa-core chip.
But the Note 8 may have something even faster. It’s also sure to have a lot of RAM – 4GB is the absolute minimum, since that would be a match for current flagships, but 6GB or even 8GB isn’t out of the question.
The operating system will of course be Android, either Nougat or Android O, and it’s sure to be overlaid with the latest version of Samsung’s TouchWiz interface.
TechRadar’s take: The fastest mobile chip around and 6GB of RAM are our best guesses, but whatever the Note 8 uses it’s sure to be a real powerhouse.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 other features
Hottest leaks:
- A stylus with a speaker
- An iris scanner
- An AI assistant
The S Pen is one of the standout features of the Note range, and it’s sure to return for the next model, but it’s likely to get better, and a patent points to a stylus with a built-in speaker.
What the speaker would do isn’t clear, but it could potentially read notes back to you, or work in combination with the phone’s speakers for louder audio.
An iris scanner is a likely Note 8 inclusion, given that the Note 7 had one, and apparently it will be more secure this time, though the fingerprint scanner is sure to return too. The phone is also likely to be dust and water resistant, have a microSD card slot and charge via USB Type-C, given that its predecessor did.
An AI assistant, built by some of Siri’s creators, and likely to be called Bixby, is also an obvious addition, since Samsung has already confirmed it for the Galaxy S8.
Other possible features include a mini projector – which has been rumored for the S8.
TechRadar’s take: The S Pen will likely improve, but we’re not sold on the speaker idea. Most of the Note 7’s features will also probably return – including the iris scanner.
Samsung Galaxy Note 8 price
All we have to go on for now is the price that the Galaxy Note 7 launched at, but it’s likely that the Note 8 will have a similar price tag. In which case, you can expect to pay around $850/£749/AU$1,349 for it.
TechRadar’s take: The Galaxy Note 8 is sure to be expensive, but probably won’t be much if any more than the Note 7.
Aside from distinctly fewer flames and explosions, there are a number of other things we’d like from the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, and the following are our top wants.
1. A lower price
For the brief period that it was on sale, the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 was colossally expensive, coming in at $850/£749/AU$1,349 if you bought it off contract.
The size and specs of the phone went a long way towards justifying that price, but it still put the phone out of many people’s reach, so we’d like to see a lower price for the Note 8.
It’s unlikely, but you never know, Samsung might drop the price as a goodwill gesture to all its fans that have had to go without an upgrade in 2016.
2. 6GB of RAM
Most current smartphones have 4GB of RAM, but a few, such as the OnePlus 3, have launched with 6GB, and a Chinese variant of the Note 7 was supposed to do the same.
With the Note 8, we’d like to see all versions launch with at least that much. It might sound like overkill, but it would help power VR experiences, and besides, the Note series has always been at the cutting edge.
3. A 4K display
What would help VR even more than extra RAM is a sharper screen, and so we’d like to see a 4K display on the Galaxy Note 8.
Samsung has been peddling QHD screens for a while now, and with the extra size of the Note it’s a prime candidate for a few more pixels.
4. Less sensitive buttons
It’s a minor niggle, but the capacitive buttons on the Note 7, and indeed many Samsung handsets, are overly sensitive, leading to many an accidental press, particularly for those who are new to the handset, so we’d like to see these made slightly less sensitive for the Note 8 – but only slightly!
5. A foldable screen
There’s been talk that Samsung could start launching handsets with foldable screens in 2017. So, could the Note 8 be one of them? It’s unlikely, but it seems like a natural evolution from the curved screens we have now, and would make the phone’s sheer size more manageable.
6. No more bezels
OK, a foldable screen might be asking a bit much, but Samsung could at least ditch the bezels surrounding the display. That could allow the company to either pack a larger screen into the same space, or shrink the handset size down.
Ditching the home button could prove problematic, since it houses the fingerprint scanner, but there have been rumors that Samsung might build the scanner into the screen itself.
7. A new design
Samsung has been iterating on the current design of its phones since the Galaxy S6, so by the time the Note 8 launches it will be about time for a shakeup.
We want the curved screen to stay, unless the alternative is a foldable one, but a change to that metal and glass sandwich would be appreciated, as long as it still looks just as stylish and premium.
- Can't wait for the Note 8? We'll likely get a Samsung Galaxy S8 Edge first
from TechRadar: Phone and communications news http://www.techradar.com/news/samsung-galaxy-note-8
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