Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus release date, news and features

Update: Check out our hands on Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus review for our thoughts on Samsung's new phablet flagship.

The Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus has landed! The bigger brother to the Samsung Galaxy S8, the S8 Plus boasts a bigger screen and battery while keeping everything else the same.

Its 6.2-inch screen size puts a bigger phone display in your hand without extending the actual body size all that much. It favors getting rid of bezels and the home button over dramatically increasing the phone’s dimensions.

With a better screen, faster chipset, new sensor technology and smarter software, Samsung gave its already trendsetting curved phone a makeover.

Is it enough to make you forget about the Galaxy Note 7 recall? Can it compete with the iPhone 8? Let’s explore.

• Check out our review of the Galaxy S8 Plus

Cut to the chase

• What is it? Samsung's new, curvy, big-screen flagship phone
• When is it out? Release date April 21 in US, April 28 in Europe
• What will it cost? £779.99 (around $960, AU$1,260)

Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus release date and price

• S8 Plus pre-orders from March 30 in US, March 29 in Europe
• S8 Plus release date April 21 in US, April 28 in Europe

The Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus release date is set for April 21 in the US and April 28 in Europe.

You can pre-order the S8 Plus from March 30 if you're in the US. 

Meanwhile, Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus pre-orders begin on March 29 in Europe, but if you place you order before April 19 you could get the handset in your hands up to eight days before the official release date.

We also still don't know the SIM-free Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus price in the US, but in the UK you're looking at a lofty £779.99 (around $960, AU$1,260).

Networks around the world have also started revealing their contract deals for the phones, so check with your local operators for more details.

Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus design and display

Samsung's 'Infinity Display' is the hallmark of this new Android smartphone. It has a 6.2-inch display that stands out from every other flat phone.

It's bigger without actually pushing the dimensions, too big. It's a good size for anyone who was able to handle the Note 7, as it's a bit taller now due to its 18.5:9 screen ratio.

Once again, the front and back are covered in Gorilla Glass and wrap around until they meet at a ultra-thin frame.

Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus power

Samsung has a new chipset for the Galaxy S8 as well, utilizing 10 nanometer technology, making the phone more powerful and efficient. 

Like with the Galaxy S7, there will be two different processors in different parts of the world. Which one you get really depends on where you live.

The US will get the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 while the rest of the world will get Samsung’s own Exynos 8895 chip, which tends to be slightly faster.

Both are powerful enough to run desktop virtualization. Samsung is picking up where Microsoft left off by allowing Galaxy S8 users to turn their smartphones into a desktop experience. Samsung worked with Microsoft to make sure that Office works seamlessly with Samsung DeX.

Thankfully, DeX is Google Android that has been tailored for a desktop experience instead of using Samsung’s proprietary Tizen OS.

All phones with have 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. You can always expand that storage size thanks to a microSD card slot.

Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus camera

The Galaxy S8 Plus has the same 12MP camera as last year's phones, but don't worry too much, Samsung promises it'll still look better than before.

That's because the company is putting its new camera's might behind the post-processing software. It should make your low-light photos even better.

The Plus is is also getting a new multi-frame shot mode where multiple photos can be combined to make a better photo. The phone will take the best parts of each shot and will stitch them together to make the best shot possible.

The front-facing camera does see a new sensor. It's 8MP, up from last year's 5MP. It'll also debut front-facing auto-focus in an effort to make your selfies more in focus.

Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus battery life

The Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus packs in a 3,500mAh battery. That's actually 100mAh larger than the Note 7, but Samsung is promising this one won't explode.

The company says it has an 8-point plan that prevents a repeat of its Note 7 battery failures. Barring another mishap, you should have a day-plus of battery life.

from TechRadar: Phone and communications news http://www.techradar.com/news/samsung-galaxy-s8-plus-release-date-news-and-features