Samsung Galaxy S8 Could Come in Two Variants – 5.7-inch and 6.2-inch Screens

Samsung Galaxy S8 with Samsung Internet

2016 has certainly been a year of ups and downs for smartphone makers as well as the smartphone industry as a whole. While Samsung was hit hard by the double-recall and subsequent pull-out of the ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 from the market, Google made its self-made smartphone debut with the Google Pixel and Google Pixel XL.

Apple meanwhile came in and grabbed their lion’s share of the market with iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, which saw strong demand post the launch but is now showing signs of fatigue.

In the broader smartphone market, total sales to end users grew 4.3% (YoY) globally during the second quarter to 344 million units, but that growth did not come from the United States. According to a Gartner report, only four Chinese smartphone makers and Samsung (South Korean) actually saw some growth in sales among the global Top 10. And even that was only a marginal 0.5% increase over the second quarter 2015.

Samsung’s market share growth in the second quarter 2016 was a healthy 1.5% and, during the third quarter 2016 Samsung maintained its market share dominance. Surprisingly, this in spite of the Note 7’s triumphant start and tragic end during the quarter.

Here’s a statement from Melissa Chau, associate research direct, Mobile Devices at IDC:

“Samsung’s market dominance in the third quarter was unchallenged in the short term even with this high-profile Galaxy Note 7 recall, but the longer term impact on the Samsung brand remains to be seen. If the first recall was a stumble for Samsung, the second recall of replacement devices face-planted the Note series. In a market that is otherwise maturing, Christmas has come early for vendors looking to capitalize with large-screened flagship alternatives like the Apple iPhone 7 Plus and Google Pixel.”

What About the Samsung Galaxy S8 Rumors?

The reason I preface the Galaxy S8 rumor with a background on the smartphone industry is because 2017 will be a critical year for Samsung Electronics. It is the year that will decide whether the South Korean electronics maker will continue to dominate the smartphone space or whether it will be forced to give it up to current Number 2 Apple.

We’re already in the fourth quarter, and this is when the votes could swing in Apple’s favor. The iPhone showed strong demand in the third quarter, shipping 45.5 million units. Although that was actually 5.3% less than the 48 million units they shipped in Q3 2015, the Note 7’s failure could give iPhone 7 enough momentum to last through the fourth quarter 2016 – the all-important holiday season – according to IDC.

Google Pixel likely won’t gain enough traction this quarter to get a spot in the Top 5, but Alphabet is certainly racing to meet the high benchmarks set by the global smartphone market.

And that’s where the Galaxy 8 comes in. Samsung has said that it will, in fact, release a Galaxy Note 8 next year despite the early demise of its predecessor, but the company isn’t taking any chances.

The latest rumor is that Samsung will introduce two variants of the Galaxy S8 – one with a 5.7-inch screen and one with a larger 6.2-inch screen. We got this from Android Headlines author Tom Dawson as outlined in his article published earlier this morning. Dawson does admit that the rumor does not hold much weight, but his argument for two possible screen sizes is plausible. Samsung does need to maximize the leverage it has with the Galaxy S series to offset their losses on the Note 7.

Another rumor floating around seems to be that Samsung will bring Harman audio tech into its smartphone range. Samsung last month entered into an agreement with Harman International Industries to acquire the US-based company for $8 billion in cash, but the connected technologies company having its know-how incorporated into 2017 Samsung phones is unfounded. In fact, Samsung has clearly said that Harman audio won’t make its way into Samsung phones at least until 2018.

“If we are to adopt Harman’s high-end audio technology for the Galaxy S series phone, the first model could come in 2018.” – Park Jong-hwan, senior vice president and head of Samsung’s car parts division.

As it stands, we don’t know for certain that Samsung will, indeed, release two Galaxy S8 models with larger screen sizes. If you’re thinking massive phones, don’t. A larger screen size does not necessarily equate to a larger phone. Samsung already has curved OLED technology, and it’s just a matter of creating thinner bezels to fit a larger screen. It could marginally increase the phone’s footprint, but not by much.

But is there any solid evidence to suggest Samsung will actually do this? And what of standard 5.1-inch and 5.5-inch screens on the S7 and S7 Edge, respectively? Will they make their way into the S8 lineup as well?

At this point there are too many variables, so we would advise that you take these rumors with a pinch of salt, if not a spoonful.

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