Galaxy S8 & S8 Plus Thread

[Anubis]

Is that a fingerprint reader by the camera setup? That is a rather inconvenient place to put it. I have to assume that is a secondary one and there is something else on the front screen.

yes and the off center high up placement is moronic

the nexus and pixel have it centered and lower down on the phone which actually works

 

[gorcorps]

From evleaks:

Also looking at the phone and assuming that the screen is indeed 18.5:9 ratio and 5.8 inches, there's no way that the 140.1 x 72.2 mm size numbers being reported on some sites is correct. It would have to be something more like 147-148 x 67-68 mm.

How do you measure the size of a curved screen? If screen size is measured as if it laid flat, then the curve means less width for that screen size.

 

[antihelten]

How do you measure the size of a curved screen? If screen size is measured as if it laid flat, then the curve means less width for that screen size.

You don't really (unless you're Samsung and have access to the internal measurements). However this doesn't really matter as far as the point I was making.

Basically if the display was flat and not curved and is 5.8 inches with a ratio of 18.5:9 then it will would have a size of the 132.5 x 64.4 mm. If the phone size of 140.1 x 72.2 mm was correct, then it would have top and bottom bezels of only 3.8 mm (based on the image the top bezel looks closer to 7-8 mm and the bottom bezel 4-5 mm), and side bezels of 3.9 mm (for comparison the Galaxy S7 has side bezels of 2.1 mm when calculated as flat).

If the screen is curved instead of flat then it will effectively shrink somewhat in width, so instead of being 64.4 mm wide it would be 62-63 mm wide. This would of course only make the side bezels larger if the width of the phone is kept constant, thus making it even less likely that the width of the phone is 72.2 mm.

One thing the above calculations doesn't take into account though is the fact that the screen has rounded corners, and I don't know if the 5.8 inch size takes this into account or if it is calculated from what the equivalent screen with straight corners would be.

 

[lopri]

I've borrowed this from an iPhone thread. It might help visualize how a curved screen size is measured.

 

[antihelten]

I've borrowed this from an iPhone thread. It might help visualize how a curved screen size is measured.

None of that really says anything about how to measure curved screens. It's just a visual comparison of different sized flat screens compared to different phone form sizes.

If you actually wanted to know how to calculate the true size of a curved screen you would need to know the exact radius and extent of the curvature, which pretty much means that you would need access to the official CAD drawings from Samsung. Either way though it doesn't really matter, since it really only means that the width of the screen is 1 or 2 mm smaller.

Anyway regarding the rounded corners issue, it would seem that Samsung defines the screen size without taking the rounded corners into account, since the 6.2 inch S8+ is apparently only 6.1 inches if measured with the corners taken into account. As such my calculations above for the 5.8 inch S8 which doesn't take the corners into account either, should be correct (with the corners accounted for the S8 is probably only 5.7 inches or there about*).

*Edit: it looks like it's only 5.6 inches.

 

[gorcorps]

Despite the odd placement of the finger print reader, I see this being my next phone. I don't think I'll wait for the next Note, but it depends what the rumor mill is like at the time the s8 is out. I'm pretty must just limping through every day with my 6p waiting for something to replace it that I'll like for a couple years.

 

[antihelten]

It does seem like a fairly decent phone with no major flaws (the fingerprint reader placement is very much a minor flaw imho), but it also seems very much like an evolutionary rather than revolutionary iteration. Obviously there are limits to how much new stuff they can throw into them these days, but I must say that I'm at the very least a bit surprised that Samsung didn't go with a dual camera setup like everyone else seems to be doing.

 

[Oyeve]

but I must say that I'm at the very least a bit surprised that Samsung didn't go with a dual camera setup like everyone else seems to be doing.

Thats because they already had the same effects with "selective focus" mode without the gimmicky dual camera nonsense. I have dual cameras on my LGV20 and the Note 7 and S7 Edge takes similar pics with selective focus mode. With one camera.

 

[antihelten]

Thats because they already had the same effects with "selective focus" mode without the gimmicky dual camera nonsense. I have dual cameras on my LGV20 and the Note 7 and S7 Edge takes similar pics with selective focus mode. With one camera.

You can do far more than just variable focus with a dual camera setup*, and a software solution like what the S7 has will never be able to match the bokeh quality of a well implemented dual sensor setup (well implemented being the key word here, it's perfectly possible to make a dual camera setup perform poorly).

*For instance Apple uses it to implement optical zoom, LG uses to to implement variable field of view, and huawei uses it to gain significantly higher light sensitivity (by using a monochrome sensor without a bayer filter).

 

[antihelten]

Looks pretty nice imho:

Source

 

[Commodus]

Looks pretty nice imho:

Source

This and the G6 feel like cousins to some degree, but I like it (it reflects earlier leaks, but it's a much clearer look). It feels like the logical conclusion of the efforts started with the S6/S7 Edge.

What's funny: I'm realizing that this push for screen, screen and more screen is going to lead to a lot of similar-looking phones, at least in terms of hardware design -- Apple is rumored to be going in a similar direction. A phone's looks may lean much more heavily on software this year.

 

[Red Storm]

In that pic you can see three different buttons. Power, volume, and I wonder what the third one is for?

 

[blackangst1]

In that pic you can see three different buttons. Power, volume, and I wonder what the third one is for?

BGR is guessing its a "dedicated virtual assistant button that will invoke Samsung’s Bixby assistant."

 

[gorcorps]

The galaxy s7 active has a similar 3rd button. By default it opens up some Active screen that has shortcuts to things like flashlight, compass, etc...

Not sure what they'd use it for in a non-active phone, but probably something similar. It wouldn't be the first phone with a dedicated camera button either, and it might even be configurable.

 

[Ackmed]

Looking forward to this, wait for reviews but will likely get it first week. I like my 7+, but enjoy upgrades too. Should go well with the Samsung S3 Frontier watch, now that Verizon has finally filed with the FCC about it.

 

[Commodus]

The galaxy s7 active has a similar 3rd button. By default it opens up some Active screen that has shortcuts to things like flashlight, compass, etc...

Not sure what they'd use it for in a non-active phone, but probably something similar. It wouldn't be the first phone with a dedicated camera button either, and it might even be configurable.

Has to be the Bixby button, since there's already an on-screen home button. Wouldn't count on it being configurable, but this is Samsung...

 

[darkswordsman17]

Actually that looks a lot like what a modern version of the LG G2 would be like. In many ways the S8 is shaping up to be that. Some unique ideas being tried, but doing what should be good solid hardware (display, SoC, camera in specific).

The big thing that I think will impact the S8 is how they handle it. Are they going to do a B1G1 promotion like they did with the S7? Are people expecting them to? In a way I'd guess they wouldn't since I think they showed with the S7 that they can make a great phone (and so wouldn't need to win people over, and them doing the B1G1 for the S7 got people to see that by actually getting the phone), but then the Note battery mess kinda tarnished the brand again. But if they keep doing promotions like that so early, then I think people will come to expect it and will devalue their products. Considering profits were already low, can't imagine that helps (but hey, if they were already not really making profit then might as well use it as a way to build brand equity?).

 

[lopri]

I will go out on a limb and say that 3rd button is the new home button.

 

[GTRagnarok]

If the iris scanner is improved and is as fast and seamless as I have it pictured in my head, then the fingerprint sensor might become secondary, and its weird position may not matter much.

 

[antihelten]

This and the G6 feel like cousins to some degree, but I like it (it reflects earlier leaks, but it's a much clearer look). It feels like the logical conclusion of the efforts started with the S6/S7 Edge.

What's funny: I'm realizing that this push for screen, screen and more screen is going to lead to a lot of similar-looking phones, at least in terms of hardware design -- Apple is rumored to be going in a similar direction. A phone's looks may lean much more heavily on software this year.

Funnily enough I can't help but think that the design language of the S8 borrows quite a bit from the old HTC one S and one X (which were beautiful phones for their time imho), at least as far as the front is concerned. It feels like the GS8 is the ultimate evolution of this design language to me.

Basically if the entire glass front of the One S or One X was screen and you changed the aspect ratio, then you would have something quite reminiscent of the GS8:

 

[gorcorps]

Funnily enough I can't help but think that the design language of the S8 borrows quite a bit from the old HTC one S and one X (which were beautiful phones for their time imho), at least as far as the front is concerned. It feels like the GS8 is the ultimate evolution of this design language to me.

Basically if the entire glass front of the One S or One X was screen and you changed the aspect ratio, then you would have something quite reminiscent of the GS8:

Sooo, basically if you ignore everything that makes them different... they'd be the same?

That's one of the most outlandish claims I've seen in a while. I couldn't pick a phone that looks even less similar, sorry.

 

[gorcorps]

If the iris scanner is improved and is as fast and seamless as I have it pictured in my head, then the fingerprint sensor might become secondary, and its weird position may not matter much.

Unless they've made some pretty massive improvements, it still won't work if you're wearing glasses which is a big issue for a lot of people. I could never use any of Samsung's eye tracking technology because of this.

 

[antihelten]

Sooo, basically if you ignore everything that makes them different... they'd be the same?

The point is that all off the things that make them different are relatively minor parts of the design language.

Other designs of the same era as the one X/S would need to have far more drastic changes done to them to end up at the same point.

That's one of the most outlandish claims I've seen in a while. I couldn't pick a phone that looks even less similar, sorry.

Here's an example of what I mean, the only things I changed was the aspect ratio, and I removed the glass bezels of the one X:

Do you really not see the resemblance?

 

[gorcorps]

The point is that all off the things that make them different are relatively minor parts of the design language.

Other designs of the same era as the one X/S would need to have far more drastic changes done to them to end up at the same point.



Here's an example of what I mean, the only things I changed was the aspect ratio, and I removed the glass bezels of the one X:

Do you really not see the resemblance?

Of course I see the resemblance, after you changed the entire phone design to force it to look similar. You had to change the aspect ratio, add a radius to the screen edges that weren't originally there, remove the hardware buttons, and shrink all the bezels. You can do the same thing to any semi rectangular device and make the same point.

 

[Zaap]

^ the HTC design looks to me like an old compromise where a potentially much sleeker phone had to be encased in an ugly roundish shell. The absurdity of the sharp rectangle screen surroumnded by ill-matching rounded 'cases' just looks retro and awful. (And even at the time HTC had much better designs.)

I see the resemblance as it is only in that the outer "roundiness" of the phone leans just a shade toward retro to me... but the saving grace is the fact that the much improved and curved screen melds into the contours of the device so well.

I like the S8 concept well enough, but I'm really hoping the Note 8 follows the superior design language of the Note 7. How I STILL miss that slab of sheer awesomeness. The proportions of that device were just so no-nonsense and professional compared to other more roundish devices.

I'm willing to wave bye bye to my hardware buttons that I've always liked on Samsung phones if they keep everything else on the same evolutionary track as the Note 7.

Something like the above right I'm hoping for.

Side note....imagine if Apple hits it out of the park, dropping all retro baggage and going with a future-reaching design like this:

Something that awesome could almost (almost!) lead me to suffer with iOS just to possess. Of course the mandate for lack of ports (plus iOS) would mean no way, but at least it'd be interesting to be jealous of an Apple design for the first time in... years.

Greatest thing for me is... we're approaching the reality of phones that I've been wanting since 2010 or so and that not that long ago some swore up and down at me were impossible! (Hey, the future always is!)

It's 2017... I hope the 'future' arrives this year. 2014 and before can have all their stuff back!