It seems like Samsung has become the cheeky rat again this year. Today, at the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 keynote, Qualcomm announced that Samsung would be among the first of manufacturers to announce their phones with 5G support into the wild.
The news came in during the Qualcomm 855 presentation where the company has just announced the first tidbits of the Snapdragon 855 SoC. With Samsung being a key leader for the Android market, Samsung’s cheesy score would definitely keep them ahead of the rest as Samsung prepares for the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S10 in 2019.
“With Qualcomm and our carrier partners, we’re going to bring one of the first 5G smartphones in the first half of 2019. It is powered with the Snapdragon 855 chipset” said Samsung America’s Justin Denison
Qualcomm made sure that spectators at the event would be able to have a look at their first “consumer-level” prototype. Although they didn’t mention its model nor its features, spectators at the event were able to get a glimpse of the new 5G logo that would definitely delight any hardcore enthusiasts day. Surprisingly enough, PCMag’s Sascha Segan described the prototype as a “Galaxy Note 9” that featured a dual camera setup along with a headphone jack.
Rumors had earlier suggested that Samsung would release a separate 5G-enabled variant that would be exclusive to that model. With a desperate mood, it seems like the Galaxy S10’s 5G capabilities would not be limited to any single model, and instead, multiple variants of the Galaxy S10 would feature 5G capabilities down the road based on Justin Denison’s phrases.
However, we’re still left with a mixed bag of feelings. Images and renders showcased by Qualcomm so far have suggested that the new 5G-enabled Snapdragon X50 model would be a dedicated chip lying right next to the 855 itself. Similar to Huawei’s Kirin 990 dedicated 5G module, this means that if Samsung does plan to opt out, they could very well skip the X50 and rely on the 855’s 4G capabilities instead. Let’s hope that if that’s the case, the S10 Lite would be the victim.
