Recent reports have suggested that Samsung is hard at work on multiple new versions of its 2014 flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S5. This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, since Samsung is no stranger to releasing multiple versions of a smartphone. Among the more interesting rumors we have seen in recent weeks is a report that states Samsung is working on a main version of the S5 with a plastic housing as well as a premium version of the beastly Android phone that will finally include a case made out of metal. A separate report states that metal casings for the premium Galaxy S5 phone have already been ordered from at least three component suppliers. Now, a new report from a reliable source out of South Korea claims to have additional details on Samsung’s upcoming flagship phone.
According to ZDNet Korea, which has reported accurate details surrounding unannounced Samsung devices in the past, Samsung is preparing to launch a killer smartphone this coming February. The report doesn’t name the Galaxy S5 specifically, but the details align well with multiple earlier reports.
The site says Samsung is prepping a high-end smartphone with a quad HD (2,560 x 1,440) display and an integrated iris scanner that will offer enhanced security to users. These key specs will both be firsts for Samsung, and likely for the industry, when the handset is unveiled this coming February at the annual Mobile World Congress trade show.
Of note, Samsung has announced other recent flagship smartphones at dedicated press conferences rather than events tied to trade shows.
Beyond the stunning new display and a possible integrated eye scanner, Samsung’s next-generation Galaxy S5 is expected to feature a new 64-bit eight-core Exynos processor or a quad-core Snapdragon processor depending on the device model, a 16-megapixel camera with new technology that improves low-light photo quality, 3GB of RAM, a 4,000 mAh battery and Android 4.4 KitKat.
A number of reports have suggested that the Galaxy S5 will launch earlier next year than Samsung’s Galaxy S4 did in 2013. One recent claim said the phone will debut sometime in the first quarter while another stated that the new flagship handset could be unveiled and launched as soon as next month. An unveiling in late February per ZDNet Korea’s report would likely place the phone’s launch sometime in March, which would indeed be ahead of the Galaxy S4’s one-year anniversary.
