The Galaxy S10 won’t be the first Samsung smartphone to pack a 5G modem, Samsung Mobile’s CEO DJ Koh said not too long ago. We thought at the time that the phone wouldn’t get 5G support at all, but that might not be the case, according to a well-known Samsung insider.
He goes by the name of Ice Universe on Twitter and Weibo, and he usually drops mostly Samsung-related news on social media. One of his latest tweets concerns the Galaxy S10’s 5G support:
According to sources, the Galaxy S10 adds a 5G version, based on Beyond 2 development, adding a 5G baseband.
— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) September 6, 2018
Sadly, we have no other details for you at this time about the Galaxy S10 and its cellular capabilities. The top three Korean carriers have already agreed to launch their 5G networks at the same time, next March. By the time that happens, the Galaxy S10 may already be available for preorder in various markets, Korea included. That’s assuming that the Galaxy S10 will launch at MWC 2019 next February.
It makes a lot of sense for Samsung to add 5G support to the Galaxy S10, even if it’ll be a while until most buyers can use 5G networks. That’s because the Galaxy S10 isn’t just Samsung next flagship. The phone marks the 10th anniversary of Samsung’s Android business.
Not to mention that Samsung likes bragging about being first at mobile stuff. The Galaxy S10 might not be the first Samsung 5G phone or the first 5G phone in the world, but Samsung probably won’t appreciate rivals mocking the Galaxy S10 for not having 5G support.
Huawei is one of those rivals, and Huawei has already challenged Samsung this year, saying it wants to roll out a foldable handset before Samsung does. With that in mind, it wouldn’t be unlikely to see next year’s Huawei P30 flagship rock 5G support. And that’s especially considering that Huawei is also developing its 5G technology that may be used by various carriers around the world to build their 5G networks.
Samsung a few days ago said that the Galaxy F, its first foldable smartphone, should be unveiled this year, likely in November. But it’s likely the phone won’t reach stores for a few months. So, at least in theory, the Galaxy F could turn out to be Samsung’s first 5G phone.
