The Galaxy S9 is already in development at Samsung, some reports said earlier this year, and a new rumor indicates the handset might offer a feature not available on any of the new Android flagships launching around the same time.
According to prolific leaker Ice Universe (via Vietnamese-language blog Techrum), Samsung appears to have inked a deal with Qualcomm to be the first smartphone maker in the world to get its hands on the Snapdragon 845 chip.
If that sounds familiar, that’s because the Galaxy S8 was the first phone to make use of the Snapdragon 835 chip this year, a move that certainly helped ship millions of devices more than its competitors. Launched before the Galaxy S8, the LG G6 is one of Samsung’s victims.
There’s absolutely no denying that LG isn’t also at fault for the G6’s short-lived success. But the fact that Samsung prevented LG from acquiring any Snapdragon 835 stock before the Galaxy S8 came out is also a factor that affected the G6’s sales performance.
It also probably helped Samsung that it manufactured the Snapdragon 835 processor for Qualcomm.
Fast forward to the second half of the year, and many of the Android flagships available in stores ship do have a Snapdragon 835 chip under the hood.
Assuming this new rumor pans out, then the Galaxy S9 might be the only Android handset to consider in the first half of 2018, if what you’re shopping for are devices that pack the latest components.
