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The Galaxy S8 should beat the iPhone 7 with one brand-new feature

Published Dec 14th, 2016 4:03PM EST
Galaxy S8 Rumors: Bluetooth 5.0

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The Galaxy S8 will bring several brand new features to Galaxy fans, and Bluetooth 5.0 support should be one of them, a new report reveals.

Announced recently, Bluetooth 5.0 is going to bring faster data transfer speeds and longer range than its predecessors, and it’ll hopefully fix the various Bluetooth issues that we frequently run into. At least on paper, Bluetooth 5.0 promises twice the speed, four times the range, and eight times the broadcast message capacity of Bluetooth 4.0.

The Bluetooth SIG consortium, of which Samsung is a member of, said that Bluetooth 5.0 devices should arrive “within two to six months,” which seems to indicate that the Galaxy S8 might be included in the first wave of Bluetooth 5.0-ready devices. SamMobile heard from a source that there’s a possibility the Galaxy S8 will support Bluetooth 5.0.

If the rumors are true, the Galaxy S8 should be the first flagship to support Bluetooth 5.0, considering that it’s supposed to beat rivals to market.

The Galaxy S8 is expected to be unveiled in late February, and it’s slated to arrive with a bunch of interesting features in tow, including an all-screen design, a fingerprint sensor placed underneath the display, and a Siri-like virtual assistant.

Considering that the Galaxy S8 will surely be one of the best phones of 2017, it’d be a shame for Samsung to miss out on the opportunity of offering buyers Bluetooth 5.0 support, a feature that wouldn’t be available on other devices, including the “older” iPhone 7.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.