Galaxy Note 8 images leak: Here's what to expect from the upcoming Samsung device

Update: The latest leak comes in the form of the cases from a case maker called Senfeng as well as from another third-party case maker (via BGR.com) posted by a Weibo user, giving a sneak peek into the phone design. It shows the fingerprint and camera sensor cluster on the rear side. One of the leaked images showing the lower edge further confirms that the company will retain the 3.5mm audio jack. 

As Samsung’s next phone nears its launch date, the excitement is building up. It should build up but it rather may not, if the latest set of leaks is anything to go by. The Galaxy Note 8, said to be launched in the beginning of September this year, is Samsung’s second flagship of 2017, and seemingly won’t be very different from the Galaxy S8+.

Dual camera

The dual rear camera would be the most distinguishing feature of the Note 8, something that the company skipped on the Galaxy S8. While its presence had been rumoured since Note 8 virtually came to existence. But last week BGR hinted use of new dual Isocell sensors that the company announced at MWC 2017 Shanghai.

The rumours so far says Note 8 will have two 12MP sensors, but fitted with their own Optical image stabilization (unlike on the iPhone 7 Plus where only one sensor has it). One sensor might get a telephoto lens for the ‘Zoom-in’ function while the other would come with a usual lens.

The camera would be able to record 4K video, with slow motion capture, hyperlapse feature and probably a bokeh or portrait mode to blur background, that iPhone 7 Plus, Honor V8 Pro and OnePlus 5 boast of.

Same design – good or bad?

Galaxy Note 8 is said to come with the same infinity display design but with a slightly bigger screen. But nobody knows if it will have 4K as the native resolution. Given its 6.3 inch size, the AMOLED panel will be a battery guzzler for the phone. Thanks to the Note 7 fiasco, a Chinese website claimed the battery this time won’t be any bigger. Note 8 is said to come with a 3300mAh battery, even smaller than that of the Galaxy S8+.

Though the screen size is gained on the expense of the physical home button so the phone wouldn’t be any bigger than the 5.7inch Note 5 (also evident from the similar battery size). So ergonomically, the phone wouldn’t pose a problem for veteran Note users and people who are used to 5.5ish inch smartphones like iPhone 7 Plus.

But its fingerprint sensor placement will continue to be an irritating thing to use like it is on the Galaxy S8+. A latest leak from Forbes claims Samsung will not be using an on-screen fingerprint scanner at the front and that it will continue to dwell beside the rear camera.

The worst thing about S8+ is its fingerprint scanner position that is not only hard to reach but smudges the rear camera throughout your day’s use. There are other methods of unlocking the phone, like the iris scanner, pin or pattern lock and face recognition, none of them as convenient to use as the fingerprint sensor.

The technology of putting fingerprint scanner underneath the display isn’t impossible to make. In fact Vivo showcased a working model with what it calls an ‘under display ultrasonic’ fingerprint sensor at the MWC 2017 Shanghai. Apple’s anniversary edition iPhone launching this year is also rumoured to come with a similar tech.

For the Pen

Image:Onleaks

Note 8 is essentially a phone with a pen, a pen that works wonderfully with the phone. After the Note 7 fiasco, fans were left wanting for something really exciting, and probably an old design with a safe battery counts good enough for that.

The Note 8 uses a stylus and that will be a bigger differentiator from the Galaxy S8+ than the dual camera, or any other new feature that Samsung may introduce.

Top notch chip, price

Note 8 is said to come with a 6.3-inch AMOLED display, an Exynos 8895 chipset accompanied by 6GB RAM, and 128GB of expandable storage, IP68 water and dust resistance, 12MP rear camera and 8MP front shooter, some new battery safety features and new TouchWiz built over the Android 7.1.1.

But its price will also be something no other Samsung phone had before. Galaxy Note 8 is said to be the costliest Samsung phone in history, priced at around €999 (about Rs 73,500) for the base variant. It seems your Note love will be tested to the extreme with the Note 8.