Samsung didn’t have the best 2016, what with its Note 7 phablet exploding. But it seems the company isn’t quite ready to give up on the Note brand just yet.
Despite the Note 7 debacle, it seems Samsung could be planning to launch a Galaxy Note 8 device in 2017, if a new report is accurate.
According to ‘an official from the electronics industry’, who spoke to BusinessKorea: “The Galaxy Note 7 was very popular before user reports began circulating about devices that exploded or caught on fire while charging.
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“As the phablet market, which was developed by Samsung Electronics, has been growing, the company will release the Note series this year again.”
The report states the Galaxy Note 8 will come with “ultra-definition VR features” along with an improved stylus and Samsung’s upcoming AI assistant, expected to be called ‘Bixby’.
Samsung is also said to be looking at ways to improve the iris-scanning feature that came with the Note 7, and could be considering an early release for the Note 8 to make up for some of its losses from the Note 7.
The Galaxy S8 flagship handset is expected to be launched in April this year, though previous reports have suggested Samsung would debut the phone at MWC in February.
Whatever the case, if a Note 8 is in the works, it will come after the Galaxy S8, even if it is released earlier than the Note devices usually are.
BusinessKorea also spoke to an official from a Samsung Electronics partner company, who said, “Samsung will introduce 2K resolution displays in the Galaxy S8, but it will use 4K resolution displays in the Galaxy Note 8 to realize improved virtual reality (VR) functions. I heard that it will connect with new Gear VR wearable.”
At this point, the South Korean firm is yet to reveal the results of its internal investigation into the Note 7 problem which forced it to recall the phablet globally.
According to BusinessKorea, Samsung will outline the findings of the investigation before the end of this month, so stay tuned for the latest.
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Let us know what you make of the report in the comments.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
