Samsung Galaxy S7 release date, news and rumors
Make it sleek, make it sexy
Update: Samsung has finally confirmed what we were all expecting. The Samsung Galaxy S7 launch will take place on February 21 at MWC 2016, with the firm sending out invites for its next Unpacked event. Plus it's set to look just like the Samsung Galaxy S6. The company has also accidentally confirmed that we'll be getting a Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge too.
Samsung's Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge reinvigorated the flailing smartphone brand, giving it a new lease of life with a fresh design and some brand new features.
The Samsung Galaxy S7 is going to have to do a lot of work to be able to repeat the trick – but there's much that can be improved on in the new phone, so there's plenty of scope.
Every week we'll bring you a round-up of the big Samsung Galaxy S7 rumors from the past seven days – check out the latest episode below.
Cut to the chase
- What is it? The next flagship phone from Samsung's Galaxy S line.
- When is it out? February 21 at Mobile World Congress
- What will it cost? Expect expensive – it's bound to be one of the more costly phones to buy this year.
Samsung Galaxy S7 release date
We pretty much knew it already, but Samsung has now finally given us official confirmation of its next Unpacked event – and thus the Samsung Galaxy S7 launch.
The South Korean firm has sent out invites to its February 21 Unpacked event in Barcelona, joining in with the likes of LG and ZTE to kick off MWC 2016 in style.
As for when you'll actually be able to get your hands on the Galaxy S7, that's still up for debate. There are rumors suggesting it could go on pre-order on the day of launch, with handsets arriving on doorsteps within the following two weeks. We can but hope.
Samsung Galaxy S7 design
Samsung has unintentionally confirmed the Galaxy S7 Edge, by listing it on one of its websites, so we now know for sure that it exists and will likely arrive alongside the standard Samsung Galaxy S7.
Given that Samsung has only just overhauled its flagship design for the Galaxy S6 we're not expecting massive changes in the Samsung Galaxy S7, with sadly only minor design tweaks likely.
The latest design Samsung Galaxy S7 rumors suggest you'll hardly be able to see a difference between this new Android phone and the Galaxy S7 Edge. Allegedpress renders back that up.
A source close to Samsung told The Korea Times, "As the S6 and S6 Edge represented progress, the S7 will have improvements both in picture quality, performance and other some new features. The key point is can consumers enjoy content with enhanced viewing quality and boosted processing speed."
The latest render from @evleaks shows the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge looking remarkably like the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge. The edges look to be a little more rounded, but it's much the same as we've seen before. While it's also suggested we may get a fully waterproof Galaxy S7 with one leaker suggesting it's going to be IP68 certified, a little stronger than the Galaxy S5.
One rumor had suggested Samsung will be dropping the Galaxy S7 Edge from its range and instead releasing a new phablet called the Galaxy S7 Edge+. It's expected to feature a 5.7-inch display with a 2K resolution as well as being a generally bigger handset. However, according to a more recent rumor Samsung will offer both the Edge and the Edge+.
On top of that the Galaxy S7 may be built of a different type of metal. Sources claim the company is experimenting with a magnesium based alloy that will make the phone stronger whilst keeping it light and allow the heat out when the processor is working hard. This rumor has popped up again recently, so it could be accurate.
What we think: A slimline design made of metal and glass as per usual, with a non-removable battery to keep the design sleek. There might be a touch of the Galaxy Note's refined rear, curving away from the screen, but ultimately, this could well be more 'Galaxy S6S' rather than Galaxy S7.
Samsung Galaxy S7 screen
A benchmark believed to be for the Samsung Galaxy S7 claims it has a 5.7-inch display, although that's likely to be more for that larger, phablet version. It lists a 1440 x 2560 QHD one though rather than 4K that some had predicted.
That said, another spec leak suggests the Galaxy S7 will come with a 5.1-inch display and a pixel resolution of 1440 x 2560, which will probably be the 'normal' variant.
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It looks like Samsung could adopt a similar feature to the iPhone 6S' 3D Touch technology. A company called Synaptics has a technology called ClearForce that allows for different functionality depending on how hard you're pressing on the screen.
The Wall Street Journal also spoke to "sources familiar with the matter" who claim the technology will debut on the Galaxy S7. There's no word on a name for the technology yet, but it's looking more and more likely that Samsung is preparing its own version of the screen tech for the next flagship phone.
A curved screen has again been mooted more than once - but a flexible display rather than just the standard curve, with Samsung said to be ordering a large amount of the tech from a Taiwanese manufacturer.
And it could have super-strong display technology called Turtle Glass from Samsung, set to replace Corning's Gorilla Glass 3.
What we think: A 5.1-inch and 5.7-inch screen for the two variants of Galaxy S7, probably with a 3D Touch-rivalling screen, with appear with QHD resolution - evolution, not revolution.
Samsung Galaxy S7 camera and battery
Samsung's unveiled a new BRITECELL camera, which is designed to be both better in low light and smaller in size than the snapper on the Galaxy S6. It's not been confirmed whether it's heading for the S7, but it seems pretty likely.
On the other hand there are also reports of Samsung speaking to Sony to get a hold of the IMX300 sensor that is included in the Xperia Z5 series, which has impressed the South Korean brand.
A new rumor also suggests Samsung is looking to mimic Live Photos from the iPhone 6S. A software engineer within the company has claimed the feature will be called Vivid Photos and won't include sound clips, so it's easier to upload to your social media accounts, working much like a GIF.
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A Samsung employee has leaked out information of the Galaxy S7 camera suggesting it will be a 12MP sensor with f/1.7 aperture to make the most of the lighting.
How many megapixels? It could be lower than the S6, with Samsung focusing on low-light performance to make a more useful sensor, rather than pointless sharpness. According to a tipster on Weibo, Samsung will drop the Galaxy S6's 16MP camera down to a 12MP one on the Galaxy S7.
However, an AnTuTu benchmark showed a possible S7 as having a 16MP rear camera and a 5MP front-facing one, so Samsung might well be experimenting with different options.
What we think: A lower MP camera would be a weird move from Samsung, so we think it'll stay at 16MP to avoid the marketing backlash, but make sure it's improved in terms of low light and speed. Battery size will be largely the same, but we're praying Samsung solves the battery issues that can affect some S6 models.
Samsung Galaxy S7 OS and power
The Samsung Galaxy S7 will almost certainly launch with Android Marshmallow. In fact snaps of supposed internal Samsung documents appeared on social networking site Weibo, and appear to confirm the rumored Galaxy S7 codename 'Jungfrau' and the new Android OS coming at launch.
A new rumor coming out of China suggests Samsung will be adding liquid cooling to the Galaxy S7. It would act against the phone overheating and draining the battery, making sure things stay cooler and better-performing, with the possibility of higher-spec components.
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Samsung's Galaxy S7 is rumored to come in two different variants – one with an Exynos chipset and another with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820. That Snapdragon 820 rumor has since been echoed by other sources and in a benchmark.
The latest benchmarks for the Snapdragon 820 toting Galaxy S7 suggest the phone will be a little less powerful than we had expected. The multi-core score came out as 4979 while previous Snapdragon 820 tests saw the chip reach the heights of 5369.
What we think: The Galaxy S7 will come with the Snapdragon 820 in Europe and US, with the higher power saved for Asia, where specs are far more important to sales - with Marshmallow on board both. The speed and battery life will increase as a result, and the S7 is going to be one fast little phone.
Samsung Galaxy S7 other features
A report out of South Korea suggests the Samsung Galaxy S7 might have serious audio skills, as it could use a chip from ESS Technology which features a 32-bit mobile audio DAC and has 129 dB signal to noise ratio... that means loud and clear sound, which is what we all want really.
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It's also been rumored that the Samsung Galaxy S7 will support USB Type-C, allowing it to charge faster and meaning you can plug the cable in either way round. We'd say this is one rumor that's almost guaranteed to be true, as more and more phones are adding USB Type-C support and Samsung won't want to be left behind.
The Samsung Galaxy S7 is bound to have a fingerprint scanner, just like the Galaxy S6, while another rumor has suggested the Galaxy S7 may come with microSD support - something the Galaxy S6 didn't offer - and it'll apparently have support for cards of up to 128GB.
What we think: The Galaxy S7 could well come with a microSD slot, as Android Marshmallow can absorb them in and make them part of the internal OS. A fingerprint sensor and USB Type-C will be on board for better security and faster charging - and you won't even need to worry which way your charger plugs in.
Samsung Galaxy S7 cost
There's no word yet on what the Samsung Galaxy S7 will cost but we can tell you right now that it will be very expensive. While a price cut would be nice we'd be surprised if Samsung launched it for any less than it initially charged for the Galaxy S6. If we had to guess we'd say it could start at up to around £600 / $650 / AU$1,100.