Samsung Galaxy S9

The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8 are battling it out with the iPhone 8 and iPhone X. But that’s not stopping people from thinking about Samsung’s next phone.

It won’t just be the S9 though, with rumors heavily hinting at the larger Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus set to arrive alongside – following the trend of launching dual flagships phones that the firm started back in 2015 with the Galaxy S6.

There’s no question that this is when we’ll see the refined sequel to last year’s Samsung Galaxy S8, with the invite clearly teasing the number nine, and we already have a good idea of what this Android smartphone looks like.

Although rumors indicate Samsung won’t be able to challenge Apple on the Face ID front, the Galaxy S9 shouldn’t be completely upstaged when it comes to face-scanning tech. An instructional video discovered by an XDA Developers member who tore down the Settings app on the new phone has revealed that Samsung is planning a new authentication system called “Intelligent Scan.” By the looks of it, Intelligent Scan combines two-dimensional iris and facial scanning for a more secure method than either alone.

Adding dual lenses to the Galaxy S9+ isn’t the only plan Samsung has to “reimagine” its camera. The company is reportedly adding a super-slow-motion feature with two ways to capture slow-mo footage. According to SamMobile, tapping the S9 shutter will allow you to record an entire video in slow motion. But a second mode will allow you record slow-motion footage only when something moves into frame. In addition, the S9’s slow motion feature can be added to videos that were recorded in normal speed. SamMobile reports that you can add up to 20 slow motion frames to any video.

Slow-motion smartphone videos aren’t always the highest resolution. The Galaxy S9 will reportedly record 1080p video at 480 frames per second or 720p video at 960 frames per second.

SamMobile source, Samsung is ditching plans for a fingerprint sensor integrated into the screen and will instead place a physical sensor on the back in a new location below the camera.

A person who goes by the name Ice Universe on Weibo and Twitter claimed to be “100% sure” Samsung will not go with “screen fingerprint recognition” in the Galaxy S9. Ice Universe has a rather strong track record. However, a more recent report says that Synaptics will debut its new in-screen fingerprint sensor called Clear ID at CES in January, and it’s optimized for “infinity displays,” so it’s possible Samsung could sneak this technology into the S9. So far the only manufacturer confirmed to be launching a device containing Clear ID technology is Chinese phone maker Vivo.

The Galaxy S8 and S8+ made do with just 64GB of on-device storage, though there was the MicroSD slot for optional expandability. According to a report from SamMobile, that could change for the Galaxy S9. The latest details claim Samsung is planning a 128GB version of the Galaxy S9 to complement the base 64GB configuration, alongside three different Galaxy S9+ models sized at 64GB, 128GB and 256GB. Better yet, the S9+ is expected to get an increase to 6GB of RAM across the board, putting it on equal footing with the Galaxy Note 8.

Powerful Snapdragon 845 Processor: Look for Samsung to up the ante on the S9 with a next-gen CPU that’s more efficient and features better performance than even the impressive 835. That would be the Snapdragon 845, which Qualcomm first previewed at its Snapdragon Technology Forum in December. We were recently able to benchmark the Snapdragon 845 for ourselves, and found that while the phone doesn’t completely close the gap to the A11 Bionic chipset powering the iPhone 8, 8 Plus and X, it does diminish Cupertino’s advantage.

In addition to faster performance, the Snapdragon 845 chip promises better security, longer battery life and enhanced camera capabilities.

ETNews is also reporting a slight price hike in Samsung’s home market, from the equivalent of $875 to anywhere from $895 to $935. The Galaxy S8 launched at $749, which means customers in other parts of the world may also have to spend a little more in comparison to the previous generation.