Rumour Roundup: Samsung Galaxy S IV

Before the Apple iPhone 5S rumours hit fever pitch, we have plenty of Android rumours to start with – the biggest of all being the Samsung Galaxy S IV rumours. A year ago, we witnessed the exact same frenzy for the Galaxy S III and it’s only going to get more chaotic this year as we near MWC. If Samsung’s plans are anything like last year, then the Galaxy S IV will most likely be a no-show during the mobile exhibition next month. One can still hope though. So what would the Galaxy S IV end up looking like? Will it merely be an evolutionary update or can we expect something truly game changing. Let’s look at what we know about it based on leaks and rumours in the past, till now.

In October last year, we heard rumours about the Exynos 5450 making its way into Samsung’s next Galaxy flagship. This SoC consists of a quad-core Cortex-A15 CPU running at an impressive 2GHz and much beefier Mali-658 GPU. Then at CES, Samsung pulled the wraps off the Exynos 5 Octa  SoC, which essentially has a total of eight cores in it. It would seem like Samsung would use the best SoC it has in the successor to the S III, but we believe the Exynos 5 Octa is merely a proof of concept, showing what’s possible with today’s technology. There’ll no doubt be a time when we switch to eight-core CPUs for phones and tablets, but that’s still some time away. It just makes logical sense right now to stick to a more efficient quad-core solution, which is where the Exynos 5450 fits in.

The next big thing

The next obvious change would be the screen. With all OEMs launching 5-inch, 1080p display phones, rest assured that the S IV will also feature a 5-inch, full HD display of the Super AMOLED variety. Samsung's 4.99-inch full HD display with 440ppi is scheduled for a Q1 release and in all likelihood, will make its way to the Galaxy S IV. There are rumours about the S IV having an ‘unbreakable screen’. This could either be a reference to Corning’s new Gorilla Glass 3 or Samsung might be developing something in-house. We can also expect an upgraded camera. 8MP sensors just don’t cut it anymore (unless it’s anything like the one on the Lumia 920), which is why a 12MP or 13MP camera sounds about right and will compete nicely with the Sony Xperia Z/ZL. We’ve also heard talks about the S IV launching with S Pen, the trademark accessory of the Galaxy Note. While this could dilute the uniqueness of the phablet, we wouldn’t rule it out as a possibility given the expected screen size of the S IV.

The latest rumour comes in the form of a leaked image from SamMobile that shows what the S IV might look like. Some notable changes include the lack of capacitive buttons. Could this be the first Samsung device to finally break away from physical buttons? The bezel is almost non-existent, giving the illusion of almost all-screen, and we quite like it. The design, thankfully, is not modelled around the S III, but is more along the lines of the S II, just with more rounded edges. Other features that could make it are wireless charging, possibly an IP57 certification, 1080p capable front facing camera and perhaps a Xenon flash. 
   
The S III received some very mixed reviews when it launched and most of the flak was directed towards the design and choice of materials used. Will Samsung continue to stick with plastics and a removable back or will it finally give in and go for a unibody polycarbonate chassis, like everyone else? Your guess is as good as ours.