The Archos Hello is a smart display that strangely runs Android Oreo

• French manufacturer Archos introduced the Hello, the company’s first smart display.
• The Hello comes in 7-inch and 8.4-inch flavors, with both models running Android Oreo.
• The Hello will go on sale this summer for at least $160.

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Amazon entered the smart display market with its Echo Show, while Google showed us during CES 2018 that it plans to do the same with Google Assistant and device manufacturers. This time around, French manufacturer Archos launched the Hello, its first smart display that is reminiscent of Lenovo’s pair of Smart Displays.

That is thanks to the Hello’s wood back covering and its ability to be positioned either vertically or horizontally. Around front is either a 7-inch HD or an 8.4-inch Full HD display, though both models also feature a speaker that almost takes up half of the front. Both models also feature a 5 MP camera for video calls.

Under the hood are an unnamed quad-core processor, 2 GB of RAM, and 16 GB of onboard storage. The 4,000 mAh battery lets you move the Hello around the house, though the microUSB port that is used to charge the battery should not exist and be replaced with a USB Type-C port.

The bigger quirk is the software, since the Hello runs Android Oreo out of the box. That the software is up to date is nice and all, but why did Archos not opt for Google Assistant’s smart display software? Better yet, is Google Assistant even available on the Hello?

Editor’s Pick

Archos just announced an Android-powered electric scooter

There’s a certain demographic of city-dwellers who love electric scooters. Smaller and lighter than a bicycle and requiring only a small amount of physical exertion to operate, an electric scooter is a fun and easy …

Archos said the Hello can control smart home accessories and answer voice commands, but did not say what virtual assistant is used. Archos also did not say whether it will use a smart display-friendly skin on top of Android Oreo, but the company’s use of a mobile-centric operating system leaves us baffled.

Then again, Archos introduced an Android-powered electric scooter, so anything apparently goes over there.

The Hello will go on sale this summer for €129.99 ($160) for the 7-inch model and €179.99 ($222) for the 8.4-inch model.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

Weekly Plan Spotlight: 74% off Galaxy S8 or Note8

We’re back with the Weekly Plan Spotlight! Today Sprint is offering massive discounts off the lease prices of the Galaxy Note8, S8, and S8+.

If you’ve been in the market for the latest in Samsung’s Galaxy lineup, and aren’t too worried about them ceasing to be the absolute latest in the coming weeks (what with the S9 slated to be unveiled at MWC) then this is the deal for you.

Reasons for these discounts are clear. Sprint is certainly trying to shift out inventory to make room for the next round of Samsung handsets. Their need for warehouse space could be your gain.

Gimme them deets

Here’s the full rundown of the discounts from the mouth of Sprint:

Galaxy Note 8

• Full Price: $960
• Reg Sprint Flex Monthly Lease: $40
• Discount Sprint Flex Monthly Lease: $18

Galaxy S8+

• Full Price: $850
• Reg Sprint Flex Monthly Lease: $35.42
• Discount Sprint Flex Monthly Lease: $12

Galaxy S8

• Full Price: $750
• Reg Sprint Flex Monthly Lease: $31.25
• Discount Sprint Flex Monthly Lease: $8

Okay, there’s gotta be some fine print

There certainly is! Once again, straight from Sprint:

• This deal requires a new line of service activation and an 18-month lease. Well-qualified customers are eligible.
• At the end of the 18-month lease, you have the option to buy your device. You’ll pay the balance between the full price and what you’ve paid so far.
• There are taxes on any device you go with and you’ll have to pay that up front regardless.
• If you cancel your service, the remaining device balance will become due.

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What plan is this on?

Why, Sprint’s Unlimited Freedom Plan!

If you’re looking to pair up your new phone with a plan, Sprint’s Unlimited Freedom is one of the cheapest on the market with 4 lines for $25/mo per line and 5th line free (until 03/31/19), with autopay. Plus Hulu is now included!

Sprint Unlimited Freedom comes with:

• Unlimited talk, text and data. Once you’ve reached 23GB of data, your speeds may temporarily slow down during times of high network congestion.
• HD video, 1080p
• 10GB of 4G mobile hotspot

Ready to grab your Galaxy device for a fraction of what others are paying for it? Choose your preferred phone below to secure yours today!

Get the Note8

Get the S8+

Get the S8

The AAPicks team writes about things we think you’ll like, and we may see a share of revenue from any purchases made through affiliate links.

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Compare Phones and Plans with the Android Authority Plan Tool:

Is this plan not quite right for you? Head over to our Compare Phones & Plans tool to fully customize your mobile experience and painlessly transition from one carrier to another!

Source: Android Zone

Anik

Huawei P20 is the official name, but it won’t be at MWC 2018

Huawei

• Today, Huawei finally officially confirmed that the follow-up phones to the P10 and P10 Plus are the P20 and P20 Plus.
• The phones are unlikely to show up at MWC 2018, instead to be revealed at a separate Paris event in March.
• The teaser video that sources this information is seven seconds long, but does throw in another hint towards three camera lenses.

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Mobile World Congress is synonymous with one word: Samsung. The South Korean company has unveiled over half of the Samsung Galaxy S line of smartphones at the electronics conference. Since the Galaxy S series is hands-down the reigning king of flagship Android smartphones, it’s hard for any other company to dominate MWC when Samsung is around.

Maybe that’s why today, only a few days before MWC 2018 is set to begin, Huawei officially confirmed that the successors to the highly-rated Huawei P10 and P10 Plus are called the Huawei P20 and P20 Plus.

In a very, very brief teaser video (coming in at all of seven seconds), Huawei shows a photo of Paris with an overlayed date of “27-03-2018.” The name of the device appears, and then another hint that the phone will have three cameras. Then that’s it, it’s all over:

Really, this video confirms what we’ve known for a while now: the next Huawei flagship is the P20, and the company will unveil it in Paris on March 27.

Editor’s Pick

Huawei in 2018: Can’t stop, won’t stop

If the mobile industry were an ocean, Huawei would definitely be a great white shark. The Chinese giant moves fast, strikes hard, and can smell blood from miles away.

But, just like the shark, Huawei cannot …

The three cameras rumor is curious, though, as we got our hands on what we were told is a prototype Huawei P20, and there were definitely only two camera lenses on the device. Granted, the phone could be an early prototype model created before the decision was made to add in a third lens, so your guess is as good as ours at this point.

As far as specs go, we are almost certain that the Kirin 970 chipset will control the P20 and P20 Plus, which means both phones should have AI features on board. We also expect to see a choice between 6 or 8 GB of RAM, a microSD slot, Android Oreo, and a massive battery, possibly as large as 4,000 mAh. Of course, this is all speculation, and nothing will be confirmed until March 27.

For all the latest rumors on the Huawei P20 and P20 Plus, check out our rumor roundup.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

Hell freezes over: built-in dark mode finally coming to Android

• A feature request in the Google Update Tracker for a dark mode in Android was marked as “fixed.”
• This means a dark/night mode “will be available in a future Android release.”
• A baked-in dark mode is one of the most requested features of all time in Android’s ten-year history.

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Dark mode is one of the most popular features Android doesn’t have. There are apps that do it, there are custom ROMs that bake it into Android’s code, and even OEM skinned versions of Android make it a standard feature (and then take it away). But the one place you won’t find a dark/night mode is in stock Android itself.

That will change in a future version of the operating system, confirmed by the Google Issue Tracker. A developer marked the feature request for a dark mode as “fixed” and “will be available in a future Android release.”

Does that mean that Android 9.0 P, the next version of Android will get the feature? Possibly. Until Google makes an official announcement on the matter, we can only speculate. However, the news that a dark mode will come baked right into the operating system is surely good news.

Editor’s Pick

Need for speed – What’s the fastest Android browser?

We use our Android devices for everything nowadays. Calling, texting, checking email, scrolling through social media – you name it. Among those who take their mobile web browsing seriously, the choice of browser app is very …

What’s interesting about Google and dark modes is that the custom launcher available on the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL featured an automatic dark theme, dependent on the phone’s wallpaper. Later, Google made the feature available to all devices running Android 8.1 Oreo. Why did it take so long for Google to understand that this is one of the most requested Android features?

Since all we have to go on is Google Issue Tracker’s note that a dark mode feature will show up in a future Android version, we have no idea if the future dark mode will be the same or similar to the one initially available on the Pixel 2, or be something more akin to what custom ROMs offer. In many Android ROMs, a “full” dark mode is given as a choice in the system settings that changes almost everything on the device to a white text/black background scheme.

With this being Android’s first step into dark mode, it probably won’t be that drastic. But get excited, dark mode enthusiasts: you’re about to have one less app on your stock device.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

Businesses can now send certain Android users RCS texts

• Google announced that it has partnered with popular brands to bring RCS communications directly to customers.
• Right now only certain Android users who meet specific qualifications will be able to get those messages.
• Google promises more RCS news for Android at Mobile World Congress 2018.

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Two weeks ago, we talked about how Android users might finally be able to send text messages from their computers without having to use a third-party app. The hint of this possibility appeared in new code for Android Messages that points to RCS (rich communication standard) capabilities. Now, Google is giving businesses the ability to use RCS texting to communicate directly with customers.

You can read more about what RCS is and what is possible with the protocol here, but as far as businesses are concerned, it’s the ability to richly interact with consumers in ways that just aren’t possible with standard texting.

One of Google’s early partners with this new business program is Booking.com. With regular texting, Booking.com can send customers text and some hyperlinks, and that’s it. But with RCS messaging, Booking.com can send a photo, formatted text, and even buttons to add the customer’s booked trip to their calendar:

Google

If you’re excited about what this means as far as RCS texting getting a broader rollout to all Android users, it’s unfortunately not that simple. Right now, Google only has a handful of companies on board for the business-to-consumer connections, and for the system to work correctly, users need to be on specific devices, using specific apps, on specific networks. If any one of those criteria isn’t met, the RCS message defaults back to a regular text message.

Editor’s Pick

What is RCS messaging and why is it important?

SMS and MMS seem positively archaic by the standards set by today’s popular data based messaging platforms, and the industry could do with a refresh to its default communication standard. Fortunately, carriers are already moving on …

Google has been trying for years to get other companies on board for a universal standard that everyone adheres to so that RCS messaging can be used across all of Android. But getting that many factors to all line up has been a struggle, to say the least.

As it stands right now, for the select business partners Google is working with to communicate via RCS, the customers they are trying to connect to must be running an updated version of Android Messages as their default SMS app, and their devices must be on the Sprint network. And, of course, those people must be customers of 1-800-Contacts, 1-800-Flowers.com, Booking.com, SnapTravel, and Subway, and opt-in to receive messages from those companies.

So, in other words, a relatively small number of people in the Android world.

Still, any expansion of RCS in Android is exciting, as it points to the death of the clunky and outdated SMS/MMS service we unfortunately still rely on.

In Google’s blog post on the matter, the company promises that RCS will have a presence at Mobile World Congress 2018, which officially begins on Monday.

Source: Android Zone

Anik

31 Best WordPress Multi-purpose Themes

Are you looking for the best multi-purpose themes for your WordPress website? Multi-purpose themes are flexible WordPress templates that can be used to create almost any kind of website imaginable. In this article, we have hand-picked the best WordPress multi-purpose themes for your site.

Building a WordPress Website with a Multi-purpose Theme

First you need to make sure that you are using the right blogging platform. A self-hosted WordPress.org website gives you the flexibility to use all WordPress features out of the box. For more details, see our comparison of WordPress.com vs WordPress.org.

To build a self-hosted WordPress.org website, you’ll need a domain name and website hosting.

We recommend using Bluehost. They are one of the largest hosting companies in the world and an officially recommended WordPress hosting provider.

After purchasing hosting, you can head over to our guide on how to make a website for step by step setup instructions.

That being said, let’s take a look at the best WordPress multi-purpose themes that you can use to build your website.

1. Ultra

Ultra is a super-flexible truly multi-purpose WordPress theme suitable for all kind of websites. It comes with multiple ready-made websites that can be installed with 1-click. It also includes a powerful drag and drop page builder to edit those designs.

Inside you will find unlimited layout choices, multiple sidebars, custom widgets, social media integration, unlimited colors, and more. Despite its flexibility, it is still fairly easy to use and can be easily set up with custom theme options page.

2. Spencer

Spencer is a modern and stylish WordPress multi-purpose theme suitable for all kind of business websites as well as blogs. It features a fully widgetized homepage layout that allows you to just drag and drop widgets to set it up.

It also includes multiple page templates, full width page template, custom widgets for social media and content discovery features. It can be easily set up using live customizer and supports all popular page builder plugins.

3. Create

Create is a powerful WordPress multipurpose theme featuring a modern and professional design. It includes a drag and drop homepage layout with support for free page builder plugin. It ships with a premium WordPress slider plugin as a bonus.

It includes parallax backgrounds, video backgrounds, mega menus, pricing tables, contact form, and more. It fully supports WooCommerce and can be easily used to start an online store.

4. Shoppe

Shoppe is a versatile WordPress WooCommerce theme with multi-purpose design and features. It comes with 4 website skins that can be installed with 1-click, and a powerful page builder to create your own page layouts if needed.

It also includes beautiful blog page templates, unlimited layout combinations, full social media integration, product share, ajax shopping cart, and more. You will find theme set up to be quite straightforward with custom theme options page.

See also: Shopify vs WooCommerce – Which one is better?

5. Indigo

Indigo is another powerful multi-purpose WordPress theme with a modular approach to design. It comes with several turnkey website designs that you can install with 1-click. You can also just drag and drop modules to create your own layout.

Other notable features include easy contact form page, Google Fonts, Google Maps, beautiful typography, built-in social sharing, and more. It is very easy to use and customize even for absolute beginners.

6. Hellomouse

Hellomouse is an elegant WordPress multi-purpose theme that can beautifully showcase photos, illustrations, portfolio, and blog posts in a grid layout. Using a minimalist design, it makes your content truly stand out.

Its homepage design is fully-widgetized and easy to setup. It also includes multiple widget ready areas, custom widgets, page builder support, and more. It can be easily set up using theme customizer with live preview of your website.

7. Parallax

Parallax is a modern and stylish WordPress multi-purpose theme using parallax backgrounds to create highly engaging homepage layout. It can also be used as a single page WordPress theme with vertical navigation.

This uniquely designed theme comes with a powerful page builder, portfolio section, several layout combinations, social media integration, contact form, and more. With unlimited colors, infinite layouts, page templates, and custom widgets you can make truly unique websites with in minutes.

8. Latest

Latest is a multipurpose WordPress theme for ecommerce websites, blogs, businesses, and magazine websites. This truly versatile WordPress theme includes all the options that you’ll actually use and none that you wouldn’t need.

It is designed to work out of the box with minimum tinkering which makes it very easy to use. It also includes a getting started guide to help you walk through the set up process.

9. Presence

As the name suggests, Presence is a WordPress theme for anyone who wants to build an online presence with strong brand recognition. This super-flexible WordPress theme comes with multiple website designs and color skins which allows you to create any kind of website you need.

It includes demos for real estate, music, church, portfolio, ecommerce, and other demos which help you set up your website with in minutes. All theme options are organized with theme dashboard page and live customizer.

10. Loft

If you are looking for gorgeous typography and a stunning layout for your ecommerce website, then checkout Loft. This beautiful multi-purpose WordPress theme features crisp typography, elegant design, and excellent user experience.

Notable features inbclude a sticky navigation menu, call to action buttons, custom widgets, services, portfolio, team members, and testimonials section.

11. Highend

Highend is another excellent choice for a multi-purpose WordPress theme. It comes with several ready-made demo templates with 1-click installer and a powerful drag and drop page builder.

It also includes several page templates with different styles, custom widgets, multiple sidebars, and navigation menu areas. You can easily add your portfolio, team members, photo galleries, and can even use it to build an ecommerce website.

12. Feltmag

Feltmag is a magazine style WordPress multipurpose theme for content rich websites. Its homepage features a fullscreen header, which is followed by your most important content in a grid layout.

It has two navigation menus on top, large featured images, multiple layout combinations, stylish headers, social icons, and more. It is designed to work out of the box and you will find plenty of customization options to make it uniquely yours.

13. Veni

Veni is a beautiful magazine style WordPress multipurpose theme suitable for blogs, magazines, and business websites. It comes with full WooCommerce support which allows you to easily add an online store to your website.

Other notable features includes portrait and landscape featured images, featured pages, flexible layouts, Google fonts, unlimited colors, contact form support, and more. It is super easy to customize and set up and includes a beginner friendly theme dashboard.

14. Creativo

Creativo is another powerful WordPress multi-purpose theme with 11 ready-made websites with 1-click install. Each one of these designs can be customized using a premium drag and drop builder plugin included with the theme.

It also has an easy to use custom theme options dashboard which helps you easily set up your website. Other features include multiple layout styles, different header styles, unlimited colors, sidebars, custom widgets, and more.

15. Bento

If you are looking for a free WordPress multi-purpose theme, then take a look at Bento. This stylish WordPress theme is designed to build any kind of website. It can be used with any page builder and even recommends one upon activation.

It has tons of neat features and flexible customization options, all easily organized under a live theme customizer.

16. Lenscap

Lenscap is a multi-purpose WordPress theme with a magazine style layout and full WooCommerce support. Its homepage features a large featured content slider and a category browser just below it.

It comes with a dynamic color scheme generator that automatically adjusts colors based on your selection. It also has multiple ready to use color schemes, lightbox popup for images and videos, product page templates, beautiful typography, and more. It is easy to use and utilizes live theme customizer for quicker setup.

17. Atmosphere Pro

Atmosphere Pro is a professional WordPress multi-purpose theme with minimalist design. It is built on top of Genesis theme framework which is known for speed and performance.

It has a widgetized homepage layout with 4 widget-ready areas. For setup, it has theme options panel and live customizer support. It is also eCommerce ready and can be easily used with WooCommerce.

18. OceanWP

OceanWP is a free WordPress multi-purpose theme with tons of powerful features. It comes with its own companion plugin and recommends installing a free page builder plugin upon activation.

It is super-easy to use, and you will find all theme options easy to understand. It includes multiple layout choices, full width pages, two navigation menus on top, custom logo support, and full WooCommerce support.

19. Nectar

Nectar is a spacious WordPress multi-purpose theme with a beautiful color scheme and stylish layout. Its homepage uses parallax slider on top, followed by call to action and your most important content.

It includes multiple layout combinations, portfolio and testimonials post types, custom widgets, multiple sidebars, and more. It comes with a theme options panel, which allows you to set up your website quickly without struggling with settings.

20. Plum

Plum is another free WordPress multi-purpose theme suitable for all kind of business websites and blogs. Its homepage features a beautiful slider on top, CSS animations, featured content area, and custom widgets.

This beginner friendly free WordPress theme also supports WooCommerce. All theme options can be easily set up using the live customizer.

21. Authority Pro

Authority Pro is a multi-purpose WordPress theme for bloggers, entrepreneurs, freelancers, and anyone who wants to build their personal brand. It is built on top of the rock solid Genesis theme framework and tested to work with all essential WordPress plugins.

It has a widgetized homepage layout with multiple widget ready areas, customizable header, theme options page, live customization support, and more. It is also WooCommerce ready, so you can use it to sell any kind of products.

22. Explorer

Need a flexible blog/magazine style WordPress theme? Check out Explorer. Its homepage features a sticky navigation menu on top, followed by your recent articles, and flexible sections.

It works with all top page builders which allows you to create your own page layouts if needed. It is translation ready, and can also be used to create multilingual WordPress websites.

23. Hestia

Hestia is a premium-like free WordPress multi-purpose theme for business, magazine, and blog websites. It comes with a free companion plugin, which adds client testimonials, services, and a homepage section to your website.

It includes multilingual support, translation ready, WooCommerce ready, and compatible with all top page builders. Theme set up is quite easy and all theme options are accessible through live customizer.

24. Inspiro

If you want to add video content to your website, then you will love Inspiro. This beautiful multi-purpose WordPress theme comes with fullscreen video backgrounds, a powerful portfolio section, and stunning images/video galleries.

It has custom widgets for portfolio items, multiple page templates, and a drag and drop page builder. It also has video lightbox allowing users to watch videos in distraction free mode.

25. Peak

If you intend to add lots of photos to your website, then take a look at Peak. This multi-purpose WordPress theme is designed for photography, artists, designers, bloggers, and anyone who wants to showcase their photos with style.

It includes multiple gallery styles, different page templates, animated widgets, page title banner and more. It is highly flexible yet simple and easy to use. All theme options are located under theme dashboard with simple set up instructions.

26. Struct

Struct is designed to be a flexible multi-purpose WordPress theme for business websites. Featuring a clean and professional design with large header image and strategically placed call to action buttons.

Its homepage layout is fully widgetized with custom widgets to easily add content discovery features anywhere. Other features included are services, projects, team members, and an FAQs section. It is very easy to use and suitable for beginners who need a professional business website.

27. Modules

Modules is a modular multipurpose WordPress theme with several turnkey designs that can be instantly setup. It allows you to easily change page layouts with simple drag and drop modules.

There are modules for all common website elements like pricing tables, recent posts, contact form, accordions, tabs, sliders, and more. It supports both TypeKit and Google Fonts for improved typography. It is easy to use and truly versatile in terms of design and features.

28. Mesmerize

Mesmerize is another great free WordPress theme with truly multi-purpose design. It packs tons of flexible options to easily create any kind of website without struggling with theme options or writing custom CSS.

It has a modern homepage design with 5 header styles and over 30 ready-to-use content sections that you can easily add. It also includes video backgrounds, slideshows, header content types, gradient overlays, and more.

29. Elegant

If you are looking for a clean and minimalist WordPress theme, then take a look at Elegant. This flexible WordPress theme features multiple homepage designs and comes in 6 color schemes. It also includes a 1-click demo installer for faster setup.

Inside you will find an integrated page builder, multi-column layouts, social media icons, portfolio, and complete WooCommerce support. It has a custom theme options page which makes customization easier for beginners.

30. True North

If you need a multi-purpose WordPress theme to showcase photos or portfolio, then True North will be an excellent choice. It has a built-in portfolio section which makes it easier to share your photographs or work samples.

Theme homepage uses a minimalist design with a grid layout of your portfolio or photography items. Other notable features include custom backgrounds, large headers, custom widgets, and live customization.

31. Float

For a modern and stylish look, check out Float. It is an all-purpose WordPress theme with beautiful parallax background effects on the homepage which create a very immersive user experience.

It packs multiple read-to-use demos with 1-click installer and you can choose from a number of layout choices for your pages and posts. Customizing theme to your own taste is easier with an integrated page builder and a powerful theme options panel.

We hope this article helped you find the best multi-purpose WordPress themes for your website. You may also want to see our ultimate step by step WordPress SEO guide for beginners.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post 31 Best WordPress Multi-purpose Themes appeared first on WPBeginner.

Source: Wordpres

Anik

Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus: Everything we know so far (Updated February 23)

In this post, which will be updated regularly, we take a closer look at the latest rumors surrounding the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus smartphones.

The Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus are among the best smartphones you can get. They offer gorgeous bezel-less designs, sexy curved displays, and top-of-the-line specs. But they do have faults, we hope Samsung will address them with their successors. These include the weirdly-positioned fingerprint scanner, the lack of dual-cameras, an easily-fooled facial recognition system, and more. Fixes for all of these, and new features, could be part of the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus.

Samsung hasn’t shared any details about the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus with the public yet. But we have come across a lot of reports and leaks that give us a good idea of what to expect in terms of the Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus’ specs, features, design, price, and more. If you’re interested in learning more about the two new powerhouses from Samsung, keep reading. You’ll find all the latest Samsung Galaxy S9 rumors below.

Samsung Galaxy S9 release date

The Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus will be announced a month sooner than their predecessors. The smartphones will make their debut on February 25 in Barcelona, a day before MWC kicks off.

As for the Samsung Galaxy S9 release date, several sources claim the device will be officially released on Friday, March 16. Industry leaker Evan Blass claimed in the tweet attached below that the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus would be available for pre-order on March 1, before being officially released on March 16.

According to a C-level executive at a major casemaker, the go-to-market schedule for Galaxy S9 / S9+ is as follows:

Launch – 2/26
Pre-orders – 3/1
Ships/releases – 3/16

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) January 16, 2018

SamMobile says its sources have also indicated a March 16 release date, though only for the U.S. and/or South Korea, with other markets to follow shortly afterwards.

Korean-based news site The Investor has also pointed to the same release date, while a report from WinFuture tells us a different story. The site claims pre-orders for the devices will go live on the day of their announcement (February 25), with shipping starting from March 8.

Samsung Galaxy S9 specs and features

The Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus won’t be major upgrades over their predecessors.

According to a report from VentureBeat, they will come with the same curved displays as the Galaxy S8 series. This means we’ll see 5.8- and 6.2-inch Super AMOLED panels with QHD+ resolution and an 18.5:9 aspect ratio.

ETNews reports that both the Galaxy S9 and the Galaxy S9 Plus will use Y-OCTA display technology, which integrates the touch layer in the encapsulation layer of the OLED display, rather than using a distinct film-type layer like on older generations of Samsung’s displays. Y-OCTA was only used on the Galaxy S8, but with the new generation, both the S9 and the S9 Plus will take advantage of it. Y-OCTA displays are thinner, have better optical properties and are reportedly 30 percent cheaper to manufacture.

The Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus are identical except for screen and battery sizes, but their successors change things up. The Galaxy S9 Plus is said to have 2 GB of RAM more than its smaller brother (6 GB vs 4 GB). It might also feature a dual-camera setup, while the S9 should only have a single shooter on the back.

Netnews

An image of an alleged Galaxy S9 retail box, which you can check out above, gives us additional info regarding the specs of the Galaxy S9. It suggests that the flagship’s camera could have a 12 MP sensor with OIS and variable aperture — f/1.5 for low-light shots and f/2.4 for when there’s more light available. We’ve already seen this technology on Samsung’s high-end flip phone called the W2018, which launched back in December. You can check out what the variable aperture looks like in action below.

The retail box also mentions “Super Slow-mo,” hinting that the Galaxy S9 could capture videos at 1,000 fps — just like the Sony Xperia XZ Premium. The camera could also perform well in low-light conditions and include support for creating 3D emojis. Samsung is already teasing all three features with short videos, which you can check out here.

Editor’s Pick

What the heck is variable aperture?

Smartphone manufacturers are forever finding new ways to differentiate and improve the cameras in their handsets, with innovations ranging from powerful new dual-sensor technologies through to superior software processing. This year Samsung looks set to …

Some of these camera rumors are backed up by a recent report from ETNews. The publication reaffirmed that the S9 will have a 12 MP rear camera with f/1.5 variable aperture lens (up to f/2.4) — the smallest ever for Samsung (the S8 and Note 8 cameras came with an f/1.7 aperture).

The S9’s (and likely S9 Plus’) front camera is said to come in at 8 MP, with autofocus and the iris-scanning technology seen previously. ETNews claims the Galaxy S9’s iris scanner will be integrated in the front-facing camera, while the Galaxy S9 Plus will have a discrete iris scanner and a regular selfie camera. It’s not clear why Samsung would go down this route, but space limitations and supply constraints are two possible explanations. The iris scanner/camera combo on the Galaxy S9 is said to be manufactured by two Korean suppliers — Partron and MC Nex. Though, previous reports have claimed the Galaxy S9’s iris scanning lens will be upgraded from 2 MP to 3 MP. This could be only for the Galaxy S9 Plus, however.

Samsung recently published new details on its own website about the company’s new ISOCELL camera sensors. Some of that technology is likely to show up first in the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus. One of the more interesting hardware improvements mentioned is called ISOCELL Fast, which is a 3-stack fast readout sensor. Samsung claims that this will allow cameras with this sensor to record video in Full HD (1080p) resolution with a whopping 480 frames per second. That means the sensor will be able to offer super-slow-mo video at a high resolution. The same sensor is also supposed to have a feature called Super PD, which Samsung hints will give smartphones faster autofocus speeds for its cameras.

Some of Samsung’s new ISOCELL technology is likely to show up first in the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus.

The page also talks about another sensor, ISOCELL Bright, which is supposed to help improve taking photos in low-light conditions by combining four normal-sized pixels into one large pixel. There’s also a mention of ISOCELL Dual, which is supposed to improve features in smartphones with dual sensors, including better light sensitivity, depth effects, and sharper brightness. Finally, the page mentions ISOCELL Slim — a sensor that is supposed to offer high-quality images in smartphone cameras that have modules as thin as 0.9 microns.

The Galaxy S9 series might have stereo speakers on board with Dolby Surround and ship with a free pair of headphones, both of which will be tuned by AKG. They are rumored to pack the same batteries as their predecessors — 3,000 and 3,500 mAh. Then there’s also the IP68 rating for protection against water and dust, wireless charging, and an improved iris scanner.

Rumors also suggest that both devices will be powered by the same chipset — either the Exynos 9810 or the recently announced Snapdragon 845, depending on the region.

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According to that same ETNews report mentioned above, Samsung is also said to be saving space inside the device thanks to a new type of printed circuit board (PCB). This “substrate Like PCB” (SLP) technology is said to be “thinner and narrower” than the previous technology and will be used in models with Samsung’s Exynos chip, which are expected to account for 60 percent of total sales. What this would mean for the Snapdragon variant released in the West wasn’t speculated upon, but it should theoretically mean that the Exynos models have more room for internal components.

We also expect to see a new location for the fingerprint scanner. The Galaxy S9 smartphones will still sport the scanner on the back, but they won’t sit right next to the camera like on their predecessors. Instead, they’ll likely be located below the cameras, in the middle of the devices. This is fantastic news, as the scanner’s location on the S8 is one of its biggest drawbacks. Not only does it look weird, it’s also impractical.

According to Business Korea, Samsung will stick with the same 2D facial recognition software found on the Galaxy S8. The company has decided to ignore 3D technology due to “technological limitations” and concerns over user security. But the facial recognition feature could get a small upgrade — it should be faster.

What’s more interesting is that the handsets could have a feature called “Intelligent Scan”, which is said to combine the iris scanner and face recognition technology to offer a more secure way for unlocking your device.

Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus will run Android 8.0 Oreo with Samsung’s Experience 9.0 UI on top. Bixby, which made its debut on the Galaxy S8 series, should also be on board, probably in an enhanced form. This means the devices will likely have a dedicated Bixby button on the left side, just like their predecessors.

The Galaxy S9 series could also come preloaded with Samsung’s rumored social media app called Uhssup. According to Korean site HeraldCorp, it will let users share their location in real time and comment on the locations of other users. The service is also expected to have messaging capabilities similar to those found on Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp.

It’s worth mentioning that the Galaxy S9 smartphones have recently stopped by the FCC — model numbers SM-G960F and SM-965F. However, apart from a long list of network bands and other types of connectivity, the listings don’t reveal much else.

Recently, Samsung’s upcoming smartphones — carrying model numbers SM-G960 (Galaxy S9) and SM-G965 (Galaxy S9 Plus) — have been certified by the FCC again. This time, a few different versions of the devices are listed that end with U, U1, W, and XU. The letter U stands for the U.S. model, U1 is for the unlocked variants, W is for Canada, and XU is for demo units.

The FCC ID reveals the full list of supported GSM, CDMA, LTE, and UMTS bands, which you can view here (Galaxy S9) and here (Galaxy S9 Plus). They show that the smartphones will support all major bands on all carriers. That means Samsung will probably release one version of each smartphone that will be sold by all carriers.

	Samsung Galaxy S9	Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus
Display	5.8-inch 18.5:9 Super AMOLED 2960 x 1440 resolution 570 ppi	6.2-inch 18.5:9 Super AMOLED 2960 x 1440 resolution 529 ppi
Processor	Qualcomm 845 or Exynos 9810	Qualcomm 845 or Exynos 9810
RAM	4 GB	6 GB
Storage	64 GB	128 GB
MicroSD	Yes, up to 256 GB	Yes, up to 256 GB
Camera	Primary: A single 12 MP camera with variable aperture Secondary: 8 MP	Primary: Dual 12 MP cameras with variable aperture Secondary: 8 MP
Battery	3,000 mAh	3,500 mAh
Software	Android 8.0 Oreo Samsung Experience 9.0	Android 8.0 Oreo Samsung Experience 9.0
Headphone jack	Yes	Yes
Water resistance	IP68	IP68

Samsung Galaxy S9 design

Although Samsung hasn’t released official images of the two devices yet, we have a good idea of what the Galaxy S9 smartphones might look like. OnLeaks has teamed up with 91mobiles and released alleged CAD renders and a 360-degree video of the Galaxy S9.

They show that the device could look very similar to its predecessor, with a few exceptions. The biggest one is that the fingerprint scanner could be positioned below the camera sensor instead of next to it, as mentioned in the specs and features section above.

OnLeaks then joined forces with MySmartPrice and also released alleged CAD renders and a 360-degree video of the Galaxy S9 Plus. As expected, it looks more or less identical to its smaller brother. The only difference is that the device features a dual-camera setup, while the S9 only features a single shooter on the back.

More recent renders leaked by VentureBeat and Evan Blass tell us the same story as the ones above, but also show off the devices in two eye-catching colors: Blue Coral and Lilac Purple. You can check them out below. Additionally, the smartphones will also come in Midnight Black and Titanium Grey, although not all color options will be available in every market.

Evan Blass

We’ve also come across hands-on images of the Galaxy S9, which were posted on Twitter — see below. Unlike previous leaks of the S9, these pictures appear to be of an actual working version of the device. The sticker on the back points to it maybe being some sort of prototype or engineering version, but it appears to be the real deal nonetheless.

#GalaxyS9 pic.twitter.com/TLb7V43skw

— SamsungMobile.News (@Samsung_News_) February 21, 2018

Having a similar design as their predecessors isn’t a bad thing. The Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus are gorgeous devices that look and feel premium. The two smartphones have been well-received by users, so there’s no real reason to drastically change their design.

They might not be to everyone’s taste, mainly due to the glass back. It’s a fingerprint magnet and not as strong as metal, but it does allow for wireless charging.

Samsung Galaxy S9 price

Price details for the Samsung Galaxy S9 may have been revealed in a leak from ETNews (via PhoneArena), which hints the smartphone could be more expensive than its predecessor. The speculation points to the South Korean prices for the handset, from which we can get an idea of what to expect for U.S. pricing.

The S9 is said to start at 950,000-990,000 Korean Won, or around $884-$920. By comparison, the Galaxy S8 began at 935,000 Korean Won, which was about $825. So it looks like we might see anywhere between a $50-$100 increase on last year’s model.

These are only roughly translated figures, though, and they’re not exactly in line with how the devices are priced in different markets. The S8 actually went on sale in the U.S. for around $750 —$75 bucks less than what the Korean retail price indicated.

With that in mind, it’s extremely unlikely that the S9 will end up at $170 more expensive than the S8. However, we could see it launch in the region of $800 to $850, which would still make it the most expensive Galaxy S model yet. For the Galaxy S9 Plus, you could expect to add another $100 on top.

According to Evan Blass, the Galaxy S9 could cost €841 in Europe, while its bigger brother might set you back €997 — although pricing will likely differ from country to country. For comparison, the S8 and S8 Plus launched at €799 and €899 in many European countries last year, which means their successors could be €42 and €98 more expensive.

Pricing. pic.twitter.com/wu4GlK1FCU

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) February 22, 2018

If prices do increase, we’ll likely see a domino effect. The fact is that Samsung dictates pricing with its Galaxy S series. If the S9 will cost more, we can expect devices like the successor to the LG G6, Huawei P20, and HTC U12 to come with higher price tags as well.

Keep in mind that nothing has been confirmed yet. It’s still possible we won’t see a price hike and that the Galaxy S9 handsets will cost the same as their predecessors. What we can be sure of is that they won’t be cheaper.

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These are all the rumors about the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus we have come across so far. We’ll update this page as soon as we hear more.

Meanwhile, do let us know your thoughts on Samsung’s upcoming smartphones. Would you consider getting either of them based on the info we know so far? Let us know in the comments.

Source: Android Zone

Anik