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Samsung Galaxy S8 may sport an Ultra HD screen

The latest scuttlebutt out of China claims the phone will offer a 4K resolution screen, which would deliver better virtual-reality content. The S8 could have a dual camera too.

Lance Whitney Contributing Writer
Lance Whitney is a freelance technology writer and trainer and a former IT professional. He's written for Time, CNET, PCMag, and several other publications. He's the author of two tech books--one on Windows and another on LinkedIn.
Lance Whitney
2 min read
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Samsung's successor to the Galaxy S7 could sport an ultra-high def display and dual cameras.

CNET

Samsung's Galaxy S8 likely won't appear until next February, but already a couple of rumors have popped up about the phone.

The next Galaxy S phone will include a 4K Ultra high-definition screen packed with a resolution of 3,840x2,160 pixels, according to Chinese tech blog site mobile.163.com. That resolution is greater than most smartphones on the market and also more than most users need on a mobile device.

But the thinking is that Samsung wants the S8 to tap into virtual reality content. From that perspective, the UHD display would deliver a smoother and higher-quality experience than is seen on many of today's phones.

Virtual reality is becoming the next big thing in the technology world. Major players such as Facebook, Samsung and Google have all been trying to capitalize on the trend. Some are selling expensive VR headsets that require a connection to a PC. Samsung offers its more budget-friendly $99 Galaxy VR, a headset you can use with certain Samsung smartphones to view VR-supported apps.

Assuming the report of a UHD display is true, a resolution of 3,840x2,160 pixels would put hefty demands on the battery. That would force Samsung to squeeze a large, high-capacity battery into the phone.

The second rumor points to a possible rear dual-camera setup. Yep, we've heard this before but with a different phone. Reports have floated in and out that the iPhone 7 Plus would come with a dual camera. One advantage of such a setup is that one camera could use a wide-angle lens and the other a lens that comes with an optical zoom. However, LG's G5 phone employs two rear cameras, both wide-angle shooters with one using a 78-degree lens and the other a 135-degree lens.

Samsung could adopt dual cameras to better compete with the iPhone 7 Plus, assuming Apple's upcoming iPhone actually includes the feature.

Reports of the UHD display and dual lens should be taken with the usual grain of salt, especially since the Galaxy S8 won't be appear for another nine months. And any of the phone's rumored features could either prove untrue or simply change before then.

Samsung did not immediately respond to CNET's request for comment.

(Via WCCF Tech)