We've seen some great smartphones in 2017, but now that the year is almost over, it's time to look at what 2018 has to offer. One of the first major releases will come from Samsung: the Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus. The two handsets have just been confirmed by the company after it submitted them for FCC approval.
The listing doesn't reveal much other than the smartphones' official international model numbers. The S9 is designated SM-G960F, while the Galaxy S9 Plus is SM-G965F. But the FCC's certification does suggest that things are moving along smoothly.
Exactly when we can expect to see the S9/S9 Plus is still unknown. It was originally suggested that they would make an appearance at CES, which is just over one week away, but it's much more likely that Samsung will unveil them at a later date, possibly during late February's Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona.
Early renders suggest the Galaxy S9s will feature incremental upgrades over their predecessors. As is the trend with flagship smartphones, the top and bottom bezels will be even thinner than before, and the screen-to-body ratio will be higher than the iPhone X, according to Forbes.
The fingerprint sensor is being moved to a more central position on the rear of the phone, and while there is a dual-camera setup, it's only present in the larger S9 Plus. Much like what Apple does with its phones, the cheaper S9 handset sports a single camera. They'll be powered by the recently unveiled Snapdragon 845 SoC, come with a headphone jack, and could offer up to 512GB of onboard storage.
While the Note 7 disaster might be a distant memory for Samsung, there have been several reports of battery issues in the Note 8 and S8 Plus. The problem stops the handsets from charging or switching on, rather than causing them to explode.