Two real-life images depicting a device that’s said to be the Samsung Galaxy A8 Plus (stylized as the Galaxy A8+) emerged online on Saturday, having been shared by one user of Chinese social media network Weibo. According to latest rumors, the Galaxy A8 Plus will be the official moniker of the follow-up to the Galaxy A7 (2017) which was previously thought to be called the Galaxy A7 (2018). It’s presently unclear what prompted Samsung to opt for such a minor rebranding, provided that the information is accurate, though the newly uncovered device appears to be relatively similar to most previous supposed depictions of the Galaxy A7 (2018). According to the same source, the successor to the Galaxy A5 (2017) will be marketed as the Galaxy A8 (2018) and feature a smaller screen than the Galaxy A8 Plus but otherwise be mostly identical to the larger device.
The two photographs that can be seen above show a relatively bezel-free handset that appears to take advantage of Samsung’s Infinity Display panel with a tall aspect ratio of 18.5:9. The most expensive member of the upcoming mid-range family will bear the model number SM-A730F, the leak suggests. Unlike Samsung’s premium offerings, the Infinity Display of the supposed Galaxy A8 Plus doesn’t wrap around the long edges of the handset and instead appears to be more similar to the flat Super AMOLED screen found on the Galaxy S8 Active. A front-facing dual-camera setup also seems to be part of the package, with the device lacking a physical Home button.
Regardless of its official moniker, the top member of the Galaxy A (2018) series is expected to be available in limited territories, with Samsung now seeking to streamline its mid-range offerings and employ a more targeted product release strategy better tailored for individual markets, according to recent reports. The South Korean tech giant is rumored to only make the Galaxy A8 Plus (2018) available in Germany, Poland, and Russia as far as Europe is concerned, whereas most Asian markets may also miss out on this particular model and instead receive new Galaxy C-series handsets. The Galaxy A (2018) lineup may only entail two models instead of the traditional trio of devices, insiders said earlier this week, suggesting that the Galaxy A3 (2018) may not exist. Samsung‘s upcoming Android smartphones should launch in early 2018 and start retailing by late winter.