In short: DJ Koh, the Chief Executive Officer of Samsung’s mobile division, promised the Galaxy S10 lineup will debut “very significant” changes while speaking to Chinese media earlier this week. The industry veteran said he was primarily referring to the overall look of the upcoming series but didn’t elaborate on the matter, save for confirming the product family will be offered in at least one entirely new color.
Background: According to several reports from earlier this summer, the new color in question may be some variant of green. Samsung hasn’t commercialized a green Android smartphone since early 2015 and the Galaxy S6 Edge which was made available in Emerald Green. At least four other colors are presently said to be under consideration for the Galaxy S10 line – black, white, pink, and silver. Previous rumors pointed to one of those variants having a gradient finish akin to the Twilight version of Huawei’s P20 product family. Samsung is expected to additionally trim the bezels of the Galaxy S10-series devices but no other design changes have yet been mentioned by industry insiders. The lineup is said to consist of three smartphone models instead of traditional two, with the most premium one reportedly being equipped with a triple-camera setup on the back, a dual-lens system on the front, and an in-display fingerprint reader. Samsung should officially announce the Galaxy S10 family in the first quarter of 2019, possibly at the next iteration of Barcelona-based MWC trade show.
Impact: Samsung has been pursuing a “tick-tock” flagship upgrade strategy for over half a decade now, introducing a “tick” product generation that debuts significant visual changes (e.g. the Galaxy S8) and following up on it with a “tock” update that refines the original formula a year later (e.g. the Galaxy S9). Mr. Koh’s promise of major changes being on the horizon is in line with that development philosophy, though it remains to be seen how the Galaxy S10 will attempt changing the smartphone game.