Has Samsung with Galaxy A8s beaten Huawei? We think, yes
In the race to launch the world's first smartphone with camera hole display, Samsung looks primed to beat its Chinese arch-rival. Just a day after Huawei announced to launch its Nova 4 smartphone on December 17, Samsung has confirmed to unveil its Galaxy A8s on December 10. The phone is touted to sport an Infinity-O display, triple rear-camera, and mid-level internals. Here's our roundup.
Samsung set to win the battle against Huawei
Here's how Galaxy A8s will look like with Infinity-O display
The Galaxy A8s will feature the Infinity-O display with a 6.7mm (diameter) cut-out for the front camera on the top-left corner. Further, the sensors are expected to be concealed under the display and earpiece to be moved to the top edge of the frame. This design should allow Galaxy A8s to boast a screen-to-body ratio of over 90% and an aspect ratio of 19.5:9.
Galaxy A8s: Here's a look at the key specifications
According to the leak, the Galaxy A8s will feature a 6.3-inch display with full-HD+ resolution, a 24MP+5MP+10MP triple rear-camera, and a 24MP selfie camera. It is expected to be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 processor, paired with 6GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage (expandable upto 512GB). Further, the phone may run Android Pie-based One UI and pack a 3,400mAh battery.
Meanwhile, everything we know about Huawei Nova 4
Meanwhile, Huawei Nova 4 will look pretty similar to the upcoming Galaxy A8s with a camera hole in the display for the front camera. Further, renders suggest the phone will sport a triple rear-camera setup - much like the Huawei P20 Pro. The phone is rumored to come with Kirin 980 processor, 6GB RAM, 128GB storage, an in-display fingerprint scanner, and run Android Pie.
Why are Samsung and Huawei opting for a camera-hole design?
With this small circular camera cutout, OEMs can offer an edge-to-edge display with increased screen real-estate. This cutout is significantly smaller and aesthetically pleasing (to some) than iPhone X's wide notch or even OPPO and Vivo's waterdrop-like cutout. Moreover, in the landscape position (playing games or watching videos), you're likely to cover the camera with your hands for an unhindered full-screen view.
How will the software leverage this new design?
With the existing notches, OEMs use the so-called "ears" to display time, network, battery level, and other notification badges. However, with this odd hole in the screen, it will be interesting to see how Samsung and other app developers leverage the screen space.
