Samsung has just accidentally confirmed next year’s mid-range models, thanks to a manual uploaded to its own support site. The document has generally revealed that the Samsung Galaxy A8 and A8+ (2018) will carry over a number of flagship features to the masses.
Said to replace the A5 and A7 nomenclature in the company’s smartphone lineup, the diagram below showed some of those features:
For one, it will have the 18:9 Infinity Display first shown on the Galaxy S8/S8+. While the resolution specification was not shared, we can speculate that it will be at least a 1080p display. Thanks to the large display, the phone will have on-screen navigation buttons – also a first for a mid-range Samsung smartphone.
Another interesting item on the list is the dual-camera on the front. This gives the Galaxy A8 and A8+ a bag of tricks for shallow depth-of-field selfies. There is even a screenshot showing how the feature will look like in the camera app.
Other notable features includes a better location for the fingerprint sensor, both NFC and MST for Samsung Pay, USB Type-C, 3.5mm audio jack (yes!) and also Bixby. The helper app does not come with any physical buttons however unlike its more premium brothers.
Interestingly enough, the dual-SIM models will have two physical SIM slots rather than a single tray that provides hybrid microSD/SIM solution. Android Nougat looks to be the OS of choice out of the box, but Oreo shouldn’t be far along after the official launch.
Speaking of launches, we may see the phone revealed sometime in the first quarter. Most probably after the official launch of the Samsung Galaxy S9 or perhaps even a simultaneous launch.
