Samsung Unveils Galaxy S8 and S8+ With Iris and Facial Recognition, No Home Button

[BC2009]

Apple got lucky with the exploding S7, I don't think Apple will be as lucky this time.

The S7 never exploded.... The Note 7 is the phone with that infamous feature. Ironic that Samsung skipped a version number on the Note (jumping from 5 to 7) so the S7 and Note 7 would have consistent number for common brand recognition and that completely backfired. Many folks tried to trade in their S7 phones to their carriers and their carrier reps had to inform them that the recall was only for the Note 7.

 

[JPLC]

Only one photo??

And there's also a video that is worth watching:

 

[AikiMike]

This looks like a straight rippoff of Apple Patently posts and iPhone leaks.

Samsung = copy paste anything Apple is rumored to do... Try to beat them to the market... Such a boring strategy.

How exactly does this look like a rip-off of some rumored apple product as opposed to an iteration of their existing phone? The only thing that is going to be boring is the next iphone if apple releases a 7S...

 

[lordofthereef]

Can Apple really release the iPhone 7S with those huge bezels and home button? Wow. There had better be an iPhone 8 with a redesign.

I am with you i that I want lesser bezels. But look at Pixel, and it's getting a lot of love too. Honestly, I think yes, Apple could release a 7S with the same bezels, and it would likely sell just fine. Apple would have to screw up many years in a row to diminish the intertia iPhone has behind it, IMO.

 

[9081094]

This looks like a straight rippoff of Apple Patently posts and iPhone leaks.

Samsung = copy paste anything Apple is rumored to do... Try to beat them to the market... Such a boring strategy.

Lol, I think it will be the other way around this time. Samsung is showing Apple for years what it can do with Amoled screens, water resistance and fast charging. They're definitely far ahead on Apple and reasonable priced compared to Apple.

 

[tx4app]

As expected, the S8 comes in two sizes with a curved edge-to-edge 5.8-inch or 6.2-inch QHD AMOLED display. The always-on screen has a 2960x1440 resolution within a minimal bezel design that pushes the home button with fingerprint recognition to the rear of the device, alongside the camera.

Article Link: Samsung Unveils Galaxy S8 and S8+ With Iris and Facial Recognition, No Home Button

Huh? The article title includes at the end "No Home Button", but then the textual description above states that "...design that pushes the home button with fingerprint recognition to the rear of the device...."

Sounds like there's a home button there to me.

 

[morcutt11]

I was of the same mind as both of you until this thought occurred to me -- if the iris/face recognition is reliable enough, and secure enough, then nobody will want to use the fingerprint scanner anymore. And if I wanted to wean people off of fingerprint scanners, I'd make it harder for them to use, but retain it as a failsafe until the iris/face recognition integration was flawless. If customers have no reason not to keep using the old fingerprint technology, then there's no incentive to start using, and thereby improving, the iris/face recognition tech. So this makes perfect sense. Move the fingerprint sensor to the back, thus making it harder to use, and encouraging the customer to use the new, preferred, alternate methods to unlock their phone which don't require any additional physical hardware.

If it was reliable enough and quick enough, like the iPhone fingerprint sensor, and would unlock the phone while still allowing me to see the status/lock screen before taking me to the home screen (e.g. requires a screen button touch to transition to the home screen), then that would be useful.

 

[avanpelt]

I love it. When I pick up the phone it's where my index finger naturally rests and near instantly the phone is unlocked and ready to go. Contrast that to the home button where it's touch, press and wait.

If it's on a table you can swipe up and enter your pin. In the car you can set up smart lock to leave your phone unlocked while connected to BT and then it's a double tap to wake. Once BT is disconnected the screen locks.

That's innovation, something Apple is lacking as of late.

Now that I've seen more of the S8, the fingerprint scanner's position is unfortunate for lefties like myself. Also, with the fingerprint scanner being placed next to the camera, that camera is begging to be covered in fingerprint smudges. My guess is that Samsung is betting that most people will opt to use iris scanning and/or facial scanning for authentication. It is nice that the user has those options in addition to the fingerprint scanner.

 

[Breaking Good]

It is sadly ironic that Macrumors has the best Galaxy S8 coverage so far.

 

[9081094]

I am with you i that I want lesser bezels. But look at Pixel, and it's getting a lot of love too. Honestly, I think yes, Apple could release a 7S with the same bezels, and it would likely sell just fine. Apple would have to screw up many years in a row to diminish the intertia iPhone has behind it, IMO.

They are already doing that for years imo.

 

[lordofthereef]

How exactly does this look like a rip-off of some rumored apple product as opposed to an iteration of their existing phone? The only thing that is going to be boring is the next iphone if apple releases a 7S...

I don;t subscribe to this mentality, but here it is...

Apple rumored to have no home button.
Samsung beats them to the punch.
Samsung copied Apple.

We have been doing this for YEARS on this page (and others). For whatever reason, people have convinced themselves that it's easy to bring a product to mass market three months after a rumor pops about a competitor product.
[doublepost=1490809741][/doublepost]

They are already doing that for years imo.

Maybe, but then it even adds more credence to my claims. The inertia hasn't even decreased. It has only increased.

FWIW I think the 6s series was a great phone with actual tangible improvements. The 7 series, less so.

 

[dazz87]

Amazing hardware but trashy touchwiz is still on it........................smh

 

[9081094]

It is sadly ironic that Macrumors has the best Galaxy S8 coverage so far.

It's good they don't ignore the fact that there are better alternatives to the iPhone and that list is growing every day. Hope Apple & Greed wake up and take their measures to counter the fact they're left behind.

 

[morcutt11]

Lol, I think it will be the other way around this time. Samsung is showing Apple for years what it can do with Amoled screens, water resistance and fast charging. They're definitely far ahead on Apple and reasonable priced compared to Apple.

Yes, Samsung has had features that didn't originate from Apple or Apple rumors, but the opposite is certainly true. In general, I see Samsung rushing features (and the associated products) to market to stay as the perceived leader in these bleeding-edge features/technology. However, that doesn't always translate to reliable, useful features. I prefer Apple's approach where, at least in general, the features are thought out and reliable before being implemented. Look no further than the implementation of NFC payments between Samsung and Apple to see a case in point.

 

[9081094]

I don;t subscribe to this mentality, but here it is...

Apple rumored to have no home button.
Samsung beats them to the punch.
Samsung copied Apple.

We have been doing this for YEARS on this page (and others). For whatever reason, people have convinced themselves that it's easy to bring a product to mass market three months after a rumor pops about a competitor product.
[doublepost=1490809741][/doublepost]
Maybe, but then it even adds more credence to my claims. The inertia hasn't even decreased. It has only increased.

FWIW I think the 6s series was a great phone with actual tangible improvements. The 7 series, less so.

After the 6 Apple hasn't done much. And even the 6 with bigger screen came very late to the party.

 

[Ds6778]

Amazing hardware but trashy touchwiz is still on it........................smh

Couldn't agree more. If there was a "google play" edition, I would be all over it. Unfortunately, Samsung phone tend to age miserably. They start out fine but start lagging/force closing everywhere. Nougat on the S7 Edge is awful.

 

[I7guy]

We agree to disagree, peace

As long as it makes you happy, it's fine to me. Used to be a big Apple fan but today I can't justify it for myself anymore. Keep comparing is my advice and take what suits your needs

You have to do what you have to do and should buy what you want. But this is a discussion forum many points of view exist.

 

[mikecorp]

I wanted to say, Great I will jump the ship. Now I watched the video and I changed my mind. To me it is useless gimmicky
device. I would not buy it from Apple either. I'm getting old.

 

[JPLC]

This looks like a straight rippoff of Apple Patently posts and iPhone leaks.

Samsung = copy paste anything Apple is rumored to do... Try to beat them to the market... Such a boring strategy.

The first Edge model was there way before the very first rumors of an iPhone with a curved display. Meanwhile, we've got the touchbar, animated stickers and emoticons. Have to deal with that.

 

[DonniRJ]

Okay it's flash memory and the memory use of apps is still absurdly big and growing under iOS.

But, I never got a problem with iPhone storage tho. That's also a reason to get bigger storage in iPhone~
[doublepost=1490810216][/doublepost]

It's because you have bad taste

That's subjective tho

 

[9081094]

Yes, Samsung has had features that didn't originate from Apple or Apple rumors, but the opposite is certainly true. In general, I see Samsung rushing features (and the associated products) to market to stay as the perceived leader in these bleeding-edge features/technology. However, that doesn't always translate to reliable, useful features. I prefer Apple's approach where, at least in general, the features are thought out and reliable before being implemented. Look no further than the implementation of NFC payments between Samsung and Apple to see a case in point.

You mean like maps, Siri and iCloud?

 

[MrX8503]

The S8 is a beautiful phone no doubt. What I know from experience is that a beautiful phone can only get you so far. The reason why I continue to buy iPhones is because it's very fast and stays fast for the life of the phone.

Okay it's flash memory and the memory use of apps is still absurdly big and growing under iOS.

Android Authority did an article on how iOS can heavily compress background apps and instantly re-spring them when they're in use again.

http://www.androidauthority.com/android-ios-ram-memory-usage-744848/

In the article he shows that iOS is able to compress 300MB down to 10MB! This is why a 2GB iPhone can outperform a 3, 4, 6GB Android phone. Android needs crazy amounts of ram to avoid killing apps.

 

[I7guy]

Garbage? You got to be kidding me. This is the best looking device I have ever seen. And its got 63GB Base storage. Thats right. BASE!!!!
[doublepost=1490808871][/doublepost]
Agreed. The ball is now in Apple's court. The bar has been raised for the iPhone 8. Your move Apple. Curved Edge OLED, Wireless charging and no bezels are the minimum standards for Apple to even compete. Samsung in a good customer friendly move has upped base storage to 64. Another slap to aPPLE

Why would I kid you? You're entitled to like what you want and post those opinions same as everyone else.

 

[barkomatic]

It looks great. However, I prefer a beautiful design only when that design is also functional -- and I find a home button on the back of the phone next to the camera to be awkward. I hope Apple finds a solution to embed that within the screen.

 

[Radon87000]

Why would I kid you? You're entitled to like what you want and post those opinions same as everyone else.

There is no possible way you can look at this device and say iPhone design is not an ancient antique.