The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 is expected to debut in late August or early September and the latest leak brings both god and bad news in terms of design.
Samsung has already released its Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ flagships earlier this year and the focus is now on the Galaxy Note 8, which is expected to be a massive powerhouse with top-notch specifications and an advanced S Pen stylus since it's part of the Note family.
Galaxy Note 8 leaks have been piling up and a new one reveals the smartphone's purported design, with allegedly official cases that show where everything is located on the device.
Popular case maker Olixar seems so confident that its Galaxy Note 8 cases are spot on that it even put them up for preorder on MobileFun, both in the United States and the UK. The cases come in three options and range in price from $5.49/ £4.99 to $26.99/ £19.99.
Galaxy Note 8 Design: The Good News
On the bright side, these cases confirm earlier rumors and expectations that the Galaxy Note 8 will feature a dual rear camera setup. The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ have single rear cameras, as do all other Samsung smartphones. The Galaxy Note 8 will be the first one to boast two main camera sensors.
The cases also seem to confirm its massive size with a 6.3-inch display. The phone looks like a larger Galaxy S8+ with a dual rear camera setup and a stylus.
Galaxy Note 8 Design: The Bad News
On the downside, the cases also have a cutout for the fingerprint sensor and it's rear-mounted, just like on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+. Samsung drew some heavy criticism over the placement of the fingerprint sensor on the Galaxy S8 line, as it's right next to the rear camera and it's uncomfortable to use, not to mention it leads to accidental camera smudges.
Rumors have indicated that Samsung might address this issue with the Galaxy Note 8 and go for a fingerprint sensor embedded into the display, but if these cases turn out to be accurate, it seems that this will not be the case. The Galaxy S8 was rumored to have in-display fingerprint authentication as well, but Samsung and Synaptics reportedly ran out of time with the implementation and rather than delay the Galaxy S8's release any further, Samsung chose to place the fingerprint scanner on the back of the device.
The company was expected to overcome any hurdles in the process and with more time on hand, to manage to implement the in-display fingerprint authentication for the Galaxy Note 8. The cases from Olixar show that the Galaxy Note 8 will have the same rear-mounted fingerprint reader as the Galaxy S8, located right next to the cameras.
If the Galaxy Note 8 does indeed launch with a fingerprint scanner next to the rear cameras and it costs as much as it's rumored, it remains to be seen whether it will be a compelling enough proposition to consumers. The smartphone also has to make up for the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco from last year and restore consumer confidence in the Galaxy Note line.
