TL;DR

The Galaxy S10 family may have introduced a new punch-hole display design and a new basic S10e member to the dynamic S10/S10+ duo, but apart from those, there weren’t as many performance upgrades compared to its predecessors, the S9 pair. Granted, Samsung managed to differentiate the three phones by the number and features of their cameras but even the Galaxy S10 5G with its six cameras and 5G modem may not do the upcoming Galaxy S11’s merits justice. 

Galaxy S11 specs and design

Most probably not, as Samsung is leaving the experiments for the A-series. In fact, most rumors point to a Note 10 derivative design, with a hole in the middle of the screen top. The displays may very well go up to a 120Hz refresh rate, too.

Still, next year there will be a brand new iPhone design by Apple, and Samsung might decide to do something crazy to counter whatever the team from Cupertino is cooking. Samsung has held out on a notch for its flagships pretty heroically, though, so we doubt it will be guided by Apple’s eventual design musings. In that case, the Galaxy S11e already leaked from a credible source to be looking like this.

What Galaxy S11e could look like

Galaxy S11, 5G, and the Snapdragon 865 processor

The 7nm EUV Snapdragon 865 will still be produced in two versions – one with a 5G modem, and one without – which most likely means that Qualcomm’s X55 modem still won’t be integrated. Snapdragon 855 that is in current flagship phones needs two extra components tacked on to form a phone with 5G connectivity, and, even if Snapdragon 865 needs only one – the X55 modem – if it is separate from the processor, we still can’t call it a true 5G-capable chipset.

That one is already in phones, but Samsung announced a new high-end Exynos 990 that is yet to materialize in a retail device, so we’d wager to guess that it will make a cameo in the S11 alongside the Snapdragon 865. This one carrier an improved Exynos 5123 modem with up to 7Gbps download speeds.

While Samsung skipped the first 7nm generation that TSMC built Apple’s A12 and the Snapdragon 855 chipset with, Samsung has reportedly been betting on the second-gen 7nm production process,  and the bet will apparently be paying off fully in the S11. Here’s a features comparison of the new 990:

Snapdragon 865 and 855+ vs Exynos 990 vs Apple A13 specs comparison

We are comparing the currently known Exynos 990 and Snapdragon 865 specs and features below for your viewing pleasure. For reference, we included the current Snapdragon 855 and Apple A13 that are in 2019 flagships already.

Besides high-res photos, Samsung’s 108MP sensor with Tetracell technology offers improved low-light performance, better highlights exposure for bright elements, even faster autofocus and improved HDR photography, nearing the perception of the human eye. The proof is in the pudding, i.e. the actual photos, though, and the first samples from Xiaomi’s Mi Note 10 that uses the same sensor seem to be heavy on the detail, but a bit soft and mushy, so every advantage for the S11 is on paper still.

Bright Night

Usually this many pixels like in a 108MP sensor, mean a lot of cross-talk and noise, all “features” that are detrimental to clean and sharp photos in the dusk. Samsung, however, is so certain that it may have overcome these downsides of ultrahigh resolution sensors, that it also trademarked the Bright Night Sensor phrase in Europe, and we can’t wait how it achieved the eventual low-light excellence on the S11.

Expected new Galaxy S11 camera features

Two other trademarks that can be associated with new camera modes are Single Take and Video Spin, but what those would entail is anyone’s guess at this point. Last but not least, a Samsung supplier is reportedly building a dedicated factory for time-of-flight (ToF) sensors, like the one on the Galaxy S10 5G, as analysts forecast a surge in demand. The Galaxy Note 10 itself is supposed to arrive with two ToF sensors – one on the back, and one for the selfie camera – for better spatial perception, superior face recognition, and improved portrait-style shots. Samsung’s ToF onslaught is expected to invade even its midrangers, so the rising time-of-flight tide is likely to lift the Galaxy S11 boat as well.

Galaxy S11 may end up with both great camera and long battery life

This fairly unexciting report, however, turns into a tangential confirmation that, besides a huge camera upgrade, the S11 series will boast one in the battery life department. How come? Well, the PMP tech allows for a much tighter packaging of the battery cells compared to what Samsung is using for the Galaxy S10 models, whose packs still require a holder case.

The pleasant side effect of using PMP for the Galaxy S11 batteries is that the overall size of the package can shrink by up to 57%, allowing for much larger capacities, smaller battery footprint leaving space for other stuff inside the phone, or a combination thereof. 

 

Thus, the Galaxy S11 series is very likely to have much longer battery life in aggregate, compared to its S10 series predecessors. The reasoning behind this speculation is not only that it will probably run on more efficient processors than the ones we have now, or that Samsung will use a newer generation more frugal OLED display tech.

While both of these are true, the Galaxy S11 may have better battery life than the S10 simply because the eventual battery capacities indicate that the packs will be much larger, and you can see the leaked capacities in the table below. 

The reasoning? Well, the 5G versions of those phones are going to be battery hogs, so Samsung will have to up the ante in the endurance department. Also, Huawei, and even Apple with the 11 Pro Max, are eating its lunch in the flagship battery life department.

Galaxy S10 series	Galaxy S11 series (expected)
3100mAh (Galaxy S10e)	3730mAh (Galaxy S11e)
3400mAh (Galaxy S10)	4300mAh (Galaxy S11)
4100mAh (S10+) 4300mAh (Note 10+) 4500mAh (S10+ 5G)	5000mAh (Galaxy S11+)

 

Galaxy S11 release and price

Samsung has been scheduling its Unpacked events around the Galaxy S and Note families like clockwork lately, so we can reasonably assume when the S11 will launch in earnest. If we follow this year’s Wednesday-Friday schedule, the S11 family should be announced between February 11-18, depending on whose tip you want to believe, and unleashed on our unsuspecting heads on Friday, March 6, or earlier.

Since a drastic design rework is not expected, we’d wager to bet on starting prices ranging from $799-$1199 depending on the model and the 5G connectivity situation. If we add the “Bright Night” to the “Space Zoom” camera feature, and tack on huge batteries, it may all be worth it, what do you think?