Samsung Galaxy S9: This is your FIRST LOOK at the new flagship smartphone

Samsung is hard at work on the next entry to its best-selling Galaxy S smartphone range.

The Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus are tipped to launch ahead of the Mobile World Congress tradeshow in February 2018.

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And now we’ve got our first look at the new flagship smartphone.

Technology blog BGR has obtained high-resolution renders that purportedly show the Galaxy S9 inside a rugged case.

According to sources speaking to the publication, the renders are based on information from the factory that is building the latest Samsung smartphones.

BGR states: “We’re told by multiples sources that these renders are mostly accurate; one source told us the back is spot-on but the bezel above the phone’s display will be a bit narrower, and the speaker at the top looks a bit different.”

According to the renders, the Galaxy S9 will have a very similar industrial design to its predecessor.

The next-generation smartphone will have an all-screen design, with the front dominated by a dual-curved display.

Samsung appears to have moved the rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, which will now reportedly sit beneath the dual-camera set-up.

The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus were criticised for the placement of the fingerprint scanner, which was extremely close to the camera lens, making it easy to smudge while unlocking the device.

Samsung even included a warning within the default camera app that told users: “A clean lens makes for better shots. Clean your camera lens to keep taking better pictures.”

This was not included in previous Galaxy S handsets.

Samsung’s latest smartphones are expected to be powered by the all-new Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 – as part of an exclusive deal between the two brands.

Elsewhere, the Galaxy S9 is widely-tipped to have a 3D depth-sensing front camera to enable facial recognition.

If that sounds at all familiar, it’s probably because the front-facing 3D depth-sensor is one of the flagship features on Apple’s all-new smartphone, iPhone X.

This new sensor system powers Face ID, which unlocks the iPhone X and authenticates contactless payments by scanning the user’s face.

It is possible Samsung has something very similar planned for the next entry in the Galaxy S range.

This is something Samsung has toyed with before, the Galaxy S8 already boasts a face scanning feature.

However this authentication system is currently powered by the front-facing camera, which makes it much less secure than Face ID.

Samsung is pretty upfront about the failings of its current system.

On the Galaxy S8 product page, Samsung says that “face recognition is less secure than pattern, PIN, or password” – something that could easily change with the hardware upgrade purportedly scheduled for the Galaxy S9.

Samsung is also expected to include the dual camera set-up it debuted with the Galaxy Note 8 on its new Galaxy S handsets.

The Galaxy Note 8 uses a secondary, telephoto lens to create 2x optical zoom on your photographs.

Both rear cameras sport optical image stabilisation (OIS) to help produce clear photos – even in low-light.

Samsung also uses the dual-cameras to artificially render a DSLR-style bokeh effect behind the subject of the photograph.

Dubbed Live Focus, the feature lets you take bokeh shots to help the subject stand out.

And unlike the iPhone, Samsung lets you adjust the level of background blur after the photo has been taken.

Alongside the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+, Samsung is widely-tipped to launch an all-new smartphone, Galaxy X.

This new flagship will reportedly boast a foldable OLED display.

Samsung Galaxy X is expected to be in extremely limited supply.

Some rumours suggest the South Korean company will only release the smartphone in its native market, before rolling-out worldwide later in 2018.