Samsung Galaxy S11 unmasked: new pictures reveal camera upgrade to tackle iPhone 11 Pro

Provided Samsung sticks with its typical release schedule, we should see the next entry in the flagship Galaxy S smartphone series in February 2020. That close to the release date, we’d expect the industrial design of the handset to be locked down and Samsung to be focused on smaller refinements and tweaks to the formula.

And that seems to be exactly what is happening. Serial leakster OnLeaks, who has an almost impeccable track record when it comes to as-yet unannounced hardware from Samsung and other technology giants, has also purportedly unveiled the design of the Galaxy S11 and Galaxy S11 Plus in a collaboration with retail website CashKaro.

And now, a new photo claims to show the handset in the wild for the first time. According to Ice Universe – a Twitter-based leakster with a solid record when it comes to Samsung devices – the smartphone was captured out-and-about for some real-world. If the smartphone looks a little different to what we’ve seen from OnLeaks, that’s because the phone is being used in “a leak-proof case” to disguise the design, Ice Universe claims.

However, that case cannot disguise the identity of the handset which is given away by the very, erm, unique camera array. Yes, it seems rumours that Samsung will double-down on the camera with its next flagship smartphone were completely accurate – with the South Korean firm purportedly poised to launch a five-camera cluster in a large square module on the back of the handset.

According to SamMobile, the camera module will protrude from the back of the handset by at least 1.1 mm. For comparison, the iPhone X camera bump is 24.13mm.

One of the five cameras in the array is believed to be a 108-megapixel camera with 5x optical zoom. With that many extra pixels in each image, Samsung can allow smartphone owners to crop and edit the picture without losing quality to print and display the image.

As well as this pixel-packed camera, Samsung is expected to include a Time Of Flight sensor, which allows the handset to measure depth. This could boost the quality of Live Focus portrait images by improving the cut-out around the subject. It could also enable more advanced Augmented Reality (AR) games and apps.

Accompanying these camera sensors will be an LED flash too. It’s unclear whether the heart-rate sensor – a staple on Samsung smartphones for years – will make the cut in the latest camera module redesign. Although, with the increased focus on fitness tracking wearables, like the Galaxy Watch Active, we’d suspect it’s now outlived its purpose.

Elsewhere, Samsung is tipped to bring both 4G and 5G connectivity to the Galaxy S11 series. Last time around, Samsung built a separate Galaxy S10 handset specifically for 5G with more cameras, a larger screen, and more RAM than the standard models. With the Galaxy S11, it seems the South Korean company will change tacts and future-proof all models with support for the super-fast network technology.

Powering the Galaxy S11 series will be either a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 system-on-a-chip or an Exynos 990, which is developed by Samsung. These are split based on the market worldwide, with the UK typically landing handsets powered by Samsung’s own system-on-a-chip.

All Samsung Galaxy S11 models will run the Android 10-based One UI 2.0 operating system out of the box, the latest rumours claim.

Finally, Samsung will use the latest Qualcomm-designed ultrasonic fingerprint scanner embedded beneath the glass display. The latter will have a smooth 120Hz refresh rate – that’s more than the OnePlus 7T Pro, OnePlus 7T and the Pixel 4 series.

Whether that impacts battery life remains to be seen, but it should make system animations and fast-paced action games appear much smoother on the touchscreen.

As always, these are just rumours for now – nothing is official until mobile chief DJ Koh produces the handset from his pocket on-stage in February. Express.co.uk will keep you up-to-date with all of the latest reports around the Galaxy S11 series as soon as we hear anything, so check back soon.

source: express.co.uk