This is year is going to spoil you with choices when it comes to smartphones. The entire tech world is going gaga over the new '8 series' of the industry with Apple and Samsung all set to release their upcoming flagship models iPhone 8 and Galaxy S8 respectively. While these behemoths have been pretty consistent regarding their new launches the Finnish company Nokia has long been absent from the game. However, they will make a comeback this year with another 8.
While Nokia launched its latest smartphone Nokia 6 at the CES this month, the tech world is buzzing with speculations of the announcement of Nokia 8 at the Mobile World Congress in February as was the case for the Samsung Galaxy S8. However, lately it has been revealed that we have to wait for S8 until April this year. iPhone 8, on the other hand, is expected to be launched in September this year and it will mark the 10th anniversary of Apple iPhone.
To start with the features, all three of them do have some unique technologies but in some aspects they are taking the similar policy. For example, according to reports, Nokia 8, Samsung Galaxy S8 and iPhone 8 are all going to get rid of all physical buttons or the home buttons.
Display: As for specifications, one report indicates that Galaxy S8 will feature a 4K (2160x3840 pixels) Super AMOLED display and will boast of an impressive pixel density of 806ppi, while Apple is planning to ditch LCD displays in favour of OLED screens, with iPhone 8 possibly being the first OLED iPhone. Also Apple will move to an all-glass enclosure. The display feature of the Nokia 8 is going to be IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen.
Screen size: Nokia 8 is going to sport a 5.7 inch screen (though it will have two variants the screen size will be the same), as per the recent reports. Samsung and Apple are, however, rolling out variants of their flagship models. Glaxy S8 is rumoured to be launched in two screen sizes - 5.7 and 6.2 inches and a recent Nikkei report citing unnamed supply chain sources claims that Apple will be rolling out the next iPhone in 4.7, 5 and 5.5 inch models wherein the 5.5 inch variant will represent the top-end flagship phone.
Security: While Nokia and Samsung's flagship models will have finger-print scanner, iPhone for the very first time will incorporate the technology that was one of the most standout features of Samsung's previous launch and the biggest disaster Galaxy S7, i.e., the Iris scanner, which is an eye scanning technology that allows users to unlock the phone by simply looking at it.
Processor: Recent reports have suggested that Samsung is going to be the first smartphone to use Qualcomm's Snapdragon 835 SoC, which is the latest and coolest and the smartest chipset by Qualcomm. However, according to GSMArena Nokia 8 will also feature Qualcomm MSM8998 Snapdragon 835 in the premium variant and the lesser model would have a SnapDragon 821.
The iPhone 8 on the other hand, is more than likely to feature an A11 chip built on ARM's highly-efficient 10nm manufacturing process and run the next version of Apple's mobile operating system, iOS 11. Nokia 8 is supposed to come with 6 GB of RAM, 64 GB or 128 GB of storage in the premium model and 4 Gb of RAM in the lesser model. The Galaxy S8 is rumoured to sport a 256GB storage variant. And the iPhone is supposed to come with 32GB, 128GB and 256GB storage options.
Camera: In terms of camera and lenses the features this models will sport are pretty cool. While Samsung Galaxy S8 reported the possibility of a dual camera setup at the back of the smartphone -- one 16-megapixel lens and another 8-megapixel lens -- it might be the first smartphone by Samsung that will have autofocus functionality on the front camera. According to Japanese site Mac Otakara, the high-end 5-inch iPhone Apple plans on introducing a new vertical dual camera arrangement instead of a horizontal dual camera system. And Nokia plans to come up with a 24 megapixel camera with electronic and optical image stabilization this time.
Others: Among other cool and unique features, Nokia 8 OS is supposed to sport a heart-rate monitor functionality, Samsung Galaxy S8 is going to get rid of the old 3.5mm audio standard and will bundle a 3.5mm-headphone-to-USB Type-C adapter. It also hints at launching wireless headphones alongside as well. While iPhone 7 was water-resistant to a depth of one meter for up to 30 minutes - a rating known as IP67 -- iPhone 8 is going to take it one step ahead with IP68.
All of these features are still speculations as none of the companies has officially confirmed anything as yet. And indeed they are all going to be very cautious with their next launch as this year is going to be immensely crucial for each of them with competitors leaving no stone unturned.
