Samsung is readying a successor to its thinnest smartphone ever, the Galaxy A8. The device which will go by the name Galaxy A9, is expected to be announced officially by Samsung any time now. Many details of the smartphone have already been posted on the company’s official social media page (on Weibo) in China.
The Galaxy A9 will have a bigger display than its predecessor. A 6-inch Full HD panel replaces the 5.7-inch one found on the A8. It will have 32 GB onboard storage, 3 GB RAM, a Snapdragon 620 processor clocked at 1.8 GHz and a 13-megapixel camera at the back (8 MP on the front). The camera is a step down from the 16-megapixel sensor found on the Galaxy A8 even though it likely has more advanced optics to make up for that. The one spec that will catch everyone’s attention is the battery. At 4,000mAh, it is easily one of the biggest units Samsung will be shipping on a smartphone in recent times and is expected to guarantee users long battery life. The A9 may also become the first Samsung smartphone to be released running on Android 6.0, Marshmallow.
The Samsung Galaxy A9, like other members of the 2016 Galaxy A lineup which were announced not long ago and are yet to arrive in most markets, will also have a fingerprint scanner. That is for use cases like unlocking the lock screen and making purchases using Samsung’s mobile payments service, Samsung Pay.
Pricing information is expected to be revealed when the device is officially unveiled but going by the feature-set and its predecessor’s pricing, it will be premium pricing most likely.
