Galaxy S9: Samsung’s 2018 Flagship Might Monopolize Qualcomm’s First Batch Of Snapdragon 845 SoCs

With the release of the Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8+, Samsung proved that it was not above using strong-arm tactics against its competitors. This was shown earlier this year when the South Korean tech giant practically hoarded the first batch of Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processors, resulting in Samsung’s rivals such as LG opting for a lower-tier SoC in the LG G6. Other competitors such as Sony and HTC also had to move their flagships’ launch dates to make way for the next batch of the powerful mobile processors.

If recent rumors are to be believed, it seems like Samsung is about to adopt the same strategy next year when it launches the highly-anticipated follow-up to this 2017’s runaway winner in the Android market — the Galaxy S9. Details about the Galaxy S9 are mostly unknown at this point, but speculations among mobile enthusiasts already point to the next flagship from Samsung being a powerhouse handheld device.

According to a Trusted Reviews report, the Galaxy S9 is widely speculated to be equipped with Qualcomm’s yet-to-be-announced Snapdragon 845 processor, the chipmaker’s first attempt at creating an SoC built on 7nm architecture. Considering that it is a step beyond the Snapdragon 835 in terms of design, the performance of the upcoming processor is believed to be industry-leading. Apart from this, the 7nm architecture also means that the SD 845 would be significantly more power-efficient than the chipmaker’s current flagship.

Just like what it did with the first shipments of the Snapdragon 835, Samsung is also rumored to be reserving the entire first batch of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 845 units for its Galaxy S9 flagship, according to a report from the Investor. This means that early next year, Samsung would likely hold a monopoly on the powerful chip, at least until Qualcomm could produce another batch for the South Korean tech giant’s competitors such as LG, Sony, HTC and OnePlus.

If Samsung could pull this off once more, the tech giant would most likely enjoy a lot of success in the early 2018 mobile market. The first months of next year, after all, would be extremely pertinent, since all the 2017 flagship handsets such as the iPhone X and the Google Pixel 2 would have already saturated the market with their 2017-era processors. With the Snapdragon 845, the Galaxy S9 would be unique and a class above the available competition, and it would most likely result in a very dedicated consumer base.

The Samsung Galaxy S9 is speculated to be released sometime early next year.

[Featured Image by Nadir Keklik/Shutterstock]