It’s not surprising to see mobile companies capitalising on the next-generation communications technology 5G, even before it commercially rolls out later this year. With the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2019 underway, the 5G-enabled smartphones are a talking point, as we’ve been hearing about the next-gen telecom standard for years. But 2019 is really the year when 5G smartphones will be available to buyers in several markets, as local carriers are ready to launch 5G networks. Samsung is going to be one of the companies to have 5G phones ready in 2019, including at least one Galaxy S10 version.
Samsung is said to have showcased its first 5G smartphone, although in a rather quiet manner, at the CES exhibition. According to a report by VentureBeat, the first 5G smartphone by Samsung was put on display in a protective case so as to not give away even the minutes of its details. However, the report mentions the smartphone was labelled as a “5G prototype smartphone” and had a punch-hole camera on the display – something that Samsung was earlier reported to have mistakenly leaked in one of the demonstration materials for its One UI.
Samsung has been widely rumoured to introduce its first 5G smartphone as one of the Galaxy S10 variants, which are set to launch on February 20. While nothing is officially confirmed, it could be guessed the 5G smartphone at the CES is one of Galaxy S10 variants. Also Read: Jio GigaFiber broadband rollout: Expected plans, service rollout, comparison with Airtel V-Fiber, and more Samsung’s 5G phones will be available in the US and Korea, where carriers have already confirmed support. So far, three US operators announced they would sell Samsung 5G phones this year, including AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon — Sprint revealed its plans just a few days ago it said, the phone that Samsung showed at CES 2019 was placed under protective glass.
The Galaxy S10 is expected to feature a punch hole camera design which Samsung calls Infinity-O display. It’s unclear from the photo, but this likely isn’t an Infinity-O device. This could even not be the first time that we get to see a 5G phone from Samsung. The company demoed a device in early December at Qualcomm’s press event. That phone featured a strange design with a camera notch appearing on one of the sides.
It’s unclear when the Galaxy S10 5G phones will launch, but we’d expect them to arrive in the first half of the year, just as more markets get 5G coverage in the US and other countries. Samsung plans to release its first commercially available 5G phone this year and based on rumours, it will be a Galaxy S10 variant powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 855 processor. Samsung is poised to unveil as many as four variants for the Galaxy S10 – Galaxy S10, Galaxy S10 Plus, Galaxy S10 Lite, and Galaxy S10 5G.

Source: financialexpress.com