Samsung Galaxy A8: The Slimmest Android Smartphone Model Yet

Anyone who has ever owned a Samsung smartphone knows that the company isn’t really known for its slim designs. However, according to recent spec leaks, it looks like Samsung’s breaking with their own traditions.

Though its predecessors the Galaxy S6 and A7 are both quite svelte-looking, it seems that Samsung’s newest model, the Galaxy A8, which is not yet available internationally, has been shaved down to a mere 5.94 millimeters, which makes it more slender than a CD jewel case, which measures about a full centimeter.

The other specs on this newest of Samsung’s phones is nothing to sneeze at either. The A8 is boasting a 16 MP camera on the back, and a 5 MP camera on the display side for taking selfies. There’s further talk of the home button potentially housing a fingerprint sensor, which might become more common, to support both Android Pay and Samsung Pay. And the screen’s reputedly going to be fairly large at 5.7 inches, with a full HD super AMOLED display.

Samsung Galaxy A8

Samsung Galaxy A8

Samsung Galaxy A8 Specifications

The insides, though are what make the phone actually work, so let’s have a look at what tech geeks have to look forward to:

  • Qualcomm MSM8939 Snapdragon 615 chipset with Adreno 405 GPU
  • 2 GB of RAM
  • 5.5 inches Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen; 1080 x 1920 pixels (~401 ppi pixel density) protected with Corning Gorilla Glass 4
  • 16 GB internal memory with micro SD support of up to 64 GB
  • 4G LTE connectivity
  • Non-removable Li-Ion 3050 mAh battery

The total size of this phone is 158 mm x 76.77 mm x 5.94 mm. And who, of course, can forget that Android Lollipop version 5.1.1 will be running the entire smartphone show?

Now, one spec site mentioned a major design flaw—no gyro capability–which may or may not affect sales, depending on who is most likely to buy. No gyro capability means you can only read stuff or take pictures in one direction. There are many websites which are better suited for the longer, “landscape” view that the gyro capability affords the user.

Of course, the spec site could have erroneously omitted this specific information, and the phone could easily have gyro, though it would be a shame if the phone doesn’t have it. The 16 MP camera plus the gyro capability would truly be a winning combination for on-the-go, Android-carrying shutter bugs.

Samsung has not issued a formal product release statement, but it’s rumored that the phone will be announced in the third quarter. as the as-yet-unconfirmed handset was spotted in a filing with TENAA, China’s equivalent to our FCC, and Samsung has been running tests on the phone with the US FCC. Though don’t hold your breath about the U.S. seeing the A8, because to date, the A-series phones have not really been seen Stateside. But then, Samsung may turn around and surprise us.

Editors Note: Please welcome our new contributor Mari Saito. She works as a Technology Correspondent at Thomson Reuters. Please post your feedback in the comment section below.

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