Once upon a time, Samsung used to offer “mini” versions of its Galaxy S flagships. We had the Galaxy S3 mini, Galaxy S4 mini, and Galaxy S5 mini, but starting with the Galaxy S6, Samsung stopped selling a “mini” alternative.
Well according to a new rumor coming out of Business Korea, it seems the Korean tech giant is looking to revive the trend next year with a premium Galaxy S9 mini. According to US-based investment information provider, Valuewalk which received the tip from anonymous sources, Samsung has plans to release a Galaxy S9 mini in 2018. We’re told the phone could arrive with a really tiny 4-inch display with curves around the edges, but nothing else related to specs was shared in the report. Will it the really thin bezel treatment? It’s a possibility, although it’s pretty hard to imagine given that we’re talking about a 4-incher.
Samsung’s decision to stop making “mini” Galaxy S devices probably had to do (at least in part) with the the fact they were often considered just a ploy to attract buyers. In reality, the “minis” didn’t even come close to the standard versions of the phone in terms of screen, resolution, camera or processor – but were actually a different device altogether.
But in 2018, Samsung could choose to do things a lot differently. The current report does specify the company is looking to launch a “premium” mini version of the Galaxy S9. So who knows, maybe next year we’re going to see something in the vein of Sony’s Compact smartphones from Samsung. This year’s Sony Xperia XZ1 and Xperia XZ1 Compact share essential specs like a Snapdragon 835 processor, 4GB of RAM, 19-megapixel rear cameras and IP68 water resistance, so the Compact model can actually be considered a smaller flagship.
Will Samsung adopt a similar strategy next year? It remains to be seen. Just remember that rumors about a Samsung Galaxy S8 mini were flying around last year too and we all know they turned out to be just wishful thinking.