It’s official, Samsung’s 2017 flagship smartphones, the Galaxy S8 and S8+, are here with us. The two devices, unveiled on Wednesday evening at multiple events around the world held by Korean electronics giant Samsung, have a string of exciting features that users can look forward to. Those features include Bixby, Samsung’s new smart assistant, a pressure-sensitive home button, reworked Samsung software among others.
It has been the case over the last 5 years that Kenya is always one of the first African markets to get Samsung’s latest flagship devices at least not more than a month after their availability on the global market. From the look of things, this year things won’t be any different as Samsung is reportedly planning to avail the Galaxy S8 and S8+ in Kenya in early May.
May 5th, to be exact.
As has been the norm over the last couple of years, Samsung Kenya is expected to open pre-orders for the two devices some time next month ahead of their May 5th local launch. It is only then that we can expect to have a clear picture of the local pricing for the two devices. In the US, for instance, the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ are set to go for between $720 and $850 (approximately Kshs 75,000 and 88,000) respectively which gives us a rough picture of what to expect when it comes to local pricing and our [high] taxes being factored in.
Here’s what you can look forward to when that day comes, spec-wise:
| Samsung Galaxy S8 | Samsung Galaxy S8+ | |
| Dimensions and weight | 148.9 x 68.1 x 8.0 mm, 155g | 159.5 x 73.4 x 8.1 mm, 173g |
| Display | 5.8-inch Quad HD+ (2960x1440 pixels, 570ppi) | 6.2-inch Quad HD+ (2960x1440 pixels, 529ppi) |
| Camera | Main: Dual Pixel 12MP with OIS (f/1.7) Selfie: 8MP with Auto Focus (f/1.7) | Same |
| Processor | Snapdragon 835 or Exynos 8895 | Same |
| Memory | 4GB RAM, 64GB internal storage (expandable upto 256GB) | Same |
| Operating System | Android 7.0, Nougat | Same |
| Battery | 3,000mAh | 3,500mAh |
| Network | 3G, 4G (Gigabit LTE) | Same |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4/5GHz), Bluetooth 5, USB Type-C, NFC | Same |
| Others | Fingerprint sensor, iris scanner, Samsung Pay | Same |
One more thing, I just hope this hideous case doesn’t make it to Nairobi come May:
