Samsung fans may have to wait a bit longer for the next big thing in wireless. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) At a press event in Korea, Samsung CEO Koh Dong-Jin (known as DJ Koh) made several important announcements concerning Samsung's upcoming phone, the Galaxy S10. Among them was the fact that the S10 will not be the company's first phone with 5G. The announcement was first reported by ZDNet. This announcement comes as a bit of a surprise, as a number of rumors and "leaks" over the past few months have speculated that the phone will contain a 5G chip. Galaxy Note 9 Hands-on Review - Is It Worth $999? Koh did not make clear which Samsung phone will debut with 5G connectivity. It could be the next in the Note series, likely to drop in the second half of 2019, or the foldable phone Koh confirmed the company is working on (also known as the Galaxy X or Galaxy F). The choice to delay a 5G phone, while surprising, makes sense. While countries like the U.S., China, Japan and South Korea are likely to see widespread 5G adoption within the next year, many other countries will have to wait longer. On the other hand, a 5G chip might take up more space in a smartphone, or use considerably more battery life. It makes sense for 5G to debut on a more expensive phone that will be more concentrated in western nations. Koh made several other hardware announcements as well. Samsung still hopes to be the first manufacturer to release a 5G phone, Koh noted. He also stated that Samsung still plans to be the first company to launch a foldable smartphone, in hot pursuit of likeminded competitors such as Apple and Huawei. Koh also denied rumors that the Galaxy and Galaxy Note brands are being combined. Finally, Koh said that the company will launch the tools necessary to develop for Bixby and its new Galaxy Home at its upcoming developer conference in November. Samsung is preparing Bixby for the next "five to ten years."<doc-sep>It's a whole six months before the release of the Galaxy S10 and Samsung has confirmed that it has developed the world's first 5G modem that is fully compliant with 3GPP telecommunication standards. The Exynos Modem 5100 is a new single-chip unit that, as well as delivering the super-fast power of 5G with support for multi-mode communication, also supports legacy technologies currently in widespread use in the commercial phone market, such as 2G, 3G, and 4G LTE, opening up the tantalising possibility that Samsung's first 5G smartphone is much, much closer than anyone imagined. Read more: Samsung Galaxy Fold review (early verdict): we're sold on the fold The dramatic 5G reveal came courtesy of a post today on Samsung's official Newsroom, where the South Korean maker also stated, in news that is sure to worry Huawei who is also racing to release a 5G phone, that: “Samsung’s leadership in communication technologies and market-proven knowledge allowed us to develop the industry’s first 5G modem. As the industry prepares the shift toward 5G, Samsung will continue to drive the growth of innovative ideas and new services in mobile applications.” Now, this development naturally raises the question: what will Samsung's first 5G phone be? At first many reports indicated that the Samsung Galaxy S10 was to be the maker's first 5G phone. However, only a few days ago did Samsung CEO, DJ Koh, come out and rather cryptically note that the S10 would not be the first 5G phone released by the company. So why won't the S10 be Samsung's first 5G phone? That's unclear at the moment. Koh's comment could mean that the S10 will not feature 5G. Or it could mean that another 5G phone will be released in advance of the Galaxy S10 and the S10 will still be a 5G phone, just not Samsung's first. Samsung's new Exynos 5100 5G modem. Could this feature in next year's flagship Galaxy S10 range? There are definite reasons why the new modem might not feature in the Galaxy S10, foremost among these being the size of the chip (which is reportedly quite large), as well as heat, with the extra power of the chip potentially leading to cooling issues within current smartphone designs. This leads to the conclusion that the first 5G phone Koh is hinting at has a different form factor, such as the much-rumoured Samsung Galaxy X folding phone (this has also been reported as the Galaxy F). The Samsung folding phone is reportedly slated for an unveiling in January 2019, too, maybe with a sneak peak at CES 2019 in Las Vegas, so this lines up in terms of time frame to be the first, and ticks the different form factor box as well. Another possibility is that Samsung releases the 5G Galaxy X after a 4G Galaxy S10 (which will almost certainly get an official unveiling at Mobile World Congress). But that would leave at least three months of 2019 empty for another maker, such as Huawei or Sony and its 5G Xperia, to steal the world's first 5G phone crown. Or how about a particularly unlikely scenario: holding the 5G modem back for inclusion in the Galaxy Note 10? With the Note series typically launching in August, that would mean Samsung would be sitting on a 5G modem for an entire year, which doesn't sound at all realistic. That means, aside from Samsung pulling another phone we currently know nothing about out of its hat late this year or very early in 2019, that indicates that the firm's 5G tech currently looks set to launch in the Galaxy X. Hopefully we'll find out more soon, as we for one can't wait for the era of 5G to arrive.<doc-sep>
(Pocket-lint) - Samsung's first 5G mobile device won't be the Galaxy S10. The company launches a handful of devices every year, including two flagships lines. For instance, the Galaxy Note 9 and Galaxy S9 were this year's flagship updates. Samsung has begun previewing its 2019 phone plans, and it's already confirmed that its first 5G phone won’t be the Galaxy S10. It also confirmed that it’s planning multiple foldable phones, according to ZDNet. Samsung mobile chief DJ Koh told Korean journalists that the company is working with South Korean carriers to launch a 5G phone - but it won't be the upcoming Galaxy S10. Samsung is working on a separate 5G phone, though it gave no other details to the media, leaving many to suspect it'll be a one-off device distinct from the Galaxy S and Note lines. It's also unclear if it'll be a foldable phone. Samsung has long been rumoured to be developing foldable phones, and Koh’s comments suggested the company has four phone launches scheduled for 2019: the S10, the Note 10, a 5G phone, and a foldable phone, each with separate brand names. “For the immediate future,” Koh said, “there won’t be a change in launching the S series in the first half and Note series in the second half of the year.” Motorola's new Moto G9 Plus is a stunner of a phone - find out why, right here By Pocket-lint Promotion · 27 May 2021 Koh also suggested the foldable phone's launch is imminent, noting Samsung doesn't “want to lose the world’s-first title”. He explained Samsung has been “focusing on developing innovations" and has solved issues related to the phone's design. The phone, which has been dubbed the Galaxy X, is thought to feature a 7-inch display that folds. It could cost as much as $1,500 when it launches. You can learn more about Galaxy X rumors from here. Writing by Maggie Tillman.