New reports indicate that Samsung plans to release its very first metal smartphone next month under the Galaxy Alpha moniker.
Rumors of a metal-clad Samsung Galaxy smartphone have been making rounds for quite some time, but so far the company has stuck to its infamous love of plastic. Once the current Galaxy S5 flagship was out and about, rumors started to claim that Samsung would launch a more premium version of the handset, which would debut as the Galaxy S5 Prime or Galaxy F, boasting a premium metal body.
The latest information, however, claims that a premium smartphone from Samsung will launch next month with a metal body, but it will be called the Samsung Galaxy Alpha.
The news comes from Korean reports based on "industry sources," as the Korea Herald revealed. These plans are reportedly part of a preemptive effort to counter Apple's next-generation iPhone, which is expected to come this September in two large-screen models.
While these claims remained unconfirmed at this time, it's worth pointing out that Samsung did trademark the "Galaxy Alpha" name early next month, which means there's a strong possibility that this will be the commercial name of the rumored Galaxy F.
The premium smartphone will reportedly sport a 4.7-inch Super AMOLED display, a "premium metal" body, and a powerful Exynis 5 Octa processor under the hood. The handset is also rumored to be significantly thinner than the current Galaxy S5, measuring 6mm instead of 8.1, as well as the iPhone 5s, which measures 7.6mm in thickness.
According to ETNews, the Samsung Galaxy Alpha could launch as soon as next month, and will be the first on a new lineup of top-notch devices, independent of the Galaxy S line. The rumored 4.7-inch screen size is smaller than that of the latest Galaxy flagships, but may be a not-so-subtle jab at the purported 4.7-inch iPhone 6. Apple is also expected to launch a larger model with a 5.5-inch display, and Samsung would counter that with its next-generation Galaxy Note 4 phablet.
It remains to be seen, however, if this information turns out to be accurate, as nothing is confirmed at this point. If Samsung does indeed plan to release a metal smartphone next month, more details should surface shortly.
