[Poll] Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8+: What device are you thinking of getting?

At this point, we don’t need any more confirmation that the Galaxy S8 will be offered in two models, a standard one with a 5.8-inch display and a Plus model with a 6.2-inch display. Despite the significant leap in screen sizes, especially for the base model, handling them shouldn’t be as horrific as it would generally be with such large displays, thanks to the minimal bezel on the Galaxy S8.

But no matter how ergonomic you make a smartphone, big screens will present problems. There is just no way you can reach the top of a 5.8-inch display in one-handed usage unless you have really big hands, and it will be even more challenging on the Galaxy S8+. It’s unclear why Samsung has decided to make the displays on both variants of its upcoming flagships so huge. The company even risks affecting sales of the Galaxy S8+ given the regular model will also have a screen that’s equivalent in size to devices in the Galaxy Note lineup and be available for a lower price.

In fact, it might just be the battery life that makes the S8+ more attractive, especially since rumors say the 5.8-inch S8 could have just a teeny 3,000 mAh battery. But things will only be clear once the Galaxy S8 makes its official appearance later this month. While we will have a similar poll up once the phone is unveiled, we thought we would ask you the question a little early: What Galaxy S8 variant are you planning on picking up?

Let us know through the poll below, and get a conversation going in the comments section!

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SamMobile Daily Recap: March 20, 2017 — Galaxy J7 (2017), Galaxy S8 and more!

We publish a lot of stories on a daily basis. Unfortunately, most of the news breaks during our European hours of operation, which makes it difficult for our readers in the US (and other regions) to follow every post that goes live. But, we think we’ve come up with an ideal solution — a daily recap.

In the list below, you’ll find the stories we’ve published today. Chances are, you’re not going to be interested in all of them. To help you find what’s important to you, we’ve split them into their respective categories — so if you want to see the latest Galaxy S8 news, locate the Phones subheading.

Phones

Galaxy J7 (2017) for AT&T makes its FCC stop

Virtual Reality

Get your daily weather forecast in virtual reality with AccuWeather for Gear VR

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Samsung makes Galaxy S8′s Bixby voice assistant official

We exclusively reported a long time back that the Galaxy S8 is going to feature a virtual assistant called Bixby which will be more capable than the likes of Siri and Cortana. Samsung has officially confirmed this artificial intelligence-powered smart assistant today.

The core philosophy that drove Samsung to develop Bixby is to have a machine learn and adapt to the user instead of users having to learn how the machine works and interacts with the world.

The interface had to be natural and intuitive enough to eliminate the learning curve even when new functions are added to it rapidly. Samsung employed artificial intelligence and reinforced deep learning concepts to the core of its user interface designs and Bixby is the result of that ongoing effort.

Samsung confirms that Bixby is going to be its new intelligent interface on its devices and that it’s fundamentally different from other voice assistants available currently. The company points out three areas of strength that give Bixby an edge over its rivals.

It describes one of them as “Completeness.” When an app is Bixby-enabled, the assistant will be able to carry out almost every task via voice commands that the app is capable of performing via touch input. Since most voice assistants only support selected tasks for an app this can often lead to confusion about what can and can’t be done with voice commands. Samsung says that this completeness property of Bixby will make it very easy for users to learn the true capabilities of the voice assistant.

Bixby is also going to have Context Awareness. When users are in a Bixby-enabled app, they will be able to call upon the assistant at any time and it will automatically understand the current context and state of the app. It will enable users to use multiple modes of interactions like touch or voice depending on the context and whichever the users feel is more comfortable.

Cognitive Tolerance is also one of Bixby’s strengths. Some users might struggle to remember the exact form of voice commands as the number of supported voice commands increases. Bixby is said to be smart enough to understand commands that have incomplete information and will be able to execute the relevant task to the best of its knowledge. It will then prompt users to provide more information as and when required. Samsung says that this makes the interface more natural and easier to use.

Samsung has confirmed today that Bixby will debut with the Galaxy S8. The new flagship is going to come with several Bixby-enabled apps pre-installed. The number of Bixby-enabled apps will expand over time and Samsung eventually plans to release an SDK which will enable third-party developers to make their own apps that work with Bixby.

The company also confirmed that its next device – which we all know to be the Galaxy S8 – is going to have a dedicated Bixby button that’s going to be located on the side. This will make it easy to summon the assistant and make voice commands. For example, if you want to make a call, instead of having to turn on the display, unlock the phone, opening the phone app and then the contacts section to find the person you want to call, you just need to press the Bixby button and tell it to dial the person.

Samsung added that it will gradually add Bixby to all of its appliances as well. Users will be able to control their air conditioner or TV through Bixby in the future. As it will be implemented in the cloud, all a Samsung device needs to work with Bixby is an internet connection and “simple circuitry to receive voice inputs.”

Samsung will talk more about the many features of Bixby in detail on March 29 when it unveils the Galaxy S8.

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Daily Deal: Save 42% on a pair of Active InEar headphones

For a limited time only, you can snag yourself a pair of Samsung’s Active InEr headphones for $13.22 (42% off). For the record, these are the same earphones that ship in the box of the firm’s latest smartphones and come with a set of interchangeable wingtips.

If you want to take advantage of this deal, click the Buy Now button below. We advise you to hurry, though, as Amazon only has a limited amount of inventory available and as this is an international promotion, we have a feeling it’s going to disappear pretty quickly.

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Are you a fan of smartphone leaks?

The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus are probably Samsung’s most-leaked smartphones to date. We’ve already seen the handset from all angles, learnt about their functionality and have some basic pricing details, leaving little for the firm to announce during its event on March 29. This got us thinking, do consumers like seeing leaks or would they prefer that Samsung did a better job at keeping its latest devices under lock and key. Let us know what you think in the poll below.

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