April 19, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Rumors of Samsung Electronics’ flagship smartphone Galaxy S are usually rampant this time of the year, with media outlets and well-known tech leakers competitively churning out alleged specifications and images.

Most recently, Evan Blass, a well-known leaker and journalist, tweeted a picture of what he alleged to be the Galaxy S10 models. In the picture, the smallest model, presumably the lower-end Galaxy S10E, is fitted with two camera modules on the back while two other larger-sized variants, deemed to be the Galaxy S10 and S10 Plus, feature three camera modules.

Photo of the alleged Galaxy S10 variants / Evan Blass

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Separately, a photo of an alleged prototype of the Galaxy S10 went viral online. It was claimed that one of the beta testers for the phone had shared the image in an open chat room on KakaoTalk messenger.

A Samsung official was quoted by a Korean news outlet as saying that “it has not been verified yet whether the picture of the alleged prototype had been leaked by an insider, and the company currently has no plans to investigate the case.”

Some believe the leaks are actually a publicity stunt orchestrated by the tech giant.

“It’s normal to pull these stunts for more publicity,” said one industry watcher. “In fact, some may get paid for participating in such marketing campaigns.”

There are no real teeth to back up these claims, but for the past few years, this kind of information about up-and-coming new phones have broken immediately ahead of the launch of Samsung’s marquee phones -- usually the Galaxy S and Note series.

Some sources of the leaks are said to include workers at smartphone manufacturing sites, beta testers, and parts suppliers. Market watchers point out that if the leaks weren’t intentional, Samsung was doing a pretty bad job in keeping a lid on its operations.

Meanwhile, Samsung’s Galaxy S10 models are scheduled to be unveiled at the official launch event in San Francisco on Feb. 20. Along with the three variants of Galaxy S, the company’s first foldable smartphone, tentatively named Galaxy F, is forecast to be unveiled at the event.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)