Samsung ‘no notch’ smartphone tech leaked, could be included in Galaxy S10

YouTube/Concept Creator

• Samsung may have developed technology that would allow for a
  smartphone’s front-facing sensors to be hidden underneath the
  display. 
• It could lead to a smartphone design that doesn’t need a
  notch.
• It’s not clear if the Galaxy S10 will include Samsung’s
  technology, but Samsung’s own head of mobile DJ Koh did say to
  expect “very significant” design changes for the Galaxy
  S10. 

Samsung reportedly showcased technology that could allow the
company to make a phone without a notch or bezels.

So far, phones with extended “edge-to-edge” displays like the new
iPhones, as well as several recent Android devices like the Pixel
3XL, have needed a small portion of the display to be cut out to
make room for selfie cameras and various smartphone sensors. The
cutout is known as the notch.

Prominent gadgets leaker @IceUniverse posted an image last week
of a supposed Samsung presentation to corporate customers. The
presentation slide pictured below mentions Samsung’s “UPS” (Under
Panel Sensor) tech that looks like it could hide a smartphone’s
various front-facing sensors underneath the display panel.

However, there’s no specific mention of Samsung’s UPS tech hiding
a selfie camera on the slide pictured above. There is a mention
of “Face ID” on the slide, but that doesn’t specifically require
the selfie camera. Face detection could come from infrared
sensors, for example.

If the selfie camera can’t be hidden underneath the display, it’s
likely that a Samsung smartphone would still need a notch or
bezel. Or perhaps some kind of
other innovation like the
Vivo Nex, which has a selfie camera that pops out when you
need it. 

It’s not clear if or when Samsung’s UPS tech will be incorporated
into the company’s smartphones. Some clues are pointing towards
Samsung’s Galaxy S10 flagship device that’s expected in early
2019, and is said to come with “very significant” design changes,
according to Samsung’s own head of mobile DJ Koh.

A concept of the Galaxy
S10’s design.
YouTube/Concept
Creator

The
Galaxy S10 is also rumored to come with several of the
features included in the leaked slide above, like an in-display
fingerprint scanner that’s also hidden underneath the display
called “FoD,” or Fingerprint on Display. There’s also the SoD, or
Sound on Display, feature that’s meant to produce speaker and
phone call audio with vibrations from the display rather than a
traditional speaker.

Still, the slide doesn’t mention the Galaxy S10, so there’s no
telling if all these new features are coming to Samsung’s early
2019 flagship. Even if it did specifically mention an upcoming
Samsung smartphone, it’s better to treat everything here as rumor
rather than fact until Samsung itself reveals the details to the
public. 

Samsung has been a staunch hold out against the notch design.
Instead, it’s latest smartphones have used narrow bezels on the
top and bottom of the display. And instead of adopting a notch
design popularized by Apple’s iPhone X that has smartphone users
divided, the company is seemingly using this
opportunity to innovate on design rather than go with the
notch, which is the easiest option.