Samsung Foldable Smartphone Referenced In Unreleased Android Pie Build For Galaxy S9

The latest and unreleased Android Pie firmware for the Galaxy S9 includes references to Samsung’s rumored foldable smartphone. The firmware files may have also revealed the name for Qualcomm’s successor to the Snapdragon 845 processor.

References to Samsung’s foldable smartphone were first spotted by XDA Developers. The site was able to dig through the latest build of Android Pie for the Galaxy S9 and discovered a framework file that mentions “winnerlte.” For those unaware, Samsung’s foldable smartphone is rumored to have the codename “Winner.”

The filename suggests that this handset is powered by an Exynos chipset, which is manufactured by Samsung. If the device is powered by a Qualcomm chipset, then the filename should be “winnerqlte” and not just “winnerlte,” as pointed out by Phone Arena. It’s being speculated that the upcoming foldable device will be outfitted with either the Exynos 9810 or the Exynos 9820 chipset. The Exynos 9820 is already rumored to be the chipset that will power the Samsung Galaxy S10 in some regions.

The rest of the code also includes the suffix “_us,” but XDA believes that this isn’t a reference to the United States. There’s currently no information yet on whether or not the Samsung foldable smartphone will be released internationally. There have been previous reports that Samsung is only planning to manufacture 120,000 foldable displays for the device, which suggests that the device will only be available in limited quantity and carry a premium price tag.

Unfortunately, the firmware files didn’t reveal any information on the Samsung foldable smartphone specs. There is a popular rumor that the upcoming handset might be called the Galaxy F and it could have a 7.3-inch foldable display and a 4.6-inch secondary display.

The Android Pie build for the Galaxy S9 also included firmware files that may have revealed the name of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor. XDA uncovered a policy file for the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8150 labeled with the filename “sdm8150.” Snapdragon 8150 is believed to be the marketing name for the Snapdragon 845 successor.

This isn’t actually the first time that the Snapdragon 8150 name has popped up. In August, German website WinFuture reported that same name for the Snapdragon 845 successor. The Snapdragon 8150 is rumored to come with a dedicated neural processing unit (NPU) that would allow the chipset to handle more machine learning and AI processes.

It’s believed that the policy file for the Snapdragon 8150 is intended for the Samsung Galaxy S10 and not the Galaxy F foldable smartphone. The Galaxy S10 is rumored to arrive early next year and it may even have a 5G-capable model. If that turns out to be true, then the Galaxy S10 would be using the Snapdragon 8150 processor alongside the Snapdragon X50 modem.