Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Release Date Nears: Alternate Variants Could Include Flexible Display, 5.5-Inch LCD Display, And 16GB ROM

The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is on its way, but rumors indicate that there may be many other variants of the Note 3 also coming out with alternative specs to what has already been revealed.

Prior to the Galaxy Note 3 unveiling, reports indicated that we may see up to four variants of the Note 3, each with slightly different features, likely to cater to different markets. We have heard rumors of versions with alternate display sizes, display types and camera quality for the Galaxy Note 3. Now, several sources are rehashing these rumors, indicating that soon there may be many models of the Galaxy Note 3 on the market.

Limited Edition with Flexible Display

Previous rumors suggested that one Samsung Galaxy Note 3 variant we may see would be a Limited Edition model with various high-quality components. Now reports out of Korea indicate that a supposed Limited Edition model of the Galaxy Note 3 will feature a flexible display. Rumors of flexible display development have followed Samsung for months, ever since the manufacturer unveiled its Samsung Yuom flexible display technology at the Consumer Electronics Show in January. Those rumors died down after Samsung announced in April that it had hit a snag in the development of its flexible display; however, interest has slowly begun to build again, especially with Samsung having held a contest urging third-parties to submit their flexible display business plans. A recent report also indicates that Samsung plans to have products with flexible displays on the market by November.

All reports remain unconfirmed; however, we do know that Samsung often experiments with new components by releasing them in variants of already released devices. We saw Samsung do this with its LTE-Advanced variant of the Samsung Galaxy S4, which includes the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor, and will now be included in LTE models of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3. The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 is scheduled to be released internationally on Sept. 25 with the device coming to the U.S. and Japan in October.

Low-Cost Version With 5.5-Inch LCD Display

Previous rumors suggested that one Samsung Galaxy Note 3 variant we may see would be a low-cost model with an LCD display. Other old rumors suggested that Samsung was testing many different display sizes for the Galaxy Note 3, including a 5.5-inch display, 5.7-inch display and 5.99-inch display. Now reports indicate that a 5.5-inch LCD display model is currently being tested in India and may be available to markets in November. This LCD model was reportedly delayed for release in order to allow Samsung to advertise the Galaxy Note 3 as a high-end device. Samsung has notably done this with other devices; the Samsung Galaxy S4 released on its own with other niche variants such as the Galaxy S4 Mini and Galaxy S4 Active releasing later with lower-end features and a smaller price tag than the original. Some suggest that the Zauba shipping manifest discovered indicates such changes in display type and camera resolution that may hint at a low-cost Galaxy Note 3.

16GB Internal Storage Option

Rumors about internal storage options for the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 prior to being announced suggested that the Note 3 would feature 32GB and 64GB models, doing away with the 16GB model, which proved to be too little ROM for many Samsung fans. This rumor was confirmed at the Sept. 4 unveiling of the Galaxy Note 3. Now reports indicate that the Hong Kong market will receive a 16GB model of the Galaxy Note 3 on Sept. 25 when the Note 3 releases internationally. SamMobile recently noted that Fortress, a Hong Kong retailer lists the Galaxy Note 3 in a 16GB option. It is not certain whether this indicates that Hong Kong may only receive a 16GB model of the Galaxy Note 3; however, if the smaller ROM option does show up at the Note 3 release, the larger options are expected to release at a later date.

Do you think we will see these Samsung Galaxy Note 3 variants release to the market? Let us know in the comments below.

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