Samsung Galaxy S8 Home Button To Disappear In New Design?

What was supposed to be a moment of glory for Samsung turned into a nightmare when its flagship device, the Galaxy Note 7, instead of selling like hot cakes, just began getting very hot instead — reportedly emitting smoke in many cases — and prompted the company to first recall and then discontinue the smartphone altogether.

While the South Korean company deals with the damage, both to its profit book and reputation, all eyes are on its next flagship device, the Galaxy S8, which is expected to launch in February 2017. Samsung absolutely needs it to perform well and awe users if it is to maintain its leadership in the smartphone market.

Rumors about features and specification of the device have been doing the rounds for months, and a recurrent one says the company will ditch the home button in the S8. Last week, rumors said the phone will likely have a 90 percent screen-to-body ratio. A new report Monday by Android Headlines takes that a step further.

The report cited sources within Samsung’s supply chain who said vendors hadn’t received any orders from the company for parts that make up the home button, which makes it likely the S8 won’t feature the home button in its usual place just below the display.

If true, the design change will be quite a significant departure for Samsung, which has kept the home button virtually unchanged since the first device in the Galaxy series over seven years ago. According to speculation, the fingerprint scanner could be housed under the display or even on the back of the phone.

Quashing earlier rumors of a UHD 4K display, the sources also said the S8 will feature a 2560x1440 QHD display instead.

Because of the problems with the battery in the Note 7, the cause of which still hasn’t been identified, Samsung is also said to be considering using a power source for the S8 from a third-party supplier.