Category: Samsung Galaxy S8

Today’s Deal is on the powerful flagship Android phone, the Samsung Galaxy S8.  Right now you can pick up the unlocked version of the phone with 64GB of storage in Midnight Black for $574.99.  That’s $150 off the original price of the phone.

The 5.8″ Galaxy S8 will be powered by the octa-core Snapdragon 835 processor running four cores at 2.3GHz and the other four running at 1.9GHz.  It is coupled with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage which is expandable up to an additional 256GB thanks to the MicroSD card.  The display renders at 2960 x 1440 QuadHD with an impressive 571 PPI.  Powering all of it is a 3000mAh battery which is charged with inductive charging.

Camera wise, the rear shooter is a 12MP camera with OIS and has a f/1.7 aperture.  On the front is an 8MP camera.  The S8 is IPS68 rating meaning it is water and dust proof.

Sprint has released the June Android Security Update on their network for the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus.  The updates are 250MB in size and mostly consist of the security update but also have a few other minor performance improvements too.  For the S8, you are looking for build G950USQU1AQFJ while the S8 Plus will be getting version G955USQU1AQFJ.  The update is rollin g out now and should hit all devices over the course of the next week.

Along with the security updates, there are fixes for the Find My Mobile app as well as an LTE Roaming fix and a SMS fix for “(/5)OK”.

For those who have been waiting for the unlocked variant of the Samsung Galaxy S8 or S8+, you can now get your order in at Samsung’s website.  The company is offering both devices unlocked with a nice package of goodies along with it.  Orders are being taken now with shipments happening by May 30th.  Regardless of which one you order, Samsung is making an entertainment kit available for free with purchase that includes a standing case, a SanDisk 64GB MicroSD card and six free months of Netflix.

If you want a Galaxy S8, the outright purchase price is $724.99 while the S8+ is $100 more at $824.99.  Qualified buyers can apply for financing from Samsung which $30.21 per month for 24 months for the S8.  For the S8+, the monthly payment is $34.38.

The Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus may have only been released last week but they are already receiving updates from carriers here in the United States that carry them.  AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon all have released updates to the new flagship devices which should be hitting those who own the phone via an OTA update over the course of the next few days.  The update is about 300MB in size across all of the carriers.

All of the updates contain the April 2017 Android Security update as well as baseband updates for each of the carriers.  These two reasons alone make this a must have download as it assures the security of the device as well assuring it will work optimally with your carrier of choice.  This update also addresses general performance improvements around the display and fixes some known bugs with the software.

The news today that Microsoft will be selling the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ in their stores caught more than a few people by surprise.  The company, through multiple reboots, has tried for years to get their Windows Phone platform off the ground with limited success.  At the same time, they have been continually developing their suite of apps for both Android and iOS, appealing to both consumers and enterprises as being available on whatever device the end user wants to use.  It has worked.  Microsoft continues to be the dominant player in the enterprise with Office 365 and are taking their fair share in the consumer space at the same time.

But the addition of the new Galaxy S8 lineup to their store inventory is another step all together.  It is, more-or-less, an admission of defeat.  They know that the market is set between Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android and that it simply cannot bear another mobile platform.  Consumers, and for that matter enterprises, have said as much with their wallets.  As this tale of woe has unfolded, much digital ink has been spilled on the lack of a Microsoft mobile strategy.  I, for one, think that is wrong.  I think Microsoft has had a mobile strategy all along.  It’s not about devices or even the platform.  It’s about the apps.

Good news for those of you who are wanting to get your order in for the new Samsung Galaxy S8 or S8+.  All four of the major carriers here in the US have them available to order as well as Best Buy and Amazon.  If you do place a pre-order, you can expect your new Galaxy to be at your doorstep just before or on April 21st when the phone will be available in stores.  Demand for these phones is expected to be extremely high so pre-ordering is not a bad option.

All of the major carriers are pretty much around the same price for the phones which will be locked to their networks. AT&T will be offering the S8 for $749.99 outright or you can pay $25 per month for 30 months.  The S8+ will be $849.99 or $28.34 per month for 30 months.

Sprint will be offering the S8 at $744 or $31.25 per month for 24 months.  The S8+ will be $844 or $35.42 per month for 24 months.