Samsung Galaxy S8 to feature smaller case, more screen space

Ahead of a March announcement and an April launch, two Samsung Galaxy S8 variants are being prepared with an emphasis on case size reduction and screen size maximization.

The handsets' screens will be between 5 and 6 inches, The Guardian reports, curving over the edge of the casing as with the Galaxy S7 Edge.

Overall size reductions mean that there will be "very little body on the top and bottom of the screen" -- so much so that Samsung branding will not be present on the device's front. The report specifically confirmed a leaked January 17 image of the new style screen. A fingerprint scanner has been moved to the device's rear, where it joins a duo pixel camera that improves on the S7's setup.

Beefed-up internals, 64GB storage, support for up to 256GB memory cards, USB-C, and new versions of the Gear VR headset and Gear 360 camera were also mentioned.

An object-recognizing AI assistant and a range of accessories that turn the Galaxy S8 into a desktop computer -- a monitor, keyboard, and so on -- are also expected to launch for the handset.

Samsung's Galaxy S8 represents a significant opportunity to recover from the troubled launch of 2016's Note 7 and to secure its market share versus Apple, Google, and an increasingly popular Huawei.