Samsung Galaxy S11, S11 Plus, and S11e - Everything we know so far (Updated) - Android

Update: December 30, 2019 (03:38 PM ET): The article below has new information regarding how the Samsung Galaxy S11 series might not even be called the S11 series. We’ve also got new rumors about telephoto lenses, optical zoom, and (hopefully) the real rear camera setup.

Read on for all the details!

Original Article: December 5, 2019 (10:37 AM ET): We’re coming up fast on Mobile World Congress 2020, which will happen towards the end of February. At or around that event, we fully expect to find out the Samsung Galaxy S11 release date as well as see its final design and included features.

So far, we’ve seen more than a few rumors pertaining to the S11 lineup, including professional renders of what the Galaxy S11, Galaxy S11 Plus, and Galaxy S11e could look like. We also have a few rumors related to possible specs, and some of the internals of the device we can infer based on past models.

Related: We asked, you told us: Most people think the Galaxy S11 lineup is hot

For the most up-to-date and well-rounded look at what we will very likely see from the Galaxy S11 family, continue on below! As soon as we know for certain what the Samsung Galaxy S11 release date, price, specs, design, and other features are, we will update this post.

Samsung Galaxy S11 series: Name and launch date

Ice Universe

Last year, Samsung released the Galaxy S10 series so it would make sense to expect that 2020 will contain the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S11 series.

However, there is a rumor that that might not be the case. The rumor is shaky for sure, but frequent tipster Ice Universe says the Galaxy S11 could be known as the Galaxy S20 instead, claiming that next year marks a “new beginning” for Samsung and the brand.

Huawei did a similar thing with its own flagships, jumping from the P10 to the P20 and the Mate 10 to the Mate 20, so it’s not unheard of for a name change this significant to be possible. Samsung also skipped a device version once when it jumped from the Samsung Galaxy Note 5 to the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 in an effort to keep the S-series and Note series in sync.

However, Ice Universe isn’t the most reliable of tipsters out there, so take this rumor with a massive grain of salt. Until we hear something more solid, we are going to operate under the assumption that Samsung is launching the Galaxy S11 series in 2020, not the Galaxy S20 series.

As for the launch date of the Samsung Galaxy S11 series, it’s a safe bet to assume we’ll see the new devices at or around Mobile World Congress in late February 2020.

Design

Cash Karo

Thanks to reliable leaker @OnLeaks, we already have renders of the Samsung Galaxy S11 family that are likely pretty accurate.

According to the renders, you can expect four major design changes with every device in the 2020 Galaxy S lineup:

• A rectangular rear camera module: The center-aligned, horizontally configured camera module featured on the Samsung Galaxy S10 family likely won’t carry over to the S11 group. Instead, a vertically aligned, left-of-center rectangular module will likely be the format.
• A single, centered punch-hole selfie camera: The right-aligned punch-hole cameras in the displays of the Galaxy S10 family likely won’t carry over to the S11 line, either. Instead, the S11 line could adopt the look of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 line and integrate a single, centered punch-hole camera.
• No Bixby button: The renders we’ve seen so far suggest that all the physical buttons of the Galaxy S11 family will be on the right side of the device: a power button and a volume rocker. The Bixby button that usually appears on the left seems to have been axed.
• No headphone jack: From what we know so far, the Galaxy S11 family will be the first entries in Samsung’s much-loved “S” line without 3.5mm headphone jacks.

With those big changes out of the way, let’s take a look at each of the devices in the Galaxy S11 family and what their renders tell us.

Samsung Galaxy S11e

As with the Samsung Galaxy S10e, we expect the Galaxy S11e to be the cheapest entry in the S11 family. It will likely cut a few corners design-wise to keep the price down as compared to the Galaxy S11 and S11 Plus.

However, the 2020 entries in the Galaxy S family could all be more similar to each other than we saw in the 2019 models.

Related: Here’s our first look at the Samsung Galaxy S11e

One of the more significant changes that the renders above suggest is that the Galaxy S11e could have a curved display. The Galaxy S10e was the only device in the S10 lineup with a flat display, but it appears Samsung is going all-in on curves this time around.

Another significant potential change is the removal of a physical, side-mounted fingerprint scanner. These renders don’t depict the sensor we found on the Galaxy S10e, suggesting the S11e could have an in-display fingerprint sensor, as featured on the S10 and S10 Plus. It’s also possible that the S11e will have an optical fingerprint scanner rather than the ultrasonic scanners we expect in the higher-end models.

Samsung Galaxy S11