Galaxy Note 7: New cameras lead the hardware line-up

Galaxy Note 7: New cameras lead the hardware line-up

Evan Blass reveals the latest news on Samsung's next flagship phablet – including the low-down on its name

Samsung's next flagship phablet will definitely be called the Galaxy Note 7 – and will come with some new hardware features, according to the ever reliable Evan Blass.

Posting his finds on Twitter, the tipster says official branding material shows Samsung will skip over the "6" name and go straight to Note 7. It's said this is to bring all of its handsets in line – a new, more powerful device labelled "6" could give consumers the wrong impression, considering this year's Samsung smartphone is the Galaxy S7.

Alongside that, Blass pours cold water over rumours of a 5.8ins display, saying the screen size will stay at 5.7ins, but that the Note 7 will boast a QuadHD SuperAMOLED panel, although there's no word on whether this display will be curved, as has been previously touted.

Camera hardware looks set to be plucked from the Galaxy S7, with a 12-megapixel main lens featuring the phone's dual-pixel autofocus technology, and a five-megapixel front-facing camera.

The Note 7 will boast IP68 water and dust resistance - significant given that, with its removable S-Pen, the phablet is much harder to waterproof than a regular handset - and Blass also tips an iris scanner to make the cut. In addition, customers will have a choice of three colours: black, silver or blue.               

Lastly - an addition Forbes is keen to point out as one of the biggest changes coming – the Note will feature 64GB on-board storage as its base level, with Micro SD expandable storage capabilities said to be on the cards, too.

Its "great to see microSD expansion will be available" after being removed from the Note 5, says the site, adding that the 64GB baseline option could cause headaches for rival Apple.

The increased minimum will help the Note 7 stake its claim as the best on the market for power users. Apple currently offers its iPhone 6S Plus handset with a 16GB entry level option and it's hard to see the company jumping straight from a 16GB baseline to a 64GB standard for its "7" generation of phones. A 32GB iPhone 7 Plus could be in the pipeline, but as Forbes points out, "even that hands the advantage to the South Koreans".

The Note 7 is expected to be unveiled in August, giving Samsung a head-start over Apple, whose next Plus sized iPhone isn't expected until a month later.