GADGETS LAUNCHING

Apple iPhone 2018

OK, so we don't know what it'll be called. iPhone 11? XS? X Plus? 9? Whatever it's called, you're probably going to want one.

Rumours suggest the iPhone X design could get two more sizes, mini and Plus, with upgrades to the internals of the X itself. Others suggest there could be cheaper alternatives that keep the design.

Either way, expect more than one iPhone this September. Apple had to play catch up with the iPhone X, and it won't want to do that again. Likely with an A12 processor, better battery tech, iOS 12 and faster charging, this is going to be the best iPhone. Again.

Apple iPhone SE 2

The iPhone SE is Apple's small and cheap iPhone, the only one still on sale with a 4in screen but well overdue an update. What on earth is it doing in a round-up of the *best* new phones coming in 2018, you might wonder.

Well, let us explain. The iPhone SE 2 we've all been waiting for may not be the cheap, small iPhone we're expecting. In fact it may be an iPhone X SE, with a larger screen and higher price tag.

According to rumours the new SE will still be cheaper than the iPhone X, but cheap is not a word we'd associate with a phone that might still cost £649.

It's likely the phone will see a 6.01in LCD screen with an iPhone X-like notch, but it will lose 3D Touch to cut down costs.

It's likely the iPhone SE 2 will be announced at WWDC, which has now been confirmed for 4 June.

Xiaomi Mi8

This is Xiaomi's upcoming flagship, and it will arrive on 5 June, after being announced on 31 May. A slightly delayed release date compared to what we were expecting, rumours suggest this is due to Xiaomi experimenting with embedding a fingerprint scanner within the display. When the Mi8 does arrive it will undercut the price of its UK rivals and offer much the same hardware - perhaps even better.

This is the first Xiaomi phone to have a notch, on a 6.2in OLED screen (2248x1080) from Samsung. This sits inside a four-way curved glass back panel and an aluminium frame.

Other firsts for Xiaomi include the addition of wireless charging (this has been implemented in the Mi Mix 2S announced in late-March), and dual frequency GPS for improved accuracy .

In addition to the standard model, there's a budget-friendly Mi8 SE, and the suped up Explorer Edition, which boasts a transparent back and that much-rumoured in-screen fingerprint scanner.

If you're wondering what happened to the Mi7, Xiaomi is skipping that model with the Mi8 in celebration of its eight anniversary.

Google Pixel 3

Three new Google Pixel phones are expected to land on 4 October 2018, with one of them poised as a rival to the iPhone X.

Codenamed Crosshatch, Albacore and Blueline, we know that these new pure Android phones will run the to-be-announced Android 9.0 P, and that they will likely carry the 10nm (second-gen) Snapdragon 845 processor and feature 18:9 pOLED panels.

HTC U12+

The HTC U12+ is now official, but bizarrely there is no standard model - it's all about the Plus. It has dual-cameras front and back, and HTC is making a lot of noises about its excellent audio and video recording capabilities.

There's a 6in tall (18:9) Quad-HD display with no notch, supporting a range of 'edge' gestures that involve squeezing and tapping the sides of the phone to interact with the device.

Core specs are standard flagship fare, with the Snapdragon 845, 6GB of RAM and 64GB storage.

With prices starting at £699, undercutting the Galaxy S9 but overpriced compared to the LG G7 and OnePlus 6, HTC has not confirmed exactly when the U12+ will go on sale. You can read more about it here, and in our hands-on review.

LG V35 ThinQ

We were expecting to see the V40 ThinQ announced this year - and that may still happen at IFA in September - but until then LG has surprised us by revealing the V35 ThinQ.

On sale in the US from 8 June, there's no word yet on a UK release, so it may never arrive here. If it does though, it boasts a 6in 18:9 OLED screen (with no notch) powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, which is accompanied by 6GB of RAM and at least 64GB of storage.

There's a bigger battery than the G7 at 3300mAh but generally many specs are the same including the dual rear cameras, Quad DAC, DTS-X virtual surround sound, wireless charging and IP68 waterproofing.

Read more about the V35 ThinQ.<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-in.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=IN&source=ac&ref=tf_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=amazonoffe03c-21&marketplace=amazon&region=IN&placement=B01DEWVZ2C&asins=B01DEWVZ2C&linkId=a68d970d5d04f50db39ac1a90b722d74&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true&price_color=333333&title_color=0066c0&bg_color=ffffff">
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Microsoft Surface Phone

Microsoft's Surface Phone has been the stuff of rumours for more than two years, and only a few months ago we believed all hopes were dashed with news that Microsoft was killing Windows Phone.

But the company has filed fresh patents for a foldable mobile device, reigniting rumours on the possibility of a Surface Phone. It's still no more than a maybe, making estimating a release date impossible. But if the Surface Phone does eventually see the light of day, we could see a foldable phablet to rival the Galaxy Note X.

Moto Z3

Three new models in the Moto Z family are tipped to arrive this summer, with the Moto Z3 and Z3 Play expected in early June and the Moto Z3 Force in late-July.

All three are thought to have 6in 'borderless' (18:9) displays, though the Force will feature a Quad-HD resolution while the Z3 and Play are stuck on full-HD. It will also have the most powerful spec, with the Snapdragon 845 inside.

No fingerprint scanner is visible on the leaked images - is Motorola ditching it for an iris scanner, or are we finally about to see mainstream phones with fingerprint scanners embedded in their screens?

Support for Moto Mods is a given, but there's talk of a new 5G Moto Mod that lets you bolt on the latest mobile tech.

Nokia 9

In 2017 the Nokia 8 Sirocco arrived in place of the Nokia 9. It sort of was the Nokia 9, but the 2017 model with an old processor, and we're still waiting for the Nokia 9 2018. This may well be announced in August at IFA, and hopefully this one will actually be called the Nokia 9 to save confusion.

It's set to be a great phone, with headline features including a 5.7in Quad-HD+ POLED screen with an in-display fingerprint scanner and iPhone X-style notch.

Powering the show should be the Snapdragon 845 and up to 8GB of RAM, while there's also talk of a 22Mp dual-camera from Zeiss. Looking to the Sirocco for ideas we'd also guestimate USB-C audio (no headphone jack), IP67 waterproofing and Qi wireless charging.

Nokia 10

Rumours have surfaced on yet another Nokia flagship, although they're best described as "sketchy".

A Nokia 10 could be released at IFA 2018 (running from 31 August) with a five-lens primary camera and the Snapdragon 845 inside.

Razer Phone 2

The original Razer phone, the first smartphone built for gamers and to support a 120Hz refresh rate, was met with huge interest from consumers. So it's good to hear a second version is in the planning, and likely to be with us in September.

Theories on what to expect are still rather thin on the ground, but there's talk of an improved camera setup.

Samsung Galaxy S9 Mini

You may have read rumours about a Galaxy S8 Mini. However, with the Galaxy S9 having been fairly recently announced it's looking more likely that if such a phone exists it will be the Galaxy S9 Mini, not the Galaxy S8 Mini.

There's very little to go on right now, but one mobile leakster has suggested Samsung is working on a 5in screen phone with a full-screen Infinity Display.

It sounds a lot like a potential Galaxy S9 Mini, but it could equally be an update to the Galaxy A series, with the A6 and A6+ also rumoured to be coming soon. We'll have to wait and see.

Update: We've now had our first real look at what the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 might look like, thanks to leaked renders.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 launch date is likely two months away, according to a new leak that hints at a release date weeks sooner than previous years.

The Note 9 is always big news because it's an Android phone with a large screen and handy S Pen, although rumors of an in-screen fingerprint sensor may be premature.

Instead, we're likely to see Bixby 2.0 and an improved dual-lens camera, maybe one with the HDR video recording left out of the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus.

Today, we're sorting through the rumors and leaks (there are a lot of them), and to do that we've gotten out our trusty S Pen stylus ready to declare which are plausible, and which are just wishful thinking.

Here's everything we know about Samsung's extra-big Android phone. samsung note 9

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 release date

Earlier launch date expected: Thursday, August 9 at Samsung Unpacked
Earlier release date expected: Before the next iPhone launch event

You may be able to get your hands on the Galaxy Note 9 sooner than anticipated, as the Samsung Unpacked launch event may be in early August.

Thursday, August 9 is the rumored launch date, with the announcement expected to happen in New York City. Last year's phone was announced on August 23.

There's been a lot of evidence backing this up. The Note 9, said to be codenamed 'Crown', supposedly had a prototype ready in the first quarter of 2018, noted The Investor. It cites market watchers who pinned the phone for early to mid August.

Samsung was also said to be testing firmware for the phone ahead of schedule, two weeks earlier than where it was with the software for the Note 8. And remember, the S9 firmware was tested earlier than the S8 and that went on to launch earlier, too.

Supply chain sources are also reporting that screen panels were being built for it two months earlier than normal, going as far as calling out a late July launch date. That's a little too ambitious. August 9 sounds like a much more likely date.

Why the earlier release date?

Samsung needs the Note 9 is be attention-grabbing enough to outlast the iPhone X2 and iPhone 9 phones that Apple is likely to unveil in early September.

Sure, the Note series is always announced first, but by the time Note phones actually comes out, the hype surrounding Apple's new iPhones is already at a fever-pitch.

That's the No. 1 reason why we expect Samsung to give us the Galaxy Note 9 earlier. It needs to get its phone in its first customers hands in August or early September at the very latest.

The dimensions of the Galaxy Note 9 have also been supplied, with the phone apparently coming in at 161.9 x 76.3 x 8.8mm, making it slightly shorter but marginally wider and thicker than the 162.5 x 74.8 x 8.6mm Galaxy Note 8. So the size is similar overall, which is no surprise, since the screen will apparently also stay at roughly 6.3 inches.

As there haven’t been any other images yet there’s nothing to compare these to, so take them with a grain of salt, but the source is solid and they look convincing enough.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 price

It'll be an expensive whether or not it sees a price increase

The Note 9 price is unlikely to have the same good news that we're seeing from the early release date. Whenever it does arrive, it's bound to be expensive.

The Galaxy Note 8 retailed for $929 / £869 / AU$1,499 at launch and we can’t see Samsung lowering the price for the Note 9, especially now Apple has pushed smartphone prices even higher with its iPhone X.

Here's the Note 9 price wildcard: The S9 and S9 Plus saw a price increase in most countries. However, it was cheaper in the US. We may see another split decision, depending on where you buy the Note 9.

For now, you'll have to be satisfied with the Note 9's predecessor if you want a phone with a stylus on the cheap. Check out today's best Galaxy Note 8 deals.

Note 9 in-screen fingerprint sensor

The biggest Samsung Galaxy Note 9 rumor relates to its fingerprint scanner, which months of rumors have indicating could be built directly into the phone screen.

We've seen (and tested) in-screen fingerprint sensors in phones out of China, and A Samsung is testing multiple in-screen solutions and will probably use one of them, a move which could also apparently allow room for a larger battery in the Note 9.

That tallies with a source who's said the Note 9 will have both an in-screen scanner and a big 3,850mAh battery.

However, a slightly earlier rumor points to the in-screen fingerprint sensor skipping the Note 9, just like it did on the S9 and S9 Plus, Note 8 and S8 and S8 Plus before. There's more reason to believe it'll show up on the Galaxy X (Galaxy S10 next year).

Both Samsung and Apple have been rumored to be working on this but failed to achieve it in time for their most recent handsets, pushing Samsung to move the scanner to a sub-optimal position on the back of the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Note 8, while Apple ditched it altogether from the iPhone X.