Smartphones components have gotten amazingly compact in recent years, and devices like the Galaxy S8 are examples of the kind of high-performance hardware companies can fit inside thin smartphones bodies. But one area where these woefully thin smartphones have fallen behind is battery size. With current battery technology, bigger batteries need more space, and when you go all bezel-less as Samsung has with the S8, it's hard to offer a large battery that can keep up with the rest of the hardware. With the Galaxy S9, all that could finally change, according to a report by ETNews.
For the Galaxy S9's mainboard, Samsung is reportedly looking to shift to using SLP (which stands for Substrate-like PCB) technology. Unlike the High Density Interconnect (HDI) technology that is used by smartphone manufacturers today, SLP allows for the same amount of hardware to be put inside a smaller space, through the use of thinner interconnects and an increased number of layers. In simple terms, SLP mainboards can be more compact, so manufacturers could fit today's high-performance processors and other components in a smaller package, thereby leaving room for, say, bigger batteries.
With the Galaxy Note 8 expected to feature a smaller battery compared to the Galaxy S7 edge or Galaxy S8+, the move to SLP on next year's flagships would certainly be a welcome one if it will indeed equate to higher capacity batteries. Samsung will reportedly continue to use HDI technology for its Qualcomm-powered flagship variants, but we're guessing it will find a way to use SLP across both Exynos and Qualcomm variants instead of asking consumers in a couple of markets to make do with smaller batteries than the rest of the world.
ETNews says Samsung is making preparations for the production of SLPs with various South Korean PCB makers (including Samsung Electro-Mechanics), and could be the first OEM to use SLP mainboards. The word is that other phone manufacturers will not find it as easy to acquire SLP technology, although Apple is expected to be unaffected as it is also preparing a similar move in 2018, meaning the two smartphone stalwarts could score an even higher lead over the competition next year.
