After what was a few weeks of confusion over a couple of new devices that Samsung was revealed to be working on for the Chinese market, it was finally reported that these devices would be the Galaxy S8 Lite and the Galaxy A8 Star. While the former has gone official as the Galaxy S Lite Luxury in China, the latter – which carries model number SM-G8850 – is still under wraps. That's not stopping the rumor mill from going about its way, though. A hands-on video showing the SM-G8850 has leaked online, and it has revealed that the device is actually called the Galaxy A9 Star.
Galaxy A9 Star comes with 24-megapixel and 16-megapixel dual rear cameras
Like the rumors, the Galaxy A9 Star's specs have undergone a few iterations as well over on the TENAA website, which is China's telecom authority that every device must be approved by before it can be launched in the country. Right now, the specs include a 6.28-inch Super AMOLED display of Full HD+ (1080×2220 pixels) resolution, 24-megapixel and 16-megapixel sensors for the dual rear camera, a 16-megapixel front-facing camera, a 3,700 mAh battery, 4GB of RAM, and 64GB of storage. Unsurprisingly, the device runs Android 8.0 Oreo out of the box; the only spec not certain right now is the processor ticking under the hood.
Cameras with resolutions higher than 16 megapixels have long been a staple of the mid-range smartphone segment in China, and the A9 Star looks to be an answer to the raging competition Samsung has faced in the country. The company also released the Galaxy A6+ with a 24-megapixel front camera recently, though that device isn't expected to be released in the Chinese market. The A9 Star's rear camera is also set up vertically in the corner like it is on the iPhone, an unabashed attempt by Samsung to take advantage of the iPhone craze that exists in China, just like Chinese OEMs have done for a long time and continue to do so even today.
It's also worth noting that despite the off-center placement of the rear camera module, Samsung has left the fingerprint sensor quite high up the body instead of placing it a bit lower to make it easy to reach. It's a limitation the company doesn't look interested in solving right now, despite the fact that a lot of users complain that they smudge the camera lens on the Galaxy S9 thanks to the position of the fingerprint sensor being so close to the vertically placed camera.
There's no word on when the Galaxy A9 Star will go official, although it shouldn't take long at this point. Do check out the video posted above and tell us what you think of the device, and whether you believe it should also be released in markets outside China. We also have a poll asking our readers if they would be interested in the Galaxy S Light Luxury (the Galaxy S8 Lite), so do take a look at that as well.
