Samsung has delayed the Galaxy Note 9 by two weeks due to a design change

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After a previous report claimed Samsung was aiming for a late July unveiling for the Galaxy Note 9, a new one from The Bell now states that this is no longer the case due to a last-minute design change.

As noted, it appears Samsung’s Vice Chairman Lee Jan-Yong visited a number of local stores in Shenzhen to check out competing smartphones and, upon doing so, the Chairman is said to have realized that other smartphones offer an increased feeling of grip. In light of this, Lee Jan-Yong reportedly spoke to Samsung’s engineers in the hope fixing this issue by reducing the thickness of the Galaxy Note 9’s display glass by 0.5mm, a decision that has ultimately led to a delay of two weeks. If this is the case, the Galaxy Note 9 should see an official announcement towards the beginning of August, falling in line with the company's typical timeline, with sales then expected to commence by the end of the month.

Currently, the Galaxy Note 9 is expected to introduce on minimal updates over last year’s flagship, one of the biggest external differences being a minimal increase in display size – the Galaxy Note 8 boasted a 6.32-inch panel, whereas the Note 9 is set to feature a 6.38-inch display. On a hardware note, Samsung’s Exynos 9810 will power the device in all markets except the US, where the Snapdragon 845 by Qualcomm will be employed. This should be accompanied by 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. Although a previous rumor said a 512GB variant was being debated.

If Samsung chooses to stick with an August release, the Galaxy Note 9 will be once again be given a much-needed head start in the flagship market. After all, not only is Apple’s new 2018 lineup expected to arrive in mid-September, but the South Korean company will also face increased competition from the LG V40 and Huawei’s Mate 20 line come fall.