Samsung Mocked The Display Notch, But The Galaxy S10 Could Potentially Embrace It

Over the past few months we've heard some pretty interesting rumors about Samsung's upcoming Galaxy S10 flagship. One of the rumored features that is most likely to come to fruition is the inclusion of an in-display fingerprint sensor, replacing the rear-mounted sensor on current Galaxy smartphones.

One other feature reportedly on tap for at least some variants of the Galaxy S10 is a completely notch-free display. This rumor has been fueled by patents that Samsung filed for sensors embedded within the display -- including selfie cameras -- and the company's recent move to mock notched smartphones like the Google Pixel 3 XL.

The hidden camera technology under the screen is immature, and there is not enough light to reach the camera through the screen. The photos taken by the current camera are very blurred. This technology will not be realized until 2020.

— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) November 9, 2018

However, commentary from noted leaker Ice Universe is beginning to shed some doubt on a truly notch-free Galaxy S10. According to Ice Universe, "there is not enough light to reach the camera through the screen" in current display prototypes which cause blurry images, and that such tech won't be viable until at least 2020. In other words, we might not see a true notch-less design -- i.e. "New Infinity" -- until the Galaxy S11 in 2020.

I think the Galaxy S10 is an Infinity-O screen.

— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) November 9, 2018

So what kind of notch will the Galaxy S10 have? Well, it will reportedly use Samsung's new Infinity-O display design, which basically has a circle cut out of the display to accommodate the front-facing camera. Other notch shapes revealed at the Samsung Developer Conference this week include Infinity-U and Infinity-V.

Of course, the idea that the Galaxy S10 will use an Infinity-O Display is pure speculation at this point, but if the issues surrounding using a camera module embedded within the display panel haven't been resolved, it's the only plausible solution. We honestly can't see Samsung going with a slider design like Xiaomi and other Chinese OEMs.

In the meantime, while we all wait for Samsung's first true notch-less, bezel-free design, the company will launch a foldable flagship Galaxy smartphone with an Infinity Flex Display. This smartphone, which was showed off in prototype form earlier this week, will have a primary 7.3-inch display (2152x1536) and a secondary 4.58-inch display (840x1960).