Samsung has dropped the prices of its flagship smartphones, Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+, in India. Both the devices have been listed on Samsung's official online store with the new reduced prices. The Galaxy S8 (REVIEW) is now priced at Rs 49,990 (down from Rs 53,900), while the Galaxy S8+ has been listed at Rs 53,990 (down from Rs 58,900).
The price cut is currently available only on the 64GB storage variants of both the phones. The new prices for the 128GB variants have not been revealed yet.
The new prices are currently reflecting only on Samsung's online store. However, the phones should be available at the new prices with all retailers shortly. Meanwhile, Flipkart and Amazon India are yet to revise the prices at the time of reporting.
Additionally, customers who buy the smartphone from offline retailers can also avail Rs 10,000 cashback from Paytm.
The price cut of the Samsung Galaxy S8 lineup can be attributed to the launch of the latest Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+. Samsung has probably slashed the prices to keep the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ relevant, and to differentiate the older generation models from the newer ones.
The recently launched Galaxy S9 (64GB) and Galaxy S9+ (64GB) are priced at Rs 57,900 and Rs 64,900 respectively, while the 128GB variants are priced at Rs 61,900 and Rs 68,900 respectively.
With the new and comparatively cheaper price tags, the previous generation flagships – Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ offer a good choice for buyers who are looking to buy a top-class flagship device. Moreover, the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ share an identical design with the Galaxy S8 line up, except for the changed fingerprint sensor placement, and the dual rear-camera setup on the Galaxy S9
Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ specs
For the uninitiated, Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ were launched in India in April last year. Both phones are powered by Samsung's proprietary Exynos 8895 SoC and have fairly identical specs, except for the difference in display size.
The Galaxy S8 sports a 5.8-inch QHD+ 91440x2960 pixels) Super AMOLED curved-edged Infinity display with 18.5:9 aspect ratio and Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection, while the Galaxy S8+ comes with a bigger 6.2-inch infinity display with the same resolution and display technology.
The Exynos 8895 chipset under the hood is an octa-core SoC clocked at 2.35GHz and is coupled with 4GB of RAM. The phones come with 64GB or 128GB storage options with expandable storage via microSD card (up to 256GB) in a hybrid dual-SIM solution.
In terms of the cameras, the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ feature 12MP rear cameras with 'Dual Pixel' technology, OIS, and f/1.7 aperture lens. On the front, the phones bear an 8MP front camera with autofocus and f/1.7 aperture. The Galaxy S8 lineup features an Iris scanner for unlocking the device along with fingerprint sensors placed next to the rear camera lens.
Connectivity options on the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ incle 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi (dual-band, 2.4GHz, and 5GHz), Bluetooth 5.0, USB Type-C connectivity, NFC, and GPS. The phones have all the sensors on board including, accelerometer, ambient light sensor, barometer, gyroscope, heart rate sensor, magnetometer and proximity sensor.
The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+come with fast charging and wireless charging support. While the Galaxy S8 is backed by a 3000mAh battery, the S8+ packs a 3500mAh battery.
Meanwhile, the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ come with Android Nougat pre-loaded but have started receiving Android 8.0 Oreo update since February.
