It has been known for a while now that Samsung is developing a 5G Galaxy S10. It will offer a separate variant with support for this next-generation network standard. An earlier report had suggested that this model may be available from Verizon in the United States.
Without confirming any specifics of the device itself, Samsung and Verizon today confirmed plans to launch a 5G smartphone in the first half of 2019. They don't mention the Galaxy S10 but all signs certainly point to that device.
5G Galaxy S10 for Verizon has more or less been confirmed
Carriers in the United States will switch on their 5G networks next year. Their counterparts in South Korea have already done that. They have even conducted the first video call on a commercial 5G network using a Samsung smartphone.
Samsung and Verizon are attending Qualcomm's Snapdragon Technology Summit in Maui this week. They will unveil a proof of concept 5G device with Qualcomm's Snapdragon X50 5G NR modem at the summit. This modem will likely ship with the Snapdragon-powered variant of the 5G Galaxy S10. Samsung is reportedly working on its own 5G modem as well, the Exynos 5100. It would be present in the Exynos 9820-based variants of this device.
Verizon has already launched its commercial 5G service in the United States but for home broadband. The 5G network for mobile devices will go live in early 2019. Furthermore, Verizon says it will expand “rapidly” once it goes live. The carrier also adds that users of this Samsung 5G smartphone will be able to immediately benefit from the speed and capacity of the network.
It's unlikely that a different device is being developed for the carrier. There's a high possibility that the phone both companies have mentioned in this announcement is the 5G Galaxy S10. They're obviously not naming it because the handset isn't official as yet. Samsung will officially unveil the Galaxy S10 at MWC 2019 in February. It's expected to start shipping units in March.
