BlackBerry. Apple. Moto. Samsung -- a sneak peak at 2016's potentially most exciting releases
The technology calendar, particularly when it comes to phones, is pretty damn predictable. We have MWC in Q1 of every year, where Android is always out in force. This year’s expo was one of the best in recent memory with the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S7 and LG G5 alongside a slew of smaller, but equally interesting releases and updates from Google’s other hardware partners.
The LG G5 and the Samsung Galaxy S7 were the talk of the town, however, and HTC was sorely missed. Fortunately, we didn’t have to wait too long for HTC to show up with its latest flagship. Later on in the year we always have a Note release to look forward too, unless it’s 2015 of course, and then in September comes Apple’s iPhones. We also tend to get new Huawei and Nexus phones around this time as well. And that about rounds off the big launch windows for each year.
Apple bucked its usual trend in 2015 and decided to pile everything into its September iPhone event. Fast forward to 2016 and we, again, have once again a different approach. Apple announced the iPhone SE and the iPad Pro 9.7 in Q2, a first for the company in recent history.
The iPhone SE was an odd launch, though. It kind of felt like an apology from Apple to its customers for upscaling the display sizes from the iPhone 6 onwards. Reviews have been decent for the 4in iPhone. But it is the iPad Pro 9.7 that stole the show; Apple’s latest iPad is by far and away the best tablet on market right now. It has everything: specs, hardware, features and looks.
Beyond this we’re most excited about the arrival of Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 and Huawei’s Mate 9 handset, which is due out inside Q4 alongside Android N. Both handsets will almost certainly support Google’s recently announced Daydream VR platform as well as tons of high-end spec and hardware.
Google’s Nexus 2016 Phones are also generating a lot of hype as well. According to the latest reports these HTC handsets, codenamed Marlin and Sailfish, will feature a new Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset in the form of the slightly faster Snapdragon 821, which features 2.3GHz KRYO cores.
There is also talk of Google developing its own, non-Nexus handsets for release later on in 2016. Could these handsets be the oft-rumoured Pixel phones we’ve heard so much about in the past? Perhaps. Google has, after all, developed the hell out of its Pixel line of hardware with the Chromebook Pixel and Pixel C tablet. Taking these into account, a Pixel phone makes a lot of sense.
The only real issue here — aside from whether or not this is a good move for Google — is how its traditional hardware partners will react. Going the Apple route does make sense, as it gives Google more control over everything, but it does put it in direct competition with the likes of HTC and Samsung and LG.
Still, both Huawei and Samsung have talked about ditching Android in the not too distant future in a bid to create their own, bespoke mobile platforms — the only true way to make BIG bucks in this game. Whether this is just talk remains to be seen. Personally speaking, ditching Android sounds like suicide to me. But this could well be the reason why Google is exploring its own hardware aspirations more seriously in 2016/17.
These handsets will also launch with Android N and Google’s Daydream platform inside. In this respect, Google’s Nexus 2016 Phones could feature two firsts, unless Huawei beats it to the punch with the Mate 9 that is. Speaking personally, I am most excited about the Nexus Phones out of all the handsets on this list. I love my Nexus phones and this year’s sound like the best yet — no mean feat when you consider the quality of last year’s Nexus 6P.
Hype around the Galaxy Note 7 has reached an all-time high during the last few months. The handset sounds utterly superb and because Samsung nixed the release of the Galaxy Note 5 here in the UK there is a real thirst for all things Note at present, especially since the rumoured specs include an ENORMOUS battery, 6GB of RAM and a bunch of new features and updates to core components like the camera, stylus and display.
Here's some of the big hitters to look forward to inside 2016.
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