Samsung Galaxy S21 leak just revealed dramatic design change

Samsung Galaxy S21 renders
(Image credit: @OnLeaks)

The Samsung Galaxy S21 leaks are coming in fast with the latest one from leaker Ice Universe detailing that the phone’s display will be notably different from the Galaxy S20 range 

The leaker has already hinted at the vanilla Galaxy S21 will have a flat rather than the curved display like a lot of previous Galaxy S series phones, with only the Galaxy S21 Ultra potentially having a curved display. But this leak hammers that point home. 

The reason for this prediction is Ice Universe has said that if the Galaxy S21 series does opt for curved displays, then the new flagship phone range could be delayed until the end of February. 

Ice Universe claimed this situation is “impossible,” likely because all the rumors so far have the Galaxy S21 tipped to come out in January. A potential last-minute change to the phone’s design could throw out this schedule. 

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While Samsung often releases phones around late February, the leaks thus far are fairly adamant that the Galaxy S21 will come out in January. That's because it's Samsung's aim to get a new flagship phone out into the market to try and steal some of the interest in the new iPhone 12 range, especially the iPhone 12 Pro

Ice Universe appears to only be referring to the Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S21 Plus models here, with rumors so far suggesting only the Galaxy S21 Ultra will use a curved display. 

Some people find curved displays gorgeous to look at thanks to being basically bezel free. But others can find them annoying, as curved panels can leave to accidental screen taps. 

However, the Galaxy S21 phones are expected to use a ‘blade bezel’ design, with ultra-thin bezels around all around the display, not dissimilar to the bezels of the iPhone 12. Such a design could make the screen seem expansive and near-bezel free without making it tricky to grip or feel like it could slip out of your hand if you’re not paying attention. 

Given Samsung has been using some form of curved screen for some seven generations of the Galaxy S series phones, abandoning it would be a big move, But then the Galaxy S series could do with a bit of a design tweak given the differences between the Galaxy S10 and Galaxy 20 aren’t profond. 

 Samsung Galaxy S21: What we know so far  

From the rumors so far, we believe the Galaxy S21 will come with an upgraded Snapdragon 765 chip in the U.S. and China, and a Exynos S2100 in the U.K. and other parts of the world. But there’s a chance that the Exynos 2100 might be the more powerful chip, thanks to a partnership with AMD on the graphics side. This would buck the trend of the Snapdragon 8-series chips being more powerful than Samsung’s own in-house silicon. 

We’re expecting a curved rectangular camera module for the Galaxy S21, acting as an evolution over that of the Galaxy S20. The leaks so far have the Galaxy S21 and S21 Plus sporting a trio of rear cameras with the same specs of the Galaxy S20, but there's likely to be some improvement in sensors or at least image processing. 

And the Galaxy S21 Ultra could have a pair of telephoto cameras, one delivering a 3x zoom and the other going up to a 10x optical zoom. 

Batteries sizes are expected to range between 4,000 mAh and 5,000 mAh, much like the Galaxy S20. But we’d expect some improved battery management tech to get the best out of these battery packs. 

If the Galaxy S21 range does come out in January, then we’ve not got long to wait to see if all these leaks and rumors come true. Stay tuned to our Samsung Galaxy S21 hub for all the latest updates. 

Roland Moore-Colyer

Roland Moore-Colyer a Managing Editor at Tom’s Guide with a focus on news, features and opinion articles. He often writes about gaming, phones, laptops and other bits of hardware; he’s also got an interest in cars. When not at his desk Roland can be found wandering around London, often with a look of curiosity on his face.