Samsung Galaxy S5 to Include Stylus Functionality, Miss Snapdragon 805: Rumors [Release Date Update, Specs Review]

The Galaxy S5 will include "passive" stylus functionality and updated versions of Air View and Air Gesture, according to a report by ET News.

Samsung is reportedly working with Synaptics, which will help develop actions such as touch-screen interaction and S-Pen capability for the tech giant. The company previously worked with Samsung for its Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3 smartphones.

The update to Air View, which allows users to preview e-mails, photos and more by hovering their S-Pen, will be "accurate and reliable, and [will] increase the range of detection," ET News reports.

Synaptics will also help Samsung integrate stylus functionality into the GS5, which could feature a touchscreen panel capable of recognizing the stylus' pen point measuring as small as 2.5 pi. While this may not be to the caliber of the interaction between a device and an S-Pen, it will help provide better precision, Android Authority reports.

Another recent report suggests that the Galaxy S5 will miss out on the Snapdragon 805 CPU set to release in 2014.

Chipset manufacturer Qualcomm reportedly told Trusted Reviews that the first devices to run the processor will not launch until "mid-2014," which is months after the GS5 is scheduled to be available for purchase.

"In November we announced Snapdragon 805, the next-generation of 800," Tim McDonough, Qualcomm's Vice President of Marketing told Trusted Reviews. "We've said it will launch mid-year."

Samsung plans to introduce the Galaxy S5 in April, possibly with eye-scanning technology, Bloomberg reports.

Lee Young Hee, executive vice president of Samsung's mobile business, confirmed the S5's arrival to Bloomberg at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. The smartphone will be accompanied by the next Galaxy Gear smartwatch iteration, according to Young Hee.

The report adds that the Galaxy S5's design will veer from its two predecessors, which have been knocked by some for looking too similar. Young Hee did not specify on any of the features included in the GS5. While she also did not confirm "iris scanning technology" for the upcoming smartphone, NBC News reports it wouldn't be a surprise to see the tech debut in the GS5 considering how prominently biometrics were featured at CES.

Samsung may also be looking to switch things up with the GS5's display, as a recent report claims Samsung plans to ditch its Super AMOLED HD display in favor of a 5.25" 2K Ultra HD LTPS display panel for the smartphone, according to Chinese website Tencent (as reported by GSM Arena).

Though Samsung has favored its own AMOLED displays for its flagship smartphones since the Galaxy S, the South Korean tech giant has instead opted for the Sharp display's 560 ppi density, Tencent claims.

Another reason for the switch is apparently with one of Samsung's subsidaries, which has experienced production issues with the 2K Ultra HD AMOLED displays, halting Samsung's production, GSM Arena reports. It should be noted that if Sharp is to produce the Galaxy S5's display, it would still be beneficial for Samsung, which owns a 3% stake in the company.

The report seems to confirm an earlier alleged GS5 benchmark result that featured a 2K UHD display.

It was also recently reported that Samsung will launch the Galaxy S5 alongside a metal body Galaxy F smartphone, according to Korean publication ET News.

The Galaxy F would be the first Samsung smartphone with a metal chassis. According to ET News, the phone's metalic prototype was developed in Europe and moved to Samsung's plant in Vietnam.

The report adds that the Galaxy F will help kick off a new line of "super-premium" smartphones, with the Galaxy F serving as a higher-end version of the Galaxy S5. It is unknown whether the smartphones will carry the same specs with different bodies or if the Galaxy F will feature better specs than the S5, as well.

While the Galaxy S5 will likely be a hot item with several carriers, it could be linked up to AT&T first, as a new rumor suggests the wireless carrier is testing a device with the GS5 code name.

AT&T and Samsung have hooked up in the past, with AT&T receiving both the Galaxy S4 and Note 3 months ahead of their respective releases, Gotta Be Mobile reports. The leak comes via evleaks, who claims AT&T is testing a device code named Samsung SM-G900A, which is believed to be the S5. It would make sense for AT&T to have begun internal testing on the device based on its rumored release date, which is possibly four months away.