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Top smartphone announcements to expect at CES 2018 (and some not to)

By Nick Todorov

Updated: Nov 30, 2017, 8:05 AM

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Top smartphone announcements to expect at CES 2018 (and some not to)

Some say that what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but in January, that certainly won't be the case – or at least not as far as the Consumer Electronics Show is concerned. Once again, all kinds of high-tech gadgets – from self-driving cars, drones, and VR contraptions to Bluetooth-enabled hairbrushes and smart toasters – will be shown during the event, and the word about those will resonate globally. And you know what? We'll be there too!

So, what exactly is CES going to bring this time? Well, we can't be entirely sure at this point, but that's where rumors and speculations come into play.

A Samsung Galaxy S9 launch? More like a Galaxy S9 teaser

A Samsung Galaxy S8 next to what the Galaxy S9 might look like

Samsung's Galaxy A series of smartphones may not be its most exciting, but it sure does sell well globally, hence the rumors of a 2018-edition Galaxy A roster come as no surprise. The rumored Galaxy A3, A5, and A7 successors could be announced and shown during CES 2018, as was the case with their 2017 counterparts.

However, it is rumored that Samsung could pull off a "one more thing" by showing the Galaxy S9 as well. This is highly unlikely to be a grand unveiling of Samsung's next flagship smartphone, especially when it has been only 8 months since the Galaxy S8 was introduced. Rather, we're probably going to be treated to a teaser of some sort before the Galaxy S9 is announced officially – in February or March, perhaps. In any case, Samsung's CES press conference is one you wouldn't want to miss.

A new Sony Xperia flagship with refreshed design

If you look up Sony's Xperia phones in our database, you would instantly notice that they follow the same design approach. And this approach hasn't really changed much over the years – the current Sony Xperia XZ1 looks a lot like the Xperia Z from 2013, both in terms of physical and user interface design. But in 2018, Sony could finally shake things up a bit with a fresh new flagship device, and we won't be surprised if that is announced at Sony's CES press conference.

While clues are scarce at this point, this new Xperia could be Sony's first phone to adopt the increasingly popular 18:9 display aspect ratio. In other words, it could have narrower bezels and a taller screen filling more of the handset's front, much like what we have on the latest Samsung Galaxy and LG phones. A dual main camera hasn't been mentioned.

The Sony Xperia XZ1 is a pretty good phone, but its design is certainly old school

The Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chip? That's probably coming earlier

UPDATE: The Snapdragon 845 is already official.

Back at CES 2017, Qualcomm took the stage to announce the Snapdragon 835 system-on-chip, which is still its most powerful and ticks inside a number of high-ends: the Galaxy Note 8, the LG V30, the Sony Xperia XZ1, the OnePlus 5T, to name a few. Previously, Qualcomm had also made chip announcements at CES – in 2015, for instance, when it introduced the Snapdragon 810.

The Snapdragon 845 is rumored to be Qualcomm's next best silicon, but that could actually come prior to CES. In fact, the Snapdragon 845 chip could be made official in just a few days – on December 5 (or December 4, depending on where you live. Time difference can be a drag). That's when Qualcomm will be hosting its Snapdragon Summit event in Hawaii, outlining its view of the future of mobile. There have been no official teasers or hints so far, but a Snapdragon 845 announcement seems believable.

What about the LG G7?

LG will be hosting a CES media event on January 8 at CES, and rumors about a G7 announcement are making the rounds. However, we remain skeptical, as these aren't backed by any solid evidence. Instead, the event could be focused on home appliances, such as smart TVs and Wi-Fi-enabled refrigerators. And in terms of smartphones, LG might show us some new mid-range hardware, as it has in recent years, though that's just a guess on our side.