Samsung officially introduces Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus

Finally the Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8+ are finally official, and will go on sale on April 21.

The company's newest flagship phone boasts a wraparound edge-style 5.8-inch display with superslim top and bottom bezels (but the all-screen design means the fingerprint sensor moves to the rear). It'll be the first phone with Samsung's new Bixby AI assistant and (in some regions) and the first with the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chip. Iris scanning and facial recognition are on board, too. It otherwise retains the familiar features from the Galaxy S7, including a 12-megapixel camera, water-resistant body, wireless charging and -- yes -- a headphone jack.

Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus Specs:- 

• 5.8/6.2-inch curved Super AMOLED screens (if you ignore the rounded corners)
• ~2:1 aspect ratio (2960×1440)
• HDR 10 support
• Bixby voice assistant
• Snapdragon 835 (or equivalent Exynos)
• 4 GB RAM, 64 GB Storage
• 12 MP F1.7 OIS Rear Camera
• 8 MP F1.7 AF Front facing camera
• Iris scanner
• Android 7.0
• Dual Bluetooth audio
• USB-C port with Quick Charge 4 support
• 3,000/3,500 mAh battery
• IP68 weather resistance
• ‘DeX’ desktop dock
• Headphone jack

The screens of the Galaxy S8 and bigger S8+ are also larger despite the devices being smaller than last year's S7 and S7 Edge.

This time, both models feature displays that curve round the phones' sides.

The launch follows Samsung's botched release of the Note 7, which was recalled twice after fires.

The South Korean firm blamed the problem on battery faults and said it had since put in additional safety measures, including X-ray scans of batteries.

The company has also become mired in a corruption scandal in its home country.

Hello Bixby

The phones also introduce Bixby - a virtual assistant based on technology acquired from some of the original developers' of Apple's Siri.

The helper is activated by a dedicated side-button and allows 10 built-in apps - including a photo gallery, messages and weather - to be controlled by voice.

It is "context-aware", meaning users can ask follow-up questions and assume it is aware of what is currently displayed.

Samsung said it expected owners to mix together voice commands and physical controls - for example asking to see all the photos taken today, then tapping the ones they want, before verbally requesting they be messaged to a friend.

The software can also be used to recognise objects seen via the phone's camera. This can be used to identify a landmark, for example, or tell the owner how much a product would cost to buy online.

Bixby works with Google Play Music, and Samsung intends to open it up to other third-party apps in the future but has not said when.

At launch, it is only designed to recognise US and Korean voices.