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Samsung officially launching something next month, just not the Galaxy S8 phone

Samsung isn't launching a phone at Mobile World Congress, but it's unveiling something. Perhaps a tablet rumored to have a 9.6-inch screen and 12-megapixel camera.

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Jessica Dolcourt VP, Content Operations and Commerce, CNET Group and CNET Labs
Jessica is a passionate content strategist and team leader across the CNET family of brands. She leads a number of teams, including commerce, performance optimization and the copy desk. Her CNET career began in 2006, testing desktop and mobile software for Download.com and CNET, including the first iPhone and Android apps and operating systems. She continued to review, report on and write a wide range of commentary and analysis on all things phones, with an emphasis on the iPhone and Samsung devices. Jessica was one of the first people in the world to test, review and report on foldable phones and 5G wireless speeds. Jessica began her leadership role managing CNET's How To section for tips and FAQs in 2019, guiding coverage of topics ranging from personal finance to phones to home. She holds an MA with Distinction from the University of Warwick in the UK.
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Watch this: Sorry, no Galaxy S8 yet from Samsung -- but look at this shiny tablet!

We already know that Samsung's next landmark phone, the Galaxy S8, won't make its debut at the Mobile World Congress tech show in late March, but that doesn't mean Samsung will come empty-handed.

Samsung will officially host an event at the annual conference for all things mobile, sending press invites for Sunday, February 26, in Barcelona.

samsungmwc-invite.jpg

Samsung just made an MWC event official.

Samsung

While we don't know for sure what Samsung will show us, there is a rumor it'll be the Galaxy Tab S3, according to SamMobile citing a Korean source.

Samsung holding back its star Galaxy phone at the largest mobile tech show leaves the company's rivals in a better position to drum up excitement about their coming devices, like the LG G6. But holding an event will give Samsung an opportunity to steal back some of those headlines ahead of its own Galaxy S8 phone launch, which is expected to come in late March.

The Tab S3 would be a follow-up to the Tab S2, which impressed CNET with its superb screen.

It's rumored to have:

  • 9.6-inch display with 2,048×1,536-pixel resolution
  • 12-megapixel rear camera
  • 5-megapixel front-facing camera
  • Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor
  • Android 7.0 Nougat
  • 4GB of RAM

The Galaxy Tab S3 could start selling in March, SamMobile noted, for around 700,000 won, which converts to about $610, £485 and AU$800.

Samsung did not respond to a request for comment.

CNET will be covering Mobile World Congress 2017 live from Spain, so stay tuned for all the news.

First published January 31 at 10:26 a.m. PT.

Update, 4:29 p.m. PT: Added Samsung's official invitation.