Samsung is reportedly pushing for an earlier release date for the rumored Galaxy S7. The Android flagship is said to be introduced in late January 2016 likely via the CES in Las Vegas then the rollout will follow a few weeks after - in February that is.
This is true especially for the South Korean tech giant's home base and specifically for SK Telecom, one of the country's largest network service providers. According to G4Games, an unidentified SK Securities analyst has leaked the possibility of the Galaxy S7 debuting first through SK Telecom.
To support the reliability of then information, the report noted that SK Securities and SK Telecom are both owned and operated by the Korean firm SK Group.
G4Games also said that the Galaxy S7 hitting the market first via SK Telecom is not exactly new as the telco appears to enjoy close ties with Samsung. When the Galaxy S5 came out in 2014, SK Telecom was the first to offer the handset so it is not far-fetched that the same will happen with the Galaxy S7 next year.
But the more interesting tidbits of the news is the indication that Samsung is again adjusting its release calendar to best deal with the iPhone 6S juggernaut, BGR observed in a related report. This 2015, the Galaxy maker had decided to unpack the Galaxy Note 5 and Galaxy S6 Plus ahead of schedule, which according to rumors is Samsung's way of making sure that its 2016 flagships will perform head-to-head with the iPhone 6S and 6S Plus.
Despite the head start, the Apple smartphone duo appears to have outpaced their Galaxy rivals by clearing around 13 million of unit sales during the first week of availability. For its part, Samsung has yet to disclose initial sales figures for both the Note 5 and S6 Plus.
The Galaxy S7, however, could prove a better story for Samsung. This early, the flagship is touted to be most powerful handset in its class mostly thanks to the use of Snapdragon 820 as its main engine. The casing is said to be tougher than the competition with Samsung likely to used magnesium alloy for the frame and a new glass coating that is more robust than the Corning Gorilla Glass cover.
And like the Galaxy S6 before it, the S7 is said to unbox in two versions - a regular and an Edge edition.
So if indeed Samsung has already penciled February 2016 as the Galaxy S7 release date, the smartphone could be the first Sammy flagship to rock Android 6.0 Marshmallow.