Rumor: Galaxy S11 could really amp up battery size next year

It’s November, which means it’s time to start talking about the Next Big Thing from Samsung.

There are already a few small Galaxy S11 tidbits making the rounds, including a possible codename: Hubble. But today we have something a little more palpable – the likely battery capacity of the Galaxy S11e, the smallest of the expected trio of new flagships from Samsung.

The folks over at GalaxyClub unearthed a listing on the website of Korean safety watchdog SafetyKorea, showing a battery with model number EB-BG980ABY. Following Samsung’s numbering convention, Galaxy S11 devices are likely to bear model numbers beginning with “98.” For reference, the Galaxy S10e has the code SM-G970, the Galaxy S10 SM-G973, and the Galaxy S10 Plus, SM-G975. It follows that this battery will likely be found in the Galaxy S11e.

The listing contains an image, which is rather low-res, but does hold a few clues. You can just about make out the rated and typical capacities, though the figures are too small to confidently read. The rated capacity appears to be in the 3,700mAh range, while the typical capacity appears to be 4,000mAh.

These are guesses based on the blurry pic, but one value is more clearly readable – 14.36Wh, which, divided by the 3.85V voltage of previous batteries in Samsung flagships, would give a value of 3,730mAh for the typical battery capacity.

Noted Chinese leaker Ice Universe threw his weight behind GalaxyClub’s detective work.

Ice Universe notes that the battery has a new form factor that’s more similar to the Note 10 Plus’, rather than the Galaxy S10e’. That means the S11e could bring significant hardware changes compared to this year’s model.

If the Galaxy S11e does indeed have a battery rated at 3,700mAh-4,000mAh, we can be very optimistic for the capacities of the Galaxy S11 and Galaxy S11 Plus. These larger devices could accommodate batteries that are closer to 4,500mAh or even higher.

For reference, the Galaxy S10e has a 3,100mAh battery, the Galaxy S10 3,400mAh, and the Galaxy S10 Plus 4,100mAh.

Larger, denser batteries are an essential selling point for modern flagships – Google Pixel 4 XL aside. HUAWEI packs a 4,500mAh unit on the Mate 30 Pro, and even Apple, long seen as a laggard when it comes to raw specs, put a 3,970mAh battery on the iPhone 11 Pro Max.

Samsung is no stranger to beefy batteries. The Galaxy M30s, for instance, hits a whopping 6,000mAh.

There’s also a chance that Samsung will make the Galaxy S11e larger, rather than keeping the same form factor as this year. The industry is still trending towards bigger screens, so that shouldn’t come as a shock, though fans of compact designs will surely cry foul.

A likely explanation for this big bump in battery capacities is the coming – in earnest this time – of 5G. The new-fangled standard is known to have brutal battery consumption, all but forcing manufacturers to push the envelope of battery dimensions.