Samsung Galaxy S8 Active leaks in pretty convincing real-life photos

It’s been rumored for awhile now that Samsung will refresh the Galaxy S Active series with a new device more in line with its current generation of flagships. And today it looks like we’re getting our first hands-on look at the upcoming rugged device.

Dominique Henderson, a user on the Android Central forums, started a thread last night, claiming they have a Galaxy S8 Active. The thread contained both pictures and a hands-on video at this link, though the video has since been taken down.

The handset is very similar to both the Samsung Galaxy S8 and the S8 Plus, however it lacks the curved 3D glass edges. It does retain the unique 18.5:9 aspect ratio, though.

According to the user, the screen is shielded by a polycarbonate layer on top, just like last year’s Galaxy S7 Active. Additionally, the Active version comes with severely thicker bezels on all sides, probably for better protection of the display and internals of the phone. The frame itself is reportedly metal, with metal and polymer bumpers in all four corners.

According to the leak, the Galaxy S8 Active will come with a 4,000 mAh battery, which is quite the advantage over the 3,500 mAh power pack on the Galaxy S8 Plus and the 3,000 mAh one on the Galaxy S8. Last year’s S7 Active also came with a 4,000 mAh unit.

The Galaxy S8 Active might be missing some of the unique software features made popular by previous Active devices. For example, the user says the S8 Active’s camera app lacks last year’s Aqua mode, which was meant for shooting photos and videos underwater. That said, it’s worth nothing this is probably a pre-production unit, so things may definitely change from now until this phone is announced.

What caught us by surprise is the lack of an Active Key on the side of the phone. Instead, there is only the Bixby button. Perhaps Samsung completely scrapped the extra key in favor of its digital assistant, or maybe it will employ some clever trick so the button can both summon Bixby and function as an Active Key. I doubt it, though. Samsung seems to be all-in on giving users easy access to Bixby.

Based on what we’ve seen so far, are you interested in the Galaxy S8 Active, or are the regular S8 and S8 Plus good enough for you? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.