Samsung phone with revolutionary battery technology could arrive next year

by Joshua Swingle / Aug 13, 2019, 8:05 AM

Samsung phone with revolutionary battery technology could arrive next year

Almost two years ago, Samsung received a patent for a new graphene-based technology that could lead to batteries capable of holding around 45% more charge than current lithium-ion ones. Now, after further refining the solution, it seems the company may finally be ready to deploy it.

Samsung smartphone's with graphene batteries are coming

Industry insider Evan Blass has been told Samsung is planning to release “at least one” smartphone “either next year or in 2021” that’ll feature a graphene battery instead of a lithium-ion alternative. One of the primary benefits, as mentioned above, will be the cell’s increased capacity, but these should also charge around five times faster than existing smartphone batteries. Evan Blass believes this will permit a “full charge” in as little as 30 minutes.

Despite the shorter charging times, graphene-based batteries tend to deteriorate less over time. Battery life should, therefore, decrease at a slower rate and the need to replace cells entirely after a number of years will be reduced. Once production increases, graphene batteries may also become cheaper than lithium-ion alternatives. Additionally, they could be better for the environment long-term.

The Galaxy Note 7 fiasco won't be repeated with graphene

As can clearly be seen, graphene has the potential to revolutionize the smartphone battery industry. But one of the biggest benefits hasn’t even been mentioned yet. Unlike existing lithium-ion technology which can easily explode if specific conditions aren’t met, graphene batteries don’t explode. Samsung can, therefore, rest assured that there will be no more Galaxy Note 7-like scenarios if it uses graphene in future devices.

When will Samsung's flagships include graphene batteries?

As things stand, Samsung still needs to “raise capacities while lowering costs” which would suggest the initial stream of batteries will be rather limited and costly. The South Korean giant hasn’t yet confirmed any plans but the successor to this year’s Galaxy Fold could be a potential candidate for the technology.

The foldable smartphone market is expected to continue growing next year but it won’t be big enough for Samsung to ship millions of devices. Instead, the company will likely produce a few hundred thousand units, making it the perfect test subject for new battery technology. As an added incentive, the high price of Samsung’s foldable offerings should easily cover the extra cost related to the graphene technology.

The Galaxy Fold 2 could be the first Samsung phone with a graphene battery

If Samsung successfully implements its graphene-based solution next year and there are no issues, some of the company’s flagships in 2021 could potentially inherit the technology. The Galaxy S12 and Galaxy S12+, or whatever they’re called, seem like the most obvious devices to first make use of it but Samsung may choose to delay its use in order to perfect everything and ensure mass production requirements can be met. Therefore, the Galaxy Note 12 and Galaxy Note 12+ could be the first mainstream flagships to adopt graphene batteries.

In the meantime, consumers can expect Samsung to continue pushing the development of lithium-ion batteries. The South Korean giant recently introduced a new 45W fast charging technology on the Galaxy Note 10+ that’ll likely be supported by next year’s Galaxy S11 and Galaxy S11+. It’ll remain to be seen, however, if the Galaxy S11e will be compatible. Compact devices typically include smaller batteries than their regular counterparts and companies usually prioritize capacity over charging speeds. That’s because increasing the latter can lead to a lower maximum capacity. As a direct result of this, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Samsung’s Galaxy S11e skip its 45W charging technology in favor of 25W charging.

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18 Comments

1. TBomb

Posts: 1668; Member since: Dec 28, 2012

I would imagine a tablet would be a great test device to put a graphene battery in to start. Lower production numbers (I'm assuming). It could also change the game for the Android tablet market that has faltered from the beginning. Chromebooks could be a good option too in my opinion.

posted on Aug 13, 2019, 8:34 AM 5

4. AbhiD

Posts: 856; Member since: Apr 06, 2012

Although i agree tablets would be better to test it initially, how will it change android tablet market? People don't buy android tablets not because of battery, but because of not good enough interface, apps, usability, software support longevity etc etc. Address them now and iPad market will be smaller just like iPhone market, otherwise nobody put taxes on dreaming

posted on Aug 13, 2019, 11:34 AM 1

14. Deadeye

Posts: 131; Member since: Jul 26, 2019

I think people are not buying tablets because it became a useless device as phones got bigger.

posted on Aug 14, 2019, 5:37 AM 1

15. TBomb

I would be willing to put up with a worse user experience if the battery experience was superb. You do have a point that tablets became useless, but Samsung is still making it's galaxy tabs so there must be at least a small market for them.

posted on Aug 14, 2019, 8:28 AM 0

2. LiveFaith

Posts: 493; Member since: Jul 04, 2015

Sounds like a voice from heaven!

3. shiv179

Posts: 192; Member since: Aug 08, 2012

Awesome Samsung! Are you listening Apple? I hope Samsung puts that patent to good use... I am looking at you, Apple :P

posted on Aug 13, 2019, 10:00 AM 4

12. Papa_Ji

Posts: 878; Member since: Jun 27, 2016

Apple will reinvent graphene batteries in 2025.

posted on Aug 13, 2019, 7:38 PM 1

5. tedkord

Posts: 17473; Member since: Jun 17, 2009

Now this is the sort of news I want to hear. I just hope they don't use the extra capacity as an excuse to significantly shrink the battery size, for a net gain if zero.

posted on Aug 13, 2019, 11:51 AM 7

6. Alcyone

Posts: 574; Member since: May 10, 2018

Some may say its a gimmick, since its Samsung behind the use. I see it as potentially revolutionary.

posted on Aug 13, 2019, 1:01 PM 3

8. Back_from_beyond

Posts: 1474; Member since: Sep 04, 2015

Samsung is one of the lead developers of graphene battery technology. It's the next big thing for the field. Anyone who does call it a gimmick, does so purely out of animosity towards Samsung.

posted on Aug 13, 2019, 2:05 PM 4

9. apple-rulz

Posts: 2198; Member since: Dec 27, 2016

There is no animosity, just ridicule towards Samsung fanboys that actually think Samsung invents everything, including graphene battery technology.

posted on Aug 13, 2019, 2:30 PM 0

11. Alcyone

Lol. Your mistaken on that samsung fanboy assumption. I've been using my LG V20 for quite a while now. My s9+ is nice, yes, but don't always like dealing with the ui. Apple and Google should follow suite with implementation of the tech. But, some companies are known to let it mature first. It's been quite obvious for a few years.

posted on Aug 13, 2019, 6:58 PM 5

13. apple-rulz

I don’t understand what point you are trying to make.

posted on Aug 13, 2019, 11:09 PM 0

16. TBomb

I believe the point was that he is not a Samsung fanboy and that Google and Apple should start using the tech sooner rather than later, but some companies (I have a strong assumption that he put Apple in this list) don't use new technology right away and wait until it matures. This goes back to his original post where people may consider it a gimmick since it's a) coming from Samsung who has always put as many features as possible in their phones, and b) lots of the public doesn't understand a technology until Apple starts using it. In summary, I think the big picture of his comments is people on this website (I won't name any names) have a strong bias towards one company and hate towards many others. Those people may consider this battery tech a gimmick - but Alcyone considers it revolutionary. Your #9 comment could be taken that you are calling #6 or #8 a Samsung fanboy, so there was correction that Alcyone actually prefers his LG V20.