Samsung might be working on its first Android Go smartphone

Samsung may be the next big smartphone manufacturer to introduce an Android Go smartphone. A new report from SamMobile claims that the Korean giant is testing different versions of a phone with the model number SM-J260 in a number of countries in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.

Back in April, SamMobile reported that one of these different versions of the smartphone, M-J260G, was spotted on GeekBench listings. The benchmarking website listed the phone's motherboard as "7570universal_go." The "go" mention could be a hint towards Google Android Go OS integration.

Android Go is a trimmed down version of Android 8.0 Oreo that has been developed for low-end smartphones that feature 1GB of RAM or less. Apps that are specifically designed for Android Go are also supposed to use less memory and storage space. Android Go phones have already been released by ZTE, Huawei, and Asus, among others.

If Samsung is testing an Android Go device, it means the company is planning to launch a device with stock Android OS, rather than one that's running the Samsung Experience software (formerly known as TouchWiz). Unfortunately, there isn't much information about the device, including no word on a possible price tag or release date.

Besides, the company will reportedly ditch the iris scanner with the Galaxy S10. The device will come sans this feature in favour of an in-display fingerprint sensor and a 3D sensor on the phone. It was first reported by The Bell, citing the security parts industry, which suggests that the Korean company has not ordered a sample iris scanner for the upcoming flagship.

The report also reaffirmed that the device will be codenamed "Beyond" and also confirms the size of the Galaxy S10 and S10 plus at 5.8-inches and 6.3-inches respectively. If the reports are to be believed, the S10 would be the same size as the Galaxy S9, however, the S10 Plus will be bigger by a mere 0.1-inch than the Galaxy S9 Plus.

If the company uses an in-display fingerprint sensor and a 3D sensor on the phone, there won't be a need for the iris scanner. Despite being hard to trick, the iris scanners can be inconsistent in low light.