Samsung Galaxy A8, A8+ 2018 release date, specs rumors: Leaked manual reveals handset's flagship-like design

Official render of 2015 Samsung Galaxy A8, including the display's dimensionsSamsung

Alleged renders of the 2018 Galaxy mid-range series, A8 and A8+, have surfaced the web for the past few weeks. These images of the finished smartphone products suggest that they will be out on the market soon. Another proof that the mid-tier Galaxy devices are waiting to be delivered straight to the shelves is the recently leaked manual for A8 and A8+.

According to the latest reports, the leaked manual for the Samsung Galaxy A8 and A8+ reveals the slick new design of the A series mid-range phones. It appears that the South Korean tech giant is narrowing the gap between its flagship and mid-range lineups by making the A8 and A8+ look like the current Galaxy S8 and S8+ smartphones. However, contrary to earlier rumors, the manual shows that the A8 and A8+ 2018 handsets will not include the Bixby button.

The tech tipster behind the recent Samsung Galaxy A8 and A8+ 2018 leaked manual is Roland Quandt, who posted the manual's scanned pictures on Twitter. Previous reports suggested that the mid-tier Galaxy A series smartphones will get the same Bixby button as the premium S8 and S8+ devices, which would call on Samsung's very own voice assistant. However, Quandt's latest scoop does not support the existence of the Bixby button.

The leaked manual also shows that the Samsung Galaxy A8 and A8+ 2018 will not run the latest Android Oreo 8.0 OS out of the box. Instead, it will receive the Android Nougat version, although it is possible that the A8 and A8+ will get the Oreo update shortly after the launch. So far, it looks like the A8 and A8+ smartphones will live to everyone's expectation of a mid-tier device, which is a little behind the power and performance of the Galaxy S series phones.

It was earlier reported that the upcoming Samsung Galaxy A8 2018 will be unveiled alongside the new Galaxy A8+ smartphone. Furthermore, this Galaxy A8+ is actually the updated version of the current mid-range Galaxy A7 (2017) handset. The info regarding the Galaxy A7's rebirth as A8+ was first posted on the Chinese social network site Weibo, showing the device's model number, SM-730.