Samsung Galaxy S5 Release Nears: 10 Things to Expect

The Samsung Galaxy S5 release date is inching closer by the day and many consumers have their eye on its April 11th arrival. With that in mind, we want to take a look at what we expect from the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S5 release on April 11th and beyond.

In late February, Samsung took the stage at Mobile World Congress 2014 and showed off its Galaxy S5 flagship for the very first time. The Samsung Galaxy S5, as expected, is a high-powered replacement for the Samsung Galaxy S4, last year’s flagship that will remain on shelves an option for those not looking to break the bank.

Samsung’s Galaxy S5 is intriguing for a number of reasons. First and foremost, it offers buyers one of the best displays ever made. DisplayMate thinks that the Galaxy S5’s 5.1-inch display is better than the Retina Display found on the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5. The Galaxy S5 also comes with a water and dust resistant design, microSD card slot for expanded storage, a 16MP camera with fast auto-focus, Android 4.4 KitKat, and a new TouchWiz software features including S Health 3.0.

Like its predecessors, the Galaxy S5 is coming to a host of carriers in the United States and around the world and it will be touching down just weeks after its announcement.

For some, the wait is almost over. The Samsung Galaxy S5 makes its debut on shelves later this week in 150 countries around the world. Many buyers are gearing up for its release and many others have already pre-ordered Samsung’s updated version of the Galaxy S. Whatever the case may be, April 11th is a significant date for consumers around the world.

With that in mind, we want to take a final look at what we expect from the Samsung Galaxy S5 and its release.

32GB Galaxy S5 MIA

At this point, there is no reason to expect the 32GB Samsung Galaxy S5 on April 11th. Carriers haven’t announced it, we haven’t seen a pre-order and U.S. Cellular told us weeks ago that it had no plans to release the larger Galaxy S5 model. Other carriers refused to comment on their 32GB Galaxy S5 plans.

It’s hard to say if there will be a 32GB Galaxy S5 release in the United States or not. A leaked document from T-Mobile suggested that the carrier would be offering it online but the carrier still hasn’t announced anything.

If carriers do decide to release a 32GB Galaxy S5 option, we’d expect it to arrive after the smoke from April 11th clears. That’s exactly what AT&T and Verizon did last year with the 32GB Galaxy S4 and it makes the most sense given that we haven’t seen any details and we’re just four days out from its release.

If a 32GB Galaxy S5 release is in the works, expect carriers to confirm its arrival in the days after the 16GB model’s release.

Easy to Find Galaxy S5

Pre-orders remain wide open and we haven’t heard any rumors about stock shortages. To us, that’s a sign that the Galaxy S5 is going to be widely available come April 11th.

Unlike the iPhone ,Android smartphones almost never sell out ahead of their release date. Samsung is well known for having a well-oiled supply line. So, it would be extremely surprising to see the Samsung Galaxy S5 run out of stock at U.S. carriers and retail partners.

Expect carrier stores to have ample Samsung Galaxy S5 stock and expect the same from retailers like RadioShack, Best Buy and Amazon. We’re expecting a smooth release date.

No Need to Go Early

You should expect lines at carrier stores and retail locations to be short and perhaps non-existent. We rarely see Android devices have the same retail pull as the iPhone. Thus, consumers should not feel the need to wake up early or plan around school or work. The Samsung Galaxy S5 will be waiting for consumers in the late afternoon after responsibilities have been taken care of.

Deals to Be Found

Galaxy S5 buyers should expect to find a number of Samsung Galaxy S5 deals available to them on April 11th. While many of the current deals apply to those who pre-order the Galaxy S5, we expect there to be day one details for those that skip the pre-order.

For instance, Amazon has already cut the price of the Verizon Galaxy S5 to $99 when bought on-contract. That’s an $100 difference from the price of the Galaxy S5 sold through Verizon stores.

Verizon is also offering a BOGO deal to those that buy the Samsung Galaxy S5 which means that those who order the Galaxy S5 will get another Galaxy S5 for free. Verizon says that the deal lasts through April 17th which means that those who waltz into a store on April 11th should be able to take advantage of the offer.

We doubt that these will be the only deals available so consumers should expect the need to do some day one research in an effort to find the best deal for their device. April 11th should be littered with them.

Limited Color Options

The blue and gold versions of the Samsung Galaxy S5 have not gone up for pre-order at any U.S. carriers so we expect them to arrive at some point after April 11th. Chances of a gold and blue Galaxy S5 on release day are slim to none.

There is certainly a chance that we could see a carrier, or retailer, offer them as exclusives. We’ve seen that happen in the past and there is no reason to believe, at this moment, that these two colors will come to all U.S. Galaxy S5 carriers.

Like the 32GB Galaxy S5, we expect this to be cleared up at some point in the days, or weeks, after the Samsung Galaxy S5’s arrival.

No Shortage of Accessories

Expect there to be a wide selection of Samsung Galaxy S5 accessories on release day. There are a number of Samsung Galaxy S5 official accessories that are currently up for pre-order including the Wireless Charging S-View Flip Cover and the Wireless Charging Cover but those aren’t the only accessories that are available to future Galaxy S5 buyers.

There will be a number of third-party accessories that greet Galaxy S5 buyers on April 11th. We’re already detailed 11 solid Galaxy S5 cases that will be available in and around its release date and retailers and carriers stores should be armed with mounts, docks and other accessories to enhance the brand new Galaxy S.

Limited Samsung Gear Fit Inventory

The Samsung Gear Fit is already sold out through Best Buy and we think that there’s a potential that it will be sold out in other retail locations by the time April 11th is over.

Right now, the fitness device is available to pre-order through a number of different avenues including Amazon but we wouldn’t be surprised if stock becomes a little tight on April 11th and in the days after it. Buyers who are dead set on the gadget would be wise to put in a pre-order ahead of its April 11th release just to be sure.

Missing Release Dates to Emerge After April 11th

Now that’s we tackled April 11th, let’s take a look at the future of the Galaxy S5.

April 11th is the first Samsung Galaxy S5 release date in the United States but it won’t be the last. There are a number of other carriers that will release the Galaxy S5 in the weeks after this Friday. Ting, Boost Mobile, Virgin Mobile, and C Spire Wireless have all confirmed the Galaxy S5 for arrival but none of them have issued specific release dates.

Ting says that it plans to release the device in mid-April but still hasn’t issued a specific date. Boost and Virgin both say Q2 (April-June). And C Spire Wireless says that it will be coming sometime in May. Those who are looking to buy on these carriers should expect release dates to pop up in the near future.

We fully expect Ting to release the Galaxy S5 sometime this month and we wouldn’t be surprised if Boost and Virgin Mobile both joined C Spire and released the Galaxy S5 in May. We imagine that most, if not all of these specific release dates, will emerge during the month of April after the initial dust has settled.

Galaxy S5 Price Drops Within Weeks

Expect the Samsung Galaxy S5 price to drop, across the board, a few weeks after April 11th. Retailers like Amazon almost always offer steep discounts about a month or so after a big Android smartphone release and we expect the same thing here with the Samsung Galaxy S5.

Already, we’ve seen Amazon knock $100 off the price of the Verizon Galaxy S5 and we would not be surprise if it applies the same type of discount to the other devices shortly after they arrive later on this week.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Google Play Edition

We still expect the Samsung Galaxy S5 Google Play Edition to arrive on shelves, we’re just not sure when Google and Samsung will pull the trigger.

It wouldn’t be shocking to see it emerge on April 11th, the Galaxy S5’s global release date, but it also wouldn’t be surprising to see Samsung and Google announce it at Google I/O, especially if Google I/O does come with a new Nexus device or Android update.