Samsung Galaxy Note 6 release date: Upcoming flagship to be iPhone 7's main competitor in late 2016 release?

Samsung Galaxy Note 5Reuters

Although Samsung only recently released a new flagship in the Galaxy S7 series, fans are already wondering when the South Korea-based tech giant will follow it up with another top-tier offering. It is speculated that its other premium lineup will receive a follow-up toward the end of the year, as the Galaxy Note 6 will reportedly launch by August.

According to Breathecast, at this early stage, rumors are already starting about the Galaxy Note 6, with speculations suggesting an August launch for the device. Reportedly, Samsung will be repeating the timeframe for the Galaxy Note 5's launch last year, when it unveiled the current-gen Galaxy Note in August 2015 and snatched all the attention at the IFA in Berlin in September.

However, if Samsung hopes to repeat that this year, it will have a strong competitor as reports suggest that Apple is also eyeing a late 2016 release for the much-anticipated iPhone 7.

While confirmed details have yet to come out for the two devices, observers are saying that they may already have an idea what Samsung plans to improve and introduce in the Galaxy Note 6. According to KnowYourMobile, the South Korean tech giant may be thinking of introducing the next Galaxy Note as a professional-level, smartphone-laptop hybrid. The industry observer said that Samsung has applied for a patent on a "phablet dock," allowing a smartphone to become the processing unit for a laptop-sized device. To complement this, there are speculations that Samsung will be introducing the Galaxy Note 6 as the first smartphone with 6 GB of RAM.

In addition, there are also speculations that the Galaxy Note 6 will feature massive internal storage, as Samsung recently announced its assembly of 256GB memory chips for use in mobile devices such as smartphones. The company also reintroduced microSD support in the Galaxy S7, and it is also expected that the Galaxy Note 6 will also have the same feature.