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Samsung debuts Galaxy S10 5G, a 5G-capable smartphone

Samsung has debuted its latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S10. And while the three primary versions of the handset — the entry-level S10e, the mainstream S10, and the pricy S10 Plus — are sure to get plenty of attention, it's the fourth version of the S10 that's going to really turn heads.

Available exclusively for Yahoo Finance parent company Verizon (VZ) this spring, and then heading to AT&T (T), Sprint (S), Spectrum Wireless, T-Mobile (TMUS), and Xfinity Mobile (CMCSA) in the summer, the S10 5G will essentially be a high-powered version of the Galaxy S10 Plus. It will also help set early expectations, for better or worse, for consumer-grade 5G connectivity.

A first taste of 5G

Samsung's Galaxy S10 Plus is the current top-of-the-line mode for the S10 series. But that will soon change when the company begins rolling out its S10 5G this spring. The phone, which will sport many of the same underpinnings as the S10 Plus, will be among the first 5G mobile devices to hit the market this year, and will give consumers a front row seat to understand the hubbub surrounding the technology.

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Like the first generation of 4G smartphones that hit the market years ago, however, the 5G experience will be spotty at best. Many cities won't be covered with the new high-speed, low-latency, high-bandwidth cellular technology, which means 5G devices will end up falling back on 4G LTE connections.

Samsung has introduced three the smartphones in its S10 lineup: The S10e, S10 e and S10 Plus. (image: Howley)
Samsung has introduced three the smartphones in its S10 lineup: The S10e, S10 e, and S10 Plus. (image: Daniel Howley)

But if developers are going to get their hands on 5G devices to help build out the apps and features that companies like AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon have promised, then this is the only way to do it.

I've seen 5G connectivity in action, but only in testing environments, so I can't say how well it works while, say, riding a bus or sitting at a coffee shop. But if it performs as expected, you'll see internet speeds far faster than anything available with 4G LTE.

Bigger, faster, bolder

As for the S10 5G, Samsung wants to make the smartphone a true standout among the initial crop of 5G-enabled devices. To that end, the S10 5G will come equipped with a ridiculously large 6.7-inch display.

That screen, like Samsung's other S10 phones, will feature the company's new Dynamic AMOLED technology, which promises brighter colors compared to Samsung's previous AMOLED screens. That's a bold statement considering Samsung's handsets already offered some of the best displays on the market.

The S10 5G will also use Samsung's Infinity-O panel, which includes a small in-screen cutout for the phone's dual front-facing cameras.

Around back the S10 5G will get four cameras. Those will include an ultra-wide angle lens, a wide-angle lens, a telephoto lens and a depth-sensing camera for capturing 3D images and live video focus.

Outside of those enhancements, the S10 5G is similar to its more petite stablemates. It features an in-display fingerprint reader, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor, and is available with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. The S10 5G also packs a 4,500-mAh battery for all of the browsing and streaming you'll likely end up doing.

Samsung hasn't announced pricing for the S10 5G yet, but we'll update you when we find out more.

More from Dan:

Email Daniel Howley at dhowley@oath.com; follow him on Twitter at @DanielHowley. Follow Yahoo Finance on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.finance.yahoo.com/