Samsung Galaxy S10 will have a hole not a notch, patent suggests

The smartphone giant previously mocked Apple for its iPhone X design

Samsung may have figured out a way to make its forthcoming flagship smartphone, presumably called the Galaxy S10, a completely full-screen device that doesn't feature a notch design.

A new patent submission shows a phone design that uses a small circle in the top left of the screen in order to incorporate a front-facing camera.

The patent, first spotted by Dutch website LetsGoDigital, shows what the South Korean electronics giant may have in mind for its 2019 flagship phone.

Slightly different design iterations both featured a small hole in the corner of the screen (LetsGoDigital)

When Apple launched the iPhone X in 2017, Samsung made fun of the front notch that was included at the top of the screen.

In a widely publicised advert, Samsung showed a man standing in a line outside an Apple store with a notch-shaped haircut.

Apple's design also allows the iPhone maker to cram in facial recognition technology – it is not clear if or how Samsung's new design will include this.

It is not the first sign that Samsung's next smartphone will be a genuinely all-screen device, with several alleged prototypes shared on social media showing a full-screened phone.

A concept design for the Samsung Galaxy S10 (Creative Commons, mobil-helden)

Other rumours surrounding the Samsung Galaxy S10 include a self-healing screen, which could put an end to scratched displays.

A Samsung patent from August describes "an anti-fingerprinting composition having a self-healing property, and a film, and a device including the anti-fingerprinting composition, " for use in a "portable electronic device such as a smart phone or tablet."

The patent did not specifically mention the Galaxy S10 by name, and a focus on the screen's functionality in a foldable device hints it could feature in Samsung's forthcoming folding phone.

The Galaxy S10 is also expected to feature an improved camera, potentially with a vertical alignment of lenses.

The Samsung Galaxy S10 could include a triple-lens camera (Creative Commons, mobil-helden)

The triple-lens camera arrangement would put it alongside the Huawei P20 Pro, improving upon the dual-lens design of its predecessors.

The expected release date for the Galaxy S10 is early 2019, with Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February touted as the potential host for the launch.