Galaxy Note 8: Best Buy employee hints at potential next day availability on August 24th

Ben Schoon | Aug 14 2017 - 5:37 am PT

We’re just a week away from the Galaxy Note 8’s announcement on August 23rd, but as with any phone launch, the bigger question is when the phone will actually go on sale. According to one Best Buy employee, it could be the very next day.

Traditionally, smartphones get announced and later go on sale 2-4 weeks following that announcement. It’s not very often that they go on sale the day of or after the reveal, but doing so would give Samsung a major leg up on the competition. The Galaxy Note 8 is making its debut in the midst of several other major launches including the iPhone 8, Pixel 2, and LG V30, so a month’s head start would be a big deal for the company.

This Best Buy employee claims that Samsung will launch the phone on August 24th through carriers and Best Buy, and the employee says that this information was “confirmed” through Verizon and Samsung channels as well.

Before you get too excited, it’s important to take all of this with a huge grain of salt. The employee posted on Reddit (with a throwaway account) the details regarding this launch. A moderator for the r/Android subreddit says that he verified the employee, but there’s always a chance that the information given is false.

Further, this would be an unprecedented move for Samsung, as the company has waited around one month on nearly every launch following the reveal event. Pre-orders have usually kicked off the day after Samsung’s event, but if this next-day availability does happen, pre-orders would kick off on the day of.

If it does turn out to be true, it’s a great move for Samsung, especially given the reputation hurdles Samsung is going to have to jump over following last year’s Note 7 disaster. As mentioned, we’ll learn more about what the Note 8 will bring to the table, as well as when it goes on sale, at Samsung’s August 23rd event, which we will be attending in New York City.