For the most part, the smartphones and phablets for this year have already arrived at Mobile World Congress last February, but there are some devices, such as the Galaxy Note 6 and the iPhone 7, with the iPhone 7 Plus that are waiting to be unveiled later this year.  This is the latest news on these devices with their Release Dates, Specs, and Rumors. 

A report from Phone Arena states that the Galaxy Note 6 could be called the Note 7.  Yes, you heard that right, and honestly, I don't see any reason why Samsung would change their name, except to kind of go along with Apple's naming system on the iPhone 7.  Yes, it is quite weird, but Microsoft did the same with Windows 10.  So we'll just use Note 6 and Note 7 interchangeably until the formal announcement. 

As for when the Galaxy Note 6/7 launch event is, look for it in two months, according to a tweet from Even Blass (@evleaks).  That is essentially at the beginning of August, which will beat out Apple's launch of their flagship that is scheduled for September, according to Techno Buffalo.   

As for what the Samsung Note 7 will be, there are rumors that at least the Note 7 Edge version will be sporting a dual lens camera.  Why have two lenses?  Apparently, this allows for a lossless optical zoom with a folded telephoto mechanism.  Considering that the LG G5 and the Huawei P9 have the dual-lens cameras, perhaps this type of photo-taking is going to be standard on smartphones.  

Other specs of the Galaxy Note 6/7 include a 5.8 inch Quad HD display (Super AMOLED) and a Snapdragon 823 or Exynos chipset inside.  The actual Megapixel count on the camera is 12 Megapixels with f/1.7, the same as the Galaxy S7. 

As far as the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, rumors are abounding on that end as well.  This year will probably be a full redesign, unlike last year's 6S model.  MacWorld reports the possibility of three phones possibly being offered, the third being some minor upgrade of the 4-inch iPhone SE unveiled back in Spring 2016. 

It seems like rumors surrounding the iPhone 7 seem always to talk about the removal of the headphone jack.  Yes, that would increase the Bluetooth business, and the reason for the headphone jack removal has to do with keeping the latest Apple smartphone as thin as it can be. 

Then there are other improvements such as longer battery life and higher screen resolution, with that constant reminder that a USB-C port could be on the way.   By the way, you might have to start with memory storage of 32 GB on the iPhone 7, as it is rumored that the 16 GB version will be phased out this year. 

We're going to have to wait until late summer/early fall to see if any of these rumors of the Galaxy Note 6/7 and iPhone 7 units are true.  Until then, we will keep you posted, and please leave a comment if you want to see something new added to either of those popular smartphones/phablets.