Preorder the Samsung Galaxy S8, Get a Free Gear VR
- Paul Thurrott
- Mar 30, 2017
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Samsung has opened up preorders for its new Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ handsets. And if you act quickly, you will get a free Gear VR virtual reality headset too.
UPDATE:Â As crazy as this sounds, Microsoft is offering the Galaxy S8 for preorder too! –Paul
“Get the new Gear VR with Controller for free, plus Oculus content bonus when you pre-order the Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8+,” the Samsung website notes. “(Or,) for a limited time you can add premium headphones by AKG and a 256 GB memory card for just $99.”
Intrigued by the possibility that Samsung might have just hit one out of the park, and created a true Android flagship—unlike, say, the curiously lackluster Google Pixel XL I’ve been stuck with—I’ve actually pre-ordered one of these expensive devices directly from Samsung. Before getting too deeply into this, it’s possible I will cancel this order, as I want to ensure that the device is in fact unlocked. But I had to choose a carrier (AT&T, in my case, so I’m not actually sure.)
Anyway, the version I ordered is the larger Galaxy S8+ with the 6-inch screen, in midnight black. (Arctic silver and orchid gray are also available here in the US.) All US-based S8 handsets come with 64 GB of internal storage, which I’m fine with. That you can expand that with microSD is, of course, excellent.
I chose the free Gear VR and controller, rather than the $99 bundle, and it came to over $900 with taxes. If I had chosen to go with monthly installments, the cost would have been $35.42 per month for two years.
If you preorder by April 17, Samsung says you will get the phone on April 20. Shipping is free. You could also choose to preorder the device from any of the four major US carriers, starting today. For example, at AT&T, I see that the same Galaxy S8+ is $850 before taxes, or $28.34 per month. (You can also get the free Gear VR this way.)
So, we’ll see how this goes. Or, if this goes, I guess.
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