Rumors and leaks have suggested that Samsung will be bringing S Pen support to its Galaxy S21 family early next year, and now we've seen the clearest indication of that yet, in the form of a US regulatory filing.
The FCC (Federal Communications Commission) is the US government body that certifies phones and other devices before they can go on sale, and we often see smartphones mentioned in FCC filings ahead of their release.
The listing that mentions S Pen support is for the device that we expect to be the Galaxy S21 Ultra – that's model number SMG998B – and it even goes as far as to mention that it'll include features such as hover, where you don't have to actually touch the display with the stylus.
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The listing doesn't confirm everything though, and it doesn't say whether the stylus will be included with the device. Previous leaks haven't shown a slot on the device to include the S Pen, so we're not currently expecting it to be included with the phone by default.
It looks like the S Pen will instead be an additional device you can buy alongside your Galaxy S21 Ultra. It's also unclear if the S Pen will be supported by other phones in the series, such as the Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S21 Plus.
Samsung has previously hinted at the fact it'd bring S Pen support to its Galaxy S21 line. A Samsung executive said that the company was "excited to add some of its [the Note series'] most well-loved features to other devices".
When is it coming?
Little else is confirmed in the FCC listing - it's mostly about power and connectivity, which doesn't include any surprises - but its existence just gives us further evidence the phones will be launching soon.
At the moment, we're expecting the Galaxy S21 family to be unveiled on January 14 but there has yet to be an official confirmation from the company on when the new devices will be unveiled.
Leaks and rumors suggest you'll be able to buy one of the three Galaxy S21 phones by the end of January, and this FCC filing only makes that look more and more likely to happen.
