Samsung, it would seem, simply cannot stop selling smartphones, and with the Galaxy Note having only been released a matter of weeks ago, rumor has it that the next flagship – the Galaxy S5 – could be set to arrive as soon as January. If true, it would be a real break away from the spring-summer launches we’ve witnessed these past couple of years, and would leave Galaxy S4 users feeling more short-changed than they perhaps already do.

The report arrives courtesy of Korean publication Naver, and suggests that the rushed release is a result of the Galaxy S 4 not shifting as many units as Samsung had anticipated. The device will, according to the report, be showcased in January of next year, with the release to consumers taking place in February.

Then again, with Samsung’s Q3 earnings call expected to deliver record-breaking results, this report is hard to believe. Although it is written by a fairly reputable Korean publication and is, at least geographically, quite close to the action, moving the release to January would seem unnecessarily drastic, even if Samsung has missed its targets with the Galaxy S 4.

In terms of specs, the report talks of a 64-bit octa-core Exynos processor, as well as a 16-megapixel OIS camera. Sounds like overkill, of course, but then again, such is the case with the vast majority of smartphones on the market today. With Samsung already expressing its lack of interest in building a fingerprint sensor for its device range, could it be that the Korean outfit is planning to take at least one leaf from the Apple stork by going all 64-bit on us?

Almost every facet of the report seems made up, but if, by some reach, Samsung is planning to unveil a new-year gift to the smartphone industry in January of next year, it stands to reason that we’ll start hearing about it pretty soon.