Samsung's attempt at turning your phone into a viable desktop computing solution debuted with the Galaxy S8 and the DeX Station. The next evolution, according to the latest leaks from @evleaks, is a new "DeX Pad" dock that will launch with the Galaxy S9.
The new DeX Pad is designed to hold the phone flat, rather than standing it up somewhat awkwardly. Not only would this new flat design be more compact for carrying around while still accommodating various phone sizes, but it also opens up the possibilities of using the phone's screen as a touch pad. With the phone's screen held down on the desktop to be used for the cursor, you'd only have to connect a keyboard and not a mouse.
You still have USB-C power, two USB-A ports and HDMI out for a display, and there seems to be a cooling vent system still as well.
Of course this isn't a unique idea. Different versions of the "phone is now your touchpad when docked" have been used with systems like Microsoft Continuum and Huawei's Mate 10 EMUI desktop solution. Razer is testing the waters even further with its Project Linda laptop that uses a phone in the place of the touchpad.
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Regardless, it could only help DeX adoption, which is something that definitely hasn't caught on in the year or so since it was released. Even with the super-powerful Galaxy Note 8, launched just six months after DeX was first announced, the feature was hardly emphasized by Samsung. The use cases for having these docks and using your phone as a pseudo-desktop computer just haven't caught on at any real scale.
