Samsung appears to be applying the minimalist design principle for its future Galaxy smartphones, likely starting off with the Galaxy Note 3 that reports said will be unveiled September this year.

In a patent that is under application in the United States and South Korea, a sketch of a 'cellular phone' model was provided, pointing to a handset that is markedly different from the current batch of Samsung Galaxy devices, according to reports by Patent Bolt.

It carries a slim profile with stretched screen on the front-face that is line with the prevailing smartphone trend, which suggests too that the handset is light with powerful components packed inside.

Yet the most obvious deviation from Samsung's Galaxy line is the absence of the physical Home button in the design patent. Instead, Samsung engineers opted for capacitive keys that become visible only when the unit is powered on.

Located at the front-bottom portion of the handset, the control keys presented a new configuration by adding a fourth button for Search tasks, joining the mainstay Android controls such as Home, Menu and Back.

Also, the Menu key now reflects a fresh symbol, departing from the one that Samsung has been using across all Galaxy smartphone models.

The redesign affected too the Power button, which was moved from the right side to the top portion of the gadget's edge. The Volume Rocker, on the other hand, was left untouched.

Another surprising twist is found on the back side, where the Camera Lens and a Mono Speaker are seated at the top and bottom portions, respectively. However, a provision hole for the Camera Flash is noticeably absent.

It is not clear why the camera lighting was left out given that such feature is normally expected for an upscale smartphone model like the Galaxy Note 3. It's fair to say though that this sketch being the third-gen phablet from Samsung is not written in stone.

Samsung's second flagship is reportedly set for a September 2013 release date, likely bearing high-end specs such as an 8-core Exynos Octa 5 CPU (or a quad-core Snapdragon 800 chip), a 5.99-inch Full HD Super AMOLED display with a 1080p screen resolution and the latest Android make - probably Jelly Bean 4.3 or Key Lime Pie.