Samsung details US launch plans for Galaxy S III
updated 07:16 am EDT, Mon June 4, 2012
Samsung Galaxy S III to launch on five US carriers
Samsung has detailed its launch plans for the Galaxy S III, bringing its flagship Android handset to five carriers. The Galaxy S III will arrive in June on AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless and U.S. Cellular priced from $199 on contract for the 16GB model. As expected, it will arrive sporting a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 dual-core processor with integrated 4G LTE, not the quad-core Exynos 4412 featured in the international version.
The Galaxy S III weighs in at 4.7-ounces and is 8.6mm thin. Its Super AMOLED display is capable of showing video in 720p, while its 4G radio supports. Its Qualcomm designed Snapdragon S4 processor is based on Qualcomm’s ‘Krait’ architecture, which is very similar to the next-generation Cortex A-15 design, pushing it past the quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 in most performance tests.
Samsung’s press materials take an indirect potshot at Apple noting that the Galaxy S III is ‘lighter and sleeker than other leading smartphones, including several competitor models with smaller displays.’ Despite its apparent screen-size and weight disadvantage, Apple continued to break sales records in Q1 this year on the back of the iPhone 4S up 128 percent year-over-year. However, observers will be watching keenly to see if Samsung’s over-size 4.8-inch Galaxy S III makes a dent in Apple’s continued growth.
