The day that many a Android faithful (and mobile junkies) have been waiting for, the Galaxy S III launch event, is here. But even before the live show got started, our fellow gadget junkies over at Engadget got an early hands on complete with pictures and video (pretty much negating the need to watch the live unveil.
So what does the Android-ized Jesus Phone pack under the hood? Well, it’s mostly all good:
- Processor: 1.4 GHz quad-core Exynos processor
- Display: 4.8″ Super AMOLED HD (720p = 306ppi. Also, no “+” means PenTile…)
- RAM 1 GB
- Connectivity: HSPA+ (Global) | LTE (To be talked about during U.S. Tour/unveil)
- Camera: 8 MP (rear)/1.9 MP (front) with 1080p recording and playback
- Storage: 16 GB | 32 GB | 64 GB (Coming later this summer) + SD card slot for expandable storage
- Battery: 2,100 mAh (User replaceable/removable)
- OS: Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich
- Other Features: Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi Direct, DLNA, MHL-compatible micro-USB port, GPS with GLONASS support and NFC (on battery)
It’s a beast on all but one item — the display. Why Samsung, why did you go with a PenTile display? Anyone else a bit broken up by the corner cutting? Moving on from the display, Samsung noted during their keynote that a 3G/HSPA version of the Galaxy S III would ship later this month while an LTE version will drop a little later in the summer.
Aside from the display/hardware, Samsung appears to have taken a less heavy-handed approach in terms of UI skinning in general, and instead focused on individual apps instead of the Android core. Though more intriguing than UI skinning is the eyeball tracking software that Samsung plans to also launch later this month. One of the big features of this eye tracking software is to perfectly control display backlighting based on your eye balls.
Smart Stay, S Voice & S Beam
Building on the eye tracking software mentioned above, Samsung claims Smart Stay will allow the Galaxy S III (and future devices) to “see, listen and respond” and “predict our intentions”. Samsung Electronics VP, Jean-Daniel, said during the live keynote that Smart Stay will allow more “smart” actions such as not having to constantly tap the display or button to keep it lit when reading a longer piece of text as would normally happen under a pre-set timed lockscreen setting.
S Voice on the other hand sounds like a more robust form of voice activated functions/assistant. On stage, Jean-Daniel said that with S Voice, Galaxy S III users will be able to do things such as “check weather, organize schedules and more” — “it’s only the beginning”. Also, one can wake up their Galaxy S III by simply saying “Hi Galaxy”. Another – snooze your alarm by saying “snooze”.
Another awesome feature shown off alongside the Smart Stay and S Voice demos occurred when Jean Daniel was shown composing a text message to someone and then simply raised his Galaxy S III to his ear, to which the phone then began dialing the person he was texting. Nice!.
Remember “Android Beam”? Yeah. It hasn’t gone too far yet. Samsung is going to change that with their souped up “S Beam” feature. This feature, a combination of WiFi Direct and NFC, will allow seamless sharing of files (all files) between phones. Samsung’s keynote demo showed two phones simply being placed next to one another with one phone having open/selected video on screen. Once in range, a simple tap of a prompt is all that’s needed to send the video on its way to the other Galaxy S III.
AllShare Play
(AirPlay anyone?) Samsung’s AllShare Play will allow sharing photos and videos across to your TV via a separate dongle that uses DNLA technology. Samsung noted that an SDK will be provided to developers to further take advantage of the AllShare Play technology.
Pop-up Play
Another new feature Samsung is bringing to Android 4.0.4 called “Pop-up Play” is essentially a new-age form of picture-in-picture for your smartphone. Anywhere within Android on the Galaxy S III running ICS, users can begin playing a movie in a pop-up over any screen/app. (Via: The Verge)
Music Hub
While Samsung didn’t go into great detail, they did announce their new music service/storefront, “Music Hub”. Said service will launch with 17 million songs available and scan + match your music collection with what they have available in Music Hub.
Availability
Europe: May 29th (HSPA+ version)
US: “This summer” with LTE
Developing…
