An Overview Of The Exciting New Samsung Galaxy S3
Moments ago, the successor to the wildly popular Samsung Galaxy S2 was unveiled in London’s Earl’s Court. The Samsung Galaxy S3 wowed the audience and millions of viewers watching an online stream of the event. In this article I will provide an overview of the key features of the biggest Android smartphone release of the year.
The new Samsung flagship phone has plenty to offer even the hardcore tech enthusiast, while at the same time appearing to be extremely easy to use thanks to a package of intuitive tweaks to the upgraded TouchWiz UI.
The design of the handset is not a million miles away from that of its predecessor, sporting a form factor which is also similar in appearance to the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. While the handset is larger than the Galaxy S2, thanks to its 4.8 inch screen, it remains only 8.7mm thick making it comfortable to hold and use while remaining lightweight at just 133 grams. An all new manufacturing process called ‘HyperGlaze’ makes the handset look and feel like it is one object rather than several parts. It makes it almost impossible to find the seam between the screen and the body of the phone which adds to the comfort when holding it as well as enhancing its appearance.
The screen as mentioned, measures 4.8 inches, which is the largest on a Samsung smartphone aside from the Galaxy Note, which has a 5.3 inch screen (although this device is considered something of a smartphone/tablet hybrid). The screen has the same Super AMOLED panel which was one of the crowning features of the Galaxy S2, and one which many consider the best smartphone screen out there, even beating the retinal display of the iPhone 4S. It has a 720p resolution, which means it is officially classed as an HD screen. Multimedia products like videos and games look great from the previews we saw at the launch event.
To take the multimedia experience of the Samsung Galaxy S3 even further, new levels of inter-device compatibility are introduced with the Galaxy S3, thanks largely to a number of extra accessories which will be made available for the handset. There is the ‘AllShare Cast Dongle’ which allows you to stream content from the Galaxy S3 onto any DLNA compatible device like TVs, even while the screen on the phone is locked. You can even sync the handset to the head-unit in your car, via Bluetooth v4.0, whereby you can carry out calls, play music and get directions straight from the phone without touching it.
The Samsung Galaxy S3 naturally has the latest version of Android as its OS of choice. The Android ‘Ice Cream Sandwich’ platform works in conjunction with the all new version of TouchWiz which is Samsung’s custom Android interface. This comes with many upgrades to previous versions. To give an example, say you are watching a movie on your phone. You then get a text message which you want to reply to. You can send the message while watching the movie, as a new window will open with the movie still playing. This can be repositioned anywhere on the screen so you can carry out other tasks without pausing the video.
There is plenty more to explore on the Samsung Galaxy S3, so stay tuned for my upcoming articles where I will look at many other features of this exciting device.