An unusual rumor Saturday may have provided some details of the Galaxy S III. Keeping with Samsung’s near-tradition of increasing screen size with every new high-end conventional smartphone, the BGR source claimed it would supposedly push the screen out to 4.8 inches. The back, however, would take a partial cue from the iPhone 4 and 4S with a ceramic back, presumably to improve reception and help keep the device slim.
Samsung’s decision to skip a Mobile World Congress intro was purportedly to coordinate a much larger worldwide release. The launch would involve over 50 “markets or cities,” if the source is correct.
Much of the actual hardware performance is up in the air. While quad-core has been mentioned, the most likely processor choice is the Exynos 5250 dual-core chip due to enter mass production in the spring. Android 4.0 is near certain, but any other upgrades to the cameras or cellular connections are still matters of speculation rather than fact.
The absence of the phone from Mobile World Congress is rare for Samsung, which almost always has an event at the Barcelona gathering, may be an attempt to get away from the common smartphone manufacturer practice of announcing well before a device is ready. The Galaxy S II was unveiled last February, but it didn’t ship to Korea until two months later and eight months later for the US.
