Samsung Galaxy S launches in Europe, hitting US 'later this year'

So that simultaneous global launch isn't going to materialize quite as we were told, but Samsung is indeed bringing the Galaxy S to the widest possible audience. The Korean giant has made its 2010 flagship official in Europe today, meaning you should be able to sign your life away to your favorite carrier in exchange for it very soon indeed. We're told the 4-incher will be making its American debut later in the year, though a protracted delay appears unlikely. Pricing on the Galaxy S might not turn out to be all that democratic, but its comprehensive choice of more than 100 global carriers sure will be, and might suggest we'll get a choice of networks when the phone finally makes its way Stateside. Hang tight, gringos, not long to go now.

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Samsung Galaxy S Launches with Industry-leading Technological Innovations

More than 100 operators across the globe choose the Samsung Galaxy S as their key smartphone market driver

ZURICH, Switzerland – June 2, 2010 – Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., a leading mobile phone provider, today announced the launch of Samsung Galaxy S (Model: GT-I9000), a new class of smartphone that will deliver a wealth of intelligent, immersive and integrated experiences for users. The Samsung Galaxy S will change the way people think about smartphones.

The Samsung Galaxy S has been extremely well received by retailers and operators around the world; in fact over 100 mobile operators across the globe have selected the Galaxy S as their key smartphone market driver. Available across Europe at launch, the Galaxy S will roll out to the rest of the world including the US later this year.

"The Android-powered Samsung Galaxy S will set a new standard for smartphones, and the excitement we've seen from operators and retailers for this device is testament to that," said JK Shin, president and head of mobile communications business. "The Samsung Galaxy S is the perfect device for people in all corners of the world who want that extra edge; to be more effective, productive, better connected, and in tune with their smart life – both personal and professional – all in a very easy and simple way. We're extremely confident that this device is going to be very successful in every market."

As part of Samsung's drive to democratize the smartphone market, the Galaxy S will be the flagship model of the smartphone range Samsung will introduce this year. It will also offer enhanced opportunities for developers and new revenue streams for operators. JK Shin continued, "Everyone is going to benefit from this revolutionary new device: from the consumer with the phone in their hand, to application developers and the many global operators who have signed up to support the Galaxy S. This truly is a phone for the whole ecosystem."

Featuring Samsung's dazzlingly bright 4-inch Super AMOLED screen and a 1 GHz application processor, the Android™-powered Samsung Galaxy S is designed to provide immersive, intelligent and integrated experiences, with the power to enrich people's lives through best-in-class services and technologies. It will introduce people to the concept of the "Smart Life" – a smartphone experience that is simple, organize and integrated; one that enriches the lives of users.

The Galaxy S features Samsung's super-fast TouchWiz 3.0 user-interface (UI), giving users instant access to their mobile lives. Smart Life is further enabled through intuitive, integrative features, including the Swype text input service, the rich augmented reality browser, Layar, and advanced Location Based Service (LBS) capabilities.

More than 50,000 applications from Android Market and Samsung Apps will allow users to extend the benefits and excitement of the smartphone experience even more. Users have access to Google mobile services, such as Google Search, Gmail, and Google Maps.

Galaxy S Key Features

* eBook: Provides best-in-class reading experience on the phone. Customizable fonts, easy text search, and intuitive book list management offers convenient and customized reading experience.
* HD Video: Super fast 1 GHz processor enhances HD video playing and recording features on dazzling Super AMOLD screen.
* Daily Briefing: Offers instant access to weather, news, stocks, and the scheduler.
* All Share: Enables inter-device connectivity via DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) technology.
* Augmented Reality: Shows users' surroundings and displays information on camera-view. Tele-Atlas POI provides richer information than ever.
* Swype: Provides fast and easy way to input text on screen while on-the-move.
* Write and go: Jot down an idea first and later decide on a format such as SMS/ MMS, email, calendar or memo.
* ThinkFree: Apps to view and edit Microsoft Office 2007 documents.
* Smart Alarm: Wakes up with a natural alarm sound and automatically turned-on display light.

[kapanak Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:12AM]

AVI (divx), MKV, FLV...support.

4-inch Super AMOLED.

My dear phone, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL THESE TIMES?

[kapanak Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:13AM]

@kapanak

And look at that Audio support. Apple could learn a thing or two from Samsung for media format support...

[annoynimous Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:20AM]

@kapanak

its time to maximize that 2.1 OS..... squeeze it tight and wring it dry baby!!

[BoxBabaX Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:37AM]

@kapanak
Indeed. This phone is a damn BEAST!!

[stridermt2k Posted Jun 3rd 2010 5:34AM]

@kapanak

(Pats his Omnia 2 and smiles)

Too bad it's over for WinMo.

[MagnetMan Posted Jun 3rd 2010 11:26AM]

@kapanak

If you want more info, there's a very complete and unbiased review on GSM arena:
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_i9000_galaxy_s-review-478.php

[TareG Posted Jun 3rd 2010 1:32PM]

@kapanak
Dear Cyanogen,

Please find a way to "extract" out the DIVX/XVID/FLV support, the widgets, and add them to Froyo, then release it as an alternative ROM for the Samsung S. It would be nice to see this beauty with Froyo, without sacrifice in codec playback.

[stridermt2k Posted Jun 4th 2010 4:13AM]

@TareG

Precisely.

[BlackRock Shooter Posted Jun 26th 2010 12:27PM]

@kapanak OMG! It Supports FLAC! ME WANT

anyway.. well, personally being Korean and all AND living right fuckin next to biggest samsung building in Seoul, Galaxy S seemed to just pop out of nowhere.

[YpoCaramel Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:14AM]

Wait, pricing and democracy!?

[weeandystheman Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:40AM]

@YpoCaramel

Lol, thats what I thought. What the hell is democratic pricing. Do we get to vote for how much we pay?

I vote for £1, because I'm scottish and tight

[garfieldfriends Posted Jun 3rd 2010 5:21AM]

@weeandystheman scotlad ftw lol

[Plazmic Flame Posted Jun 3rd 2010 6:18AM]

@weeandystheman

I'd uprank you into nirvana if I could, that was funny as heck lol

[juanvaldez Posted Jun 3rd 2010 9:38AM]

@YpoCaramel For the most part, pulled specifically from CTIA, they were referring to Bada OS when it came to democratizing the smartphone, aka serving the lower, more mainstream audience of consumers.

[dementedacademic Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:20AM]

@Fragmented Samsung does not have the rsources to make a newer phone just yet, they will keep the galaxy S franchise for atleast 2 years, updates will be coming, IMO

[dementedacademic Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:21AM]

Hope they dont become greedy and overprice it, they should aim for marketsahre

[goseki Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:08AM]

@dementedacademic they can't afford to over-price it with the Nokia N8's pricing .. and the Android competition

[dementedacademic Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:12AM]

@goseki what does N8 cost?

[weeandystheman Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:42AM]

@dementedacademic

$465 unlocked in germany apparently. Not sure about anywhere else

http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/21/nokia-n8-launching-august-24-we-hear-amazon-germany-taking-47/

[0110110101100100 Posted Jun 3rd 2010 5:54AM]

@weeandystheman
that's the price before taxes; VAT in Europe is everywhere around 20%
so It will cost between 449 and 499eur at launch.
I guess the galaxy S will be priced 479-549 (615-675 USD), which seems to be a standard price for high end phones these days.

That's really too much, the smartphone market here has gone completely crazy.

[SeeKo Posted Jun 3rd 2010 7:37AM]

@0110110101100100
weeandystheman wrote this price in dollars. So I would guess he is american. Don't shock him with european tax rates. Actually what seems to be the case with many products is that you can almost take the prices 1:1 from for example full german retail prices (including VAT) to american prices. Saying when it costs €470 on Amazon (Germany) it's a high probability that it will cost around $470 in the US.
You don't always have to trust the exchange rates. Simple comparison paints a very different picture most of the time.

[Pablog Posted Jun 3rd 2010 8:15AM]

@dementedacademic
Well - it went live in Poland - NOT by any carrier, just in network of electronic stores, so only without contract, unlocked. It goes for 2000 PLN, which is, depending on exchange rate, something around $610 - $650... I thought that it'll be more expensive without a carrier to be honest, it is now slightly (by $60) more than HTC Desire.

[DefPoet Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:22AM]

Dear Samsung
Let us remove that dreadful Touchwiz from this phone and we'll promise to buy enough of these to circle the earth twice.
Signed Everyone but Behold 2 owners

[juanvaldez Posted Jun 3rd 2010 9:42AM]

@DefPoet remove it in the settings per blog reports.

[DeanSp Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:26AM]

I'll only thing of buying it when Samsung shows that it shall roll out OS updates for it. Android Froyo and Gingerbread at least...

[vasra Posted Jun 3rd 2010 1:13PM]

@DeanSp

Android has officially promised Froyo (2.2) for Galaxy S.

Beyond that, your guess is as good as mine, but going by Samsung's earlier track record, Galaxy S won't see a gingerbread update.

And even that Froyo update will be 6 months late, i.e. available 6 months after the Google update has become available.

They do take their time at Samsung :)

[JFH Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:29AM]

@Fragmented
TouchWiz, All Plastic, No Flash, Made by Samsung so no support. The only thing this thing has going for it is the hummingbird and a nice screen. Should a good gaming device, but other than that, meh.

[magadget Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:32AM]

I think some ppl have too much money spending 500 euros/pounds on a fucking phone.

[RincewindWiz Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:06AM]

@magadget But spending 500 Euros on a small computer is ok.

[SCB Posted Jun 3rd 2010 11:03AM]

@magadget

You seem to be angry at people who have money to spend on things they want.

[ConceptVBS Posted Jun 3rd 2010 1:10PM]

@magadget

Except, increasingly more people are using their mobile phones to browse websites than personal computers.

[xdeiri Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:34AM]

perfect phone

[MacArtStyle Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:39AM]

iPhone much?

[SteveyAyo Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:46AM]

@MacArtStyle Ha wow yeah it is pretty much a direct ripoff of the hardware... of course they pretty much made apple look foolish by removing the ridiculous bezel in exchange for a beautiful 4" screen...
Just think you could have had a screen that amazing all along but instead you got... bezel

[DefPoet Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:06AM]

@SteveyAyo That is why apple should of snatched palm while they had a chance. Can you imagine a iPhone with gesture areas beside the home button HOLY HELL

[SteveyAyo Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:12AM]

@DefPoet lol well thaks to samsung i can now imagine an iPhone with a large screen and less ridiculous bezel

[DefPoet Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:16AM]

@SteveyAyo
http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/2009/06/custom_1244218790311_iphone4gohne.jpg.jpeg
now thats a screen!!

[mrqs Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:19AM]

@MacArtStyle

one definite downside to this phone is that you'll get a lot of ignorant people commenting on your "iphone"

[SteveyAyo Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:24AM]

@DefPoet im starting to think apple should start letting their fans design their new iDevices... the iPad concept was infinitely better than the actual iPad and THAT is infinitely better than the iphone being announced on the 7th...
that being said the texture mapping on the concrete could use some serious work

[BoxBabaX Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:31AM]

@SteveyAyo

How is it a rip off apple, even though its specs were announced/revealed before the iPhone?

[DefPoet Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:33AM]

@BoxBabaX The Looks
put an iphone 3g/3gs next to this and move back 2 feet then look at them .

[DefPoet Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:35AM]

@SteveyAyo i have the same feelings towards sony and the psp
http://blog.ishopvideogame.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/psp2_concept1.jpg
THAT is what the psp2 should be! anything else fails

[BoxBabaX Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:35AM]

@DefPoet

Did you read his comment? He was referring to the hardware.

[SteveyAyo Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:39AM]

@BoxBabaX yeah man come on can you honestly say that this thing doesnt look like a 3g with a slightly different face?

[DefPoet Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:44AM]

@DefPoet Dear Garret B (defpoet)
Shame on you for breaking phonedog's web site !

[mrqs Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:44AM]

@engadget

please take in to account when writing about this stuff, that in a lot of europe, it's very common (as in more common than not) to buy unlocked phones and use them with which ever service provider


as for the topic, looks much like the original galaxy that i have in my pocket, in that the hardware specs seem awesome, but you'll likely be massively let down by samsung's dismal customer service

[JFH Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:07AM]

@mrqs

true

[Aboozer Posted Jun 3rd 2010 3:45AM]

Um... For some reason it does not look as beautiful as HTC phones or new iPhone. Looks kind of .. plasticky. Can't say I'm in love. Need more real life pictures of this thing.

[dementedacademic Posted Jun 3rd 2010 4:13AM]

@Aboozer Anyone who has seen it has been blown away, the screen is super AMOLED

[ConceptVBS Posted Jun 3rd 2010 1:13PM]

@Aboozer

When you first see it, you'll be in love.