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Samsung snaps up mSpot, teases a boost to media cloud efforts
Talk of a Samsung cloud service might not have panned out at the Galaxy S III event, but that doesn't mean the Korean electronics giant isn't interested in the space. Samsung has just acquired mSpot, best known for its cloud music storage and its earlier movie streaming tie-ins with carriers. The exact intentions aren't exactly clear -- Samsung is only promising that mSpot's technology will represent a "key integrated offering" on new mobile hardware. Still, the deal suggests that the Music Hub and Media Hub may get that much more cloud-savvy in the future. When asked for comment, Dropbox coyly stated: "It's cool. Being single is the new black."
Editorial: Engadget on the Samsung Galaxy S III
Samsung Galaxy S III preview Under the microscope: Samsung Galaxy S III's HD Super AMOLED display Samsung Galaxy S III wrap-up Was it everything you imagined? The Galaxy S III didn't really slap us silly with hardware spectacle or a particularly brave design and instead plowed into software additions and contextual features. There was plenty to chew over and plenty of discussion followed its big reveal, spilling out over the last few days -- this was a big launch for not only Samsung but Android itself. We've got the six editors who spent time with the device to offer up their own thoughts on this new Android Olympian.
Samsung Galaxy S III gets a Canadian girlfriend as Bell, Rogers, Telus, Wind Mobile line up
If you live north of the 49th parallel, you're no doubt frustrated that Samsung teased a summer launch for the Galaxy S III in North America but made no initial mention of its Canadian plans. Don't fret, as virtually every Canadian carrier and its mother has now pledged to carry the giant Android 4.0 smartphone while you're on your summer vacation -- the first carrier commitments in North America that we've seen. Bell, Rogers, Telus, Virgin Mobile and Wind Mobile have all stepped up as national providers, while regional carriers such as SaskTel and Videotron have also signed on. The Galaxy S III is a special milestone for Virgin, as it's the first 4G LTE phone on the Bell-run budget network. We're still waiting for Mobilicity and other cellular services to hop on the Galaxy S III bandwagon, and details like pricing and exact ship dates are still elusive, but odds are that Canucks will have a wide choice of carriers when the 4.8-inch flagship hits stores. Update: Sure enough, Mobilicity is also onboard, which along with Wind Mobile makes it pretty clear that T-Mobile-friendly AWS frequencies are baked in.
Samsung's Mobile Unpacked 2012 event now available to watch online (video)
Missed out on our liveblog coverage? Well, we'll deal with that later, as the whole event is now online for you to gaze at. You might want to grab a snack and coffee to tide you over though, as it runs for just under 80 minutes. Once you're ready, skip over the break to watch Samsung reveal its self-titled smartphone champion.
Samsung Galaxy S III US sign-up page goes live
So enthused with the Galaxy S III that you want to know exactly when in the summer Americans can buy one? You can follow us, of course, but Samsung has you covered with a sign-up page that will take your vitals with promises that you'll "get the latest on the Next Galaxy." We wouldn't read too much into seeing AT&T, Sprint, Verizon and others in the list of carriers to choose from, though. Samsung has run identical sign-up campaigns in the US before, and it focused the initial Galaxy S II launch on three major carriers rather than carpet bombing every network at once. [Thanks, Michael]
Samsung Galaxy S III wrap-up
So, it's time to take down the decorations, remove that party hat and sweep up the confetti (you can clear the unfinished drinks in the morning). As Earl's Court in London echoes with the hollow sound of empty plastic champagne flutes and half-eaten canapes, the rest of the tech world gives a sigh of relief. The Samsung Galaxy S III is here. Was it what you expected? If you haven't yet decided, don't worry, we've got you covered. After all the months of anticipation, cryptic clues and teasing it's understandable that you might be feel a little bit spent. That's why we're going to carry you over the finish line, by providing you with a fireman's lift of all things GS3. We've collected together all the links to tonight's main stories, along with a little reminder of the route we took to get here. So forget about the post-party hangover for now, and do the walk of shame past the break for the round-up.
Samsung Game Hub, Video Hub hands-on (video)
Sad that Samsung's rumored S-Cloud didn't appear on the scene? Well the arrival of the company's new Video, Game and Music hubs might heal the wounds. Rather than a unified service, the Galaxy S III will have access to three separate stores that will offer an alternative to Google Play. We spent a few minutes having a play, and you can see what it's like after the break.
AllShare Cast wireless streaming dongle for Samsung Galaxy S III -- hands-on (video)
If you're looking to pair up a brand new GS III with a bigger screen, but you're not yet part of the Smart TV generation, then this little accessory could get you out of a fix. It's palm-sized with a single blue LED light indicating a connection, but honestly you don't ever need to look at it: it doesn't need line-of-sight to your handset because it uses a wireless protocol called WiFi Display, which means you can happily leave it dangling out of the way behind your TV. The unit has two cables: one for power and the other for the HDMI connection to your TV, which can transmit up to 1080p video and audio. As you'll see in the hands-on video after the break, it works for direct mirroring, so you can watch movies, play games or reel off holiday slideshows. But it also has a more enterprise-focused feature, in the form of a slideshow function in cahoots with the Polaris Office app, which means you can use your GS III as a controller for a presentation. It's a simple idea, but it all seemed to work smoothly and we can imagine it coming in pretty handy.
Samsung Galaxy S III launching on Vodafone, Orange, O2, T-Mobile and Three in the UK
While we wait for the LTE version of the Samsung Galaxy S III to arrive in the US this summer, UK punters will have opportunities to preorder the new flagship device starting right away on these carriers: Vodafone, Orange, O2, T-Mobile and Three. Although details and specific availability vary from carrier to carrier, retailer Carphone Warehouse currently lists a SIM-free preorder price of £499.95. While Orange didn't mention any other details than that it will offer the phone, Vodafone has revealed that beyond the 16GB edition, it has a timed month long exclusive on the 32GB version. On Three, preorders open tomorrow, May 4th, with the all-you-can-eat data One plan for £34 monthly. The phone will launch May 30th in the UK, a day after the May 29th global release date. There's a few UK / Ireland specific press releases included after the break and links below, check those out for all details, preregistration and information on preorder bonuses some are offering.
Samsung Galaxy S III to be sold in Mobile Pin pop-up stores (updated with video)
At the very tail end of its Galaxy S III event, Samsung promised one more surprise -- and what it gave us was a special retail strategy. The company will be opening Mobile Pin locations, or glass-housed pop-up stores, to help showcase its new flagship phone. We had a chance to look at examples of the stores first-hand. Those not at the launch event will get a look in the near future, with Mobile Pins appearing at several locations throughout London. The first Pins will open on May 29th, with the Pin 5 (a 5-by-5 meter indoor location) making temporary appearances at Spitalfields Market, Westfield and White City, while the 7-by-7 outdoor version (Pin 7) will pop up in the Olympic Park along with Hyde Park at a later date this year. Samsung is also planning to introduce the Pin concept abroad, with plans for two US cities currently in the works, along with a yet-unnamed country in Asia -- Korea would be our guess. We've got a gallery and video walkthrough below to explore the locations in more detail.
Samsung launches new services for the Galaxy S III: Music Hub, S Health and more
Samsung has just taken the wraps off of its highly anticipated Galaxy S III and, in a move similar to Nokia's efforts with the Lumia line, decided to package extra services and features to further differentiate itself from the competition. Mentioned onstage were the S Health "personal wellness app" and an enhanced Music Hub cloud service with access to over 17 million tracks and an iTunes Match-sounding "Scan and Match" feature. Music Hub will launch in seven countries, while the matching feature is supported in six of those. There's also a hub for Games that promises quick tie ins to social gaming and a Video Hub with TV and movies. One other new feature is support for MirrorLink enabled headunits that should bring access to all of these things even while you're driving your car. Finally, there's NFC-based mobile payment support that should get some use among visitors to the Olympic games this summer.
Samsung's Galaxy S III now has a commercial to call its own (video)
Sure, Samsung gave us all the hard sell during today's Mobile Unpacked event, but how do you really know if you want the new Ice Cream Sandwich handset until you cast your eyes on a real live commercial for the thing? Fear not, we've got one after the break, so you can finally know once and for all just how life-changey this phone is.
Samsung unveils Galaxy S III accessories: wireless charger, S-pebble MP3, AllCast wireless dongle in tow
While the star of today's Unpacked event is certainly Samsung's Galaxy S III, every hero can benefit from a few good sidekicks -- or in the case of this Android superphone, accessories. Up for offer will be a variety of goods including a flip cover, battery-charging stand, spare battery, car dock, "metallic docking stand" and HDMI adapter. Perhaps most interesting pieces, however, are the AllCast wireless dongle (which appears to be direct competition to HTC's Media Link HD video-mirroring device), a Wireless Charging Kit and an S-pebble MP3 player that plays nice with the scan and match feature in the Music Hub app. We're gathering all the details we can, so in the meantime grab a look at the gallery below.
Samsung announces buddy share feature, automatically sends photos to friends and family for you
Whenever we take a group photo, it's always a pain to have to go and email a copy to everyone afterwards. Good thing Samsung's rolled out a new buddy photo share feature on its new Galaxy S III to save us those precious post-photo seconds. It works using facial recognition tech to identify each of your subjects, then shoots the picture to them automatically via email or text message. Fantastic, now our mother won't be pestering us for weeks to get copies of all those family reunion photos next year.
Samsung Galaxy S III gets an early exclusive on Flipboard, headed to other Android phones in 'coming months'
It looks like you can now add one more popular iOS app to the Android ranks -- sort of. Samsung has managed to get an exclusive version of Flipboard for its just-announced Galaxy S III smartphone, and the folks at SlashGear have already taken it for a quick spin. The short version: it's a lot like the iOS app, with the notable exception of some widgets that you can add to the phone's home screen. As for when it will head to other Android phones, Flipboard is only saying that it will be available for "select" phones in the "coming months." You can find SlashGear's hands-on at the link below.
Samsung announces SmartStay and S Voice features for the Galaxy S III
In addition to announcing its newest flagship, the Galaxy S III, along with some nifty photo-sharing features, Samsung has just revealed two more human-friendly features that aim to further differentiate the phone on the software side. These include SmartStay, which cleverly keeps the display from timing out by using the front-facing camera to detect when you're looking at the screen. Meanwhile, S Voice ushers in voice commands, and is the closest thing we've seen to a Siri competitor since Apple introduced that feature on the iPhone 4S. And we have to say, though Android users have long been reveling in voice-activated dialing and Google searches, the list of possible use cases here is quite impressive. In addition to initiating calls, you can wake the phone, request songs, send emails and text messages, use the calendar app, adjust the volume, capture photos, snooze the alarm and inquire about the weather. For now, Samsung says this feature will support eight languages, including, among others, Spanish, German, Korean and American / British English. Still, we wouldn't put it past Samsung to teach the GS III a few more languages once it gets that whole "launching in 145 countries" thing out of the way.
Samsung and Dropbox offer Galaxy S III users up to 50GB of extra storage
Samsung has partnered with Dropbox to offer extra storage for Galaxy S III owners. Once you've registered the newly minted handset, your current pre-loaded allocation will be topped up to a maximum of 50GB, not matching but doubling HTC's allowance. And just like Sense 4's offering, the free storage will remain valid for two years but there's no indication if there will be discounts for those who've become hooked on all that online real estate -- we hear it's very moreish.
Samsung Galaxy S III vs Galaxy S II and Galaxy S: meet the family
If you don't know where you came from, you won't know where you're going. That's why we're stacking up Samsung's Galaxy S III against the S II and the Galaxy S to see how the range has come on in the three years it's existed. If you fancy a trip down memory lane to the heady days of 2010, then join us after the break.
Samsung Galaxy S III vs. rival flagships: iPhone 4S, HTC One X, Lumia 900
Oh yes, it's a good time to go shopping for a smartphone, particularly if you've acquired a taste for an abundance of pixels and silicon cores. But which phones ought to be considered flagships worthy of comparison with the shiny new GS III? Yes, we're including the Lumia 900 in this context, for the sake of platform neutrality and also in recognition of the fact that raw specs don't count for everything -- but we can't overlook that this handset is sorely lacking in terms of ppi and some other areas. The next two choices are more obvious: the eternal (or infernal) iPhone 4S and AT&T's version of the HTC One X. So here it is: one table to rule them all, right after the break.
Galaxy S III vs. Galaxy Nexus and Galaxy S II: what's changed?
We're here live at Samsung's unveiling of the Galaxy S III and while it was going on, we furiously built this chart to see how the biggest phone of the year stacks up against its two progenitors. Here's some trivia: that 4.8-inch display is 22 percent bigger than the Galaxy S II's, but its overall dimensions only grew by 16 percent. If you're interested in those sort of details, then after the break is where you need to be.
