While the Korean firm has been subject to the same clamour for information as Apple, which will have pleased the now-largest smartphone maker after years as an also-ran in the mobile phones space, it's not been in the same league as the Cupertino lot when it comes to secrecy.
The Samsung Galaxy S3 has been snapped multiple times in leaks – some more accurate than others, it has to be said – and the specs mooted have turned out to be pretty bang on.
But that doesn't matter – megapixels and gigabytes don't mean anything if they're not wrapped up in a decent package, so is the Samsung Galaxy S3 a worthy successor to the much-loved Galaxy S2?
Design
The Samsung Galaxy S3 is, according to Samsung anyway, 'inspired by nature – it sees, listens, responds, and allows you to share the greatest moments'.
While this is all a little hyperbolic, the nature theme is certainly present when you handle the phone for the first time. Brushed plastic – you've got a choice of 'Marble White' and 'Pebble Blue' – adorns the large device, which runs in with dimensions of 136.6 x 70.6 x 8.6mm, despite still having to pack in a 4.8-inch Super AMOLED HD screen.
We'll lay it out right now: the plastic feeling of the Galaxy S3 won't appeal to all. It feels very lightweight (despite tipping the scales at 133g) in the hand, and some people will read this as feeling a little cheap.
However, it's exactly the same sensation as we found on the Galaxy S2, and given the silly numbers of sales that had, we think there's more than a market for a phone that you'll barely notice in your pocket most of the time.
Compared to rest of the Galaxy line, the S3 has more in common with the original Galaxy S than the Galaxy S2, with curved edges the theme in the design language. The home button has also been elongated, although the same menu and back buttons remain from the prequel.
Overall, the effect is much more like the Samsung Galaxy Nexus than anything else – rounded edges, HD screen but with a more minimal bezel to really accentuate the screen in the hand.
And let's take a minute and talk about the screen: it's beautiful. We almost feel sad that this isn't the first HD screen we've seen on a mobile phone, as it's kind of lost its lustre since the likes of the Nexus, Note and One X have all managed the same trick – but if you've not seen one before and you compare it to a Galaxy S2, its worlds apart.
The 309ppi pixel density is up there with the iPhone 4S, and it makes us realise that while a Retina Display is lovely, 3.5-inch screens just don't cut it any more.
We'll be mightily surprised if the combined popularity of the HTC One X and Samsung Galaxy S3 don't prompt Apple into a re-tooling of the screen with the iPhone 5, as the contrast ratio, large display and excellent colour reproduction will definitely wow users on the shelves.
It seems Samsung has tweaked the colour balance on the Galaxy S3 as well – things don't look as saturated as before, which will certainly help entice those that previously were against Super AMOLED before due to the harshness of colours.
But in the hand, the Samsung Galaxy S3 feels superb. The design contours well against the palm, and while the screen size may be a little big for some (you'll need a bit of shuffling to reach the upper section of the screen) it's definitely useable in the hand.
So in short: if you don't mind plastic and you like big HD screens in your pocket, this is a phone definitely worth checking out.
Interface
Samsung has unsurprisingly re-tooled the Touchwiz overlay for the Galaxy S3, and has really gone to town with the whole 'inspired by nature' business.
For instance, the lock screen now becomes more interactive than ever. You don't get a visual clue when you're unlocking (which may be a nod to the litigation brought forth by Apple on the subject) but touch the screen and you'll see a little water ripple under the finger.
Added to that is a little water drop sound, and the whole effect is surprisingly pleasing. We can see it irritating a few people after a while though, so turning it off will probably be a decent option.
It's clear with the S3 that Samsung has worked out there's only so much it can do on the hardware side these days – not to say that we're pretty impressed with the spec list - and as such has tried to bring the unique flavour through the interface instead.
With the re-worked Touchwiz, there's a definite sense the whole process has been simplified, as the phone has got a much easier feel to it when swiping around. That's not to say there aren't loads of widgets to be played with, but there is less clutter on the larger screen.
The dock at the bottom of the display has been increased to now hold five favourite items, which is a real plus for those that want internet, mail, phone and messaging all within easy reach (as well as the app menu).
Swiping around the display was easy as pie – it's not exactly taxing on the processor, but we could not find a jot of slowdown in the pre-production model we were playing with, which always bodes immensely well.
However, there is a worry that the quad core 1.4 GHz Exynos CPU could suck power a little too dramatically – and to that end Samsung has come out with an innovative eye-tracking method called Smart Stay.
This idea will track your eyes when looking at the display, and dim it when you're not checking out your phone. In practice it seemed a little all over the place when trying it, but there's only a momentary icon that pops up to let you know if the eye has been tracked by the camera.
It's a novel idea though, and one that could really be ace if it comes to fruition as Samsung hopes.
The other 'smart' idea Samsung had was the idea that voice recognition could work with S Voice – and we hope that this does actually happen as it was nowhere near Siri level on the Samsung Galaxy S2.
Visually, there are a few cues from Siri in the demo we saw – the layout is pretty similar, as you can see, and the phone itself needs to be trained to hear your voice for certain features.
For instance, you'll have to repeat your wake up call, be it 'Hi Galaxy' or 'Hi Buddy' four times so the phone learns the timbre of your voice, which feels a little last century, but does improve the accuracy
We're still not convinced that voice control will ever really work on a phone, but Samsung is touting 'natural language processing' as the reason why the phone will be more accurate in hearing what you say.
Smart alert is also present, and will be a lot more useful than voice activation. Pick up the phone when you've got a missed call or text and it will vibrate gently in your hand in combination with the notification light to let you know you're a popular bunny.
But overall the good news is the large screen looks great, the slick operation under the finger is exactly what we wanted and the little touches like the rippling lock screen do actually feel quite natural.
Only five homescreens limits customisation options
Other UIs offer better social networking
HTML email needs fixing
Voice dictation is a step behind Siri
No FM radio or SD card slot
Battery life needs to be improved
The Samsung Galaxy Nexus is the world's first phone to run Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) and comes with a plethora of top end tech, including a huge but still massively high resolution screen.
There are some gadgets in geek-world that are announced and we just cannot wait to touch. Nokia's N95, the original iPhone, the T-Mobile G1 and Palm's first Pre. And the Galaxy Nexus fits firmly in that category.
The big selling point here is not so much the handset – it's what powers the Galaxy Nexus. Google has redrawn its Android OS in probably the biggest overhaul since it launched exactly three years ago.
TechRadar rating
4/5
For
Facial unlock is a fun feature
Contacts integration is excellent
Refreshed Gmail app is even better than before
Keyboard and internet both fantastic
Future-proofed with NFC
Against
Only five homescreens limits customisation options
Other UIs offer better social networking
HTML email needs fixing
Voice dictation is a step behind Siri
No FM radio or SD card slot
Battery life needs to be improved
Samsung Galaxy Nexus review
Google's third flagship phone brings Android 4.0 and killer features
The Samsung Galaxy Nexus is the world's first phone to run Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) and comes with a plethora of top end tech, including a huge but still massively high resolution screen.
There are some gadgets in geek-world that are announced and we just cannot wait to touch. Nokia's N95, the original iPhone, the T-Mobile G1 and Palm's first Pre. And the Galaxy Nexus fits firmly in that category.
The big selling point here is not so much the handset – it's what powers the Galaxy Nexus. Google has redrawn its Android OS in probably the biggest overhaul since it launched exactly three years ago.
Ice Cream Sandwich fuses together last year's Gingerbread OS for phones and Honeycomb for tablets and gives us a whole new, futuristic Android device to get to grips with.
On top of that, the specs include a fantastic Super AMOLED HD screen, Dual-Core 1.2GHz processor, HSDPA, 5MP camera and NFC support, to name a few.
The Nexus itself is fairly big. With dimensions of 135.5 x 67.9 x 8.9mm, it's marginally bigger than Samsung's other flagship handset, the Galaxy S2. It's also a little bit heavier at 135g compared to the latter's 116g. Not that it feels larger although you can tell you are not using an iPhone 4S.
The front is probably as minimalist as you can get. All black with no buttons at all (we'll explain more in the interface section about that.)
In fact, all you have on the front is the screen, front facing camera and the brightness sensor plus a cheeky little light beneath the screen that you don't even know exists until you get an email and it begins to pulsate.
The sides are fairly unremarkable with power/standby on the right, volume on the left along with three charging pins (for a dock accessory), nothing up top and the bottom housing the charge/sync socket and headphone jack.
The whole handset has a curved shape we last encountered on the Galaxy S but it's not too severe.
The rear takes its design cues from the S2 with a snap on cover that feels slightly coarse to give a good grip. It has both Google and Samsung branding on.
You won't find an SD slot on the outside. Or indeed, the inside. Ridiculously, this – the flagship Google handset which is so set up as a media device – has been crippled by having NO expandable memory. Words fail us. And they may fail you when you realise that 16GB internal storage is your lot.
But the screen, when lit up, looks fantastic. Its 4.65-inches with a resolution of 720 x 1280, giving a ppi of 316. It really is super sharp. We would have expected nothing less with Samsung's mobile displays among the best out there but it's cracking for internet and video.
There is no doubt about it – this is a premium handset and is up there with the iPhone 4S and Nokia Lumia 800 in terms of marketing position.
If you want one, you'll have to spend the cash and commit to upwards of £41 a month to bag a handset with no upfront charge. Sim-free will set you back around £520 though at the time of writing, the launch of unsubsidised models had been pushed back until the start of December.
The HTC One X brings the best processor, an HD screen and a sublimely thin chassis as the Taiwanese firm looks to recreate the success of the original Desire.
The One X is a phone that's had us intrigued for a while – running a quad core CPU (Nvidia's Tegra 3) plus one of the largest screens on any HTC… and that's without being given a gargantuan name like the Titan.
It's clear from the outset what HTC is trying to do with the One X: shake off the slight doom and gloom surrounding the brand's fall in profits, and bring out a slick, powerful and, more importantly, useable handset that only costs £36 per month (about $57) on a two year deal.
Check out the HTC One X video below to find out the main features it's packing in that slim body.
With Ice Cream Sandwich running from the outset, this is the phone that really takes HTC to the next level – but is it a case of too much, too soon for a brand that's still really just over a decade old?
Design
HTC's phones have been slowly moving towards sleeker design ever since the purchase of One & Co (which may have had more than a little to do with the new naming strategy) and the release of the HTC Legend.
Since then, unibody designs and smooth lines have been a feature of its devices, and that principle has been evolved with the HTC One X.
However, before you read any further, a note of caution: if you're not willing to accept a pretty large mobile, then you're better off waiting for the likes of the HTC One S – the One X is a large piece of phone estate in your hand.
But it's that large 4.7-inch screen that is such a stunning feature of the One X – it's a 720p HD display packed into a chassis that's only 8.9mm thick. Plus it's also using the Super IPS LCD 2 technology that, while it lacks the vivid colour reproduction of Samsung's Super AMOLED range, really brings games and movies to life.
We're not going to get into the pros and cons of OLED vs LCD – suffice to say, it's a matter of choice whether you prefer improved contrast ratios or a more true to life colour reproduction. In our opinion, both are excellent and the One X will certainly not disappoint.
Like the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, it's got a pixel density (screen sharpness) that rivals the iPhone 4S, but does it on a screen that's over an inch larger. It's one of those devices that you have to see to really believe, but there's a good chance you'll confuse it with a shop model with a static image Sellotaped onto the front.
The rest of the phone design is, again, pretty subjective. For the large size, it's very light indeed at 130g. That's quite a bit heavier than the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S2 (14g, in fact) but in reality you'll consider it to be almost impossible to feel in the pocket.
The rest of the phone is pretty minimal in design. Unlike the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, we're offered some physical (well, touch sensitive) keys on the front of the HTC One X, meaning the display won't need to jump up and down to show the contextual versions.
There's an expected volume rocker switch on the right-hand side, a power button on the top (accompanied by a 3.5mm headphone jack) and a microUSB slot on the left-hand side – which also doubles a Mobile High-Definition Link to hook up to a TV.
It's a very sparse offering on a phone that's so expansive in its design, and leads to a very minimalist feel, which will likely appeal to many.
That effect is compounded by the microSIM slot on the back of the phone, which requires an Apple-esque device to open it up – and there's no microSD support to be found here either, with the battery locked into the unibody design.
While the smaller SIM will be a slight annoyance to those upgrading from the full-size version, the lack of a microSD slot will be a big worry for many, especially as HD movies and large games will play very well on a phone like this.
There is 32GB of onboard storage, but that's not going to be enough for the ilk of smartphone user that wouldn't buy an iPhone until capacity was raised to 64GB.
The rear of the phone features the 8MP camera, which protrudes quite a lot from the handset, but thanks to the slightly curved nature of the chassis, doesn't affect the phone too much when resting on a table.
The power button on the top of the phone can be quite hard to hit with the phone resting in the palm if you've not got the largest hands in the world, although the travel is such you'll hit it pretty accurately most of the time, which is something some phones fail to manage.
The size is the main design issue we can see for most people – this sleek-looking, lightweight phone will appeal to both men and women, but those with smaller hands will struggle to use the HTC One X effectively without doubling down on their digits.
We reviewed the white version of the One X, and it's worth noting that in a few hours it was quite dirty with fingerprint smudges and the like, so be warned you might want to fork out for a case too.
