Samsung Galaxy Ace Plus in shops tomorrow, no ICS yet

The Samsung Galaxy Ace Plus lands in shops tomorrow. Samsung has confirmed the budget Android phone will go on sale this Saturday, 17 March -- but without Ice Cream Sandwich on board.

The Ace Plus is a successor to the Samsung Galaxy Ace. The original Ace sported a classy design, respectable battery life and a crisp and clear screen, all of which earned it a place in our top ten best phones of 2011. Will the Ace Plus repeat the feat when we come to judge the best phones of this year?

It would certainly have a fighting chance if it had the latest version of Android on board, but it launches with version 2.3 -- Gingerbread -- rather than the up-to-the-minute version 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich.

We know the original Ace won't upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich, but surely the new phone will -- I've contacted Samsung to find out how long we'll have to wait for Ice Cream improvements including an improved browser and camera, new multi-tasking and face unlock.

To see what you're missing out on, check out our video of the improvements from Ice Cream Sandwich to Gingerbread in the newly-updated Samsung Galaxy S2.

The Ace Plus sports a 3.65-inch screen, and packs a a 1GHz processor and 5-megapixel camera. There's 3GB of memory on board to store your music and movies, apps and photos.

Incidentally, the Ace Plus shouldn't be confused with the similarly priced new Galaxy Ace 2, which has a bigger screen but isn't as powerful.

Want to know which Samsung Galaxy phone is right for you? Check out our Samsung Galaxy buying guide.

Does the Ace Plus deserve plus points, or is it a waste of time if it comes minus Ice Cream Sandwich? Can it live up to the success of the original Ace? Ace your comments below or on our Facebook wall.