The Samsung Galaxy S3 is set to launch in May -- and could be the world's thinnest smart phone. That's according to reports suggesting the hotly anticipated Android powerhouse will measure just 7mm thick.
The frequently reliable OLED-display.net quotes a Korean report from ETnews that the S3 will be just 7mm thick. Samsung has worked out how to make the printed circuit boards and other internal gubbins up to 20 per cent thinner than previous versions.
The current Samsung Galaxy S2 measures less than 9mm thick at its thinnest point, although it does flare out slightly wider at the bottom. The S2's biggest rival, the iPhone 4S, measures 9.3mm. The comparison between the two caused controversy last year when the Advertising Standards Agency ruled that the iPhone was thinner overall.
If it does indeed clock in at 7mm, the S3 is set to be the thinnest smart phone in the world, a title currently held by the Motorola Razr -- a whisker fatter at 7.1mm. Doubtless there will be a number of 'world's thinnest' phones unveiled at phone trade show Mobile World Congress this month, although Samsung says the S3 won't be among them.
The S3 is a shoe-in to run Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest version of Android. The report also claims that the S3 boasts an HDMI port, 3D camera and quad-core processor. We're likely to see a couple of quad-core powerhouses this year, including the LG X3 and HTC Edge. Perhaps they'll feature the quad-core Nvidia Tegra 3 processor found in the Asus Transformer Prime tablet.
Sources also reckon that the S3 will connect to the Internet with LTE, the next step up from 3G. That's all very well for phone fans in the US, where LTE is much more widespread, but over here 4G hasn't progressed beyond the trial stage.
What does that mean for the S3 in Britain? Will it be 4G in the US, but 3G here? Or, like so many other 4G phones, will the S3 only launch in the US and not come here at all?
Are you excited about the super-skinny Samsung S3? Tell us your thoughts in the comments or on our Facebook page.
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Comments 20
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nadz156 6 February, 2012 17:56
But what about the Huawei Ascend P1S which is only 6.68mm thin?
anonymous 6 February, 2012 18:08
The s3 will launch in the UK as it will have extra hardware to interface with Samsung business telephone systems.
phd8569 6 February, 2012 18:38
7mm, 7.1mm, 8mm??? Can anyone really notice. Does anyone really in care? When its the thickness of a credit card then I'll gives props where due.
anonymous 6 February, 2012 19:53
OK Samsung...let's focus on other needs such as battery life. These devices can be too thin as function can be more important than form (check out the rzr). "Thin" can be understood with televisions but they do not require a battery to power them. Do not focus on the shiny object please!!! Listen to your customers.
anonymous 6 February, 2012 20:15
Who said we wanted thin? I have the s2 and dont think a phone can go any thinnr before it becomes difficult to grasp properley. Battery and signal sensitivity should be the focus for improvement.
Liam Davies 6 February, 2012 21:01
I'm not fussed about 3d either.
anonymous 6 February, 2012 21:01
Don't care. Battery life please.
anonymous 6 February, 2012 21:14
Well battery is what needs to be focussed on.
anonymous 6 February, 2012 22:16
id want a few more millimetres consosting of some battery life and metal casing. samsungs are so plasticy :(
anonymous 6 February, 2012 22:32
when we are talking about 4 inc size phones, the thin of the phone whether it is 7 , 8 or even 9 mm does not mater much. what matters first of all is battery life.. any day i would choose 9 mm phone with better battery life over 7 or 8 mm!
anonymous 6 February, 2012 22:53
Brilliant... A pressure sensitive stylus..... anyone who knows how to draw/write or has a job in art/design will see the huge benefits of this. I don't know if it will compete with the iphone.... but it certainly looks a hell of a lot more useful than my iphone. Incredible!
anonymous 7 February, 2012 03:55
Battery life has improved. The technology inside the phone is also improving. single core to dual core to now the quad core. If you think about it, running a dual core processor with 1gb of ram on a super OLED screen for + or - 8 hours is quite impressive seeing as laptops of those specs can't do that. The faster the phone gets the more power demanding it is. Last year Samsung had invested a considerable amount of money in slim consumer electronic fuel cells that could potentially replace the Lithium battery. Lithium batteries are extremely limited and close to the end of their potential, everyone is squeezing the last bits of power out of them. But they are working on the battery life along with every other consumer electronic company in the world.
Alimus 7 February, 2012 09:28
Until it's thin enought to shave with I'm not interested. The ASA still hasn't done anything about my complaint regarding the so called 'Motorola RAZR'. Flagrant false advertising.
anonymous 7 February, 2012 16:34
While slim smart phones are nice I rather buy a 20mm smart phone with a decent battery life.
anonymous 10 February, 2012 01:24
Of course it's thin - it's vapourware - doesn't get much thinner than that.
anonymous 11 February, 2012 18:42
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roblightbody 13 February, 2012 15:31
I don't care about thin!
I do care about battery life.
They should offer a thin one with rubbish battery life, and a thick one with much better battery life, and see which people actually buy.
MrsGrey 13 February, 2012 16:22
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Brincalhao Do Recife 14 February, 2012 21:41
I Agree with most people here. I dont think thin is as attractive as functions and battery life.
It is no doubt that a larger processor (quadcore) is more powerconsuming and therfore needs a larger battery. However the S3 comes with a better battery than its predecessor. Adding it all up, you have a phone with no better nor less battery life than s1 and s2.
This could be resolved by not making the phone thinner but the battery slightly larger.
A phone that is to thin and large makes me think that it can easely breake in 2 peaces.
If it did you would need a new phone, but I guess they wouldent mind that. ;)
Bottom line is: We dont need a thinner phone, we need it to be waterproof and sustaineble and with a lot more batterylife.
anonymous 27 February, 2012 20:08
Being thin is a useful feature and the battery of my sg2 already lasts at least one day.
That said, if they give me another full day of battery life I could settle on a slightly fatter phone, but given a choice between two extra hours and two less mm, I'd go for the thinner phone.