Hardware Hands-On

[Kevin OQuinn]

Phil's touched it. Check it out HERE.

What do you guys think?

 

[Love Divine]

Seems slightly underwhelming, but that was a given with all the speculation. It's a good looking device, but the screen is the big mark against it. Why no SAMOLED HD+? If I don't get US info soon it's EVO LTE for me.

 

[MrSlippery519]

I like the battery size, I like the SD slot....the screen is good but nothing special. Overall looks like a great phone however am leaning towards to One X at the moment.

 

[Kevin OQuinn]

Two things stick out to me. First, the menu button. That's going to hold Android back as a whole IMHO. Second, removable storage. Yes, it's a desired feature, but it's also something Android is moving away from. I would've like to see Samsung include a large amount of internal storage instead (and HTC, for that matter).

It's rounded, but it's still plastic. I was really hoping Samsung would wow us with something incredible.

 

[bas.androiddev]

US version not expected till summer, and I still don't know if my carrier (Sprint) will offer it. That makes my decision easy - EVO 4g LTE for me. My og Evo 4g is showing it's age.

 

[taylorz_412]

As long as battery life is good and it comes to Verizon I have an uprgrade waiting for it

 

[MrSlippery519]

US version not expected till summer, and I still don't know if my carrier (Sprint) will offer it. That makes my decision easy - EVO 4g LTE for me. My og Evo 4g is showing it's age.

That is my thought as well going with the One X...I am ready to upgrade anytime and would have been willing to wait a month or so if this phone was going to be something amazing however at best it's on par with the One X (and EVO 4g LTE) some aspects slightly better and some slightly worse.

Add in we will not see the phone until July or August it's a no brainer for me.

 

[JayWill]

Not totally unexpected, and not as revolutionary as some were hoping. Honestly, I was keeping my expectations low because I wasn't overly expecting anything ground breaking out of this announcement.

Alex says "we don?t think anyone will be disappointed with the display tech Samsung?s brought to bear on the S III.", but while I obviously haven't seen the screen, I'm a bit disappointed that we didn't see SAMOLED HD PLUS in this screen. While I think the screen on the Galaxy Nexus does look nice (and according to Alex this screen might look a tad better), my eyes are pretty sensitive to the Pentile matrix, and it would bug me after awhile. The screen alone will probably be the sole factor from keeping me from upgrading from the GSII early, depending on how the US variants turn out.

Other thoughts ...

I bet the single button is not included in the US variants. Maybe a 3 capacitive button layout like the One X.

I'm a fan of expandable storage and a removable battery, and I'm glad they stuck with it. However, I agree with Kevin to an extent. I'd be perfectly happy with 32 to 64 GB non-removable internal memory. I do hope Android manufacturers get there eventually.

The design looks sleek and nice to the eye, but nothing drastic over the GSII. More subtle and refined in comparison I'd say.

Final thoughts ...

This will be a successful device, but I don't see it being a big pull on existing GSII owners. Depending on how the individual US carrier variants play out, I will probably be sticking with my Epic 4G Touch into 2013.

 

[MOTH477]

Two things stick out to me. First, the menu button. That's going to hold Android back as a whole IMHO. Second, removable storage. Yes, it's a desired feature, but it's also something Android is moving away from. I would've like to see Samsung include a large amount of internal storage instead (and HTC, for that matter).

It's rounded, but it's still plastic. I was really hoping Samsung would wow us with something incredible.

I agree the S3 is underwhelming. MicroSD is important to most so I appreciate Samsung for leaving it there. There is only so much you can do with cloud storage and how much storage can they put in there to make it enough?

 

[P_M_G]

makes me wonder why HTC didn't go for removeable battery in the E4GLTE. I think tho, that i'm still sticking with HTC. I really wanted the GS3 to be the one to get me to switch, but I guess i'm not far from a charger for very long most of the time so I'll risk it.

 

[LazrRocketArm]

Two things stick out to me. First, the menu button. That's going to hold Android back as a whole IMHO. Second, removable storage. Yes, it's a desired feature, but it's also something Android is moving away from. I would've like to see Samsung include a large amount of internal storage instead (and HTC, for that matter).

It's rounded, but it's still plastic. I was really hoping Samsung would wow us with something incredible.

Cloud storage and streaming are great, but factor in data charges AND what about needing coverage?
Not too happy about paying for data(or throttling) for files I OWN!

 

[frozndevl]

makes me wonder why HTC didn't go for removeable battery in the E4GLTE. I think tho, that i'm still sticking with HTC. I really wanted the GS3 to be the one to get me to switch, but I guess i'm not far from a charger for very long most of the time so I'll risk it.

I think with the unibody construction there isn't a user friendly way to make it removable, so they made it built-in.

 

[ab304945]

I agree the S3 is underwhelming. MicroSD is important to most so I appreciate Samsung for leaving it there. There is only so much you can do with cloud storage and how much storage can they put in there to make it enough?

It is only underwhelming because ask the over hyping

 

[PewterL31]

They are offering 3 models 16bg, 32gb and 64gb with sd slot so that should make both camps happy. i am looking forward to upgrading to this from my skyrocket.

 

[newbey123]

Wow. Now I am glad that I went with my guy and ordered the One X. The S3 will be a very nice phone for those that were needing the extra storage.

However, the One X seems to be a better total package. Glad I didn't cancel it. At least I can stop debating if I made the right decision.

 

[ab304945]

US version not expected till summer, and I still don't know if my carrier (Sprint) will offer it. That makes my decision easy - EVO 4g LTE for me. My og Evo 4g is showing it's age.

Why wouldn't sprint offer it . They had the last 2

 

[Prozak]

I'm most likely in the minority here, but I hope the US keeps the physical button. My phone doubles as toddler entertainment on car rides and while I like the capacitive buttons on my DINC2, my toddler finds a way to hit the home button every 30 seconds and I get a "Daddy, it turned off by itself.. HELP!". So, typically, we have to use the wife's iphone for that as she knows not to press the button.

Would be win-win for me, except I have unlimited data, she doesn't. Pretty dumb reason to be excited over a button.... But, at least for me, is a damn good feature

 

[unashamedgeek]

I'm also hoping to keep the physical button. I think it makes sense when using that to turn on the screen, followed by using your thumb to unlock the device.

 

[Tkbredx]

Things about the hardware I love:
-The build of the device, its sexy.
-Removable battery
-SD slot

Things about the hardware I hate:
-No black version -___-
-The buttons. Bring on the modern 3 soft touch. I feel outdated
-No camera button (not that big of a deal though)
-Screen,No SAMOLED HD+. The average user like myself doesnt really see the difference but I know its not the best out there so it makes me mad. lol

 

[PewterL31]

They are lunching with just the blue and white but they stated other colors will be available soon after.