Hasta La Gadget!

Samsung has already started on the Jelly Bean upgrade path for the Galaxy S III, but that hasn’t meant much so far unless you live in Samsung’s homeland. The update’s global relevance is expanding in grand fashion now that the company has confirmed the software is rolling out to Galaxy S III units across the UK. Variants on the smartphone for British carriers should get their taste of Android 4.1 over the course of a multi-week update process that brings everyone to the new version. Different carrier testing methods prevent Samsung from being any more specific; it’s reasonable to say, though, that most owners living in Old Blighty should be running Jelly Bean before the holiday season kicks into overdrive.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung

Samsung begins delivering Jelly Bean to UK-based Galaxy S III owners originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 19 Oct 2012 10:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  ZDNet  | Email this | Comments

AT&T might have nabbed Verizon’s color for the Galaxy S III, but that doesn’t mean Big Red subscribers will be left out. The CDMA carrier has just posted a rotating teaser on its home page promising the low-key black and brown versions of Samsung’s flagship sometime “soon,” with availability sign-ups on hand for the impatient. That’s all we know for now, although history suggests there won’t be a premium over the $200 contract price of the existing blue and white models. We’re hoping the new shades of Galaxy come soon — Verizon’s offering will be the first chance most Americans have to get the Android phone in muted colors and relive the glory days of brown electronics.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung

Verizon teases black and brown Galaxy S III models for the subtle crowd originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Oct 2012 18:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Droid-Life  |  Verizon  | Email this | Comments

Custom ROM fans will know AOKP (Android Open Kang Project), but the first build derived from Jelly Bean was knowingly rough around the edges. What a difference a month makes: along with the usual round of bug fixes, the team’s second build has added options to force screen rotation and the tablet interface on any device. Not-quite-so-early adopters also get fine-grained control over the interface DPI, LEDs, theming and vibration, and the device list has grown to include the Verizon Galaxy S III, the Galaxy Note and multiple variants of both the original Galaxy S and the Galaxy Tab family. If you were waiting to stay just short of the bleeding edge before trying AOKP, your version is ready.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile

AOKP team posts giant update to its Jelly Bean build, allows rotation and tablet UI anywhere originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Sep 2012 01:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Droid-Life  |  AOKP  | Email this | Comments

The phone that a passel of worldwide lawsuits couldn’t hold back, Samsung’s Galaxy S III, is the company’s most successful yet, as Samsung announced tonight that it’s delivered more than 20 million units in 100 days. That figure puts it at three times the sales rate of the Galaxy S II when it broke 20 million in February, ten months after launch and more than six times the original Galaxy S, which took 17 months. In a rare occasion, Samsung has supplied regional sales figures — revealing six million devices for Europe, 4.5 million in Asia, 4 million in North America and 2.5 million in Korea. According to Samsung’s gleeful press release it’s moving 200,000 units a day — any predictions for where that pace (or sales for its larger cousin, the Galaxy Note II which has its own hard act to follow) will go from here?

Continue reading Samsung notches more than 20 million Galaxy S III smartphones sold in 100 days

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

Samsung notches more than 20 million Galaxy S III smartphones sold in 100 days originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Sep 2012 00:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Samsung Korea, Samsung Tomorrow  | Email this | Comments

It all started with a simple Facebook message from a loyal Samsung fan to the company’s Canadian Facebook page. “I was just wondering if I could get a free Galaxy S3?” asked Shane. And for good measure the Samsung fanboy included a picture of a dinosaur going rawr. It wasn’t a very good drawing but it was cute. And cute counts.

Shane himself, age 26, told TechCrunch today he is far from an artist. Artist or not, he’s now the proud owner of a Samsung Galaxy S III with his artwork adorning the backside — and he got the customized phone for free.

The phone came from Samsung Canada. His phone is special. It’s a one-of-a-kind and according to the note displayed below from Samsung Canada, it’s the only customized Galaxy S III in Canada. Best of all, it’s a gift from Samsung Canada to Shane, apparently a sort-of thank you for the story that viral in May ahead of the Galaxy S III’s launch.

When Shane sent his little note to Samsung Canada in May, the phone had yet to hit the market. Samsung had just unveiled the phone and it wasn’t scheduled to hit the Canadian market until late June. But that didn’t stop Shane, a self-professed Samsung fan, who indicated to Samsung Canada that he already owned Samsung HDTV, Samsung notebook and a first-generation Samsung Galaxy S. But he wanted Samsung’s latest smartphone, too.

Samsung Canada didn’t respond to Shane’s note until the next day. As seen on this screenshot of the Facebook message (shown right), Samsung Canada politely explained that there is no way they could give everyone person who asked a free phone. Samsung would go out of business, explained the Facebook message. But as a parting gift, the company included a picture of a kangaroo. The story quickly went viral on Reddit. But the story didn’t end there.

Shane explained to TechCrunch that Samsung Canada contacted him previously and told him to expect a delivery of a phone within the next few days.

The phone not only has custom backart but also a special background that matches up artwork on the bezel. Samsung Canada says it’s the only one of its kind in Canada but it’s likely the only one like it in the world.

And the Internet says being a fanboy doesn’t pay. It clearly paid nicely in this case.

Click to view slideshow.

Pictures used with permission.