 "More Samsung Galaxy S4 pictures show up hours before launch")
With less than a day to go for the launch of the Samsung Galaxy S4, it was but obvious that more pictures of the hotly-anticipated device would surface. However, we are surprised that the supposed leaks so far have all come from the China-bound variant of the next-gen Samsung flagship. How come we haven’t seen any other variants of the handset out in the open? Naturally, we advise you to take the usual pinch of salt with these rumours.
More images of the dual-SIM Galaxy S4 (GT-I9502) have leaked and it gives us a clearer look at the front and the back of the device, while also revealing some of the specs and features that we can expect from the smartphone.
The images, which were posted on the it168 forums, show a device bearing a striking resemblance to the Samsung Galaxy S3. The pronounced rounded corners, a chrome trim on the sides and a glazed plastic back are all present. If this design is indeed the final version, then we are more than a little disappointed. Samsung has been accused of being lazy in the past when it comes to designs and from the looks of it, the company isn’t bothered by this criticism too much.
The new TouchWiz
According to the source of these images, the display of the Galaxy S4 (DUOS?) measures 4.99 inches and, as expected, has a 1920 x 1080 pixel resolution. Other specs include the Exynos 5410, which is a 1.8GHz 8-core CPU. It’s coupled with the PowerVR SGX 544MP3 GPU, which is the same as the one used in the Apple iPhone 5. The phone packs 2GB of RAM and 16GB ROM storage with a microSD expansion slot and has a 2600 mAh battery. The i9502 weighs a manageable 138 g and is quite slim at 7.7 mm.
Also revealed are a few more TouchWiz features. We have already seen screenshots of the Smart Scroll and Smart Pause eye tracking features. A new feature shown here is the S-Pen-like ability to hover over thumbnails in the gallery to see a small preview of the image. The UI looks slightly cleaner than what we have seen on the S3. The notification drawer, most notably, has been made transparent over the homescreens, so icons for battery and signal strength are overlaid on the wallpaper directly.
The back of the device is made out of plastic, so Samsung isn’t going all out to surprise us too much. The device seen here already has a crack on the back, which looks ominous, if this is indeed the real deal. Nevertheless, the back has a lot more subtle gloss effect than some of the glass-backed devices like the Sony Xperia Z and the Nexus 4. It shows a very fine cross-hatch pattern, which we reckon is a take on the Nexus 4’s shiny back. The camera and the LED flash are bang in the centre while a loudspeaker grille occupies the bottom left spot on the back panel. The back looks flat with just the camera lens sticking out slightly. We hope there’s a scratchproof coating on the glass to protect the lens.
A crack on the back
We’re about 14 hours away from the unveiling of the real thing in New York City. Stay tuned to tech2 for all the coverage from the event, plus the final confirmed specs and images of the Galaxy S4.
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