Samsung Galaxy SIII

[ktbffh]

Anyone have any idea when this is coming to Korea? It seems slated for the end of the month/early June. Looks to be a good enough improvement on its predecessor, and the screen size/capacity is certainly attractive!

[Sticks]

It's slated for end of this month in Europe, so Korea should be getting it around then or just before if we compare it to the SII's release.

Personally i'm on the fence about it. It's an improvement over the SII but it's not ahead enough (as the SII was) from previous phones. This would be more of a case of if you already have a comparatively powerful phone from SII-onwards there's really no need to upgrade.

I've also got another year on my SII contract left so there's that.  :-X

[constantinople]

This will be the first time where I will be buying a phone myself in Korea.

How do the contracts work? When I get the Galaxy phone and sign a two year contract, how much can I expect to have to pay for the phone itself? What was the price with the last model with a two year contract?

I heard with the iPhone, one has to purchase the phone for full price, whether or not one signs a contract. Is it the same for Galaxy?

[Endoas]

This will be the first time where I will be buying a phone myself in Korea.

How do the contracts work? When I get the Galaxy phone and sign a two year contract, how much can I expect to have to pay for the phone itself? What was the price with the last model with a two year contract?

I heard with the iPhone, one has to purchase the phone for full price, whether or not one signs a contract. Is it the same for Galaxy?

That used to be the case, but the policy changed early last year.  I'm using an iPhone 4s and only paid about a 20,000 won "Apple" service fee when I got my phone.

You'll pay little to nothing upfront, and the full cost of the phone will be broken up into the two year contract.  Every month you'll probably pay 1/24 of the phone itself + your monthly service plan.  Getting a more expensive plan will reduce the cost of the phone itself, and if you terminate the contract early then you pay off the rest of the balance in full.

The only exception to this may depend on your visa type.  I have an E-2.

[Sticks]

This will be the first time where I will be buying a phone myself in Korea.

How do the contracts work? When I get the Galaxy phone and sign a two year contract, how much can I expect to have to pay for the phone itself? What was the price with the last model with a two year contract?

I heard with the iPhone, one has to purchase the phone for full price, whether or not one signs a contract. Is it the same for Galaxy?

That used to be the case, but the policy changed early last year.  I'm using an iPhone 4s and only paid about a 20,000 won "Apple" service fee when I got my phone.

You'll pay little to nothing upfront, and the full cost of the phone will be broken up into the two year contract.  Every month you'll probably pay 1/24 of the phone itself + your monthly service plan.  Getting a more expensive plan will reduce the cost of the phone itself, and if you terminate the contract early then you pay off the rest of the balance in full.

The only exception to this may depend on your visa type.  I have an E-2.

Most (all?) NETs here are on an E2 or F4, both are eligible for contract phone plans. Don't let random-salesguy-who-doesn't-know-anything in your local tiny phone shop say otherwise. Other F-types are also ok. When you sign up you'll pay an initial registration and SIM card fee, then monthly-rate-plan + smartphone-part-payment every month. Smartphone plans are further discounted depending on how long you stay in your contract. I believe it's ~75% off the full price of the phone for a 2 year contract, then the remainder gets split into part payments over 24 months.

For the Galaxy SIII you'll be on the LTE plan which is more expensive than the 3G plans, with no unlimited data option. Kinda sucky imo.

[steveperry]

For the Galaxy SIII you'll be on the LTE plan which is more expensive than the 3G plans, with no unlimited data option. Kinda sucky imo.

According to this article

http://www.asiae.co.kr/news/view.htm?sec=it5&idxno=2012050404475651222

There will be two versions of the S3 in Korea.

First will be a 3G version from SK telecom in June. After that will come an LTE version in July that will be available from all 3 companies (SK, KT, LG)

So it seems that if you don't want LTE you can get a phone without it, as long as you're happy with SK.

Interesting that Korea is getting both. It looks like Europe is only getting the 3G version, and USA is only getting the LTE version.

[constantinople]

Hmmm. What about galaxy s II vs the current iPhone? How do they compare. I'm basically looking for a phone with a good camera.

[#basedcowboyshirt]

Hmmm. What about galaxy s II vs the current iPhone? How do they compare. I'm basically looking for a phone with a good camera.

The iPhone 4S's camera is pretty respectable, but I far prefer the camera on the Galaxy Nexus. It has a lower megapixel rating (which really doesn't matter), but it's much quicker and has no shutter delay, which is huge.

HTC One X's Camera is also very respectable.

Galaxy SII's camera is sufficient, but there's literally no reason anyone should buy a Galaxy SII over a Galaxy Nexus, HTC One X, or even the new LG LTE2 at this point in time.

[Sticks]

Hmmm. What about galaxy s II vs the current iPhone? How do they compare. I'm basically looking for a phone with a good camera.

The iPhone 4S's camera is pretty respectable, but I far prefer the camera on the Galaxy Nexus. It has a lower megapixel rating (which really doesn't matter), but it's much quicker and has no shutter delay, which is huge.

HTC One X's Camera is also very respectable.

Galaxy SII's camera is sufficient, but there's literally no reason anyone should buy a Galaxy SII over a Galaxy Nexus, HTC One X, or even the new LG LTE2 at this point in time.

Should just wait for the GSIII then. Just grab the 3G version from SK if you're not looking to pay the extra for LTE.

[ktbffh]

I wish I could find the link for an article I read a few weeks ago, but it was likely on Engadget or Gizmodo or something of that sort. It seems that LTE is A LOT cheaper for carriers to operate than 3G due to the fact that the network is more efficient and has a wider broadcasting range. A lot of tech-savvy consumers in the US are protesting the fact that you actually pay more for LTE than 3G, when it should in fact be cheaper. Has anyone heard of this? or know what it means for Korea?

[alwaysgood]

The thing I like about the SIII is 64GB internal + 64GB microSD for 128GB total storage... in a phone.  That's more than the laptop I had in college.  I could upload my entire music library, several seasons worth of TV shows, dozens of HD movies, and still have plenty of room left.  Granted, it's a bit overkill for most people.

[yoitsmykey]

From what I've read, rumors say that the different versions of the S3 (3g vs LTE) also come with different hardware. Apparently, the LTE antenna is not compatible with the quad-core processor. So if it's true, basically you can either get a 3g quad-core phone or an LTE dual-core phone.

[MiWonTeacher]

I'm following the SGSIII news a little bit TOO closely these days.

I was, and still am, blown away by the SGSII which I bought the moment it became available one year ago...and it's still, in my opinion, the best phone available.

Why?

The screen. The AMOLED plus screen is beyond (especially if you put it on dynamic screen mode...lordy). I did get burn in, however...but Sammy replaced my screen for free a couple days ago, which was nice since I smashed the glass while I was jogging.

SGSIII? Want.

Even though it doesn't have the PLUS (RGB) screen, I like the size, bigger battery, smooth form factor (I'm a big fan of the design, unlike most reporters out there). I like the file sharing options and the picture in picture option among other things. Voice control remains to be seen.

In my experience, android is more stable than windows at multitasking, with the dual core 1.4 processor of the SGSII. With ICS, it just screams.

On release dates (you had to read all my personal BS to get to the important stuff, heh):

My local Samsung Shop Owner says the SGSIII will arrive in its store on the 25TH OF MAY.

A non-Samsung Seller says the SK stores will have it on MAY 29TH.

The LTE version arrives in September according to some announcement I read somewhere, can't remember.

Now, who wants my delicious new SGSII with only a year left on contract?? :)

[gtrain83]

What are the specs? I know quad core 1.4ghz but what about ram? I have heard Japan will get a 2gig ram version. What about in Korea? I would assume they would give their best version to Korea.