So it's perhaps not surprising that some carping critics have claimed it's a disappointing iterative update from the Galaxy S2.
They're wrong, though. Here's five, cast-iron reasons the S3 is worth every penny of your outlay.
1 4.8” Super AMOLED HD screen
The S3’s screen is 22 per cent larger than the Galaxy S2. It’s also
massively crisper and brighter, with 309ppi pixel density that puts it
up on par with the iPhone 4S’s super high density Retina display. The
edge-to edge-design and thinner bezels make it seem even more capacious.
Not convinced you really need all that much display real estate?
Well, consider this: there’s a reason why smartphone screens keep
getting bigger. And it’s because the things we now most use them for,
whether it’s gaming or watching media or surfing the web, just work that
much better with more display to play with.
Still not convinced? Try playing any game that features a virtual
joypad on the S3 and then try the same title on an iPhone with its
3.5-inch screen and tell us which handset makes it more playable. It's
the S3 every time.
2 Quad-core processor
It’ll drain the battery, claim the naysayers. Benchmarks show it
doesn’t outperform dual-core chipsets by that much, the same vinegary
churls add.
I’ll address these points individually. First, the S3's 2,100mAh
battery – compared with the S2’s 1,650mAh number - ought to handle the
extra drain with aplomb. So that's that covered.
And what about the claim that dual core processors are amply powerful
to handle any application designed to run on a modern smartphone?
Well, that's partly true. But only because right now there aren’t many apps designed with quad-core chipsets in mind.
Give it a year, one in which the S3 and the similarly quad-core
processor-toting HTC One X will ensure a massive potential audience for
said apps, and it’ll be a very different story.
Console-quality is often over-used term for smartphone game graphics,
but we’ve got a feeling that when the first wave of quad-core games
arrive the description will actually be justified.
Just as importantly, the 1.4GHz Exynos quad-core processor will
ensure the S3 has got more than enough brawn to handle future Android
updates. So you can be sure you won’t be on the outside looking in while
your mates get acquainted with all the new features that incoming
versions of Google’s OS bring to the platform.
3 Mirroring
The Samsung Galaxy S3 allows you to mirror your PC or iPad screen on your handset. Handy, no?
Less practical, but much cooler is that it can do the same with any
large screen. That means you can even use the S3 as a de facto games
console and get yourself a massive advantage when you're hammering your
way through Halo 3’s multi-player carnage.
4 S-Voice
Although the technology is by no means new, voice controls on
smartphones are still at a fairly nascent stage. And right now, although
S-Voice lets you schedule alarms, turn on the handset and ask it
questions, it’s never going be anyone’s primary means of interacting
with their phone.
But, and we admit we’re basing this on the brief hands-on time we had
at this month’s launch, that’s not to say that S-Voice isn’t loads of
fun to use. And it’s still the best feature the S3 boasts when it comes
to showing off down the pub with your chums.
5 SmartScreen
Really good ideas always seem forward-slappingly obvious in hindsight. And SmartScreen is definitely one of them.
This neat addition to the S3 uses the phone’s secondary front-facing
snapper to monitor your eye movements. This means it can tell when
you’re watching a movie and you wont go into sleep mode when you haven’t
touched the screen for a few minutes.
It’s amazing what a difference it makes to enjoying media and is a
great way to conserve battery life, too. And it’s proof positive that,
as Sammy is wont to claim, this phone really is “designed for humans”.
