Amazon Wireless has been slashing prices on Samsung’s popular Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note II devices following the unveiling of the Galaxy S4 on Thursday evening. Available through Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint, the Galaxy S III is now on sale for just a penny, while the Galaxy Note II can be picked up for $69.99 — that’s more than $500 off its regular retail price.
Samsung smartphones outsold those from rivals Apple, Nokia, and Lenovo in China throughout 2012, allowing the Korean company to claim the biggest share of the Chinese smartphone market, according to the latest report from Strategy Analytics.
Nokia had claimed the top spot in 2011, but the Finnish firm has struggled to compete with Samsung’s Galaxy devices this time around, and couldn’t even make its way into the top five.
On Thursday, March 14, Samsung will unveil the much-anticipated Galaxy S IV at an event in New York City’s Times Square. The Korean company has been very secretive about its next-generation Android flagship — as it was with the Galaxy S III last year — but pictures of the new device may have been leaked ahead of its official debut.
The image you see above was posted to Chinese forum 52 Samsung, and it’s just one of many of that purportedly show the Galaxy S IV. The handset looks a lot like a Galaxy Note II — albeit a slightly smaller version — but according to a benchmark test, its internals are very different.
The Samsung Galaxy S IV is expected boast a new “floating touch” technology that will allow users to interact with the display without actually touching it. Samsung already offers a similar feature with its Galaxy Note devices and their accompanying S Pens. But the Galaxy S IV will use your finger, rather than a stylus.
We’re all well aware of how successful Samsung’s Android smartphones have been in recent years, but new research from produce and price comparison website Idealo puts the Korean company’s dominance into perspective.
Over five quarters between Q4 2011 and Q4 2012, Samsung devices accounted for a full 50% of Android smartphone “clicks” on Idealo. What’s more, the company has produced no less than 12 of the top 20 smartphones.
