Samsung Galaxy S III Review - Samsung's worthy new flagship

Score

4.6 stars
"Excellent"

(How we score)

Blistering performance, great camera, useful software features

Glossy plastic construction, may be too big for some users

Summary

Last year Samsung solidified its position as the dominant Android smartphone manufacturer with the pack-leading Galaxy S II. The success of the Galaxy S II helped propel Samsung into becoming the largest mobile phone manufacturer in the world. Things are different now than they were last year, however, as HTC has awoken from its slumber and released some really competitive and compelling smartphones. Samsung definitely isn't sitting idly by as others ramp up their smartphone offerings, and its efforts to stay at the top of the smartphone world are wrapped up in the Galaxy S III, a 4.8-inch powerhouse of a smartphone.

Is the Galaxy S III a worthy successor to the venerable Galaxy S II and does it help keep Samsung one step ahead of its rivals? In a word, yes. Aside from the fact that Samsung managed to pull an Apple-esque move and release identical versions of the Galaxy S III across five U.S. carriers, the Galaxy S III features cutting edge hardware paired with useful software additions that make it an attractive option for the prospective smartphone buyer.

Read on to find out where the Samsung Galaxy S III excels and where it has some room for improvement.

Note: This review was conducted with the AT&T and T-Mobile versions of the Galaxy S III, but the vast majority of it also applies to the Sprint, U.S. Cellular, and Verizon Wireless models as well.