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A few days back, Samsung made official the existence of yet another Galaxy S variant called the Galaxy S Advance. The device packs:
While the higher-end models in the Samsung line-up like the Galaxy S II and Galaxy Note supports HSPA+, the Galaxy S Advance only supports HSPA connectivity with download up to 14.4Mbps. In terms of dimensions, the Galaxy S Advance is 9.69mm thick and weighs 120g. As comparison, the roughly similar looking Galaxy Nexus has a thickness of 8.94mm and it weighs 135g.
You can see that the Galaxy S Advance sits just below the Galaxy Nexus in terms of features. Obviously you can expect the pricing to be lower as well. So how much will the Galaxy S Advance cost when it comes to Malaysia? We’re predicting that the device is very likely to retail for around RM1,400 or lower, possibly as low as RM1,200. In terms of availability the Galaxy S Advance could be coming to Malaysia as early as Q1 2012 and no later than Q2 thereabouts.
We will update you with more details when we get them. Till then, stay awesome!
The Samsung Galaxy S Advance has gone official after its pre-announcement appearance yesterday. At first glance, it looks like a Galaxy Nexus with mid-level specs.
Now full specs have been revealed as well. Just to recap, the Galaxy S Advance comes with a 4.0″ Super AMOLED display which supports 800×480 resolution and it is powered by a dual-core 1.0GHz processor and 768MB of RAM. For storage it comes with either 8GB or 16GB or 32GB built-in which is expandable with microSD. For imaging, it comes with a 5MP camera with assisted LED at the back and a front facing 1.3MP camera.
While Samsung higher end models like the Galaxy S II and Note supports HSPA+, the Galaxy S Advance supports only HSPA up to 14.4Mbps download. At the moment it is running on Android 2.3 Gingerbread with no mention of Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade at the moment. In terms of dimensions, the Galaxy S Advance is 9.69mm thick and weighs 120g. As comparison, the similar looking Galaxy Nexus has a thickness of 8.94mm and it weighs 135g. The bundled Lithium Ion battery is rated at 1,500mAh capacity.
According to Samsung’s press release, the Galaxy S Advance will be available February onward starting at Russia followed by the rest of the world including South East and South West Asia.
Head after the break for more official pics.

Just when you think Samsung has enough of phones to go around, a new Samsung Galaxy S Advance model has emerged. The Galaxy S Advance at first looks like another facelift of the Galaxy S. However looking into the details, it appears all new but with slightly lower spec than the current Galaxy S II.
It comes with a 4.0″ WVGA Super AMOLED display which is slightly curved like a Galaxy Nexus. Powering it is a dual-core 1GHz processor and it runs on Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread with TouchWiz UI. At the back, there’s a 5MP camera with video support up to 720p HD. Overall, it sure does look like a trimmed down version of the Galaxy Nexus.
With MWC coming up next month, Samsung is likely to reveal this during the event. No mention on availability but if it does come to Malaysia, it is likely to be priced somewhere between the Galaxy S Plus and Galaxy S II. According to the source in the Philippines, it is expected to be priced at PHP22,900 which is about RM1622.
One more pic and some videos after the break.
While the original Galaxy S users are still uncertain of Samsung’s decision on official Ice Cream Sandwich update, their software team has already started working on an update. According to the source, the Galaxy S firmware was dated 29th December which is quite recent.
Sammobile managed to grab hold of a leaked firmware which appears to be Android 2.3.6 update with several new enhancements. This is likely to be the value pack which was mentioned earlier on.
It offers Face Unlock, an updated Lockscreen from the Galaxy Note , a Photo Editor from Galaxy S II, faster auto-rotate response and ability to take photos while recording a video. Overall, this is no Ice Cream Sandwich OS but it brings the latest features of the Galaxy Note/Nexus to the original Galaxy S.
To download, head over to XDA Forums for the full details. Do note that this is not an official release endorsed by Samsung so flashing your firmware with this version is at your own risk.

A few weeks ago, there was quite a buzz surrounding Samsung’s older Galaxy S & Galaxy Tabs on its upgradability to the latest Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS. At first, Samsung announced no plans to offer such upgrades but later retracted and is reconsidering their options.
Some are saying that Samsung will be releasing Value Packs as mere enhanced Android 2.3 Gingerbread update while XDA reported that it might be Ice Cream Sandwich with lite-version of TouchWiz.
Now it seems that the Galaxy S will not be getting anything at all according to the latest update by TNW, citing that hardware limitation that’s optimised for Gingerbread experience. There’s no mention of Galaxy Tab but it is likely to face the same fate as well. Is this the end of it? Or will we see another U-turn reaction again?
[ SOURCE ]
Owners of the original Samsung Galaxy S and Galaxy Tab weren’t too happy with Samsung’s recent decision of not offering Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich update for its early devices.
After getting lots of flak for abandoning its previous star models, Samsung seems to be making a U-turn on its decision and is reconsidering them for its OS upgrade exercise. We all know that it is not impossible for the Galaxy S since its similar Nexus S model is able to run Ice Cream Sandwich perfectly.
On the memory limitation, perhaps Samsung would need to scale back on some of its TouchWiz custom skin in order to maintain a fluid user experience. As usual, no datelines were given but probably will come after the first wave of ICS update which is happening in Q1 2012.
It is official that the original Samsung Galaxy S and Galaxy Tab will not be getting some Ice Cream Sandwich loving. A few days ago, they have announced that the latest Android update will be coming to recent models including the Galaxy S II, Galaxy Note, Tab 7.0 Plus, Tab 8.9 & Tab 10.1.
So what’s the reason for leaving Galaxy S & the original 7″ Galaxy Tab out? Samsung explains that the combination of TouchWiz skin, video calling features, widgets and localisation as a hindrance for a possible update. Another reasoning is the lack of available memory capacity. To blame it on hardware is very unlikely as its similar spec’ed Nexus S has started receiving the Android software upgrade as we speak. Of course this isn’t the end of the road as the adventurous ones should be able to get their Ice Cream Sandwich update through custom ROMs.
Now this makes the Galaxy Nexus even more tempting to get when it is released in Malaysia next month. Being a “pure google” device, you can be confident that it will be next in line to get the latest OS updates.
If you’re crossed between the Samsung Galaxy S II and the sexy back looking Motorola RAZR, DiGi must just have a solution for you.
DiGi is offering a free phone skin and screen protector which gives the Galaxy S II a carbon-fibre/kevlar look at both sides. No ideas how it looks in real life but if you’re interested, this offer is exclusively available through DiGi Online Store.
Obviously it won’t be as tough as the real deal. Pics of the Galaxy S II with the skin after the break.

Remember the Samsung Galaxy S II Extended Battery Kit posted a while back? Now the battery kit is reported to be selling in Malaysia for RM139 at Lowyat plaza.
The kit comes with a larger 2000mAh battery which is 21% more than the standard 1650mAh battery. Since the battery is thicker than usual, there’s a special back plate included in the kit to cover that extra bulge. So Samsung Galaxy S II power users, your prayers are now answered.
If you’re a racing fan, a serious mobile gamer and own a Galaxy S II then you’re in luck. In conjunction with WCG (World Cyber Games) 2011 Gameloft is making its latest installment of the Asphalt racing game series — Asphalt 6: Adrenaline — free for download.
If you’ve been playing Asphalt you’ll know that this latest installment is the best version of the game to date. Also the game features a “Samsung WCG 2011” car that you can drive in the game.
To grab your free copy head over to the Samsung Apps store on your device and search for Asphalt 6. Here’s the catch, the game will only be free for the first 300,000 downloads globally and it’s a hefty 560MB file that you have to download in one single sitting (no switching off your device either). So make sure your Galaxy S II is connected to a speedy WiFi connection before you begin.
How do we know? We downloaded it. Good luck!
[via]
