What’s new with the Samsung Galaxy

Samsung unveiled its flagship smartphone at an event in London last week with great fanfare.  While the particulars of the Apple/Android mobile infrastructure make it unlikely that the Galaxy S III will be an “iPhone killer,” if the device works as advertised – and given Samsung’s impressive history, there’s no reason to suspect it won’t – then suffice it to say that there are some unassailably cool things ahead for the Android universe.  Here are some of the new whistles and bells:

• Screen size.  A recent study suggests that the sweet spot for screen sizes is in the 4-4.5 inch range; considering that Apple has thus far obstinately refused to go bigger than 3.5 inches, Samsung has doubled down and gone with an even bigger 4.8 inch screen.
• S Voice.  Unlike the iPhone’s Siri, which requires you either to push a button or raise the device to your ear, certain voice commands activate the Galaxy S3 automatically.  Saying, “Hi, Galaxy!” for example, will activate the phone; you likewise have access to camera and volume controls, and perhaps most dangerously, sleeping in was never so easy now that all you have to do to snooze is say “snooze” to your phone’s alarm.
• Motion detection.  Sometimes texting isn’t convenient, and if you’re in a text conversation with someone, simply raise the phone to your ear and the device will automatically dial the person you’ve been writing.
• S Beam.  Data sharing has never been so easy.  “Bumping” phones has been around for a while, but Samsung says that S Beam will allow Galaxy S III phones to exchange big video and music files without even a Wi-Fi or cellular signal.
• Pop-up play.  One thing the iPhone has never been good at is multitasking.  The new Galaxy’s pop-up play feature allows you to watch videos anywhere on the screen while you’re doing other things.

Alas, the Galaxy S3 won’t be available for most of us until the summer, but it’s safe to say that there are exciting things on the horizon for entrepreneurs looking to develop mobile apps for this fantastic device.