Samsung's Galaxy S3 to launch in April

- Handset to launch as part of Olympics tie-in

- High-powered Galaxy will have quad-core processor

- Phone could be one of iPhone 5's major rivals

Samsung's Galaxy S3 will go on sale in April - and will launch in the UK first as part of a tie-in with the Olympics this year.

The hi-tech handset is the follow-up to one of the most iconic Android smartphones and is liable to a heavyweight competitor for Apple's iPhones.

The launch details were revealed by ZDNet Korea, who confirmed them with the electronics giant's worldwide marketing agency.

The phone will have a quad-core Exynos processor - a chip similar to the ones in high-powered laptops and PCs.

It will also have a 4.8-inch HD display - bigger than its predecessor.

The details tie in with earlier leaks about the S3's release date. Samsung's official line is that it will be available in the first half of this year.

If Apple launches iPhone 5 this summer, as expected, the S3 is liable to be among its most heavyweight competitors in the second half of this year.

Samsung's Galaxy series are traditionally used to showcase the most hi-tech components manufactured in Samsung's factories - and have been ahead of the components in Apple's iPhone.

The Galaxy S2 was one of the first handsets with a laptop-esque dual core processor, and offered an eight megapixel camera months before Apple's iPhone 4S.

Samsung still makes several components that are used in Apple's iPhones.

Samsung's Galaxy S2 sold 20 million units at last count.

One in 10 of the whole Korean population owns an S2, and the phone is still a cult favourite on tech sites.

The S2 helped propel Samsung's smartphone sales past Apple's in the third quarter of 2011.



Samsung Galaxy S3 Specs:

Source