Next-gen Samsung Galaxy S II unveiled

It as well runs the latest Android 2.3 Gingerbread, nevertheless unlike the Nexus S, the Galaxy S II will feature Samsung's custom TouchWiz user interface.

Given the delay with updates being pushed out to the current Galaxy S portfolio, we're sure this news will make some groan. On the whole, TouchWiz 4.0 offers added functionality, including the three new hubs — Game, Music and Reader — so users can download more content to their smartphones. In the US the Games hub will be powered by Gameloft, during the Music hub will be run by 7Digital — no word on local publishers but. The Reader hub will come from different providers and for the US includes access to 2.2 million books, 2000 global and local newspapers, and 2300 magazines. Based off current deals we'd expect to see significantly less content turn up in Australia, nevertheless as agreements are everything considered being inked here, it's too early to tell.

The Social hub

You'll for all that get your social-networking feeds through the Social hub, nevertheless you'll as well be able to see your communications history, IM status, and reach your contacts via SMS, email, et cetera all from one place.

Though there's a social and multimedia aspect to the device, Samsung has as well worked to make it a more business-friendly smartphone. As a result, the Galaxy S II includes on-device encryption and support for Cisco's mobile solutions for VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) calls, VPN and virtual desktop.

Design-wise, the Galaxy S II features a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED Plus touchscreen with a WVGA 480x800-pixel resolution. Samsung's Super AMOLED screens already provided one of the richest viewing experiences on a smartphone, nevertheless the Super AMOLED Plus adds 50 per cent more sub-pixels, and we undoubtedly noticed a crisper, smoother picture and colours popped off the screen.

The general form factor is like other touchscreen smartphones we've seen, now Samsung loves claiming to have the world's thinnest or smallest products, so we weren't surprised to hear them call the Galaxy S II the "world's thinnest smartphone". Having seen it in person, we can say it is incredibly thin. It measures 125mm tall by 66mm wide by 8.4mm thick and weighs 116 grams.

The previous generation

Like the previous generation, the Galaxy S II has a plastic build, nevertheless Samsung has added a textured back, so for the moment the smartphone doesn't feel as slick this time around. You can get a closer look at the device in our hands-on photo gallery below.

Other notable highlights of the Galaxy S II include an 8-megapixel camera and front-facing 2-megapixel camera, 1080p HD video recording and playback, option for NFC connectivity, HSPA+ support, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Samsung says it currently has no plans for a CDMA version of the phone at this time.

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