Samsung has quietly launched a new phone in the Galaxy S lineup, with less than two weeks to go for MWC 2011, whence it shall announce the much awaited Galaxy S2 (February 13th). Called the Samsung Galaxy SL (I9003), the biggest difference between original Galaxy S (I9000) and it is the 4-inch WVGA Super Clear LCD screen it bears, replacing the original’s SuperAMOLED screen.
[RELATED_ARTICLE]Other changes include the Android 2.2 (Froyo) operating system right out-of-the-box instead of Android 2.1, a larger 1650 mAh battery instead of 1500 mAh, 138MB extra user available RAM, 16GB internal storage as standard instead of 8GB, as well as a new processor – using the 1GHz TI OMAP 3630 instead of the 1GHz Hummingbird CPU. The new phone is also slightly thicker, longer and heavier than the original.
As of now, Samsung has not yet announced when these phones will arrive, and in which markets will they effectively replace the original I9000 Galaxy S. It is also listed on the company’s Middle East and Asia sites though. We’ll keep you updated as and when Samsung makes this truly official.
Check out the two phones’ specifications side by side below!
| Model | Galaxy SL | Galaxy S |
| 2G Network | GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 | GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 |
| 3G Network | HSDPA 900 / 1900 / 2100 | HSDPA 900 / 1900 / 2100 |
| Dimensions | 123.7 x 64.2 x 10.6 mm | 122.4 x 64.2 x 9.9 mm |
| Weight | 131 g | 119 g |
| Display | 4-inch, 480×800, SC-LCD capacitive touchscreen, 16M colours | 4-inch, 480×800, Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colours |
| Camera | 5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, geo-tagging, touch focus, face and smile detection | 5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, geo-tagging, touch focus, face and smile detection |
| OS | Android OS, v2.2 (Froyo) | Android OS, v2.1 (Eclair), upgradable to v2.2 |
| CPU | 1GHz Cortex A8 CPU, PowerVR SGX530 GPU, TI OMAP 3630 chipset | 1 GHz ARM Cortex-A8 processor, PowerVR SGX540 GPU, Hummingbird chipset |
| Storage | 16GB, up to 48GB with microSD expansion | 8GB/16GB storage, up to 48GB with microSD expansion |
| Memory | 478 MB RAM user available | 512 MB RAM, 2GB ROM |
| GPRS | Class 12 (4 1/3 2/2 3/1 4 slots), 32 – 48 kbps | Class 12 (4 1/3 2/2 3/1 4 slots), 32 – 48 kbps |
| EDGE | Class 12 | Class 12 |
| 3G | HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps | HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth v3.0 with A2DP, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA, microUSB v2.0 | Bluetooth v3.0 with A2DP, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA, microUSB v2.0 |
| Colours | Black, white | Black, white |
| GPS | Yes, with A-GPS support | Yes, with A-GPS support |
| Java | Via third party application | Via third party application |
| Audio support | 3.5mm jack, FM radio with RDS, MP3/WAV/eAAC /AC3/FLAC formats supported | 3.5mm jack, FM radio with RDS, MP3/WAV/eAAC /AC3/FLAC formats supported |
| Video support | MP4/DivX/WMV/H.264/H.263 formats supported | MP4/DivX/WMV/H.264/H.263 formats supported |
| Battery | Standard battery, Li-Ion 1650 mAh | Standard battery, Li-Ion 1500 mAh |
| Stand-by | Up to 610 h (2G) / Up to 550 h (3G) | Up to 750 h (2G) / Up to 576 h (3G) |
| Talk time | Up to 15 h (2G) / Up to 7 h 30 min (3G) | Up to 13 h 30 min (2G) / Up to 6 h 30 min (3G) |