The Specs

Just about every aspect of the Galaxy S3 is intended to one-up the competition, and its specs certainly suggest as much.

Design

The Galaxy S3’s design is inspired by nature. According to Samsung, its round shape is based on the look of a smooth pebble, and its audio feedback cues are recorded from real water drops. For those concerned with thinness, it sits at a mere 8.6mm thick.

Samsung is also heavily playing on its “Designed for Humans” slogan with several unique features. While in use, the Galaxy S3 tracks its user’s eyes so that it knows when to turn off the screen. It also understands voice commands, much like Apple’s Siri.

Display

Samsung’s Super AMOLED technology is certainly a favorite among smartphone displays. The Galaxy S3 uses this display technology, and in HD form with a 720p resolution, currently the highest resolution a smartphone can offer.

At 4.8 inches, it’s not quite as large as the Galaxy Note, but it is still one of the largest smartphone displays on the market. Fortunately, thanks to a reduced bezel and on-screen controls, its overall size is only a few millimeters larger than the Galaxy S2, which has only a 4.27-inch display.

Performance

The quad-core Exynos processor inside the Galaxy S3 is very similar to the A5X processor in the new iPad, except that it has 4 cores instead of the iPad’s 2. The Galaxy S3 outclasses the iPhone 4S considerably (though it’s important to keep in mind that Apple has plans to announce the iPhone 5 possibly in June or more likely in October). The HTC One X, the only other quad-core phone currently on the market, does outperform the Galaxy S3 in some scenarios, but certainly not the majority of them.

Camera

While an 8MP image sensor isn’t exactly groundbreaking, the Galaxy S3 improves it with many additional features. A Backlight Illuminated Sensor helps considerably in low light situation, and Zero Shutter Lag allows you to time your shots perfectly. Samsung has also thrown in a handful of smart features, such as a “Best Photo” mode that takes a burst of photos and automatically selects the best one.

Features

While the Galaxy S3 is capable of amazing performance, its features are what will really make it stand apart with truly unique additions that other devices simply don’t have. ”Smart Stay” for instance, tracks your eyes to keep the screen on when you’re looking at it. Similarly, it will remind you of notifications when you pick it up. These are things that (hopefully) fix all of those little frustrations users have had with smartphones in the past and one of the Galaxy S3’s greatest selling points.

Availability

Samsung has announced an official launch date for Europe of May 29^th. That gives you plenty of time to save of the cash to buy one – pricing is expected to be similar to the Galaxy Note. Following the launch, Samsung will be taking the Galaxy S3 on tour to North American and around the rest of the world, introducing new version, such as the LTE model.

Panasonic TXP GT30 Series HDTVs

As one of our top rated HDTVs, it comes as no surprise that the TXP GT30 is also one of our top viewed products. Optimized for 3D playback, this plasma TV features a 600Hz refresh rate. This extremely high refresh rate also lends itself well to watching high action sports and console gaming. Its deep blacks and high color accuracy also make it an excellent choice for 2D Blu-Ray as well.

Sony KDL EX720 Series HDTVs

Another HDTV (you can see what might be a popular gift category this year), the EX720 offers a wide array of features. As expected with Sony TVs, the EX720’s image processing capabilities are unmatched, creating a brilliant viewing experience right out of the box. You can also enjoy its integrated internet apps, such as Netflix and Pandora. It even includes on-the-fly 2D to 3D conversion, so you can watch anything in 3D. On top of it all, the screen is nearly razor thin, and thanks to its LED design, is extremely power efficient.

Digital Cameras

Among our top 10 most viewed products, there were 4 digital cameras. The most viewed was the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-HX9V, which is really one of the best compact cameras on the market, though less seasoned photographers may prefer the WX10. Canon’s EOS Rebel T3i also made the list, followed by Nikon’s D3100, both of which are excellent entry-level digital SLRs. Following those, was the Nikon D7000, a digital SLR suitable for professional work; however, if a DSLR is on your shopping list, you may want to hold off for Sony’s upcoming NEX and α-series cameras, as they will be extremely competitive this year.

Smartphones

Smartphones made up nearly a third of our top 10 list, and they are sure to be a popular item this holiday season. The Sony Ericsson Xperia Active pulled in the most views, and while it’s not the most amazing phone on the market, it does have the rare combination of being both rugged and powerful (great for a reckless teenager). Just behind the Active was the Xperia Arc, a sleek and capable smartphone hailed for its surprising photo quality. Following that was the Samsung Galaxy S, the popular predecessor to our currently top-ranked phone, the Galaxy S II.

Of course it’s still a bit early to be doing your holiday shopping, but hopefully we’ve given you some great gift ideas (either for yourself or for friends and family). With Black Friday fast approaching, it’s not surprising to be seeing these larger (pricier) items on the most watched list. Many of these products, while still praise worthy, are soon to be replaced by next year’s updated versions, meaning massive price reductions as the holidays near.

Be sure to keep an eye on our blog. Through the whole month of November, we’ll be naming hot new products, posting buyer’s guides, and helping you prepare for the holiday shopping season. Let us know in the comments if you have any requests.

The Bigger the Better?

The race to the biggest screens is almost entirely a marketing tool. Today’s smartphones really are just miniaturized computers, with a processor and RAM, but many consumers don’t know to look for this information; moreover, in the case of smartphones, processor and memory specs are hardly ever even listed!

Smartphone manufacturers know that the screen is one of the first things a buyer sees when looking for a new phone, and if you’ve ever been shopping for an HDTV, you’ll know that in the showroom, the bigger screens always stand out. That’s exactly why manufacturers have started producing bigger and bigger smartphones. Screen sizes are also numbers that advertise well because people can actually relate to them. 1GHz, 1.5GHz, dual-core, these terms only mean anything to those who are already familiar with the technology and likely already know what they want to buy. Everyone knows what an inch is, and that a 4-inch screen sounds better than a 3.5-inch screen.

But are these glassy pixel monstrosities really a step in the right direction? Sure, as long as the phones themselves aren’t getting too big. Back to that HDTV analogy, once you’ve bought one and brought it back home, you realize just how huge it is once all of the larger TVs aren’t around to skew your perspective. The same thing is happening with smartphones: people are buying the larger screens only to realize down the line that they’re too bulky to be practical. So what smartphone display size is right for you?

Screens Under 3.5 Inches

There are a lot of smartphones with 2.8 to 3.2-inch displays. These are generally entry-level devices, intended to be affordable but still functional. These are great for the younger crowd, such as teenagers, who might be more prone to losing or breaking a phone and have the younger eyes to see the smaller screen.

Smartphones with portrait style keyboards also have screens of this size. These are aimed at the business professional crowd who will be primarily using it for things like text messages, emails, and documents.

Screens 3.5 to 4.3 Inches

This is currently the sweet spot in terms of screen visibility and overall package size. The 3.5-inch devices are typically in the mid-range scale. Their performance can vary from very moderate, like the Huawei Ideos X5, to high-end, like the iPhone 4.

 
For things like multimedia and especially web browsing, the 3.5-inch screens can be a bit cramped. This is where 4-inch displays shine. The overall sizes of the phones are generally close to the same as the 3.5-inchers but extra screen space is a noticeable improvement. It’s for this reason that the iPhone 5 (or iPhone 4S) is expected to have a ~4 inch display.

In the 4.3-inch range, you have some of the true powerhouse phones, like the Galaxy S II and Sensation 4G.  They’re starting to get a bit bulky but will still fit into most pockets.

 

Screens Over 4.3 Inches

There have been a few phones with screens over 4.3 inches. The Dell Streak was among the first, sporting a giant 5-inch display, blurring the line between smartphone and tablet. This was just too large to fit easily into a pocket – even purses had trouble.

 

4.5-inch screens are still quite large but much more manageable. Phones like the Samsung Infuse and the AT&T and T-Mobile variants of the Galaxy S II have 4.5-inch displays. They’ll still fit in a pocket, much thanks to their thinness, but be sure to consider just how big they are before buying them.

After about 3 months of availability in Europe and Asia, our current top-rated cell phone known as the Galaxy S II has finally seen an official announcement for a release in the U.S.

The Specs

The Galaxy S II is a monster of a phone, in terms of both size and processing power. It sports a 4.3-inch 800×480 pixel Super AMOLED Plus display (and even 4.5-inches in some versions), yet it’s actually the world’s thinnest smartphone at just 8.5mm thick. The Super AMOLED display not only gives extremely bright and vibrant colors but also goes very easy on the battery in comparison to other display technologies.

Under the hood is Samsung’s latest Exynos processor, a 1.2GHz dual-core beast. This is actually very similar to the dual-core processor found in the iPad 2, except faster. The higher frequency and an improved graphics processor make it considerably faster than the iPad 2, and if you’ll recall, Apple said that the iPad 2 was up to 9 time faster than the original iPad and iPhone 4. So doing the math here, it seems that, according to Apple, the Galaxy S II should be more than 9 times faster than its aging iPhone 4 competitor.

It will also feature 1GB of RAM for better multitasking, an 8MP camera capable of 1080p video recording, a 2MP front facing camera for video chat, 16GB of internal storage plus a microSD expansion slot, Wireless A/B/G/N, NFC (Near Field Communication), and HDMI output via the microUSB port.

Running the latest version of Android (2.3 Gingerbread), the Galaxy S II will have all of the great features included in Google’s market dominating operating system. It will also be running Samsung’s TouchWiz user interface, adding even more useful features.

The Carriers

Just like the original Galaxy S, the Galaxy S II is poised to launch on all of the United States’ major cell carriers (though Verizon may be sitting this one out in preference of a slightly different Samsung device). Both AT&T and Sprint have already announced launch dates of the 18^th and 16^th of September respectively. T-Mobile will also be getting it, though no release date has been announced.

Like last time, each carrier has its own name for the Galaxy S II as well as their own look. AT&T will be calling it the Samsung Attain and going with a design that doesn’t much resemble its first Galaxy S phone, the Captivate. If anything, it looks more like T-Mobile’s Vibrant. AT&T is also the only carrier who will be keeping the 4.3-inch display size (both Sprint and T-Mobile are opting for a 4.5-inch display).

Sprint is going with the name Epic 4G Touch, toting it as a keyboardless version of the original Epic 4G (Sprint’s version of the Galaxy S). It won’t be quite as rounded as the original, but it does have a much more rounded edge than AT&T’s Attain.

T-Mobile has decided on an even more rounded edge than the other two and will be calling it the Hercules, surely on account of its large 4.5-inch screen and unmatched processing power.

The Bottom Line

The Galaxy S II tops our cell phone list for a very good reason: it’s an amazing phone. The 4.3 and 4.5-inch screens may make it feel a little too bulky for some, but it does make up for it by being ultra thin. Its specs make it a great buy for anyone who wants to be on the cutting edge of performance as well as those who want something that won’t be outdated in just a year. It’s even a great choice for those tired of blinding waiting for the unsure release of the Apple iPhone 5.

Verizon Wireless: Motorola Droid X

Verizon Wireless not only has the largest subscriber base, but also the most 3G coverage in the US, even though its 3G network speeds are often the slowest amongst the other carriers. Verizon’s flagship Smartphone is the Droid X, and for good reason. It is a monstrous device with a 4.3 inch screen and one of the most powerful Smartphone processors on the market.

It’s also extremely feature rich, sporting an 8 Megapixel camera with dual LED flash and native HDMI output. Engineered with a dual antenna design for improved reception and noise cancelling microphones for excellent call quality, the only thing the Droid X really lacks is a front facing camera.

AT&T: Apple iPhone 4

AT&T basically launched the modern Smartphone market with the iPhone; however, AT&T was a victim of its own success. AT&T has the fastest 3G network, but because of its large Smartphone user base, its network is often bottlenecked by too many connections. Despite its relatively poor network, AT&T has the most popular Smartphone on the market, the iPhone 4.

Having been around for over three years, the iPhone has matured very well, making it suited for both work and play. Paired with powerful hardware, 5 Megapixel camera with LED flash, front facing camera, and high resolution display, the iPhone 4 truly is one of the best Smartphones on the market; unfortunately, its antenna design leaves it susceptible to dropped calls and poor reception.

Sprint: HTC EVO 4G

Sprint is a significantly smaller carrier than either Verizon or AT&T, so its primary focus is on the east coast, though coverage is still suitable nationwide. Even with its small subscriber base, Sprint was the first US carrier to offer 4G coverage as well as the first 4G Smartphone, the EVO 4G.

Sprint’s EVO 4G is arguably the most feature rich Smartphone on the market, hosting just about every feature available, starting with 4G connectivity and going on to an 8 Megapixel camera, LED flash, front facing camera, native HDMI output, and 4.3 inch screen. Packed with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processor, there isn’t much the EVO 4G can’t do.

T-Mobile: HTC G2

T-Mobile is basically the west coast version of Sprint; it offers nationwide coverage, but focuses the bulk of its services in the west. Also like Sprint, T-Mobile is rolling out an enhanced data network capable of 4G speeds, and the G2 will be the first device to make use of the new network. The G2 is the newest of these four devices; it’s also the only one with a physical QWERTY keyboard.

As a brand new device, it’s uncertain how well its processor will perform, but it is expected to compete well. Apart from the 4G capabilities, the G2 has fairly standard equipment compared to other high-end Smartphones, such as a 5 Megapixel camera, LED flash, and 3.7 inch screen.

Honorable Mention: Samsung Galaxy S

Samsung’s Galaxy S is actually available on all four of the major US carriers, granted in slightly different flavors. Verizon’s Fascinate, AT&T’s Captivate, and T-Mobile’s Vibrant are all essentially identical, short from varying case design. Sprint’s Epic 4G has a few extra features, though, such as 4G connectivity and physical QWERTY keypad.

All four versions house the same Samsung Hummingbird processor (the same chip used in the iPhone 4 as well). The Galaxy S takes honorable mention simply because it cuts too many corners, housing just a 5 Megapixel camera with no flash and lacking additional features like native HDMI output.