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| Posted: 05 May 2012 04:11 AM PDT With the official announcement of Samsung's 2012 flagship smartphone yesterday, a lot of questions were answered and previous rumors and speculations finally saw clarification. However, the formal unveiling of Samsung Galaxy S3 GT-i9300 also brought a lot of new inquiries to be addressed. Last night, for instance, I received a slew of questions in the TP Mailbox from our readers about the Korean giant's latest top-of-the-line offering. Some of the questions we got include, 1. When is it arriving in the Philippines and how much will it cost? 2. Will Samsung Galaxy S3 be a good buy? 3. I own a Samsung Galaxy S2, would you recommend that I upgrade to Samsung Galaxy S3? Like what I always say, TechPinas values all messages, comments and inquiries we get from our TP Friends. I promise that, when I can, I'll answer all of your emails. But for now, let me address those three questions I posted. 1. Samsung Mobile hasn't given word on Samsung Galaxy S3's official release in our country. Nonetheless, an industry insider recently told me that the company had chosen the Philippines to be one of the first to get the handset (Great news, eh?); He said that SGS3 might arrive in Pinas by the end of May. Again, no word yet on the official suggested retail price but we're guessing that the flagship phone will enter the country with a Php 30,000 price tag. 2. I haven't seen the phone in the flesh - but based on its specifications alone and my familiarity with how well Samsung creates their current smartphones (As some of you know, I own a Samsung Galaxy Note), I'm confident that Samsung Galaxy S3 will be a good buy -- especially if it's going to be your first Android smartphone. But don't take my word for it - right now, at least - just wait for our initial impressions post and full review. Honestly, I'm just as excited as you to hold SGS3 and play with it. 3. Here in TechPinas, we stick to facts - so let's turn to TP's Samsung Galaxy S2 GT-i9100 vs. Samsung Galaxy S3 GT-i9300 side-by-side specifications comparison table answer the question:
Clearly, if you're coming from SGS2, the biggest improvements you'll get with SGS3 would have the be more spacious, higher resolution display, the more powerful Quad Core CPU, and the new software features including S-Voice - a Siri-like voice powered assistant, Smart Stay - which detects if someone is trying to look at the screen and automatically turns on or turns off the display, S Beam - for easily sharing content via NFC, and those found in the new default camera application. Yes, Samsung Galaxy S3 has a bigger battery but I think that supposed advantage is cancelled out by the bigger, more power-hungry screen; According to Samsung, SGS3's quad-core CPU is more energy-efficient than the dual-core version running SGS2 and if that's true, at least, that one less thing to worry about. As for LTE support, we're not sure if the Philippines will eventually get the variant - but in case it arrives within this year, we can only hope that our networks will be ready carry it, bundled with LTE services. I'll do a design comparison once I've actually seen SGS3 in the flesh. Off hand, from just looking at the photos and specs sheet, it's clear that the 2012 flagship is wider, taller, and thicker (by 0.1 millimeter) than its predecessor. Likewise, it flaunts a rounder form factor versus the squarish design of Samsung Galaxy S2. Now, if you're going to ask me if you should upgrade from SGS2 to SGS3, let me throw these questions back at you: Has SGS2's 4.3-inch display become too small for your taste? Do you really need all the power from that quad-core chip? How badly do you want those software enhancements? Your answers, of course, will tell you if you should level-up now and get your phone's successor. So what do you think? 
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