The Samsung Galaxy S 2 is more than just the follow-up to one of our favourite phones, the Galaxy S. It’s a big-screen beauty with an awesome dual-core processor, and it’s likely to break speed limits as well as your bank balance.
We’ve balled up everything that you need to know about the Galaxy S 2 into this tasty dumpling of smart-phone facts. If you want to know more, be sure to follow the links to our exhaustive preview and other coverage.
Key specs
- Android 2.4 Gingerbread operating system, skinned with TouchWiz 4.0 user interface
- 4.3-inch Super AMOLED plus screen
- 1GHz dual-core processor with 1GB of RAM
- 16GB or 32GB of memory with space for up to 32GB more on a microSD memory card
- 8-megapixel camera with LED photo light on the back, 2-megapixel camera on the front
My God, it’s full of stars
In person, the Samsung Galaxy S 2 is stunning. If you like an ominously monolithic smart phone — and we do — the Galaxy S 2 will turn your head so fast you’ll need a chiropractor. The thin body, giant screen, subtle buttons, shiny black case, and textured back all contribute to the phone’s sleek, serious appearance.
It’s a different story once you turn the phone on. Samsung just can’t help itself from slapping a playful, colourful user interface on board. The latest version of its TouchWiz skin replaces the standard, grey Android shortcuts with a rainbow of boxy icons, for example. In fact, the whole user interface is more colourful than the default Android look. But it has been toned down slightly from the version that’s on the original Galaxy S, with squarer, more sombre widgets.
We found the Galaxy S 2 smooth and usable in our early hands-on tests, but we’ll be keeping an open mind until we take it for a thorough test drive. Samsung struggled with some bugs in the original Galaxy S, although it’s improved with updates. We’ll be putting the Galaxy S 2 through hell in our smart-phone boot camp to ensure it’s solid as a rock.
Read more
- To dive deep into the depths of the Galaxy S 2, check out our full preview.
- See loads more hands-on photos in our Galaxy S 2 photo gallery. Or, if you prefer moving pictures, our hands-on video below.
- Compare the Galaxy S 2 to the HTC Desire S, the LG Optimus 3D and the iPhone 3 in our battle royale.
- Find out more about the Galaxy S 2’s many syncing features with Kies 2.0, Kies Air and Backup.
- Samsung already is already teasing us with upcoming features of the Galaxy S 2, including streaming your telly with the 2nd TV app and firing up apps automatically with the Zone.
- If you’re already sold, it’s available to pre-order now for £600 SIM-free.