US mobile network provider AT&T will begin selling the Galaxy S4 Active, a new ruggedized version of Samsung’s latest flagship Android smartphone, on June 21.

Consumers will be able to pick up the device both in-store and online for $199.99 on a two-year agreement, although it’s unknown exactly how high the monthly instalments will be, as well as the data, texts and minutes included in the call plan.

AT&T will begin taking pre-orders for the device tomorrow in both ‘Urban Gray’ and ‘Dive Blue’. There’s no word yet on the ‘Orange Flare’ color variant, however.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 Active is a no-compromise smartphone that offers consumers high-end specs in a durable body. It boasts a 5-inch 1080p display at an impressive 443 pixels per inch, as well as a 1.9 GHz quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage.

It differs from the original Samsung Galaxy S4, however, because it’s also water-resistant for up to 30 minutes, at a depth of one meter. The device also features a new ‘Aqua Mode’ in the camera app, which increases the detail and clarity for both video and photographs shot underwater.

“It’s truly summer-proof,” Jeff Bradley, senior vice president for Devices and Developer Services at AT&T said.

If Samsung's Galaxy S4 is more smartphone than you think you need, the electronics giant has just offered up the smaller, more midrange - and surely cheaper - Galaxy S4 Mini.

Samsung is hoping to give its lighter smartphone much of the same GS 4 taste with just a little less vigor. Although the Mini has stepped-down specs compared to its flagship family, like a lower-resolution screen and an 8-megapixel camera instead of a 13-megapixel shooter, it's no slouch when it comes to the Galaxy S4's core features, even a built-in TV remote control.

As with the Galaxy S3 Mini that came before, this version is aimed more toward the mass market than the high-end sector, without sacrificing too many of the superphone's more defining features.

Launch and Price

With the Samsung galaxy S3 launching for €300 (Rs 23,300), it's hard not to expect the S4 variation to launch at the same price. This could be bit too expensive given the specifications and strong competition for mid-range Android phone. We'll have to wait a bit longer to find out - UK event scheduled for June 20 likely to give us more information. According to the sources, the Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini will be launched in India on 30th July 2013 and will be priced at Rs 24,000 (approx).

Architect

Samsung's modest Mini is a wee bit shorter, thicker, and wider than the svelte Galaxy S4 but clearly cut from the same cloth. Like the round-shouldered original, the Mini retains its curved perimeter, metallic rim, and rectangular home button, and also comes in black and white versions.

Specifically, the global GS4 Mini stands 124.6 millimeters tall (4.9 inches) by 61.3 millimeters wide (2.4 inches) by 8.9 millimeters thick (0.35-inch) and weighs a lighter 107 grams (3.7 ounces, compared to the GS4's 4.6-ounce weight.) A 3G-only, dual SIM version will weigh a hair more at 108 grams.

Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini is expected to enter the UK market in July.

Samsung recently announced the compact version of its fourth generation Galaxy S series smartphone dubbed as Samsung Galaxy S4 Mini. Samsung is yet to provide information on the pricing of the new handset which is now revealed by the UK retailers.

UK online retailer Handtech has confirmed that it will be stocking the new Galaxy S4 Mini. As the product page on the site suggests, the 8GB Black Mist variant of Galaxy S4 Mini is available for pre-order at £389.99 (including VAT in UK and Europe only). The retailer has not mentioned any definite release date for the device. 

Other renowned retailers such as Three, Phones 4u, EE, O2 and Vodafone have so far confirmed that they will be stocking the new S4 Mini. Phones 4u has requested prospective buyers to register for the smartphone. Also, the retailer has given a tentative release date which is expected sometime in July. Unfortunately, none of the other retailers have disclosed their pricing as well as the release details of the Galaxy S4 Mini.

As Samsung notes, the Galaxy S4 Mini will be available in two colour options; White Frost and Black Mist. In terms of connectivity, the S4 Mini will come in 4G LTE, 3G HSPA or 3G dual-SIM variants (depending on market).

The company has also promised that the Galaxy S4 Mini will be displayed at the Samsung Premier 2013 GALAXY & ATIV media event in London, scheduled for 20 June.

As rumoured earlier, Galaxy S4 Mini indeed features a 4.3in quarter HD Super AMOLED display. It is powered by Snapdragon 400 chip featuring a dual-core processor with each core running at clock speeds of up to 1.7GHz. The Snapdragon 400 chip also integrates 1.5GB of RAM. The S4 Mini will run on the latest Jelly Bean software version, Android 4.2.2, once it comes out of the box.

The handset has an eight megapixel rear-camera and a front-facing camera of 1.9 megapixel. It will be available only in 8GB storage variant and support micro SD card for additional space of up to 64GB. The device uses a 1,900mAh battery. Besides, the Galaxy S4 Mini carries a host of native apps such as Sound&Shot, Story Album, Group Play, S Translator, WatchON, ChatON and S Health.

It’s no secret that Samsung’s got a full complement of Galaxy S 4-derived handsets trickling out over the next few months; the company just revealed the S 4 Mini, and next up we’re expecting a more rugged, full-sized device known as the Galaxy S 4 Active (codename: J Active). Active, a (self-)reported five-inch, full HD handset powered by a quad-core, 1.9GHz Snapdragon 600 chipset from Qualcomm, will attempt to muscle in on some of the territory being staked out by Sony and its Xperia Z.

On AT&T, the eight-megapixel Active will be sold under model number SGH-I537, — in dark grey as well as teal, apparently — alongside a host of other upcoming Samsung handsets tipped for the second largest US carrier: SM-G730A “Golden” (Galaxy S III mini), SGH-I527 “Melius” (Galaxy Mega 6.3), SGH-I257 “Serrano” (Galaxy S4 mini), and SGH-I217 “Zest.” With the Galaxy Note 3 also seemingly a lock for AT&T in the fall, Samsung fans seem to have a pretty clear destination in terms of American operators this year.

P.S. The date on that screenshot should be pretty telling.

At the Google I/O 2013 conference that debuted on May 15th, the Mountain View-based company made an announcement that will please the fans of the Vanilla Android experience. The Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Edition release date will be June 26th, a variant of the popular flagship of the South Korea-based company that is running stock Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 will be available in Google Play Store at a price of $649, and, just like the terminals of the Nexus family, it will be in the first wave of devices that receive the latest Android updates. I am fully confident that a lot of users will show interest in the device, even though it has a quite expensive price. The Samsung Galaxy S4 sold by Google will have 16 GB of internal storage and 4G LTE modem compatible with AT&T and T-Mobile networks. As I was mentioning before, the Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Edition release date is June 26.

Why is Google’s offer so attractive? I’m glad you’ve asked. Samsung Galaxy S4 is a highly appreciated smartphone, both in terms of performance and technical specifications. Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Edition comes with a powerful chipset (most likely the Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 with four Krait 300 cores at 1.9 GHz and Adreno 320 GPU since it is compatible with the AT&T and T-Mobile LTE bands), a 5-inch full HD display and an impressive 13 megapixel camera sensor  mounted on the back.

Unfortunately, many of the customers that already purchased the Samsung Galaxy S4 with Nature UX have complained about the multitude of apps that come pre-installed on it. Some of them might be useful in some cases, but not all of them can be unistalled and they are occupying quite a lot of internal storage.

A clean version of Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean will probably be more appreciated than TouchWiz Nature UX, despite the fact that the apps and features developed by Samsung for the Galaxy S4 will not be available. Google will sell the smartphone with an unlocked bootloader, which is good news for those who want to stick their noses in the advanced functions of the operating system.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 Google Edition specs list also includes 2 GB of RAM, all standards of WiFi, microSD card slot, NFC chip, 4G LTE, IR blaster, 3.5 mm audio jack, Bluetooth 4.0, and microUSB 2.0.

What would you choose: the original SGS4 or the Galaxy S4 Google Edition? We are waiting for your comments and answers in the special section below.

Those looking for a deal on a Samsung Galaxy S4 should look no further than Walmart as the retailer has announced that it currently has the AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile models on sale with prices that are cheaper than other outlets.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 has been on sale for a few weeks now in the United States and finally, after some inventory issues, retailers are kicking off their own Galaxy S4 launches. Following in the footsteps of Staples is Walmart, which has informed Gotta Be Mobile that it is now carrying three of the big four Galaxy S4 devices on the market. It has also revealed that it has begun taking pre-orders for the Verizon Galaxy S4.

The retailer now has the AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile Galaxy S4 models on sale at its stores and it’s offering them with prices that are extremely competitive with carrier pricing.

Walmart is currently offering the AT&T Galaxy S4 for $168, a price that is below the $199.99 asking price at AT&T. It’s offering the Sprint Galaxy S4 for $224 which is a bit off the $250 price that Sprint is charging. Sprint is only charging $199.99 to those who bring a new number to the carrier, everyone else is stuck with a $250 price tag.

As for T-Mobile, Walmart is offering up the device for $198 and it requires a new two year contract. That is different than T-Mobile’s offer which stands at $150 down and then monthly payments to pay off the full price of the phone. T-Mobile no longer requires contracts with its phones.

Walmart has also begun taking pre-orders for the Galaxy S4 ahead of its arrival on May 30th. The retailer says that consumers will need to purchase a $25 pre-order card and then wait for a call from an associate when the device arrives in store later on this month. It’s on a first come first serve basis so there is no guarantee that pre-orderers will get it on release day.

The Verizon Galaxy S4 will also be hitting Verizon and several other retailers including Best Buy and RadioShack starting May 30th.

Samsung’s Galaxy S4 is the company’s latest flagship device, checking in with a 5-inch 1080p display, quad-core processor, 13MP, Android 4.2, and several smart features from Samsung.

AT&T just confirmed in an email statement (and via Twitter) that it will begin selling the 32GB model of the Galaxy S4 on May 10 for $249.99 with a new two-year contract. The device is not yet listed on the carrier’s website, so it doesn’t appear that AT&T is taking pre-orders at this time. Thankfully, for 16GB owners, the Galaxy S4 supports microSD cards up to 64GB in capacity, so you still have a nice padding if you already grabbed the phone.

Samsung recently defended the storage limits on the 16GB model – almost half of the storage is already taken up by Samsung’s own software – and advised users to buy a microSD card to quell storage concerns. The company said the added storage was consumed in an effort to provide “more powerful features” to consumers. Unfortunately, however, applications on unrooted devices can only be installed to the internal flash memory and not to a microSD card, which can be used for multimedia files, so you’re still pretty limited.

• Handset set to take on Apple's iPhone 5 - and some experts say it could even outsell it
• Shortages reported around the world for flagship Android handset

Customers around the world who pre-ordered Samsung's Galaxy S4 handset so they could have one on the day it is released face delays of up to a week.

UK operators were today forced to send messages to customers after Samsung blamed 'unprecedented demand' for the Android handset.

US customers were also being warned of delays.

The Galaxy S4 goes on sale around the world this weekend - but Samsung has admitted it has not been able to keep up with demand, leaving customers who ordered weeks ago facing delays

Customers around the world who pre-ordered Samsung's Galaxy S4 handset so they could have one on the day it is released face delays of up to a week, the firm revealed today

The firm told MailOnline it was unable to meet demand in the UK - even though customers had ordered weeks ago.

'There has been unprecedented demand for the Galaxy S4 in the UK,' the firm said.

'Samsung is working hard to ensure that pre-orders and sales across all channels are fulfilled as soon as possible.'

 

Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S4 in a glitzy New York event in mid-March and planned the worldwide launch for 27 April. 

Many thousands are believed to have pre-ordered the phone so it would arrive on launch day may now get their handset later.

The firm has undertaken a big budget 'world tour' to launch the handset. Here, a photograph is projected onto the sails of the Opera House as Samsung Electronics Australia transformed the iconic sails of the Opera House into a visual display showcasing hundreds of photographs submitted by ordinary Australians on Facebook

UK operator 3 told the BBC that Samsung was 'experiencing stock constraints' and said it regretted the frustration this would cause customers. 

The UK's other major operators also said they were having stock problems but were looking to prioritise customers who pre-ordered over those that walk into shops to buy the gadget.

Similar delays were being reported in the US with operator Sprint delaying the opening of its online S4 store by a week to cope with demand.

Experts expect the handset to be a smash hit.

'I believe the Samsung Galaxy S4 could be an important milestone for the Korean company, as it could be the first smartphone to outsell an iPhone,' said Francisco Jeronimo, an analyst with IDC.

'The Samsung Galaxy S4 can be a game changer for Samsung, and I believe for the first time that this device has the potential to outsell the next generation of iPhone - assuming that Apple will incrementally improve the next version of the iPhone.'

The highly anticipated Samsung Galaxy S4 goes on sale in the UK tomorrow - but the firm has warned customers, even those who pre-ordered, that they may face delays because of demand

It comes as Samsung revealed strong smartphone sales have driven its income up 42 per cent to a record high despite a typically slow season for the electronics market.

The world's largest smartphone maker said its first quarter net income reached 7.2 trillion won (£4.2billion) in the first three months of 2013, compared with 5 trillion won a year earlier.

The figure was a surprising two per cent increase from the previous quarter. Analysts expected Samsung to report lower profit than the fourth quarter because demand typically slows.

But sales of Samsung's flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S III, and the oversized handset device called the Galaxy Note remained strong and shored up profit, Samsung said. 

SAMSUNG GALAXY S4 - WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

AllThingsD: 'Galaxy S 4 Is a Good, but Not a Great, Step Up'

'If you’re a nut for lists of new features, love Samsung or crave an even bigger display, the Galaxy S 4 may be for you. It’s a good phone, just not a great one.'

T3: 'A Real Beauty' (5/5)
'It feels good, looks smart and does more than previous smartphones have. On the other hand, just as most people only scratch the surface of the capabilities of their home computers, settling for email, word processing and a little light gaming, there are going to be a lot of customers who barely dig into the features here.'

The Verge: Great To Use, Unpleasant To Hold (4/5)
'I don't like holding this phone, and I can't overstate how much that informs the experience of using it. It makes an awful first impression, slippery and slimy and simply unpleasant in your hand.'

Engadget: 'Predictable Excellence'

'If you're considering a move from an older Samsung device, the GS 4 is absolutely the handset you want.'

Techcrunch: 'The S Stands For Super, Not Simple'

'It’d be foolish to think that the Galaxy S4 isn’t a top-notch phone. But in playing with this phone for a while, adjusting to the new features, trying to make the most of them, and sometimes failing miserably, I keep returning to the idea of 'Keep it simple, stupid.'

It also spent less on marketing its mobile devices than it did in the previous quarter when competition heated up with rivals.

Sales rose 17 per cent to 52.9 trillion won. 

Operating profit was up 54 per cent to 8.8 trillion won, in line with its preliminary results released earlier this month.

Analysts expect Samsung to report another record-high profit during the April-June quarter as the Galaxy S4, the latest iteration of the Galaxy S smartphone, goes on sales worldwide, months before Apple introduces a new version of the iPhone.

Samsung said initial orders for the Galaxy S4 were higher than expected, making it difficult to meet demand. Lee Don-Joo, head of sales and marketing at Samsung's mobile division, said sales of the S4 will be higher than its predecessor.

NEW YORK - The Samsung Galaxy S 4 Android smartphone will be available in Singapore from May, it was revealed yesterday.

The South Korean company's stores here will stock the device, which was unveiled in New York. The three major telcos - SingTel, StarHub and M1 - are also in talks to sell it.

The phone will be given a staggered launch worldwide, with some countries getting it in April. Samsung Asia CEO and president Gregory Lee said: "We haven't decided on pricing. But it's a premium product so it will be at a premium price."

Experts expect the cost bracket will be similar to the Samsung Galaxy S III and Samsung Galaxy Note II - which both sold for $998 and attracted queues outside stores at their sales launches here last year.

Samsung Galaxy S4 set heart-beats racing and hands itching with their new flagship device: the Samsung Galaxy S4. While the mobile maker elaborated on the features of the new phone in detail, they conveniently left aside one of the most important aspects: the price. However, in what could be an erroneous slip, Samsung has revealed the price of the phone.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 will be approximately priced at 600 dollars. On the global Samsung website, there's a contest underway and the Samsung Galaxy S4 is up for grabs. At the time of writing this post, the website lists the approximate value of the phone to be $579! This price is still tentative and might be without taxes. So be set to shell out well over 600$ for your next Galaxy flagship. While we still can't say what the exact price will be, we are pretty sure it is nowhere less than 579$.