Samsung Galaxy S3 Release Date: Carrier Testing Begins In Korea, Will It Launch Before The IPhone 5?

The Samsung Galaxy S3 has yet to announce an official release date, but the launch may be approaching as the company has begun carrier testing in Korea. According to UberGizmo, a report surfaced from AsiaE claiming that Samsung has begun testing in order to get the device out in a timely manner.

The report added that the company is having trouble with its rumored quad-core processor and LTE chipset. It was also recently revealed that Samsung will produce their first Super AMOLED Plus display for the device, with a resolution of 720p HD. Similar to the Galaxy Nexus, it will be 4.65-inches in size, packing a pixel density of 316ppi, reported UberGizmo. This could challenge Apple's current smartphone, the iPhone 4S, which sports a high-pixel density Retina display.

The Samsung phone is believed to launch sometime this spring or summer, with some reports pointing to April or May although nothing has been officially confirmed. However, that isn't stopping fans from harboring excitement for the new product. Samsung's flagship phone has already racked up 10 million pre-orders, according to an industry insider that posted the news on Twitter April 2^nd. This is more units than the Galaxy Note has sold to date, which amounts to 5 million.

Leaked images of the gadget have also begun to surface on the Internet, with one displaying a picture of the phone with the time stamp May 22, 2012 7 p.m. on the home screen. This lines up with the date of an unspecified Samsung event, but this is pure speculationsince the company has yet to confirm the image.

With all the hype surrounding the Korea-based company's new smartphone, Apple's next generation smartphone could find itself facing some stiff competition. Amid rumors and speculations, the iPhone 5 seems to be on target for a June release, but Apple has yet to officially unveil the gadget. Foxconn has recently hired over 200,000 more workers to optimize production for the next-generation phone, making the summer launch rumors more probable than those indicating a fall release.