Aussies last in line for Galaxy S III

Samsung's Galaxy S III smartphone will not arrive in Australia any time soon, according to the phone maker.

Despite yesterday announcing the launch of the hotly-awaited smartphone and its availability in global markets, including Asia which usually encompasses Australia, Samsung’s local arm told CRN the phone will not make it to Aussie shores at the same time.

“Samsung Electronics Australia is pleased there is continued interest about our GALAXY range in Australia, but we have no plans to make any announcements at this time,” the company said in a statement.

The Galaxy S III was launched last night at an event London. The phone will be available for purchase at the end of this month in the US, Europe, Japan and Korea. Samsung is yet to announce pricing.

Available in both white and blue, the smartphone is powered by Samsung's 1.4GHz Exynos quad-core processor with 1GB RAM. It has a slimmer bezel than its predecessor, the Galaxy S II, boasting a 4.8in 720x1280 Super AMOLED display and a sharp 306ppi screen. The screen size is also larger than the Galaxy S II, with dimensions of 136.6 x 70.6mm.

The 8.6mm thick Galaxy S III weighs 133g, and is available in 16GB, 32GB and 64GB models with microSD support up to 64GB. It holds an 8MP sensor able to shoot 1080p video, with a front-facing 1.9MP camera boasting 720p video capability. 

Samsung has incorporated several new features into the new Galaxy smartphone. Smart Stay uses face detection to stop the screen dimming when you're looking at it, and Direct Call automatically calls a contact when the phone is placed to your ear, with the contact’s details open on the screen.  

And Samsung has taken on Apple's iPhone 4s at its own game, debuting voice assist technology S Voice to rival Apple’s Siri. It can be used to take photos along with making general commands and web searches.