Samsung will be releasing some major handsets in 2012, including the
Samsung Galaxy S 3, the first to be revealed is the Samsung Galaxy M. While it may not set the pulse racing with its specs, it does promise to bring the company’s highly regarded Super AMOLED screen technology to the masses.
Back in August 2011 we reported on Samsung’s new letter-based naming convention. Galaxies S, R, W, M and Y would cover the smartphone spectrum from high-end class to entry-level affordability.
To illustrate this new scheme
Samsung revealed an accompanying range of Android handsets in the R, W, M and Y range (we all know about the S class). However, the mid-range M class was only represented by the BlackBerry-like Samsung Galaxy M Pro.
Appearance
The Samsung Galaxy M looks like many a Samsung smartphone head-on, with its straight edges, curved corners, glossy plastic facade and three button control set-up. From the back, however, it looks a fair bit more solid and (dare we say it) HTC-like. In fact, it reminds us more of the Samsung Omnia 7 – the company’s first generation Windows Phone 7 device. It’s 9.9mm thick, which is the same as the Bada-powered Samsung Wave 3, and it’ll weigh a similar 122 grams.
Screen
That last similarity carries through to the Samsung Galaxy M’s screen, which is its main feature. Here we have a 4-inch Super AMOLED display – the kind we’ve seen on the aforementioned Bada and Windows Phone devices, as well as the original Samsung Galaxy S. Suffice to say it remains a lovely display, and not the sort of thing you usually find in an entry or even mid-range smartphone.
Power
This being a lower-mid-range device, don’t expect dual-core power from the Samsung Galaxy M. Instead we get a respectable 1GHz single-core CPU – again, just like that found in the Galaxy S and Omnia 7. Samsung is clearly repackaging many of these formerly high-end components in a more affordable package. The Samsung Galaxy M also has 4GB of internal storage.
Camera
One component that doesn’t match up to the aforementioned devices is the Samsung Galaxy M’s 3-megapixel camera. Both the Galaxy S and the Omnia 7 had 5-megapixel units, so this is clearly one of the areas Samsung has made concessions in order to fit within the M-class parameters.
OS
Naturally the high-end Samsung devices will get first dibs on Android Ice Cream Sandwich, so the Samsung Galaxy M gets the next best thing – Android 2.3 Gingerbread. That’s the same OS as can be found on pretty much every current Android phone on the market – except the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, of course.
Availability
We’re not sure when or even if the Samsung Galaxy M will hit these shores – the announcement was made in Samsung’s native South Korea, which will get the device today. According to Engadget, the translated price works out at around 500 US dollars, which is around £320 going by the current exchange rate. That could probably stand to come down a little if it ever does make it to the UK, especially given its lower-mid-range status.
Nokia dual SIM handset, Asha 200, is now available in India for Rs 4349 through online retailers. The dual SIM handset has a 2 MP camera, 32 GB expandable memory slot, Bluetooth and a Qwerty keypad. 
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