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Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini in the flesh

Samsung Philippines officially launched the Galaxy S3 Mini last night, along with Globe which is exclusively selling it for the first month. Let’s delve deeper in to the SGS3’s little brother with our first impression after the break.


Design and Construction

Yugatech 728x90 Reno7 Series

The S3 Mini, as you might expect, is almost the exact replica of Sammy’s current flagship handset in terms of design. It bears the same Nature-inspired design with rounded edges and metallic lining on the sides. Like it or not, the halfling’s body is also made of plastic with a so-called Hyperglazed coating which is similar to its bigger sibling’s build.

Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini

Differences between the two are scarce and a bit tricky to spot, especially if you don’t have an S3 with you to compare. During our brief time with the phone, we were only able to notice a pair of minor design dissimilarities between this device and its flagship brother:

• Placement of the front-mounted VGA camera and the sensors beside it. (Top Left for the S3 Mini and Top right for the S3.)

• Placement of the built-in flash and speaker beside the 5MP camera at the back.

Display

The handset features a 4-inch WVGA display similar to the first Galaxy S. This kind of display configuration may not be as popular as it was back then, but people who don’t have a taste for big-ass smartphones should be well at home with the S3 Mini’s modest screen.

OS, UI and Performance

Concealed underneath the glass and Hyperglazed plastic is the S3 Mini’s meek hardware configuration. This comprises of a dual-core 1GHz processor, 1GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage. It’s not gonna wow any onlookers, but should be enough to handle most of your basic smartphone needs in a satisfactory manner.

S3 Mini Philippines

This phone shares the same Nature UX-laden version of Android Jelly bean version (4.1.2) with the SGS3 and SGN2, minus some of the tasking features such as the Multi-Windows view. Given the phone’s mid-ranged specs, it was still able to handle Samsung’s UI quite impressively. It was fluid and responsive for the most part with only minor hiccups in the multitasking aspect.

Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini (i8190) specs:

4-inch Super AMOLED display @ 800×480 pixels
1GHz dual-core processor
Mali-400 GPU
1GB RAM
8GB/16GB internal storage
up to 32GB via microSD
3G/HSPA 14.4Mbps
NFC
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth v4.0
5-megapixel (rear) camera w/ AF and LED flash
VGA front camera
Video recording/playback: 720p
GPS w/ aGPS support
FM Radio (RDS)
TouchWiz UI 4.0 (Nature UX)
Android Jellybean (4.1.2)
Li-Ion 1500mAh battery
Dimension: 121.55 x 63 x 9.85 mm
Weight: 111.5g

Conclusion

The Samsung Galaxy S3 Mini is, in every aspect, a smaller and modest version of the South Korean firm’s current flagship handset. It has the same look and feel as the SGS3 but with a smaller screen and a mid-range specification. It may not be the best in class in terms of bang for the buck, but it’s there to provide a more affordable alternative to the company’s high-end offering.

SGS3 mini

This Android smartphone can be had for Php14,990 or get it free under Globe’s UnliSurf 999 plan. The plan includes unlimited surfing and an option to choose 1 of the four Plan Freebies. At the time of writing, the S3 Mini is still not available on Globe’s website but we were informed that they are on the process of including it on their handset offerings.

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Avatar for Ronnie Bulaong

This article was written by Ronnie Bulaong, a special features contributor and correspondent for YugaTech. Follow him on Twitter @turonbulaong.

24 Responses

  1. Avatar for Jks Jks says:

    ano po ba masmaganda?? itong s3 mini?? or lenovo k860?? kasi may price slash kasi yung lenovo.. same price na lang sila.. tapos mas’maganda tlga ang specs ng k860.. pero, baka hindi maganda yung build quality.. sooo, im hoping na may mka’bigay sa akin ng advice kung ano ang mas’maganda between the two.. thanks po.. :)

  2. Avatar for angiec angiec says:

    Good day! Question: I’m not exactly interested in the s3 mini rather the galaxy premier, but have no news whether the premier will be launched in the Philippines. If the latter will not be sold in the country than the s3 mini will suffice. Any ideas on the launching of the Premier in the Philippines? Appreciate much for a reply to my query. Thanks!

  3. Avatar for John John says:

    Sir Yuga, just got this from another site regarding the price of S3 Mini. On February 2, 2013, you can get it for as low as P9,990. That’s about 40% off the retail price. On this date, Samsung is holding a Special First Day Offer for the Samsung Galaxy S III Mini. If you get the phone on February 2, you automatically get P2,000 off the price, so you can buy the phone for only P12,990. You will also get a free flip cover worth P990. However, if you buy it on February 2 and lined up from 10AM to 12NN, you get another P3,000 off the retail price. In total, you get P5,000 discount and pay only P9,990 for the phone. This promo is available only at Samsung booths in SM Mall of Asia and SM City Cebu. Mark your calendars and be at these locations early if you want to get that P5,000 discount. The Samsung Galaxy S III Mini is here. It has a P14,990 price tag as previously announced but on February 2, 2013, you can get it for as low as P9,990. That’s about 40% off the retail price. On this date, Samsung is holding a Special First Day Offer for the Samsung Galaxy S III Mini. If you get the phone on February 2, you automatically get P2,000 off the price, so you can buy the phone for only P12,990. You will also get a free flip cover worth P990. However, if you buy it on February 2 and lined up from 10AM to 12NN, you get another P3,000 off the retail price. In total, you get P5,000 discount and pay only P9,990 for the phone. This promo is available only at Samsung booths in SM Mall of Asia and SM City Cebu. Mark your calendars and be at these locations early if you want to get that P5,000 discount.

  4. Avatar for Jamnrold38 Jamnrold38 says:

    Correction Lang po, Hindi po Siya 4.1.2, 4.1.1 po ang Os niya..Mai update NA po ba.?

  5. Avatar for rey rey says:

    and as of the moment LG optimus L9 is only P14,900.

  6. Avatar for rey rey says:

    no corning gorilla glass ( not scratch-proof). that would be the disappointment.

  7. Avatar for edisson edisson says:

    Before when I first heard that Samsung will make a smaller version of S3, I though everything would be the same except the screen. But when the specs came out, I got disappointed at Samsung. The GS3 Mini is just another name for GS Advance. If you want an S3 mini, go for S2 instead. It has better specs.

    • Avatar for rey rey says:

      siguru i suggest, if s3 mini, LG optimus L9 nalang. have corning gorilla glass, same dual core 1ghz. they have made an 8mp camera for it in asian markets, unlike s3 mini which is only 5mp. bigger display than s3 mini, and higher screen resolution.

  8. Avatar for potato potato says:

    mas maganda pa dito ang cherry mobile titan.

  9. Avatar for asking asking says:

    hnd ba sya gorilla glass? .. sayang

  10. Avatar for arvinsim arvinsim says:

    1500mAh battery only? Pass.

  11. Avatar for Welsh Welsh says:

    Yup, just add 4-8K and S3 is yours. But if you’re on a budget of 15K+/-, you can get an S2.

    S2 has a bit bigger screen size (at 4.3in) with Corning Gorilla Glass, better data connectivity, better main and secondary camera (8mp & 2mp), a bit higher processor (1.2 Ghz), a bit higher battery capacity of 1650mAh, better loudspeaker quality, and better audio quality.

    S2 is now running on Jelly Bean OS
    http://www.yugatech.com/software/jelly-bean-update-for-sgs2-now-official/

  12. Avatar for Ryan Ryan says:

    Add 4-5k and you can have an S3. this should be under 12k. theyre just riding in the popularity of S3 nicely done sammy. but, No thanks.

    • Avatar for Edwin C Edwin C says:

      Eh, gago ka pala. Sinabi ng pang-budget ang S3 mini na iyan tapos padagdagan mo ng pera para iyong original S3 na lang bibilhin nila. Napaka-ungas ng logic mo. Eh, kung gusto silang bumili nyan? Bakit ka pa nagmamarunong dyan. Gago ka pala.

    • Avatar for Digest Digest says:

      Owned. XD pero seryoso, ganun nga ang point. Kaya nga ganito price range kase yan yung bracket Ryan. Gets mo? Kase kung may extra silang 5k gaya ng sabi mo, eh di natural S3 ang kukunin nila. Langya oh. Common sense. >_>

  13. Avatar for Apollo Apollo says:

    Help me. Should I buy this one or Xperia Sola?

    • Avatar for edisson edisson says:

      Out of these two, S3 mini is better. It has better battery performance, a removable battery, Jelly Bean out of the box, & more RAM.

  14. Avatar for Lou Quindo Lou Quindo says:

    “Placement of the front-mounted VGA camera and the sensors beside it. (Top right for the S3 Mini and Top Left for the S3.)”

    -RIGHT for S3, top left for S3 Mini :)

  15. Avatar for Lolwut Lolwut says:

    “Placement of the front-mounted VGA camera and the sensors beside it. (Top right for the S3 Mini and Top Left for the S3.)”

    are you kidding me >_>

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