By Jonathan Charles | Aug 16, 2012 10:10 AM EDT
Samsung fans probably should pen Aug. 29 onto their calendars as the launch date of the Samsung Galaxy Note 2. With new photos and internal specifications leaked, the device's August announcement seems certain.
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GSMArena, the website that posted the leaked image and specifications, is uncertain whether the leaked device is real or fan-made. However, given the Galaxy Note's form factor, its Samsung Galaxy S3-esque design is likely close to the final product.
The single most important takeaway from the image is that the Note 2's screen will be the dominant factor. According to the leak, the phone-tablet hybrid (or "phablet") uses a 1280x800 Super AMOLED 5.5-inch display. While 720p is high definition, fans will probably be interested to see how the resolution performs in practice. GSMArena's tipster claimed that higher resolutions were tested but ultimately put too much strain on battery life.
The Galaxy Note 2 will apparently use the Exynos 4 quad-core processor clocked at 1.5GHz.
An 8MP camera sensor is present in the leaked images, presumably for the rear camera. A front camera is unconfirmed.
"The Jelly Bean update for the Galaxy Note II is still being developed," GSMArena reported. The story does not specify whether the information comes from the same tipster who provided the images. However, since the Samsung Galaxy S3 launched with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the Galaxy Note 2 is likely to launch with the second most popular version of Google's mobile operating system.
"There is an outside chance Jelly Bean will be ready in time for the announcement, but it's more likely to come out later on," GSMArena added, without specifying a date.
The report also says that the 4.1 Jelly Bean update for Galaxy S3 is to be released alongside the Samsung Galaxy Note 2. If accurate, this rumor suggests thatGSMArena is correct in its claim that Jelly Bean will arrive not too long after the release of Samsung's phablet.
This could fuel hopes that devices launching with 4.1 Jelly Bean will become a precedent for a mobile operating system in desperate need of consistency across devices.
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