Samsung Galaxy S III may get Jelly Bean

Jelly Bean, the latest version of the Android OS, has been highly anticipated by users of Samsung’s flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S III. The phone runs on Android v4.0.4 (aka Ice Cream Sandwich) out of the box, and is scheduled for an upgrade to Jelly Bean. According to SamMobile, the update may make its way to the Galaxy S III and the Galaxy Note as soon as autumn this year.

SamMobile notes that the firmware for the S III has passed testing successfully, and the company is now working on a public version of the first Jelly Bean update for this device. Samsung is waiting for Google’s approval to officially roll the update out. The situation seems to be similar to that of the Galaxy Note. Although testing for the firmware on the Note has been successful, there is still no word from Samsung about the Jelly Bean update.

As for other phones in Samsung’s popular Galaxy lineup, the report indicates that the firmware for the Galaxy S II is still in the testing phase. The source has said that although no time frame has been specified, the Galaxy S II will definitely receive the Android v4.1 update, as it is still a popular device. In case Samsung cancels the Jelly Bean update for the S II, users will receive a “value pack”. No details about the value pack have been mentioned.

Here is a quick look at the specifications of the Samsung Galaxy S III:

4.8-inch HD Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 1280 x 720
3G, EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi with DLNA support
GPS with A-GPS and GLONASS
USB 2.0, Bluetooth 4.0
8 MP camera with AF, LED flash, BSI sensor and 1080p HD video recording
1.9 MP front facing camera with a resolution of 720p for video chat
16/ 32/ 64 GB Internal memory, expandable upto 64 GB

Later this year, Samsung has plans of introducing a 64GB variety of the Galaxy S III handset. In its statement, Samsung added, “The 64GB model of the Galaxy S III will be available during the second half of this year. The market availability and timing may vary and will be determined at the time of release”.

The global sales of the Galaxy S III have hit the 10 million mark, as per a statement by Shin Jong-kyun, President of Telecoms and IT, Samsung. The news comes merely a couple of months after the official launch of  the highly anticipated smartphone. Successor to the company's popular Galaxy S II smartphone, the S III was expected to hit the 10 million mark in July, according to a report published in late June.