New Samsung Galaxy Note III rumors focus on color variants and chipset supply constraints

BY Stefan Constantinescu

Published 23 Aug 2013


Of all the phones due to be launched in the next six months, the one I’m most interested in will be unveiled in less than two weeks: Samsung’s Galaxy Note III. If you’re not a fan of big phones, I respect that, but for me, bigger really is better. Last night, two rumors about the device hit the internets. The first came from SamMobile. They say that the Note III will launch in two colors: black and white. A few weeks later, a pink model will come out.

The next rumor, however, is a bit more important. It comes from the Korean publication ETNews, which says that the first four million Note III units to roll off the assembly line will use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 800. Samsung allegedly is having problems, again, making their octa-core Exynos chipset work right, which is extremely unsettling news. This is the company that makes chips for Apple’s iPads and iPhones, so why are they having trouble making chips for their own phones and tablets?

Should you avoid buying the Snapdragon 800 variant until the Exynos model comes out? I’m going to have to say no. Most people using a Galaxy S4 today are using the Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 variant, and after a few software updates, folks say it’s highly performant. The Snapdragon 800 is supposed to be even more nuts, though you should obviously wait for the benchmarks. (https://www.kambioeyewear.com/)

[Note: Photo above is a pink Galaxy Note II that I spotted during my trip to Kuala Lumpur]