Samsung quietly unveiled the Galaxy Mega Thursday, a massive smartphone that comes in two sizes.
The biggest is a 6.3-inch behemoth that dwarfs the Galaxy Note II. The other is an enormous (though less obnoxious) 5.8-inch device that also happens to be larger than the latest Note.
In a strange turn of events, neither Mega will come equipped with the quad-core processor that’s powering the Galaxy S IV, which is reportedly twice as fast as Apple’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone 5.
Thus far, critics don’t seem to care.
Ubergizmo’s Hubert Nguyen was one of the first to get his hands on the device. In his preview of the Galaxy Mega, he said that the handset “has little to envy to the Galaxy S IV,” adding that it is “like a close relative.”
ZAGG (NASDAQ: ZAGG), a smartphone accessory manufacturer, has published a side-by-side comparison to illustrate the differences between the Galaxy Mega, Galaxy S IV, Galaxy Note II and HTC One, as well as the iPhone 5.
Unlike other Samsung phones, the Galaxy Mega did not receive the level of hype that preceded the Galaxy S IV. In fact, Ubergizmo had assumed that the rumors (of a larger Samsung phone) were for the next-generation Galaxy Note. The Note II is only six months old, however. It would be a bit early for Samsung to upgrade that handset.
While most publications are discussing the Galaxy Mega with a simple overview, USA Today is giving its readers a little something extra: an ad for the BlackBerry (NASDAQ: BBRY) Z10.
As of this writing, the Galaxy Mega is the top story on USA Today’s tech page. The tech section is sponsored by BlackBerry, however, as noted at the top left corner of the site.
Consequently, readers might see this:
Instead of this:
Is this clever marketing on BlackBerry’s behalf? Or is it a coincidence that the ad (targeted at American consumers) happened to appear over the announcement of a Korean phone made for European consumers?
Louis Bedigian is the Senior Tech Analyst and Features Writer of Benzinga. You can reach him at 248-636-1322 or louis@benzingapro.com. Follow him @LouisBedigianBZ
(c) 2013 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Tags: BlackBerry Z10, Galaxy Mega, Galaxy Note II, Galaxy S IV, Samsung
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