Last year Samsung announced a new handset known as the Galaxy S III mini that, as one could probably guess, featured a design similar to the original Galaxy S III in a smaller package. The rumor mill has claimed that Samsung will repeat itself this year with a miniaturized version of the Galaxy S 4, and today some new images of that device have made their way online.
Posted to Chinese microblogging service Sina Weibo by user @PunkPanda, the photos show a device that looks just like a smaller Black Mist Galaxy S 4. There's a center-mounted camera with flash on the unit's backside, and around the edge is a faux-metal band, both of which are features found on the original Galaxy S 4. Moving around to the front, we can see a rounded physical home button. One image shows the Galaxy S 4 mini resting next to a Galaxy S III, much like the previous set of Galaxy S 4 mini photos that surfaced in late March.
As far as specs go, the Galaxy S 4 mini is rumored to be packing a 4.3-inch 960x540 display and 1.6GHz dual-core processor, both of which are steps up from the Galaxy S III mini's 4-inch 800x480 display and 1GHz dual-core chip. The GS4 mini is also expected to come preloaded with Android 4.2.2 beneath Samsung's TouchWiz overlay.
When Samsung originally introduced the Galaxy S III mini, many people were disappointed with the fact that its spec list was a bit lower-end than the regular Galaxy S III. It looks like that will be the case again this year with the Galaxy S 4 mini, and while I'm sure that there will still be some that will be upset about its feature set, the device looks like it could be a nice option for folks that want a slightly smaller (and likely more affordable) version of Samsung's flagship smartphone. There's no word yet on exactly when the Galaxy S 4 mini might launch, but one report claimed that it would be arriving "soon after" the release of the Galaxy S 4, so the mini may not be far off. We've got a couple more shots of the device below to keep you occupied until then.
Via SamMobile, Sina Weibo
