Samsung Galaxy S 2 U.S. release still in limbo [RUMOR]

July 8, 2011 | by Andrew Kameka

The Samsung Galaxy S has sold more than 3 million phones in less than two months, so you’d think that the four major U.S. carriers carriers would be lining up to offer one of the best Android phones of 2011, right? Wrong says a report from Korean news source Chosunilbo.

According to a Samsung executive that spoke to Chosunilbo, “Negotiations with American telecom companies have dragged on.” Chonsunilbo believes that’s because the original Galaxy S had problems, leading carriers to put more trust in Motorola and HTC for producing phones using CDMA networks (note: Sprint and Verizon are the only major carriers that use CDMA. AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM.)

Chosunilbo paints a picture that U.S. carriers are more receptive to HTC and Motorola than Samsung, saying that the Galaxy S was successful because there was no competition to it last year. Now that HTC and Motorola have caught-up and are releasing strong alternatives, Samsung is having a tougher go at cracking the U.S. market.

I don’t think that quality is an issue. There isn’t a phone available now or confirmed to be released in the U.S. that the Galaxy S II couldn’t stand its ground against. My money is on carriers and Samsung having to address financial terms or exclusivity deals. All of the carriers wanted the Galaxy S to be differentiated, which lead to the Captivate, Epic, Fascinate, and Vibrant. Could that also be what’s holding up the U.S. release?

Whatever the cause, I’d like to see this reach a conclusion soon. The Samsung Infuse is a lesser version of the Galaxy S 2 and I wrote a very favorable review of it, so I’m anxious to get the better version in the U.S. as soon as possible. I’m sure there are many others looking forward to it. After all, Google activates more than 500,000 devices each day. The Galaxy S II accounted for 10 percent of those activations when it first launched.

via Gottabemobile

Galaxy S 2, rumors, samsung, samsung galaxy s 2, Samsung Galaxy S II

7 Comments

SLeepdepD says:

July 8, 2011 at 9:44 am

I'm sure keeping an eye on this phone. I'm on Verizon and due for an upgrade, however if I can hold out until October when my contract is up I can drop from my 2-year to a 1-year–so I won't have to wait 20 months for my next upgrade.
- tennisben24 says:
  
  July 8, 2011 at 12:07 pm
  
  I'm pretty sure Verizon dropped 1 year plans, and now they have tiered data. Just an FYI.
  - SLeepdepD says:
    
    July 8, 2011 at 1:32 pm
    
    huh….i heard about the tiered, but not about dropping the 1-year's. I'll have to investigate.
emacias says:

July 8, 2011 at 10:31 am

Love my Vibrant and hope TMobile gets this.
Dara Parsavand says:

July 8, 2011 at 12:30 pm

We should have had this phone a month ago on AT&T (my carrier) and I would have bought it then. By the time they get it (if ever), I'll be inclined to hold out for the next Nexus. This fiasco perfectly illustrates the problem with the US cell phone carrier market. These guys need some serious regulation to really be a competitive market. Phone differentiation isn't any good for the consumer – there is plenty of differentiation between companies and models – we don't need it between carriers. For anyone who doesn't know already, you can buy a GS II right now if you are on AT&T if you are willing to pay unsubsidized prices (around $700) for no monthly payment advantage. That is another ridiculous thing about our carriers. If I was on T-mobile and if they supported this phone (they don't – only Voice and Edge – that's worthless), I'd be willing to spend that much since at least I could save $10 or more on a plan where you own your phone. The other three carriers offer no such plan, so you are pretty much forced to get subsidized phones, if you don't want to lose 3-500 dollars. Hell, I'd probably still suck it up and buy it, but I'm too lazy to learn how to wipe out all the Samsung specific junk on the OS I'm not the least bit interested in (hence my preference for a Nexus). Props to Samsung for providing Cyanogen with free hardware and encouraging them to develop a ROM, but is it too much to ask for manufacturers to support running the stock OS with no modifications on their phones from the get go? I know some people want all that junk, but a lot of us are not interested – just give us the killer hardware with a stock OS and we will pay.
The Truth Squad says:

July 10, 2011 at 10:35 pm

What the hell is going on with the US carriers? You can not get a S2 or a Bionic. I think Apple is goping to release their Iphone 5 in September and these phones will still be vaporware.
Amanda says:

July 19, 2011 at 12:18 pm

I'm living in Korea with this phone and I absolutely love it! I'm sure I would love it even more if there were more apps on the andriod market that I was used to on my iPhone but I wouldn't give this up for an iphone ever again, its super customizable and … i just love it! lol! I hope it gets released soon in the US

Android Apps and News

Thoughts on the Samsung Galaxy S 4 and Unpacked 2013

Diztronic case review for LG Nexus 4

Why I decided to purchase the Nexus 4

Samsung Galaxy Note 2 - Verizon Remix Version

HTC DROID DNA Review

Samsung Galaxy Note II Review

Android News