Samsung Galaxy S2 is expected to be a major iPhone 5 competitor. But some emails received by Popherald from credible sources living in Asia point that Samsung may pitch for a new phone, most probably the next version of its popular Samsung Galaxy S2, expected to be known as S2 “Plus” or S3 that will be pitted against the iPhone 5.

The phone is not expected to carry the Galaxy branding and newer features than Samsung Galaxy S2. The S2 Plus device is expected to include 1.4 GHz dual-core processor, 1 GB RAM, and Android 2.3.4 with custom user interface courtesy of Samsung’s popular TouchWiz UI. In fact, Android 2.3.4 is the latest build of Gingerbread that includes Google Talk with video support, which means we can see Google’s new voice and video application to be pushed through into the new version.

Samsung Galaxy S2 is already selling well overseas but its different variants of Sprint, Verizon and AT&T has still not reached the US shores. Moreover, even if the Samsung Galaxy S3 (or S2 Plus) is announced, the possibility of its release may definitely be pushed towards Christmas season as the original version is yet to arrive.

Whatever the upgrade is going to be from the original version, there will be stiff competition for the upcoming version as Motorola Droid Bionic, Motorola Photon 4G, Google Nexus 4G and Apple iPhone 5 are making their way soon into the market.

The arrival of Android 2.4 Ice Cream Sandwich is predicted to be during the holiday season. Hence the integration of the OS to newer version of Galaxy S2 is a possibility.

Recently, Apple amended its patent infringement lawsuit which it filed against Samsung in April. Samsung was accused of “slavishly copying” Apple’s designs. The lawsuit may be an attempt to curb the sales of Samsung’s upcoming phones expected to target Apple iPhone 5.

In fact, Apple demanded that Samsung should show the prototypes of its upcoming devices. Samsung counter-sued and demanded that Apple should showcase its upcoming iPhone 5 and iPad 3 devices, an action which Apple termed as harassment. Moreover Samsung Galaxy S2 is expected to be added as a key product during the filing in coming days.

Meanwhile, Samsung’s relationship with Apple has received another blow as a new report suggests that the Cupertino-based company will not source its upcoming A6 SoC from its Korean supplier. The rumors are that Apple will tie up with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) to build its next-generation ARM SoCs known as “A6.” According Dan Heyler, a semiconductor analyst with Merrill Lynch in Taipei,TSMC will get the nod to produce the A6 processors, China Commercial Times reported.

Presently, Samsung which produced the A4 processors in the iPhone 4 and iPad is still producing the A5 processor. The A5 processor found in the iPad 2 is built on 45nm process by Samsung but with TSMC taking over, the next-generation A6 ARM CPU is expected to be based on a 28nm process. Although Apple is planning to move to a 28nm process, currently TSMC is producing mobile SoCs for other smartphone and tablet makers on a 40nm process.

Also, new set of rumors are that either the iPhone 4S or the iPhone 5 (two different models) will be released in September after neither of them were showcased at WWDC 2011. The expectations are that the iPhone 4S will be an updated, upgraded version of the iPhone 4 and the iPhone 5 will have a complete redesign.

Here is a list compiled about expected iPhone 5 features:

> A5 processor in the range of 1.2-1.5 GHz
> Aluminum metal backing of the original iPhone instead of the current glass surface back piece
> A teardrop design, like the new iPod Touch, with the top being thick and then tapering to a skinnier bottom
> An improved antenna (no more Antennagate, yay!)
> More RAM, possibly 1GB
> Better camera (perhaps 8-megapixel) with 1080p video playback and panaromic photo capture capability and an improved dual-LED flash unit
> Bigger-edge-to-edge 3.7- to 4-inch curved glass screen (iPHone 4 has 3.5-inch screen)
> A SIM-less design
> 3-4 internal antennas for both GSM and CDMA networks
> AT&T documents leaked by the hacking group LulzSec suggest that Apple iPhone 5 will offer 4G and will be LTE network compatible.
> iOS 5, which will be true multitask capable and come with loads of new features such as News Stand, Reminders, Delta Updates and iMessage
> Improved speech recognition features, and
> Wireless charging capability
> Better talktime and standy time
> Near Field Communication (NFC) technology
> Panoramic photo capabilities and 1080p Full HD videos
> Stronger gaming capabilities supported by multi-core A5 processor and Imagination Technologies’ PowerVR Series6 mobile graphics processing architecture

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