Samsung Launches Galaxy S5 LTE-A In Korea With WQHD AMOLED Display, Snapdragon 805 CPU

Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd (KRX:005935) announced a new Galaxy S5 model on Wednesday for the Korean market with an improved display and faster processor. The new version, dubbed the Galaxy S5 LTE-A, is claimed by the company to be the first smartphone to support download speeds of up to 225 Mbps.

The new Galaxy S5 LTE-A comes with a 5.1-inch QHD AMOLED display with an ultra-high resolution of 2560x1440 pixels, compared to the 1920x1080 resolution found in the original Galaxy S5. The improved display gives the handset a higher pixel density of 576ppi, which is slightly higher than the LG G3’s 538ppi.

The handset also comes with a faster Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 processor, which features four 2.5GHz Krait 450 CPU cores and the Adreno 420 GPU. The new Snapdragon 805 processor is the only chip that supports network speeds of up to 300 Mbps, according to Qualcomm.

With LTE-A capability, the latest Galaxy S5 variant will support the new SK Telecom LTE-A 4G service, which currently offers a maximum speed of 225 Mbps -- three times faster than existing LTE speeds of 75Mbps around the world, CNET reported.

Except for these changes, the Galaxy S5 LTE-A remains the same as the original S5 that was released in April. The new model also runs on the Android 4.4 KitKat and comes with 3GB RAM, 32GB of internal storage and a microSD slot for cards up to 128GB.

The device also sports a 16-megapixel rear camera, a 2-megapixel front-facing camera, fingerprint and heart rate sensors, NFC, USB 3.0 port and an IR sensor and a 2,800 mAh battery.

The Galaxy S5 LTE-A will be available in various colors, including Charcoal Black, Shimmer White, Electric Blue, Copper Gold, Sweet Pink, and Glam Red. The device will cost 940,500 won (around $920) and is expected to launch on other local carriers in coming days.