White Samsung Galaxy S2 Released in UK, Challenging Apple's iPhone

Samsung's flagship Galaxy S2 is rolling out a white version, countering Apple's white iPhone.

The white Samsung Galaxy S2 handset was released in the UK on Wednesday, following a huge hit since its launch in May.

Samsung Galaxy S2 is an ultra-thin Android phone, weighing a mere 4oz and boasting 0.33-inch thickness. It is powered by a 1.2GHz dual-core chipset and offers 1GB RAM and 16/32GB internal memory.

It runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS, sports Samsung's TouchWiz UI, and comes fitted with an 8MP rear-facing and 2MP front-facing camera. It offers 1080p video capture capability. Galaxy S 2 sports a 4.3-inch Super AMOLED display with 800x480 screen resolution.

Galaxy S2, which runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS and sports Samsung's TouchWiz UI, comes with an 8-megapixel camera with flash and can record HD video in 1080p offering the richest video content on a smartphone. The phone also has the front-facing 2-megapixel camera for video chat.

The white version will feature the same spec as the original Galaxy S2's black variant.

Since its launch in May the Galaxy S II has been a huge hit with Samsung consumers. We always want to offer a range of products that suit different people and are delighted to now be able to give consumers the choice of the UK's leading Android smartphone in black or white, said Simon Stanford, Samsung's managing director of mobile.

Obviously aimed at taking over the throne from the white version of the iPhone, Samsung echoed Apple's color line in offering a white Galaxy S2, made available today for £485 from retailers in store and online, such as Kingofgadgets.co.uk.

Online retailers such as Clove.co.uk and Expansys.com are still awaiting stock and all the mobile operators have the handset on their coming soon pages with available set for September, according to the Inquirer.

'We can confirm that the first stock of the Samsung Galaxy S2 White will be arriving on Thursday 1st September,' Clove said. 'The White version of the highly popular Samsung Galaxy S2 was announced at the end of July and is now close to launch.'

Tuesday night, the Samsung Galaxy S2 was unveiled in the U.S., from three major carriers; AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint.

On Sprint, Epic 4G Touch will cost $199.99 (excluding taxes) with a two-year contract. AT&T version, which is the thinnest of the three, is also expected to be on the same lines in the range of $250 to $300, while T-Mobile hasn't announced pricing or availability details.

There are only minor differences among the three U.S. versions of Galaxy S2. AT&T's version would have a 4.3-inch screen, while the Sprint and T-Mobile versions sport a 4.5-inch display.

The release of Galaxy S2 dressed in white will heat up not only the smartphone battle between Apple and Samsung but may lead Apple to file another patent lawsuit.

Earlier, Apple has accused Samsung of violating intellectual property rights across various products, including tablets and smartphones. In July, Apple filed a complaint against Samsung with the International Trade Commission in the United States over IP violations in both the tablet and smartphone markets. Apple has also filed suit against Samsung in Japan, South Korea and the U.S.

The existence of a white iPhone 4 was first announced in June 2010. However, due to manufacturing complexities associated with its creation, Apple missed two deadlines. Finally, Apple released the white iPhone 4 model in April, 2011. The challenge in the production of the white model drove up the devices desirability, leading to high popularity of the white iPhone 4.