Samsung turbocharges Galaxy S4 for one-minute movie downloads

Samsung to launch new Galaxy S4 with advanced-LTE
Samsung's cracking the whip

If you thought Samsung might be running out of steam when it comes to churning out Galaxy S4 variants, you've got another thing coming. However, this new flagship model might be a tad more interesting than the rest.

Samsung co-chief exec, JK Shin, told Reuters that the the company is planning a new Galaxy S4 model that will run on LTE-Advanced technology, offering twice the speeds of normal 4G.

According to Shin, the phone could start selling in South Korea before the end of this month, and will be running on a zippy Qualcomm processor.

Speedy Gonzales

"We'll be the first with the commercial launch of the advanced 4G version of the smartphone," Shin said, although it's worth reminding that the technology is already active in certain parts of Russia, after the country launched an LTE-Advanced network last year.

Samsung added that a movie download that currently takes three minutes over standard 4G would be doable in just over one minute on the upgraded speeds.

So when might the rest of us see it? Shin said that Samsung was in talks with overseas carriers but wouldn't elaborate further than that.

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The UK currently doesn't have any LTE Advanced networks running, which makes sense given there's only one, and other parts of the globe are in a similar boat - although the expectation is that it will be deployed in the medium-term future.

So if you want to be future-proof, book a ticket to South Korea and pick one of these up. Or don't, save money and get a 'normal' 4G option instead. Your call.

Hugh Langley

Hugh Langley is the ex-News Editor of TechRadar. He had written for many magazines and websites including Business Insider, The Telegraph, IGN, Gizmodo, Entrepreneur Magazine, WIRED (UK), TrustedReviews, Business Insider Australia, Business Insider India, Business Insider Singapore, Wareable, The Ambient and more.


Hugh is now a correspondent at Business Insider covering Google and Alphabet, and has the unfortunate distinction of accidentally linking the TechRadar homepage to a rival publication.