Samsung Galaxy S5 On Deck, Tablets Hit StoresSamsung Galaxy S5 On Deck, Tablets Hit Stores

10 Best Tablets Of 2013

Samsung is expected to debut the Galaxy S5 during the Mobile World Congress trade show later this month. The new smartphone will be its flagship for the year, replacing the Galaxy S4. Samsung also announced pricing and availability details for its new professional-grade tablets.

Samsung, which calls its big press events "Unpacked," introduced both the Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3 at Unpacked events in 2013. The upcoming event, called Samsung Unpacked 5 2014 Episode 1, provides some clues as to what the company will announce. The "5" is a not-so-clever indicator that the Galaxy S5 will make its first worldwide appearance at the event. Reports concerning the GS5 have ramped up in recent weeks and speculation about the device's features is at an all-time high.

The Galaxy S5 may include a 5.24-inch quad HD resolution screen -- that's 2560 x 1440 pixels. The size and resolution of the screen together would give the phone an unsurpassed pixel density of 560 pixels per inch. The GS5's battery, at 3,200 mAh, will be significantly bigger than the GS4's and should provide plenty of uptime. The GS5 will be sold with several different processors under the hood; Samsung varies the processors by region. Customers in North America can expect to see the Qualcomm Snapdragon 805, which is the company's more recent processor/baseband combo. Other specs may include a 16-megapixel main camera, a 3.2-megapixel user-facing camera, and 32-GB and 64-GB storage variants.

[Can its new devices help reverse Samsung's recent sales slump? Read Samsung Profits Decline As Growth Slows.]

Samsung hasn't confirmed any of these specs, and it won't until things kick off at the Feb. 24 event in Barcelona. Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S II and the Galaxy S III during the Mobile World Congress trade show in 2011 and 2012, respectively, and the original Galaxy S during the CTIA Wireless trade show in 2010. The GS5 will mark the fifth generation of Samsung's flagship handset, and the company positions it as a head-to-head competitor with Apple's iPhone and other flagship devices.

On the heels of scheduling the GS5 launch, Samsung also revealed when its newest tablets will go on sale and how much they will cost. Samsung announced the NotePRO 12.2 and the TabPRO 12.2, 10.1, and 8.4 at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.

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All four tablets include gorgeous high-resolution displays, capable cameras, and a brand-new magazine-like user interface developed by Samsung. The NotePRO, with its large 12.2-inch screen, also packs an S Pen and Samsung's stylus-based productivity software.

The WiFi variants of the Galaxy NotePRO 12.2, TabPRO 10.1, and TabPRO 8.4 will be available in the US beginning Feb. 13 from Samsung.com, Best Buy, Walmart, Amazon, Tiger Direct, PC Richard and Sons, Fry’s, and Newegg. Pre-orders begin Feb. 4. The Samsung Galaxy TabPRO 12.2 will be available in March. Verizon Wireless will offer the Galaxy NotePRO 12.2 with 4G LTE connectivity later this quarter.

The NotePRO 12.2 will cost $750 for the 32-GB model and $850 for the 64-GB model. The TabPRO 12.2 will cost $650 for the 32-GB model. The TabPRO 10.1 will cost $500 for the 16-GB model, and the TabPRO 8.4 will cost $400 for the 16 GB-model. Pricing for the LTE-equipped NotePRO model was not announced.

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