What’s better than 20 million? Over 30 million Samsung Galaxy S3 handsets now sold worldwide

Soon after Samsung made the historic announcement in early September that the Galaxy S3 had passed the 20 million sales mark, a feat it reached in 100 days, the company set a new sales target for the flagship device. It didn’t take long for Samsung to accomplish the  not-so-impossible mission of selling an extra 10 million units before the end of the year.
Yesterday, Samsung Poland took to Twitter and Facebook to announce that the firm has sold over 30 million Galaxy S3 handsets worldwide. The “jumping for joy” moment was captured in the picture above, quite literally.
Honestly, we didn’t expect anything less from one of the must-have items of the year, and besides, the signs were all there.
The Galaxy S3 posted some of its best sales weeks not long after the release of its iPhone 5 nemesis. And while we’re on the subject of bragging rights, the record-breaking phone is also T-Mobile’s best-selling device of all time.
When it comes to the Samsung Galaxy S3 and its sales power, the sky seems to be the limit. Are you one of the gazillion Galaxy S3 owners? Is the phone everything you’ve ever wanted and more? Give us and fellow Galaxy S3 users a shout out in the comments below.

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How to flash ROMOW EXTREME ROM for the Galaxy S3 I9300

One of the main reasons why people flash custom ROMs is to enjoy a totally different look on their Android device, but there are also other people who flash custom ROMs because they want improved performance and longer battery life. Then, there are the individuals who want to taste the latest software update even before the official release reaches their phone.
A lot of the time, developers give users who want aesthetics, performance, and being up to date all of these things in one neat package. Of course, developers also throw in their own touches, such as home-brewed kernels, tweaks, and optimizations and cut away unnecessary apps that take up precious space.
The ROMOW EXTREME ROM, developed by XDA Developers member mowow, gives users the much-craved-for Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean taste with a side order of being deodexed and zipaligned. The ROM also has a number of goodies thrown into the mix, such as BusyBox, Superuser, and optimizations for improved battery life and performance. You can also enjoy an enhanced Task Manager, an extended Power menu, and a whole lot more. The ROM’s been forced on a diet, so you can enjoy a Samsung bloatware-free experience.
This guide will teach you how to flash ROMOW EXTREME ROM for the Galaxy S3 I9300.

Warning

• The instructions in this guide are intended for use with the Samsung Galaxy S3, model number GT-I9300. Applying these instructions on another device or model may produce undesired outcomes.
• The information in this guide is provided for instructional and educational purposes only. There is no guarantee that these instructions will work under your specific and unique circumstances.
• Use these instructions at your own risk. We shall not hold any responsibility or liability for whatever happens to you or your device arising from your use of the info in this guide.
• Read and understand the whole guide first before actually performing the instructions.

Requirements

• Samsung Galaxy S3 with ClockworkMod Recovery installed
  • Check out our guide on how to install ClockworkMod Touch Recovery on your Galaxy S3 I9300.
• Download the ROMOW EXTREME ROM (ROMOW EXTREME by mowmo.zip, 550.0 MB) to your computer.
• Make sure your device’s battery still has at least 70% power. You don’t want the device to shut down in the middle of the procedure.
• Backup all personal data on your phone to make sure you have a copy of your personal data (e.g., contacts, SMS, MMS, Internet settings, Wi-Fi passwords, and the like) in case the procedure in this guide erases such data.
  • For backup tips, check our guides on how to sync your data to the cloud and how to create local backups of your mobile data.

Instructions

1. Copy the ROMOW ROM file to your Galaxy S3′s internal SD card.
2. Turn off your Galaxy S3.
3. Boot into Recovery Mode by pressing and holding down the Volume Up, Home, and Power buttons.
4. Make a NANDroid backup by selecting Backup and Restore. Select Backup.
5. Select Wipe Data/Factory Reset. Confirm on the next screen.
6. Select Wipe Cache. Confirm on the next screen.
7. Select Advanced and select Wipe Dalvik Cache.
8. Select Install ZIP from SD card.
9. Select Choose ZIP from SD card and select the ROMOW ROM file.  This will begin the installation.
10. Select Go Back.
11. Select Reboot System Now.

Great job! The ROMOW EXTREME ROM is now running on your Samsung Galaxy S3 GT-I9300. How do you like the ROM? Let us know what you think by leaving a comment below.

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Deal: Samsung Galaxy S3 50% off at Best Buy today

If you’ve had your eye on the Samsung Galaxy S3, but haven’t yet made the leap to purchase it, today might be the right day. As previously reported, the S3 is part of Best Buy’s Deal of the Day, selling for 50 percent off, today only.
The deal doesn’t mention a specific carrier, but when I took the deal for a test drive, the only carrier option presented to me was Sprint. It isn’t clear if other carriers may be options depending on your location, but I tried the deal with multiple zip codes and still found Sprint was the only option presented. Still, it’s $99 for a brand new Samsung Galaxy S3, so depending on your carrier preference, this could be for you.
Are you planning to use this deal to get yourself a new Samsung Galaxy S3? Or have you already got one? Have you got any tips for potential buyers?

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Best Buy Galaxy S3 sale announced for October 26, well ahead of Black Friday

In case you still haven’t purchased your Galaxy S3 and you’ve missed any of the various deals on Samsung’s 2012 flagship smartphone that we featured here over the past months, then you’re in luck, as another sale day approaches, well ahead of Black Friday.
It’s Best Buy that’s stepping up to the plate again with a $99 Galaxy S3 offer that will be available to its customers only this Friday, October 26. The $99 price tag is good for Verizon, AT&T and Sprint 16GB Galaxy S3 versions, and, naturally, comes with a two-year mandatory contract.
Nevertheless, if you’re shopping for high-end Android devices for a discounted price at this particular time of year – especially with the Black Friday and Christmas shopping sprees on the horizon – you should check out this Galaxy S3 sale.
At the same time, we’ll remind you that a more interesting phone may be just around the corner, at least for some Android buyers that prefer Nexus devices. The LG Nexus 4 is expected to be unveiled on October 29 and hit stores thereafter.
So, let’s hear it from our readers, are you buying the discounted Galaxy S3 from Best Buy?

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Sprint Galaxy S3 Jelly Bean update coming on October 25, leak says

You know how we told you that the U.S. Jelly Bean update for the local Galaxy S3 versions may be less exciting for some carriers? And that Sprint’s Galaxy S3 version will be updated at some point this year? Well it turns out that Sprint is indeed ready to let its Galaxy S3 buyers upgrade their handsets to Android 4.1.
The leaked screenshot above reveals that the Jelly Bean update (version L710VPALK7) for Sprint’s Galaxy S3 (SPHL710) will begin Thursday, October 25 and according to the instructions above, it will be rolled over the air (OTA).
In addition to Jelly Bean, Sprint Galaxy S3 users will also get other “enhancements” such as “LTE system selection improvements” and “Exchange interaction improvements (manual sync will try to send items in outbox if initial send failure.)
Of course, we also noticed right on top of that document that “all dates are subject to change,” so we won’t act surprised in case come tomorrow, you won’t receive a notification to upgrade your handset to Jelly Bean.
As for other U.S. carriers selling the handset, we have no Jelly Bean-related leaks at this time, so we have no idea if it’s coming in the coming weeks/months or  in early 2013.
In case the Sprint update does arrive tomorrow, let us know how it all went for you.

 

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New Galaxy S3 TV ads released by Samsung, now with less iPhone 5

The last time we spoke about Samsung Galaxy S3 TV ads was about a month ago when Apple launched its iPhone 5. Samsung decided it was time to take more hits at the iPhone, but in the process it also made fun of iPhone buyers, which is definitely not a great way to convince them to choose the Galaxy S3 instead.
Today Samsung Mobile USA posted three new 30-second TV ads on its YouTube channel that focus on various Galaxy S3 features, without bashing the iPhone in the process – of course, an iPhone is present in one of the videos, but I won’t spoil them for you. What matters is that these new ads are definitely a much better way to go, not to mention that some of them are really funny.
The three ads, entitled “Date Night,” “Work Trip,” “Game On” and embedded below, show regular Galaxy S3 users in regular day-to-day scenarios. The company highlights some of the features of its flagship smartphone including the big screen, the NFC support and S Beam sharing capabilities.

 

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French and German Galaxy S III owners now getting Android 4.1 Jelly Bean as well

Samsung’s slowly been pushing out the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update to Galaxy S III owners. They started in late September in Poland, and all throughout October they’ve added multiple European countries. Today we’re pleased to announce that unbranded handsets in Germany and France, two of the biggest countries in the European Union, are now getting notified that there’s a delicious software update waiting for them.
Just a quick recap, what’s so special about Jelly Bean? Project Butter makes the UI smooth. Super smooth. Dare we say it … iOS smooth. It also improves the notification tray, making it much more interactive and information dense. But out favorite feature, hands down, is Google Now. Think of it like a constantly running Google Search, giving you information that you might want to see without typing anything in. It makes Siri look downright archaic.
So when will Americans get JB on their Galaxy S III units? Samsung says they’ll do it in “the coming months”, which makes us want to hate them, but they remind us that it’s up to the operators to get off their lazy asses and push the “send” button.

 

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