Samsung Unveils Galaxy Note II Running Android 'Jelly Bean' 4.1

a major legal loss against rival Apple last week

"Regardless of any hindrance, Samsung will continue to provide outstanding, innovative and unique products that stand out in the telecom industry," said JK Shin, president of Samsung's Mobile Communications unit, while unveiling the new Galaxy Note II at the IFA conference in Berlin.

Samsung's newest mobile gadget touts the same half-tablet, half-smartphone design as the first-generation Galaxy Note introduced in February, but it leans a bit more toward the tablet side, with a 5.5-inch display that offers slightly more screen real estate than its 5.3-inch predecessor.

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The Galaxy Note II is also thinner and lighter than the first Galaxy Note, measuring 0.37 inches thick and weighing less than half a pound. It also delivers a boost in performance compared to its older sibling with a faster 1.6GHz processor, runs Google's most recent mobile OS, Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean," and comes with either 16 GB, 32 GB, or 64 GB of storage.

Given these enhancements, Shin said he is "pretty confident" that the Galaxy Note II will meet with even greater success than the first-generation Note, a device Samsung sold 10 million units of during its first nine months on the market.

"We could not be prouder of this technological accomplishment," Shin told the crowd in Berlin.

Samsung also revamped its S Pen, the stylus tool debuted with the original Galaxy Note, to coincide with the new release. The S Pen sold with the Galaxy Note II is slightly thicker and longer than the first version, a design alteration Samsung said will afford users a more natural and comfortable grip.

A number of new S Pen-specific features will also debut on the Galaxy Note II, including AirView, a feature that lets users hover the stylus over photo albums, videos and emails to see a preview of the content inside before actually opening it. Popup Note, another new feature of the Galaxy Note II, allows users to jot down phone numbers or other notes disruption-free while on a call.

The new S Pen-enabled Photo Note app lets users "flip" photos around to write the date or other notes on the back, similar to what was done with vintage Polaroid pictures.

Samsung did not disclose pricing details for the new Galaxy Note II but said the device would start to become available next month.

Samsung first grew its Galaxy Note lineup earlier this month with the launch of its new Galaxy Note 10.1, a 10.1-inch version of the device that embraces a similar look and feel of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet.

PUBLISHED AUG. 29, 2012