remarkableness bureau: Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom gets reviewed before it's even official (updated)

If previous leaks had us fairly convinced Samsung's Galaxy S4 Zoom cameraphone was a real device, this latest one has us certain. A Russian website has published what can only be described as a full review of the Zoom, before it's even been made official. The main camera hosts a 16-megapixel sensor and is capable of 10x optical zoom, performed by rotating a ring that runs around the lens; this ring is also used to launch the camera mode. A piece of glass sits flush with the end of the lens for dust protection, and a xenon flash will give you extra light when you need it.

Inside, the Zoom is similar to the S4 Mini, running a dual-core 1.5GHz Exynos processor, 1.5GB of RAM and eight gigs of internal storage (naturally, there's a microSD slot for boosting that). Facing you is a 4.3-inch qHD (960 x 540) display showing Android 4.2.2 (with a TouchWiz coating, of course), a 1.9-megapixel front-facing camera, and powering the whole thing is a huge 2,330mAh removable battery. For connection and communication, you've got WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, NFC and the increasingly popular IR blaster, but it appears the Russian model doesn't have an LTE radio. From the raft of sample pictures available, image quality looks pretty good on the whole. hi-tech.mail.ru reports that the Zoom is scheduled to launch in Russia in July at a cost of 19,990 rubles, or around $618 by conversion.

Update: Samsung's gone and announced the thing, but it's still worth heading to the source for all the hardware shots, sample pictures and first impressions. If you're in a rush, we've put a profile shot of the cameraphone and our favorite sample image from the review after the break.

[Thanks, Max]

Filed under: Cellphones, Cameras, Mobile, Samsung