Galaxy S4 Image Isn’t Official, Still Looks Great

The Samsung Galaxy S4, which is rumored to be launching as soon as March, with a release date potentially coming in April, will likely show up in several possible images in the build up to its launch. Another possible Galaxy S4 image has thrown itself into the hat today though while good looking, we suspect that the image is not going to be what Samsung announces in the weeks ahead.

Read: Galaxy S4 Release Date Pegged for April.

In the buildup to the launch of the Galaxy S3, we saw a number of devices leak out, proclaiming themselves to be the Galaxy S3 in the flesh. Only, most of those devices ended up being fakes. We expect the same to happen with the rumored Samsung Galaxy S4, a device that Samsung itself has said will launch soon. Thus far, we saw one possible image emerge, and while from a credible source, we have our doubts.

Now, we have another possibility in the form of an image from Picasa that was discovered by TuttoAndroid, an Italian site, courtesy of Android Authority. The image is labeled as a Galaxy S IV GT-I9500 Product Image, the same model number that is rumored to be the Galaxy S4’s. The image has also evidently been hiding in plain view since December 27th, when a student in Hong Kong uploaded the photo.

Ma’s render, which looks quite a bit like the Galaxy S3, features a more rectangular shape and appears taller than the Galaxy S3. Remember, we’ve heard that the Galaxy S4 may have a 4.99-inch display, up from the Galaxy S3’s. Other than those, we see a front-facing camera and not much else.

The student, Desmond Ma, appears to have no affiliation with Samsung itself, and his Picasa image album doesn’t reveal anything either. In fact, this image is the only one of a phone in his Picasa galleries. It’s also curious that there is a battery percentage in the top right corner next to the battery meter. This is a real feature baked into Samsung phones but it’s odd that it would be turned on in an official image. We also see an older version of TouchWiz on board, odd for a 2013 flagship.

Read: Samsung Galaxy S4 Launch Date Coming “Soon”.

The render features a date of April 22nd. Samsung often puts launch dates on its press images and April is a possibility. However, rumors state that the Galaxy S4 will launch in March, again Samsung has said “soon,” with a release coming in April. It’s possible that April 22nd could be its release date but we’re betting its just a random number.

That’s because the photo was put on Picasa on December 27th, the same month that we heard several rumors suggest April to be the launch date for the Galaxy S4. So again, we’re dubious.

We’ve reached out to Ma about the image, and while we haven’t heard back, we assume that this render, despite its name and plausible characteristics, is likely a personal project, and maybe even one for school. Still, even with the doubt, the render makes for a good looking successor to the Galaxy S4, and it could be that the Galaxy S4 does wind up looking similar.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is expected to have a large 1080p display, quad-core processor, 13MP camera, and quite possibly, Android 4.2 Jelly Bean as well.