Samsung Revises the Design of the Galaxy S4, Gives It New Faux-Leather Back

The design of both the Samsung Galaxy S III and the Samsung Galaxy S4 can be seen as somewhat iconic at this point, despite being made from less than quality plastic. The smooth curves, soft touch, and pearly white (or piano black, if that’s more your style) design language has helped make Samsung’s flagship handsets famous, and as such Samsung has applied the design across their entire product portfolio, from the lesser Galaxy Grand lineup to the more premium and “noteworthy” Galaxy Note lineup. But late last year, Samsung made one exception, in the form of the Galaxy Note III.

Just last September, Samsung changed the design language up a bit, coming up with a new faux-leather style back for 2013’s Galaxy Note III. Critics everywhere saw the new design – which is still entirely made up of plastic – as a marked improvement over the old one, and Samsung apparently agrees. Today Samsung has announced a revised version of the Galaxy S4, dubbed the Galaxy S4 LTE-A, which swaps the Galaxy S4’s smooth plastic design for a Note III faux-leather inspired one.

While the new design is nice, it’s not wholly different – there’ll be no mistaking this for anything but a Samsung device, especially considering the front of the Galaxy S4 remains relatively unchanged. Samsung is offering their new Galaxy S4 in both white and black with optional “Rose Gold” metal accents, because as we all know, gold smartphones are totally in these days. But beyond the revised design, Samsung has also toyed with the insides of their flagship smartphone, making it compatible with the increasingly prevalent new LTE Advanced networking spec, which allows for faster data rates.

The catch? You’ll need to be in South Korea to actually get your hands on one. Samsung has only confirmed the Galaxy S4 LTE-A for sale in South Korea, and no word of an international release has been given just yet. And considering Samsung will soon be unpacking something that’ll likely have larger implications throughout the international marketplace, I wouldn’t hold my breath on getting one of these revised Galaxy S4 models.