The Samsung Galaxy S5 Google Play Edition (GPE) made a brief appearance on Google Play, signaling an imminent launch.
Google Play Edition devices are versions of popular hardware that have been stripped from all manufacturer software to offer a pure, unaltered Android experience. These GPE devices are also higher on the list when it comes to getting the latest Android flavors, lagging only behind Nexus devices.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 GPE listing has quickly disappeared from Google Play, but nothing ever really goes away once it has appeared on the Internet. The folks over at Droid Life managed to grab a photo of the device before it was removed and published it for everyone to see.
Just to clear things up, the device was listed on Google Play with the Galaxy S4 name, but the photo (see above) clearly shows that it is the newly-launched Galaxy S5 GPE, not last year's model.
Considering that the Samsung Galaxy S5 Google Play Edition has already leaked on Google Play, of all places, it's safe to assume that it will become official soon enough. The smartphone will boast stock Android, with the latest Android 4.4 KitKat.
Other than the pure Android experience, the GPE Galaxy S5 is expected to sport the same specifications as the standard model. Of course, pure Android means that it will not have Samsung's TouchWiz user interface (UI), nor any of the Samsung-exclusive apps that come pre-installed in the standard model.
In terms of specs, the Samsung Galaxy S5 sports a 5.1-inch display with a full HD resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor clocked at 2.5GHz, Adreno 330 graphics, and a hefty 2GB of RAM. Other specs include either 16GB or 32B of internal storage capacity, a microSD card slot for additional memory of up to 128GB, a high-end 16-megapixel rear camera, a 2-megapixel front shooter, and a large 2,800 mAh battery.
The Samsung Galaxy S5 Google Play Edition will likely become official anytime now, and we'll bring you all the exciting details on pricing and availability as soon as they become available.
