Samsung following Apple’s footsteps for Galaxy S III secrecy

Samsung's next flagship Android phone, the Galaxy S III, is on the way, it may even appear within the next couple of months, but the strange thing is how elusive bona-fide pictures of the handset have been even so close to a probable launch.

If the level of secrecy display by Samsung so far into development seems familiar to you there might be a good reason for that as it appears the South Korean company is copying its nearest competitor, Apple, in terms of just how it keeps things under wraps.

Phandroid reports that a South Korean news site, ETNews, cites unnamed sources who claim that Samsung is hiding the Galaxy S III from view even while it's being actively tested and from those who are actually testing it.

How? Well just the same way Apple does with its iPhones, allegedly the devices are handed out to testers but are inside an external casing, which disguises the phone's actual appearance without hindering its operation.

It might seem a bit extreme, but Apple's iPhone launches create some of the biggest tech media and fan frenzies in the industry, in no small part due to the lack of information which whips up a thirst.

Samsung wants to tap into that nerve and so far appears to be doing so quite successfully.

The company's Galaxy S line has been extremely popular since it started, but we have to say we haven't seen quite so much rumour, speculation and anticipation surrounding an Android phone before.

Assuming all this is true, it sounds as though we're not going to catch a glimpse of the Galaxy S III until Samsung wants us to - that is, when it launches.