Samsung announced the first update to its Galaxy Grand smartphone, the Galaxy Grand 2. As yet another addition to Samsung's Galaxy of devices, the Grand 2 looks like it will be a cheap alternative to the Galaxy Note 3 for markets outside the U.S.

The Samsung announcement on Monday came with little surprise: the first Galaxy Grand smartphone was announced in Dec. of 2012, and released in April of this year, and a similar pattern of release date is expected at this time for the Galaxy Grand 2.

Display

With a 5.25-inch screen, the Galaxy Grand 2 ups the screen size from last year's model by a quarter inch, perhaps to satisfy those who want something larger than a Galaxy S4 but not as big as a Galaxy Note 3.

The Galaxy Grand 2, in keeping with the mid-tier specs of 2012's handset, features a screen resolution below what you would expect from either of the aforementioned Samsung flagships of 2013, with a maximum resolution of 1280 x 720p. Still, that's HD, and quite an improvement over the 480 x 800p resolution that the 2012 Galaxy Grand featured on its 5-inch display. Like last year's Grand, the Galaxy Grand 2's screen is built on a TFT-type display, so you won't get the rich contrast of a Super AMOLED.

Processor

The mid-range phone features a "quad core 1.2GHz" processor, which has the same clock speed of the previous generation, but with more up-to-date architecture than the Grand's dual core Cortex A9. However, Samsung hasn't specified what kind of processor the Galaxy Grand 2 will feature, though a Samsung-built mid-range Exynos is likely. The processor is assisted by 1.5GB of RAM.

Battery

Though it's a mid-range phone and even though it has a larger screen than the previous model, the Galaxy Grand 2's battery is impressive, and will power the cheaper device for as long as some of the best smartphones. The 2,600 mAh battery will bring users 10 hours of playback, according to Samsung, and 17 hours of talk time.

Camera, Storage, and Other Features

Samsung has kept the camera specs at a decent 8-megapixels for the rear-facing shooter, and 1.9-megapixels with HD video for the front-facing camera.

It has also kept the internal storage of the new generation Galaxy Grand at the same level, only affording 8GB of internal memory. A microSD card slot, with support for up to 64GB cards will help alleviate some of the cramped space if you need.

You'll find other features such as WiFi, GPS, and a compass, light sensor, proximity sensor, and accelerometer in the Galaxy Grand 2, and you'll find support for dual SIM. But you won't find LTE capability in this updated mid-range handset.

Perhaps the most valuable update the Galaxy Grand 2 brings, besides the larger, higher resolution display, is the software. The Galaxy Grand 2 comes with Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, layered with Samsung's TouchWiz, along with some of the latest software the South Korean company provides. This includes Story Album, S Translator, S Travel, Sound and Shot, Samsung Hub, Group Play, and Samsung Link, among others.

Finally, the Galaxy Grand 2 looks a lot like a smaller Galaxy Note 3, with the faux leather and stitching, and will also come in white white, black, and pink. However, it's not a "Note," so it doesn't come with an S Pen stylus, or the software that enables that functionality. Basically, it's more of a larger, cheaper, Galaxy S4 - great for watching videos and general use.

Samsung, according to TechSpot, has no plans for a U.S. launch. It's also keeping mum on markets, prices, and launch dates, but look for it in early to mid-Spring, 2014, at the latest.