Samsung Electronics Co. said Thursday it will launch its flagship Galaxy S3 smartphone operating on the fourth-generation long-term evolution network in its home turf next week.

The world’s top mobile phone maker said the LTE model will be available through all three local mobile carriers starting Monday, two weeks after the third-generation version of the latest Galaxy series phone was released locally.

Samsung said the new model, powered by an LTE network and a quad-core processor, enables enhanced use and connectivity. The Galaxy S3 LTE model that was previously introduced overseas carries a dual-core processor.

The release comes as Samsung is striving to beat iPhone maker Apple Inc. in the $219 billion global smartphone market.

The handset manufacturer began sales of the Galaxy S3 in Europe on May 29 in a bid to jump-start demand before its U.S.-based key rival releases the iPhone 5 later this year.

Samsung has said global sales of the Galaxy S3 are expected to top 10 million units this month, within two months of its launch.

The earlier models of the Galaxy series chalked up a combined sales of over 50 million units in the past two years. (Yonhap News)