The Samsung Galaxy S3 is available and, despite being launched May 29, has sold 6.5 million units in just over a month. The device is estimated to sell 15 million units in the third quarter, consequently breaking sales records of previous Galaxy S devices. Its predecessor, the Galaxy S2 has sold 20 million units.

According to French newspaper Les Echos, JPMorgan analysts said that since it May 29 launch, the Galaxy S3 has sold 6.5 million devices. Touted as Samsung's most successful Android device to date, the Galaxy S3 is predicted to sell 20 million units in merely four months. This figure is a stark contrast to the Galaxy 2 and the original Galaxy, which sold 10 million and 5 million units, respectively, in the first six months. The estimation also shows how Samsung is powering its way into the smartphone market.

Android Authority asked if 40 million units of the device could be sold in the first 6 months. The device has been praised for its performance and forefront feature set, including the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

Google launched Android 4.1 Jelly Bean on the Nexus 7 and, despite unofficial versions of the software being available for the S3, Samsung is yet to announce when an updated version of the S3 will arrive. The company has traditionally been slow with upgrading handsets.

Despite the Android 4.0 OS, the device has been popular with consumers. The Galaxy S3 uses a 4.8-inch 720p display, an Exynos 4 Quad-processor and an 8-megapixel camera. Samsung also uses its TouchWiz UI, rather than the stock Android experience.

Even though HTC launched the One series of phones earlier in 2012, Samsung's popularity is a sign that it continues to dominate the Android market as a third-party manufacturer. Its sales for a single device rival that of Apple's iPhone.

For users looking for the stock Android experience, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus - available from Google, not Samsung - is the best option (though the new Developer Edition is aimed at the crowd that wants to hack the device). In spite of the device being released 12 months ago, Google brought Jelly Bean to the Galaxy Nexus. This move suggests that the next version of Android could also arrive. Google's Project Butter also means the hardware is not affecting performance.

Wondering how the S3 compares to other devices? Here's a comparison against the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, or the iPhone 5's rumored features.