Samsung smartphone aimed at multitaskers arrives in U.S.

The Samsung Galaxy Mega, a gigantic high-end smartphone with a 6.3-inch screen, will soon go on sale from AT&T, Sprint and U.S. Cellular.

The device packs the same hardware and software as the Galaxy S4, but on a screen that’s more conducive to multitasking.

Though Samsung devices have a built-in feature that makes it easy to browse the Web or watch a YouTube video while sending a text message, the multi-window feature sometimes isn’t useful on the S4 because the lack of screen space forces a user to do a lot of scrolling. However, it should be worthwhile on the Mega.

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Beginning Friday, AT&T is to sell the Mega for $150 on a two-year contract.

The phone was released in April but had only been available overseas. It joins the growing list of phablets -- smartphones nearing the size of 7-inch tablets.

The waterproof and dustrpoof Sony Xperia Ultra Z comes in at 6.4 inches, but is slightly thinner than the Mega. The Mega is 0.31 inches thick while the Xperia is 0.26 inches. Both have 8-megapixel cameras. A U.S. launch date hasn’t been announced for the Xperia.

A third phablet expected to arrive soon comes from Asus. The FonePad has 6.9-inch screen. The FonePad is 0.41 inches thick, has a 3-megapixel rear camera and a larger battery than the other two.

There’s also been rumors that Apple is considering a phablet as it seeks to diversify its traditionally one-size-fits-all iPhone.

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