HONG KONG, May 21 -- Samsung Electronics Co., the world's leading mobile phone maker, said Monday that it will release next week the much anticipated Galaxy S III in Hong Kong, the most important test market for mainland China, in a bid to grab the attention of tech-savvy consumers here.

Samsung Electronics unveiled its Galaxy S III at an event earlier this month. The company plans to sell the device in 145 countries.

The South Korean electronics giant expects to sell 180,000 units of the latest version of its flagship smartphone series in Hong Kong within the first five weeks following the launch next Wednesday, Samsung officials said.

The company saw 10 million units of the predecessor Galaxy S II sold in five months after the launch in April last year.

According to market analysts, software changes in the Galaxy S III marked the greatest improvement over previous Galaxy S smartphones.

Samsung introduced new functions in the latest phone, including Smart Stay, S Voice, Direct Call and AllShare Cast.

Last quarter, Samsung Electronics saw its earnings surge 81.3 percent from a year earlier, fueled by strong sales of the Galaxy series smartphones.

It also rose to become the world's top mobile phone maker in the same quarter, replacing Nokia Corp., according to market researcher IHS iSuppli. Samsung shipped 92 million handsets during the first three months of this year.