Samsung Galaxy S3 is the official phone of London 2012 Olympics

The Samsung Galaxy S3 handset will be the official phone of the London 2012 Olympics, sponsors Visa and Samsung have confirmed.

A limited edition version of the smartphone will be prepared especially for the games, and will include Visa Europe’s Visa PayWave NFC contactless payment application. Those with the phone will be able to use the app to pay for items with a simple wave of the phone at over 140,000 pay points in the UK.

“Mobile payment services enabled by NFC technology are gaining momentum around the world,” said DJ Lee, executive vice president and head of the Sales and Marketing team of Samsung’s Mobile Communications Business.

“The Samsung Galaxy S III has been created with our human needs and capabilities in mind and is the ideal device to showcase the ease and convenience of Visa’s mobile payment application at the London 2012 Olympic Games.”

“The future is mobile and cash usage will only continue to decline as people use their mobile devices to manage their money, shop and pay,” added Sandra Alzetta, senior vice president of Mobile at Visa Europe.

“This summer our partnership with Samsung will showcase all the advantages of the future of payments: security, convenience, speed and flexibility being forefront among them.”

However, the limited edition showcase handsets will not be available to buy in stores, as they are for athletes and selected partners only.

In other words, keep an eye on eBay after the games to see these changing hands for astronomical prices.

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