Samsung Electronics Co expects sales of its new Galaxy Note 2 smartphone to get off to a stronger start than its predecessor even after Apple Inc sold a record number of the iPhone 5 in its debut weekend.

The model will probably sell three times faster than the previous Note did in the first three months, as more carriers are set to offer the product, JK Shin, head of the mobile business, said at a briefing in Seoul, without giving a projection. The device goes on sale in 128 markets through 260 operators, starting with South Korea yesterday, the Suwon-based company said in a statement.

Samsung, the world's largest mobile-phone seller, is offering a variety of Galaxy devices running Google Inc's Android operating system to cement leadership in the global smartphone market. More than 5 million iPhone 5 handsets were sold in the first three days, surpassing a record set last year by the previous model, Apple said on Monday.

Samsung is marketing the pen-equipped Note devices alongside its best-selling Galaxy S III smartphone after it sold more than 10 million units and helped Samsung regain the lead in global smartphone sales from Apple this year.

Samsung first unveiled the Galaxy Note 2 at the IFA consumer-electronics fair in Berlin last month. The model has a 5.5-inch screen, larger than its predecessor, and runs the latest version of Android. The device is loaded with software that recognizes handwriting from a digital pen.

The updated digital pen will allow consumers to hover over the screen to preview content and will be available for third-party applications.

In the second quarter, Samsung controlled about 35 percent of the global smartphone market, followed by Apple with about 18 percent, Strategy Analytics said.

Samsung is introducing new devices as a patent dispute with Apple deepens.

Apple won over US$1 billion in damages on August 24 after a jury found Samsung infringed six of seven patents at stake in the trial. The iPhone maker also seeks a US ban on eight Samsung smartphone models and a tablet computer. In a separate lawsuit, Apple has added the Galaxy S III to a list of products it says infringe its patents.