The Samsung Galaxy R uses a 108.5-millimetre (4.27 in) WVGA Super CLEAR LCD (SC-LCD) capacitive touchscreen.

On the back of the device is a 5-megapixel camera with single LED flash that can record videos in high-definition 720p.

An Android 4.0 "Ice Cream Sandwich" update for the Galaxy R was released in August 2012.

The phone employs the latest proprietary Samsung TouchWiz 4.0 user interface.

Four new Samsung 'Hub' applications were revealed at the 2011 Mobile World Congress for the Galaxy S II and the Galaxy R includes the same: The Galaxy R supports various audio formats including MP3, OGG, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, AMR-NB, AMR-WB, WMA, WAV, MID, AC3, IMY, FLAC, XMF audio formats and video formats support for MPEG4, H.264, H.263, WMV, DivX, Xvid, VC-1.