Court delays Apple-Samsung phone ban hearing until December

Apple will have to wait until December to hold a court hearing that could see it get eight of Samsung's rival smartphones banned from sale in the US.

Apple filed the legal motion to have the devices banned following the US District Court for the Northern District of California finding that Samsung had infringed on Apple's design and software patents. The hearing will now take place on 6 December.

The filing revealed Apple wants the Galaxy S 4G, Galaxy S2 AT&T model, Galaxy S2 Skyrocket, Galaxy S2 T-Mobile model, Galaxy S2 Epic 4G, Galaxy S Showcase, Droid Charge and Galaxy Prevail to be banned from sale.

Many of the phones on the proposed banned list are nearing the end of their shelf life.

The hearing was expected to take place in September, but Judge Lucy Koh has pushed it back to December.

Many of the phones on the proposed banned list are around 18 months old and nearing the end of their shelf life.

Samsung will have the right to appeal against an injunction, brought by Apple, over the sale of Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1, despite a jury finding that it also infringed on Apple's patents.

The Galaxy Tab 10.1 was banned from sale in the US following Apple accusations that its design copied the iPad.

Undaunted by the proceedings, Samsung recently launched a follow up to its hugely successful Galaxy Note. The new device was unveiled at the IFA consumer electronics show, taking place in Berlin this week.

The Galaxy Note is Samsung's second most popular device after the Galaxy S. The company hopes the new "phablet" will provide a lift in sales and share price following the Apple victory.