says.
Samsung's new phones, announced via press events in Seoul, London, and New York, have already become somewhat familiar via a succession of leaks to bloggers. In fact, the Korean giant seems to have become enamored lately with "three stage" product rollouts, a trend we admittedly find annoying. The three stages appear to be as follows:
- Leak product images to the web, perhaps by giving glimpses of the products at industry events, but provide few or no technical specifications or other details
- "Announce" the products via a press event and terse press releases, but still fail to disclose processors or many other technical essentials
- Hoping for a third bite of the apple (no pun intended), provide pricing and technical specifications later, as devices actually go on sale
Samsung's "second stage" announcement today failed to provide the sort of details we crave, such as the phones' processors and memory complements. However, it did demonstrate the company's commitment to Windows Mobile, plus its intention to put the "Omnia" brand on multiple Windows phones.
The Omnia II
Samsung's Omnia II
(Click image to enlarge) |
The premier Windows phone announced today by Samsung is the
previously leaked Omnia II (right), which has a 3.7-inch AMOLED (active-matrix organic light-emitting diode) display with 800 x 480 resolution, runs Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, and also includes a TouchWiz 2.0 user interface, according to the company. The Omnia II has WiFi plus both HSUPA (high speed uplink packet access) and HSDPA (high speed downlink packet access, plus the ability to record and play back video in DVD (480p) resolution, adds Samsung.
Samsung released no other details except to say that the Omnia II will be offered by Verizon Wireless later this year, and will have "up to 48GB" of storage. According to the
CNET website, which apparently obtained further information, that memory total derives from the fact that the Omnia II will be sold in models with 2GB, 4GB, or 16GB of flash storage, and also includes a microSDHC expansion slot that accepts cards up to 32GB in size.
CNET adds that the Omnia II will come with a five megapixel camera -- not the eight megapixel one previously rumored -- GPS, and the ability to stream audio in stereo to a Bluetooth headset. The device, which measures 4.65 x 2.36 x 0.47 inches, will offer up to 10 hours of talk time, and up to 430 hours of standby, CNET adds, but no information about its CPU has yet emerged.
OmniaPro B7610
Samsung's OmniaPro B7610
(Click image to enlarge) |
Samsung also announced the OmniaPro B7610, which appears to be mostly identical to the Omnia II, but with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard (right). According to the company, the Omnia Pro B7610 includes a 3.5-inch AMOLED screen, a five megapixel camera, HSDPA connectivity, WiFi, and GPS.
No further details were provided, except for a mention that this model -- and, we'd guess, the Omnia II as well -- will come with the
Opera Mobile 9.5 web browser. According to one report, the OmniaPro B7610 will measure 4.4 x 2.28 0.62 inches.
Omnia Lite B7300
Samsung's Omnia Lite B7300
(Click image to enlarge) |
Additionally unveiled, with few details, was the Omnia Lite B7300 (right), said to offer a three megapixel camera, GPS, the Opera web browser, plus both WiFi and HSDPA connectivity. The device, whose name suggests that it is intended as a relatively low-cost offering, appears to resemble Samsung's original
SGH-i900 Omnia, which had a 3.2-inch QVGA display and was the company's first phone to feature the widget-based TouchWiz user interface.
OmniaPro B7320
Finally, Samsung also announced the OmniaPro B7320 (left), which appears virtually identical to the
SGH-i637 "Jack" announced last month by AT&T. Unlike the other Omnia phones, this one is a non-touchscreen device with a 2.4-inch QVGA display.
Apparently the international version of the Jack, the OmniaPro B7320 again comes with GPS, WiFi, and a 3.2 megapixel camera. Information about the phone's operating frequencies, processor, battery type, and dimensions still wasn't released, but the OmniaPro B7320 gets an FM receiver, according to Samsung.
Further informationSamsung has reportedly also shown off a phone called the Jet, which looks similar to the Omnia II, but includes a proprietary operating system instead of Windows. The device is said to include a 3.1-inch AMOLED display, an 800MHz CPU, and a "Dolphin" web browser based on WebKit technology.
As previously noted, you'll look in vain for further specifications on the above phones from Samsung itself -- at the time of writing, at least. However,
CNET's report on the Omnia II is available
here, while a
Laptop magazine report on the Jet can be found
here.
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