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Samsung Omnia 7 review
We knew Samsung's been in the Windows Phone 7 game pretty much since day one, but the Korean giant's managed to keep its Europe-bound Omnia 7 under tight wraps until mid-summer this year. Two months onwards, we find ourselves cradling this macho-looking device, and giggly flicking through the various tiles in its newborn OS. Just to freshen up your memory, we're looking at a 4-inch Super AMOLED-donning slate, garnished with a dash of Tyrian purple aluminum on the back, and capped with some dark gray polycarbonate at the top and bottom. Well, you know the drill -- join us after the break to find out how the rest of this phone fares. This review is primarily of the Samsung Omnia 7 hardware. Check out our full review of Windows Phone 7 for our thoughts on the OS. %Gallery-105343%
Samsung Omnia 7 takes on HTC's HD7 and 7 Mozart in battle for WP7 supremacy (video)
The alternative headline for this post was "a visual tour of the phones Americans aren't getting," but alas, the HD7 spoiled our macabre fun with its T-Mobile plans. All the same, there's no disguising our disappointment at having to settle for Samsung's Focus and LG's Quantum in the US, while the rest of the world gets to enjoy the delights of the far prettier Omnia 7 and Optimus 7 from each manufacturer. Even HTC, which is also bringing the 7 Surround Stateside, is sending its aluminum-clad 7 Mozart to other, presumably sunnier, climes. Sadly, we can't force these phones' makers to bring them to you, but we can certainly live up to that promised visual tour. Check out the gallery below plus video after the break. If there's one thing that really stood out to us, it was the quality of the Omnia 7's Super AMOLED display. It should be no surprise anymore that it delivers stellar black levels and eye-twisting viewing angles, but it still managed to take our breath away set against its WP7 contemporaries. The 7 Mozart doesn't do too badly for itself, but the HD7 ended up a distant third in our eyes. Closeup video of all three displays follows after the break. P.S. -- LG's Optimus 7 was too late in arriving to join the fray for this post, but rest assured that it, along with the other WP7 handsets featured herein, will be getting a full review in the coming days. If you're curious about the (admittedly small) differences in specs between these phones, don't forget we've broken them all down in our comparison from launch day right here.%Gallery-105422%
Samsung Wave II has its Super Clear LCD tested against Galaxy S Super AMOLED display
Well, "tested" might be a strong word, but the living legend that is Eldar Murtazin has squared up Samsung's latest Bada handset against the company's top of the line Galaxy S for a bit of side-by-side screen comparison action. The 3.7-inch display on the Wave II holds its own admirably against the hyper-advanced Super AMOLED panel alongside it, but it does seem to have a tendency to introduce a slight yellow hue into images, as illustrated above. Regrettably, the Russian weather wasn't conducive to doing any comparisons under sunlight, so we'll just have to content ourselves with even more pictures setting the Wave II up against Nokia's N8 and Samsung's first Bada phone, the Wave numero uno. [Thanks, Ronan]
Samsung Omnia 7 brings 4-inch Super AMOLED screen to Windows Phone 7... a little early
Boy, there's hardly been enough time to catch our breath and analyze the first unintentionally official Windows Phone 7 handset in the form of LG's Optimus 7, yet Samsung is already joining the fray with its own Omnia 7. Currently populating its very own landing page on Samsung's Russian site, the Omnia 7 is a 4-inch Super AMOLED beastie with a rather aged 1GHz Qualcomm QSD8250 at its core, 8GB of storage, and a 5 megapixel cam that can do 720p video. Hit up the source link before somebody over in Moscow wakes up and realizes that Windows Phone 7 isn't meant to be launching for another few hours.
UK carrier's roadmap points to October 21 release for Windows Phone 7, over 2,000 apps at launch
The whole world and his neighbor's dog may already know when Windows Phone 7 will be announced, but when are the actual phones going to hit actual shelves? If you're in the US, that time still looks to be a month away, but the UK release window has just been narrowed down from late October to a single, albeit still speculative, date: October 21. Our tipster forwards the above snapshot from a Three UK document showing a "Windows 7Phone" nestled in between the BlackBerry Torch and Samsung Europa. Its Super AMOLED display tells us we're definitely looking at a Samsung handset, while the 4-inch diagonal suggests it'll be the Cetus (SGH-i916/7). This sheet of revelation also finally gives us a hint as to the number of apps WP7 will start off with, enumerating them at "over 2,000 at launch." We don't know why Microsoft's been so shy about that number -- 2,000 good apps are more than enough.
Latest smartphone displays pitted in no-holds-barred deathmatch
If you're a numbers geek, you're trying to be scientific about your next smartphone purchase, or you just like pretty colors, you might appreciate DisplayMate's latest report rounding up examples of all (well, most) of the latest and greatest display technologies out there: IPS LCD, Super AMOLED, AMOLED, and TFT, represented by the iPhone 4 and Droid, the Galaxy S, the Nexus One, and the iPhone 3GS, respectively. Noticeably missing is SLCD, the technology HTC has been using to make up for lost ground on its AMOLED shortage from component supplier Samsung, but we've got a hunch DisplayMate's hard at work at adding that into the mix. Anyhow, considering the sheer number of variables the firm takes into consideration -- everything from color depth, to brightness, to reflectance, to color gamut -- there's no clear-cut winner, but the Droid and iPhone 4 are obviously a cut above the rest with generally higher scores and better performance across the board. The Galaxy S' Super AMOLED turns in a decent performance, too, but takes a little hit for its 16-bit color depth and blown-out colors. Of course, if you consider any of these -- even the crappy TFT on the 3GS -- to a phone from five years ago, it still looks like science fiction... so you really can't go wrong, can you?
Samsung Mobile Display promises 10x increase in production next year, end to AMOLED shortages
We already knew about Samsung's grand plans for expanding its display production in 2011, but now we also have a number to give us a sense of scale: 30 million. That's how many screens the new Mobile Display fab (set to go live in July) will be able to churn out in a month, a vastly superior rate than the current 3 million maximum. Lee Woo-Jong, the display business' marketing VP, tells us its estimates for AMOLED market demand have been revised upwards to 700 million units in 2015, with the new facility obviously being the key cog in making that growth happen. Intriguingly, he also notes that Super AMOLED -- one of the big attractions of the Galaxy S line of Samsung phones -- is not exclusive to Samsung's electronics arm, everyone can apparently use it. That directly contradicts what we heard from Sammy's mobile reps, but then this is hardly the first time that one part of Samsung doesn't know what the other is doing. Still, it's nice to at least dream of a S-AMOLED HTC HD7, no?
Official: Samsung Fascinate launching September 9 for $199 (update: September 8 online)
Put away your leaked Verizon documents, good folks, the Fascinate finally has an official release date: September 9. Verizon's Galaxy S variant snuck up on all of us with a commercial appearance last night, which was accompanied by that appropriately blown out text at the bottom, indicating it'll be in stores within a couple of days. That doesn't leave much time for you to build up fresh anticipation, so hopefully you were able to sustain yours while everyone else was unpacking their Captivate, Epic and Vibrant handsets. Hey, you might be late to the party, but at least you'll be there. See the ad (minus the launch date note) after the break. [Thanks, Kyle] Update: And what do you know, the official press release has just dropped, confirming the above in-store date and giving us an even earlier one: September 8 for online orders. Pricing is set at your usual $199 on a two-year contract, provided you have the patience to deal with a $100 mail-in rebate.
Samsung Fascinate ready for Best Buy in-store pre-order ahead of rumored September 9 launch
Verizon can't be feeling too hot about being the straggler to the Galaxy S party, but the wait seems to be almost at an end. Best Buy's just started taking in-store pre-orders for the Fascinate, while the latest internal document leak from VZW indicates a specific September 9 launch for the 4-inch Android handset. That's when you should be able to snap the Fascinate up along with a prepaid data plan from Big Red, which fits in nicely with earlier unsanctioned disclosures on the matter. Either way, Samsung's quest to conquer all networks with its Super Gorilla phone will be coming to a victorious end pretty soon. [Thanks, Brian G.]
Samsung's YP-MB2 Android PMP spotted again in the wild, inches ever closer to release
It ain't the first time this chef-d'oeuvre has been spotted in the wild, but it's the first time that we're confident in believing the YP-MB2 is legitimate. The smoke that leads to fire is getting harder to duck under, and for all intents and purposes, this here device is a Galaxy S sans cellular connectivity. We're told that a 4-inch Super AMOLED display, 1GHz processor, WiFi, Bluetooth, 3 megapixel camera and Android OS will be featured, and it sure feels like it'll be released first in South Korea. Apple may be planning a Fall event for the next big iPod announcement, but at least this go 'round some presumably worthwhile competition will be breathing down its neck. Now, if only we knew a price...
Epic 4G coming August 31st for $249.99 on contract (updated)
Like your Samsung Galaxy S with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and a dash of WiMAX? Sprint's website has finally spilled the beans: the Epic 4G will arrive Tuesday, August 31st for $249.99 on contract (after $150 instant rebate and $100 mail-in rebate). Oddly enough, we've gotten a number of screencaps from readers who see an August 20th date, one that coincides with an upcoming Epic 4G promo we caught wind of, but the press release definitively lists the 31st. No way to pre-order at this point -- reservations begin Friday, according to the press release -- but feel free to sign up for reminders. Whew, glad that mystery's finally solved. PR after the break. Update: With Sprint now offering two Android-powered 4G smartphones, you're probably wondering, Epic 4G or EVO 4G? Fortunately, Sprint's got a video laying out the differences highlighting the Epic's Super AMOLED display, keyboard, Samsung Media Hub movie store (available post-launch), and DLNA to wirelessly send pics and video to other DLNA devices in the home. Check it out after the break. Update 2: Although reservations for in-store pickup aren't set to begin until tomorrow, we've been tipped on a reservation link intended for premier customers. [Thanks, Miguel] Update 3: You can also preorder at Radio Shack on August 13th -- with the purchase of a $50 gift card. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Samsung YP-MB2 appears at Korean e-tailer, specs and release date in tow? (update: first pics?)
Astute Samsung fans may have noticed an August 11th date circulating the web, and taken it to mean the company will then officially announce the Samsung Galaxy Tab. As it turns out, there's at least one more possibility: the YP-MB2 portable media player, spotted at Korean portal Daum and supposedly ready to launch on the very same day. While rumors surrounding the possible iPod touch competitor have swirled for weeks, all we knew for sure was that it was a GPS and WiFi-capable Android 2.1 MID with a four-inch Super AMOLED screen. Now, it looks like it could be everything we wanted in a PMP -- a Galaxy S missing only the bits that made it a phone -- and capable of decoding DivX, XviD, OGG and FLAC with that 1GHz Hummingbird processor. It's still unlikely we'll ever see it stateside with its T-DMB antenna inside, but if a pared-down version made to the US we'd be most happy to give it a try. Sadly, even the Korean version's just a particularly likely rumor for now, so you'll have to make do with optimistic thoughts and the leaked video below. Update: Samsung Hub spotted what might be the very first real picture of the media player at Korean blog, and sure enough it's looking nice and iPod-like. Spot a high-res version after the break.
Samsung Captivate now shipping from AT&T, right on cue
Sure, the Samsung Vibrant came out three days earlier, but you don't care if T-Mobile customers beat you to the Galaxy S punch -- you're on AT&T, and it's about time you had (another) high-end Android smartphone to call your own. Our recent hands-on showed it was a bit sluggish, so you might want to wait for our full review, but if your heart's set on that 4-inch Super AMOLED screen and 1GHz Hummingbird core, you're only two clicks away from adding the Android 2.1 handset to your virtual shopping cart. Click one is our source link, immediately below. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Samsung Vibrant launching today, awaits new owners in T-Mobile's online store
A tiny bit of uncertainty has been cleared away thanks to good old Twitter, where T-Mobile has made July 15 (aka, today!) the official launch date for its Galaxy S derivative, the Vibrant. The original Tweet seems to have disappeared into the ether apart from that screenshot above, but T-Mo has reiterated the statement in subsequent missives, telling its followers that the Vibrant will be on sale today. We imagine the typical $199.99 price point will remain unaltered, so all you'll really need to do now is decide whether this is the Super AMOLED handset for you, or whether you can wait the extra few days until Sprint et al intro their offerings. Decisions, decisions. [Thanks, Alex] Update: And it's now available to buy directly from T-Mobile's online store [Thanks, Volaris].
iPhone 4 vs. Galaxy S, part deux: HD video playback (video)
We just couldn't leave this face-off of superscreens alone, and went back for another bite at the cherry. Admittedly, we found out the Galaxy S had a browser-specific brightness setting that we hadn't maxed out before setting off our camera hounds, so we've gone and remedied earlier comparison shots with the gallery below, and just as a bonus, we've now also run a HD video clip on both phones. This was to see how the Hummingbird and A4 SOCs, considered close siblings, handled some taxing video work and also to again compare performance deep down on the pixel level. What we can tell you now is that both handsets chewed through the 1080p HD clip with ease and that both gave results we have no hesitation in describing as sublime. Click past the break for the up close and personal video comparison action. N.B. -- We ran a 1080p clip on both phones' respective YouTube apps over WiFi. Although we're certain from the quality of the video that it was at least 720p, we can't say for sure that it was the full 1080 enchilada.%Gallery-96333%
iPhone 4 Retina Display vs. Galaxy S Super AMOLED... fight! (updated)
If the title of this post isn't enough to entice you, we don't know what else to say. We've gone and run some sunlit comparisons between Apple's brand spanking new phone's Retina Display and Samsung's equally fresh and exclusive Super AMOLED panel on the Galaxy S. We don't know if we'll be able to settle the argument, but we're certainly going to subject both superphones to an expansive visual inspection. Follow us after the break for video exploration of this most pressing topic. Update: Due to the Galaxy S having a separate setting for browser brightness, which we didn't max out in the original investigation, we've gone back and collected some truly 100 percent illuminated pictures. See the gallery after the break. Keep in mind that this shouldn't discredit most of the work done here, as we were more interested in pixel-level detail than brightness.%Gallery-96227%
T-Mobile USA's Samsung Galaxy S to be called 'Vibrant'
So, we know AT&T's version of the Galaxy S is called the Captivate -- but what about T-Mobile? Earlier rumors that it'd be called "Vibrant" are all but confirmed today thanks to a carrier-run site that's slowly revealing a rebus puzzle... and so far, we can clearly see Sam + Sun + G and Viking - King + [unknown] + Ant. So yeah, that pretty much locks it up -- and with a Super AMOLED display on board, we'd say the name fits perfectly (and TmoNews claims to have the original image anyway, where the unknown portion is Bee + R). We're expecting some sort of US-focused Galaxy S announcement out of Sammy next Tuesday, so we imagine this'll be it.
Exclusive: Samsung Captivate for AT&T preview
AT&T may have been accused of crippling its Android phones, but the Samsung Captivate -- one of the US versions of the Galaxy S -- is about to change all of that. Oh sure, the company released the specs last week, but us resourceful folk got some hands-on time with the Super AMOLED-boasting, Android 2.1 phone prior to its unknown stateside launch. The model we got to play with was clearly an early build (it wasn't even branded Samsung or AT&T), but that didn't stop us from putting it through the paces at a local Starbucks. Hit the break for a bulleted breakdown of our impressions and a short hands-on video. Oh, and don't forget to make a pit stop at the gallery below before getting into the good stuff. %Gallery-95992%
Super AMOLED vs AMOLED vs LCD in direct sunlight... fight! (video)
By now you know that (one of) AMOLED's Achilles' heel is readability in direct sunlight. But Samsung's been working hard to fix that with its new Super AMOLED technology. Techblog took the display to task by pitting the Samsung Galaxy S (4-inch, 480 x 800 pixel Super AMOLED) against the HTC Desire (3.7-inch 480 x 800 pixel AMOLED) and Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 (4-inch, 480 x 854 pixel TFT LCD). It's clear from the video embedded after the break that the LCD still has the edge in the harsh Greek sun, but the Super AMOLED certainly makes a much stronger showing than its AMOLED sib. In fact, differences in visibility between the LCD and Super AMOLED are often indistinguishable, like the picture above. That'll be good news for us just as soon as Samsung can start meeting demand... regardless of what Stevie J has to say. Check the video after the break and be sure to click the source for some more side-by-side pics, including a few taken indoors where that Super AMOLED display really shines.
Samsung Galaxy S preview
Just because the US has gone gaming crazy these past couple of days doesn't mean the smartphone world has stopped turning. Samsung trotted out its Galaxy S handset last night in London, and we were naturally there to try and glean a better understanding of where this 4-inch Android 2.1 device fits in our wishlist hierarchy. It's quite the stat sheet stuffer, as we're sure you're aware, and it strikes an alluring figure for those looking to get on the true do-it-all smartphone bandwagon. Check out our latest impressions -- replete with video and a whole gallery dedicated to the Super AMOLED screen's performance in sunlight -- just past the break.%Gallery-95331%
