For the past few weeks, LG has taken a great big step in the WP7 area with images of the new upcoming LG Panther. Now, it looks like Samsung gets to be the next big name to jump into the WP7 bandwagon with the announcement of a new Samsung device that will be running the new Microsoft mobile OS.
The device is going to be a touch screen, slate-type handset; it matches the previously announced type 1 chassis. The new Samsung smart phone will also come packed with a super AMOLED touch screen just like the one on the Samsung Wave Bada phone. The announcement comes as a bit of a surprise since many assumed that Samsung will be too busy working on their Bada operating system which just debuted last February.
The LG Panther on the other hand follows the type 2 chassis for Windows Phone 7 devices. According to leaked images of the handset, the device will have a slide out, QWERTY keyboard that people can use to type on.
The chassis types being used as hardware requirements by Microsoft will ensure that all WP7 devices meet the necessary hardware to be able to run the OS smoothly. As many are already aware, the new OS is pretty graphic intensive and Microsoft will not have it clunking down by forcing it on a slow device.
For those wondering what the hardware requirements for running WP7 are, the basics are simple: a capacitive touch screen with at least a resolution of 480 x 320 pixels, 256MB of RAM and a high speed processor (presumably a Snapdragon). 7 series devices are expected to come with a combination of a 5 mega pixel camera, A-GPS, accelerometer and other basic smart phone features.
Get to know more about the upcoming Samsung WP7 smart phone at Stuff TV.
Archive for the ‘Samsung Phones’ Category
Samsung Joins Roster of Mobile Devices for Windows Phone 7
Wednesday, March 17th, 2010Will the Samsung Wave Be Good Enough?
Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010
Considering the fact that the Bada OS is relatively new in the mobile industry, there are plenty of mixed reactions. At least they are relatively positive.
The device’s specs are impressive. It is small, almost as small as the Apple iPhone 3G, but it packs plenty of power. This means that this phone might be good for the next few years. The 3.3 inch capacitive touch screen delivers accurate and responsive touch controls. It can detect light touches with relative ease.
Samsung calls the touch screen as super AMOLED. While we cannot identify what specific hardware makes the AMOLED screen “super”; it does compete with the screens of devices such as the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 in terms of clarity and brightness.
Running in the core of this mobile phone is a high speed 1GHz processor. Despite the fact that Samsung intends the Wave to be a smart phone for everyone, 1GHz phones these days still are considered on the high-end margin. This means that the device will be pretty expensive despite the smaller size.
At the same time, many smart phones now have 1GHz processors: the Nexus One, the X10, the HTC Desire all have Snapdragon processors. It is also plausible to think that pretty soon, 1GHz CPUs will be the norm.
Of course, the big IF factor of this mobile phone is its operating system, the Bada; we do know that this open source platform has gotten the attention of many developers, and that there are already over 900 applications for it at the Bada market. The big question now is whether the OS can actually pull the right customers in.
For those wondering, Bada means ocean in Korean –which makes naming the phone as Wave a very fitting thing to do.
Get to know more about the Wave at Mobile Choice UK.
Samsung Wave Unveiled
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
Samsung’s new Bada phone just got its unveiling at the Mobile World Congress last Sunday. The big event happened at Barcelona, Spain where plenty of other smart phones and impressive new mobile telecommunications related technologies were showcased.
The Bada operating system is Samsung’s new proprietary open source platform that was announced last year. Much like the Nokia Maemo OS, the Bada is still relatively new and has yet to prove itself (the Maemo has been a pretty impressive platform with the N900). Thanks to its open source nature, many are expecting to see plenty of third party developer support for the OS. Samsung has actually launched the Bada last December to developers, showcasing the great potential and capabilities of the new platform.
Now, we will finally be able to see the full extent of the Bada’s capabilities in the Samsung S8500 Wave. The phone comes with the new 3.3 inch super AMOLED touch screen that is reported to be able to deliver brighter images and higher quality visuals. It will be running with a 1 GHz processor and a 5 mega pixel camera with 720p HD video recording capability. Overall, it’s a pretty great high end smart phone, though it may come with a much more reasonable price given Samsung’s goal to create a smart phone for everyone.
Features wise, the Wave focuses on plenty of social networking integrated capabilities as it introduces the new Social Hub function which will give users a comprehensive view of contact details, information, media and even recent messages.
For the first generation Bada device, the Wave already brings plenty of features to the table. Samsung has yet to reveal what apps the Bada will be getting, but many are already looking forward to seeing more of the Bada.
See more about the new Samsung Wave on GSM Arena.
Bada to be Unveiled at the MWC
Thursday, February 11th, 2010
Looks like there are plenty of things to look forward to at this Sunday’s upcoming Mobile World Conference that will be held in Barcelona, Spain –unlike the previous Consumer Electronics Show held last January, MWC are an event focused entirely on mobile phone technology.
Among the most anticipated presentations are Apple iPad and the upcoming iPhone 4G, Windows Mobile version 7 and the new Maldives update for version 6, and of course, Samsung’s new operating system, the Bada.
So far, very little has been revealed about what the Bada OS truly is. We know for a fact that this is an open source platform not unlike Linux based systems such as Google’s Android and the recently “opened” Symbian OS.
A “for-developers” launch of the Samsung Bada was held last December and while consumers were left in the dark about what is so good and promising about the device, there were plenty of big name development companies at the event. Now, less than a full two months later, we might just see running Samples of the Bada along with some applications that will showcase the potential and capabilities of the system.
The big reveal at the MWC for Samsung is definitely something to look forward to, though there is one other major factor that we have no clue about; the new Bada phone. So far, reports indicate that the device will come equipped with some new Super AMOLED touch screen.
With major devices such as the new iPhone, the Nexus One and other smart phones already out in the market; it would not be surprising if the new Samsung device is also powered by a Snapdragon processor just so it can keep up with today’s gadgets.
For more news, details and information about Samsung’s new Bada operating system and the upcoming MWC, head to Softpedia.
Samsung Galaxy Portal to Arrive through T-Mobile
Tuesday, January 26th, 2010
It has been a while since the Samsung Galaxy Lite/Spica first popped up in our radar, but with the Korean company taking its sweet time bringing the mini-Android phone over to the UK, it seemed like the device would never be available locally.
Looks like T-Mobile has finally been able to snag the elusive Android and the mobile operator is going to offer the phone exclusively for a month (the phone is free on the £23 18 month contract).
The phone will be renamed Samsung Galaxy i5700 Portal for its UK launch and like its predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy i7500, the phone will also use the Android 1.5 Cupcake operating system. Android fans will be happy to know that both Android phones are compatible for an upgrade to the newer version 2.0 of the OS.
For those who missed out on the details of this impressive little device, the Portal comes with a 3.2 inch TFT touch screen with a resolution of 320 x 480 pixels and a display capacity of 16 million colors. For a “Lite” phone, the screen is pretty big and hi-res, able to deliver nice quality visuals whether you are viewing images of watching videos. The camera is a 3.15 mega pixel snapper with autofocus (sadly no flash). Images can have a max resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels. The cam also supports geo-tagging and of course, video.
The battery is a massive 1500 mAh Li-Ion rechargeable that will keep your device running for 650 hours on standby from a full charge (which converts to over 11 hours of continuous talk time).
The phone will support your favorite headphones with the 3.5 mm audio jack and also has support for AGPS, micro SD cards (up to 32GB), and of course, Bluetooth accessories.
You can head straight to Mobile Choice UK for the rest of the news.
Samsung Sticking to the Low budget Market
Tuesday, January 19th, 2010
It will be quite a while before we see a fully fledged Samsung Bada phone and with the Omnia and Galaxy series devices already out, it looks like all new devices coming from Samsung will be made for the low budget market.
The two upcoming Diva phones as well as another addition to the Corby series has been reported to be UK bound. The Divas are confirmed while the Corby Folder clamshell phone is expected to get a name change prior to its UK move.
Speaking of the Diva, it seems like clamshell phones are the big thing for Samsung. Despite the fact that the clamshell design has not been much of a big hit outside of Japan (where almost every NTT DoCoMo phone is a clamshell), there are fans of the unique form factor. Many also claim that clamshells do not break as much as slider phones.
Samsung’s Corby series sold plenty of units thanks to its younger target market. The device was designed and priced specifically for the needs of the younger mobile phone user making it an invaluable investment for many users. This series of mobile phones is better known locally in the UK as the Genio.
Late last year, a new addition to the Corby line up came in the form of a revamped Genio Touch that supported 3G and WiFi –to continue this new feature in the series, the Folder will also have full support for 3G networks. The device has been confirmed to support Bluetooth devices and also has a slot for a microSD card.
The success of the Genio in Europe and across the world (as the Corby) has made it almost fully certain that the Folder will definitely make it outside of Korea. For now, the Folder is set only for within Samsung’s native country.
Highlights of the Bada Launch
Monday, December 14th, 2009
There is a quiet buzz at Samsung’s offices lately. After the recent launch of their proprietary operating system, the Samsung Bada; the next big news would certainly be a device that uses the OS.
Yep, missing in the launch date is an actual device that is running the OS. So far, Samsung has been focusing on giving the operating platform a lot of lateral leeway in order to attract developers to support the OS; and from the looks of it, their plan is working well. Samsung truly wants to give consumers an OS that is worth looking forward to.
The biggest part of the launch event is the formal start of Samsung’s Bada developer challenge. The company is offering 2.7 million US dollars to the winner of this event. This is a very wise move. Instead of using the 2.7 million on a signed contract with a single developer, Samsung has opted to dangle the cash as a prize in a contest that is certain to draw lots of entries. In most contests like these, submitted works become the property of the contest proponents; in this case, Samsung will have a huge library of applications and potential developers to choose from.
As underhanded and scheming as that may seem, it is actually a very wise business move, and one that even the contests benefit from. A contest would also allow many developers to easily showcase their works without having to go through a lengthy application process.
The event was more than just the start of a contest. This also allowed Samsung to display to different major companies what their operating system can do. A lengthy but informative video demo showcase some of the finer points of the Bada –at one point, they showed a demo of a Resident Evil game (developer Capcom was one of the event’s major guests).
A Google Phone and Windows Mobile Phone for Samsung’s Future
Friday, December 11th, 2009
Did we hear that right -Windows Mobile on a Samsung phone?
With the Bada already out on public (along with Samsung’s Bada challenge), most of us are thinking that Samsung would no longer be coming up with another WinMo phone (oh, wait, that’s actually Sony Ericsson).
Seriously speaking, the Bada operating system is Samsung’s newly launched proprietary platform. They recently held a very successful launched as they presented the OS to, the wisely chosen crowd, developers! No one else can support an operating system more than developers, and with companies like EA, Capcom and Gameloft being present, we can be sure that even Bada’s games will be worth looking forward to. Anyway, the story now is, despite the release of their Bada, Samsung is still working on other operating systems.
Two devices were announced; the first, is the i6500 Saturn. This phone will be carrying the Google brand (literally). Initial reports state that the phone will use Android 1.5 Cupcake, an 800 MHz processor and a 3.2 inch touch screen display. This news raises a few eyebrows mostly because of the fact that the device will be seeing an old version of the Android OS, if this phone is truly a Google phone, it should at least be running version 2.0 Éclair.
The other phone is a rumored Windows Mobile device named the i899. It will have a 3.5 inch AMOLED touch screen with a resolution of 320 x 480 pixels, WiFi, GPS, Bluetooth and micro SD card support. It will also have a 3 mega pixel snapper. Since this phone will be using an AMOLED screen, it is quite possible that the device will be using the capacitive touch screen version of WinMo 6.5 (or maybe a modified TouchWiz interface).
Samsung has yet to make an official announcement about either one of these devices.
Lindy: the True S3650W?
Wednesday, December 9th, 2009
Just recently, there were rumors that the Corby would be retro fitted with WiFi capabilities and would be given the designation of S3650W. Now, no word about “Corby” has been given, but a new Samsung device that practically mirrors the S3650 is coming out. Seems like Samsung may have been busy with Bada, but not too busy to do more than just a retro-fit, the Corby will receive a full do-over.
The Lindy M5650 sports not only WiFi; it will have full 3G capabilities as well.
For those who are not familiar with the Corby, this device was released in the UK as the Genio Touch, a 2G phone with integrated web applications, a 2 mega pixel snapper, 50 MB of internal memory and some pretty standard GSM device specs.
Now, just four months since the release of the device, we see the new Lindy sporting WiFi, 3G capabilities, a 3 mega pixel camera and a distinct appearance that looks very much like the original Genio Touch.
Aside from the Lindy specs given above, the rest of the M5650’s hardware is the exactly the same as the Genio Touch. Physically, the two phones are very much the same in dimensions, with the Lindy only a few millimeters larger and about 8 grams heavier.
As some might remember, the Genio Touch, despite its features was heavily hampered by the lack of both WiFi and 3G capabilities. While EDGE is indeed fast, it did not offer the same advantages that 3G HSDPA connectivity has. This made going online for Facebook, Twitter, and others a little less convenient.
The only catch now is that the Lindy is currently only available in Portugal. The retail price is set at 220 US dollars. No word yet if any UK carriers will be having the phone available this holiday season.
Omni HD is Now in Gold
Friday, December 4th, 2009
Gold has always been a great way to emphasize wealth and luxury, now you can bring a mobile phone that literally screams financial bliss in the form of the Samsung i8910 HD Gold.
The change may be superficial at best; the only thing gold in the phone is the new rim around the screen. Everything else remains the same. Samsung also announced a “luxury brown” color option aside from the “champagne gold” seen in most images –we have yet to see that version.
Aside from the casing alteration, the phone will also have an upgraded internal memory, a leather case, a new cradle and a useful TV-out cable. The internal memory will now be 16GB instead of 8GB (the original Omnia HD had an upgrade option instead).
The phone sports an impressive 3.7 inch AMOLED touch screen display with a resolution of 360 x 640 pixels. This QHD screen delivers crisp, high-quality images and video; it is perfect for playing 24 FPS HD videos that the device is capable of recording.
As stated, the new phone will now have 16GB of internal memory, twice the size of the original and an excellent amount of space for storing high-resolution images and video. The phone supports a wide variety of music and video file formats for playback. The 1500 mAh lithium-ion battery will provide enough energy for continuous hours of playback (600 hours of standby time).
The phone will still have the dimensions of 123x 58 x 12.9 mm, though it is not confirmed if the weight is still 144 grams (though the difference in weight of the new gold rim may be insignificant).
No Euro release date has been given; seems like Germany will be the only country here to sport this interesting, pimped-up modification. The Gold will also be launched in Singapore and the Middle East.