Image Gallery: First impressions of the Samsung OMNIA WM 6.1 Pro device
HTC kicked off the customization of Windows Mobile to a new level with the HTC Touch Diamond and now Samsung looks to throw their hat in the ring with the Samsung OMNIA (SGH-i900). The OMNIA brings a large display and a 5 megapixel to Windows Mobile that finally lets WM compete with Nokia in the camera phone department. Check out some unboxing and device images for the OMNIA I purchased in Singapore.
The Samsung OMNIA comes in a compact, well designed box as you can see.
The cover goes over this plain box that actually has a look similar to carbon fiber material.
The device is presented just under the top of the box.
You will find cables, the a/c adapter, microSD card, and more in the bottom of the box.
You get wired stereo headphones, a Samsung headset jack adapter, external stylus, USB cable, and A/C adapter in the box.
Thankfully, Samsung included a cable/dongle that converst the Samsung port to a standard 3.5mm headset jack. The dongle also lets you use a standard set of headphones as your wired phone headset.
Rather than including a stylus silo on the OMNIA, Samsung provides you with an external stylus to connect to a lanyard. The stylus actually has great heft and feels good in your hand, but has to be carried separately.
The stylus extends out about an inch and half.
Samsung included a decent wired headset with the OMNIA that is better than all the others I have tried in the past. There are different sized plugs for different sized ears.
As you can see the ends of the headset have a rather unique form factor, but they feel pretty comfortable when in your ear.
The OMNIA is a classy looking device with a large display and a minimal number of buttons.
I picked up a white model with a white plastic back and as you can see it is pretty plain on the back with the 5 megapixel camera.
The camera is the best on a Windows Mobile device and initial tests show it works quite well.
Behind this access door is the Samsung port that is used for syncing/charging and connecting the headset. It is a standard Samsung port used on other devices too so some accessories may work on multiple devices.
You will find a lanyard loop along the upper left side that is great for attaching the stylus to the device.
The reset button and the power button are located along the top of the device.
The Main Menu button is found along the upper right so you can quickly access the menu and launch applications.
The volume button is located on the lower right side, which is a bit unusual for a mobile phone. The camera button is placed below the volume button.
The only thing found along the bottom is the microphone opening.
The entire back of the OMNIA slides down for removal to reveal the battery, microSD card, and SIM card slots.
The battery and cards fit in the back. You do need to remove the battery to put the cards in place or remove them.
There are minimal buttons on the OMNIA, including the send and end buttons and a center directional/mouse button.
Here you can see the three buttons under the display.
The center button can be used as a touch-sensitive directional pad that can be pressed in to select an action. It can also be set to mouse mode and a cursor appears on the display.
There is a small forward facing camera on the upper right side of the display. However, video conferencing is not supported in the U.S. and if it was the device doesn't have U.S. 3G support.
The OMNIA is solid and feels great in your hand. It is not too large and has a comfortable width too.
Samsung provides you with a very unique Today screen experience unlike any other Windows Mobile device. It supports selected Samsung "widgets" and has a Mac look and feel to it.
There are about 15 provided widgets to select from and you may get 4 to 7 on the Today screen.
The main menu display has several default shortcuts and nothing on this screen can be customized (added, removed, edited, shuffled on the display, etc).
From the left soft key on the main menu you can access the shortcuts display. This display is completely customizable too.
Similar to what we saw on the HTC Touch Diamond, Samsung has a custom programs menu.
Samsung includes a Clock application with custom alarm panel and a cool world clock.
The Samsung OMNIA has an accelerometer that lets you rotate it in three ways and have every application rotate as well.
Samsung has a custom media player for video and audio content that surprisingly supports much better video formats than any other Windows Mobile device I have ever tested.
The main display of this utility has buttons for the podcasts, episode list, last 10 podcasts, and your library.
Samsung provides a podcatcher application that lets you subscribe to and download podcasts without any PC connection, similar to Nokia S60 devices.
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