Samsung's Galaxy Phone Wins U.S. Award

Samsung's Galaxy Phone Wins U.S. Award

Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S 4G smartphone won the Best in Show award at the 2011 Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association Wireless Show, North America's largest information technology and telecommunications fair in Orlando, Florida, the CTIA said Wednesday.
The Galaxy S 4G was launched last month through T-Mobile in the U.S. It has same basic specifications as the original Galaxy S, operating on Android OS 2.2 Froyo, and sporting a 4-inch Super AMOLED screen and 5 megapixel camera, but it distinguishes itself by supporting T-Mobile's HSPA+ 4G network, which is supposedly capable of download speeds of up to 21Mbps.

Samsung bada Apps Store Crosses 100 Million Downloads

Samsung has announced that its bada Apps store has crossed 100 million downloads yesterday. This is within 10 months of the bada Apps store going live in June 2010. While this is far from Apple s App Store or Google s Market, it is still quite an achievement, certainly a lot better than Nokia s Ovi store.

Samsung currently offers 13,000 applications for its smartphones with bada OS and of all the countries, France, Germany and Spain account for 40% of the downloads made from the apps store. To celebrate the 100 million download milestone, Samsung has started a weekly prize draw for Wave owners. Any person downloading an application from the store is automatically entered to win different prizes including Samsung Galaxy Tab, Samsung Galaxy Player or USB sticks.
On a side note, if you are wondering how Apple continues to ignore that Samsung is using the name Apps store for its applications market, while it chose to sue Amazon for doing the same, the answer is that Samsung does not call it the Apps store, but rather chose to call it A-Store initially and now calls it the Applications Store.

Samsung Fabricates New Apple A5 Chip

iPad 2 by adamjackson1984 / Flickr (CC BY-ND)

Despite reports that Apple might have tapped Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) to make Apple’s new A5 processor, Samsung fabricated the A5 processors currently powering the recently-released Apple iPad 2, a recent teardown by United Business Media’s (UBM) TechInsights reveals.

The conclusion was drawn by the firm after comparing the results of their teardown of the Apple A5 chip with previous results from when they studied Apple’s A4 processor.

Allan Yogasingam, a technical marketing manager for TechInsights, told UBM’s EE Times that TechInsight can “say with 100 percent certainty that this is a Samsung-made chip.”

According to TechInsights, which analyzed an A5 chip which came with an iPad 2 using optical die and SEM cross-section images, the A5 chip is able to use low power DDR2 DRAM memory and used the 45-nanometer fabrication process of Samsung.

According to the report by EE Times, a study done by IO Snoops revealed that the clock speeds for the A5 chip is also varied at about 890 MHz to 1 GHz.

In light of this, the iPad 2 is said to be utilizing advanced power management to regulate clock speeds of the A5 processor depending on how resource-demanding running applications are.

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 details leak

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 details leak

A video purporting to be a teaser trailer for Samsung's upcoming Galaxy Tab 2 has leaked out, offering a glimpse at what the company may be planning for its follow up Android tablet.

The original Galaxy Tab was well-received, if somewhat expensive, offering a powerful alternative to Apple's popular iPad in a 7in form factor. Its successor keeps the same size, but looks to improve on the original in almost every way.

Although Samsung has yet to confirm details of the device, it is rumoured to feature a high-resolution display - with claims that it will feature the Super AMOLED promised for the original Galaxy Tab but swapped out for a more readily available LCD panel at the last moment - along with a dual-core ARM-based processor, thought to be either one of Samsung's own models or the increasingly popular Tegra 2 platform from graphics specialist Nvidia.

The display will be protected by Corning's tough Gorilla Glass, and the device is also thought to include integrated 3G connectivity alongside 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi and the latest version of the Bluetooth standard. 1GB of RAM, up to 64GB of storage, and a raft of sensors - including accelerometer, gyroscope, electronic compass, and even a barometer.

The leaked details include the claim that the rear camera will feature an 8 megapixel sensor with dual LED flash and feature 1080p high-definition video recording capabilities, along with a front-mounted 3 megapixel camera for video calls.

Samsung Star II details leak

Samsung Star II details leak

Details of Samsung’s upcoming S5260/Star II have surfaced online, giving us some idea of what to expect from this phone. While there isn’t any official word on the operating system, the user interface looks very much like Samsung’s bada OS and it should feature specifications such as a 3-inch 240 x 400 pixel capacitive display, 3.2-megapixel camera, EDGE support, Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0, Office document support, 3.5mm headphone jack and microSD card support. The phone is expected to land sometime this quarter and should be aimed at budget-oriented consumers.

Report: Samsung's Bada To Offer In-App Advertising Capabilities

Report: Samsung's Bada To Offer In-App Advertising Capabilities

Bada, Samsung's own mobile operating system, on track to power around 5 million phones by year-end, has just updated its software development kit (SDK) to version 1.2.1. The update reportedly includes an important new feature: in-app advertising capabilities. The feature, which will allow bada developers to monetize their apps, will go live beginning January 1st, 2011. At least, that's the news coming out of Samsung Hub, an unofficial source that typically publishes reliable content and scoops.

This news has not been officially published anywhere as far as we can tell, not on Samsung's blogs, Twitter accounts, Facebook pages or in its news rooms. But the updated SDK is available for download now. Samsung Hub, as noted above, is an unofficial, but often accurate, source for Samsung-related information, so we're betting on this news being credible while awaiting official confirmation.

According to the blog post, developers implementing in-app advertising capabilities into their apps will retain all the revenue generated - they will not have to split that revenue with Samsung.

In looking through the release notes for the Samsung bada 1.2.1 SDK, we don't see any mention of "advertising," "ads," "revenue," or anything else that hints at this new feature, though. (Let us know if you spot it, maybe we just missed it.)

It makes sense that Samsung would launch this capability, though - bada-powered phones are selling well...very well, in fact. Considering that the first bada phone, the Samsung Wave, didn't ship until June, and the Wave was the only bada phone available until October, the platform is off to a decent start. Samsung has also noted that it has seen over 50 million downloads of apps from its own app store, too, mostly thanks to bada's popularity.

In addition, with the upcoming bada 2.0 OS, Samsung will add more features to the platform, including a better user interface, Near Field Communication (NFC), a smarter homescreen, SDK support for Linux and Mac, SNS integration and more.

Although bada's numbers are promising, analysts recommend developers consider their options carefully before jumping on board this train. Samsung has not fully committed to the OS, Strategy Analytics analyst Alex Spektor reminded us recently - it also supports Android and Windows Phone 7, for example. However, Samsung is ending support for Symbian as of January 1st, it should be noted, giving the company more time to focus on bada going forward into the new year.

Samsung Introduces Bada Smartphones

Samsung Introduces Bada Smartphones

Samsung today introduced the Wave 2, Wave 723 and the Wave 525, three new smartphones based on its open-source Bada operating system, designed for social networking and gaming.

Top News

The South Korea-based company said the more sophisticated Wave 2 features a 1-gigahertz processor, 3.7-inch "Super-Clear" touch screen display and a 5.0-megapixel auto-focus camera for video recording. The mid-range Wave 723, meanwhile, comes with a 3.2-inch screen, 5.0-megapixel camera for video recording and video calling. The entry-level Wave 525 integrates a 3.2-inch display and a 3.2-megapixel camera.

All three devices run on Samsung's Bada 1.2 software, and include "Social Hub," an application that combines email, messaging and social networking into one inbox, giving users an easier way to see everything, as well as "Widgets," or smartphone apps, for gaming, music and video and even e-books.

Several third-party companies, such as Twitter, Capcom, EA Mobile and Gameloft are developing Bada apps. Both free and pay apps are available for download but Samsung has yet to provide accessibility on its website. The company said the new Bada phones will hit Europe first in the coming months, with other markets following throughout the first quarter.

"The new Wave family is testament to Samsung's continuing commitment to deliver a smartphone for every lifestyle," said Stephen Jun, head of Samsung's mobile division. "These three new devices in the Samsung Wave family represent Samsung's commitment to delivering choice for smartphone users and ultimately democratizing the smartphone market."

Samsung released its first Bada smartphone -- the Wave S8500 -- in June last year, which went on to sell more than one million units in the first month. Unlike Google's Android operating system and Microsoft Window Phone 7, Bada, the Korean word for "ocean," was created in an attempt to improve networking and gaming of other platforms. The company had said it plans to introduce Bada into all levels of its mobile line, including the low-end feature phones.

Samsung Galaxy S2 to Feature Super AMOLED Plus, to Be Unveiled at MWC 2011?

Samsung Galaxy S2 to Feature Super AMOLED Plus, to Be Unveiled at MWC 2011?

The only reason we might have questioned the presence of Samsung’s latest display technology, Super AMOLED Plus, from showing up in the next version of the Galaxy S is that there is a chance the manufacturer will have once again moved on to an even newer screen. It looks like that won’t be the case, and the latest whisperings indicate the even more brilliant version of the original Super AMOLED will be on board for the Galaxy S2. The S2 will also receive NFC support and most likely Android 2.3.

While very little is known at the current moment, word is we may not have to wait too long to get some first impressions of the follow-up to one of last year’s biggest phones. MWC 2011 in February should be the place where Samsung initially unveils their next generation of Galaxy Androids
.

Samsung Galaxy S: A carrier-by-carrier guide

Samsung Galaxy S: A carrier-by-carrier guide

Samsung's long-anticipated Galaxy S smartphone is now officially headed to AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon, and U.S. Cellular. Yes, a desirable handset actually available on multiple carriers -- a novel concept, eh?

While you'll be able to get the Samsung Galaxy S in plenty of places, though, each network is putting its own twist on the offering. Here's a breakdown of what you can expect from one carrier to another.

[This story is from the new Android Power blog at Computerworld. Follow@AndroidPower on Twitter or subscribe via RSS to make sure you don't miss a beat.]

Samsung Galaxy S: What's Consistent

Regardless of which carrier you go to or what name the phone is given, all of the upcoming U.S. editions of the Samsung Galaxy S have a few things in common.

The Galaxy S has a 4-inch, 800-by-480 Super AMOLED display and runs on Samsung's 1GHz Cortex A8 Hummingbird processor. The phone has a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera with 720p HD video capture. It'll ship with Android 2.1 and is on-track to get the Android 2.2 upgrade, though no specific time frames have been announced by any of the carriers thus far. All of the Galaxy S models also feature Samsung's Social Hub, the company's equivalent of Motorola's Motoblur or HTC's Sense user interface.

[Related: Android 2.2 hits Nexus One -- so who's next?]

The Samsung Galaxy S has both an accelerometer and a gyroscope (or a gyroscope thingie, if you want to use the technical term). Driven by a six-axis sensor, the tools are said to provide a smoother response to your tilting and panning, particularly during game play.

Those are the basics; from there, you'll have to look to each carrier's model to see what you'll get.

Samsung Galaxy S on AT&T: The Samsung Captivate

Branded as the Samsung Captivate, AT&T's version of the Galaxy S comes with 16GB of internal storage and supports microSD cards up to 16GB. AT&T has not yet indicated, however, what (if any) SD card it'll actually include with the phone by default.

AT&T's Samsung Captivate will have a handful of AT&T-specific apps such as its AT&T Address Book, AT&T Navigator, and AT&T Family Map. And, if past AT&T Android handsets are any indication, the Captivate will likely be locked down by the carrier, meaning the ability to install non-Market apps and have complete control of your phone will be stripped away.

• Available: Sometime "in the coming months"
• Price: Not yet announced

• Register for updates from AT&T here

Samsung Galaxy S on Sprint:  The Samsung Epic 4G

Sprint's edition of the Galaxy S, the Samsung Epic 4G, is perhaps the most distinguished of all the Galaxy S devices. The Epic 4G has a slide-out physical QWERTY keyboard and a front-facing camera. It's capable of utilizing Sprint's 4G network and also comes with a mobile hotspot option (presumably for an added fee, like with the EVO 4G -- though you can always accomplish single-device Android tethering for free, if you know how).

Sprint will include a 16GB microSD card with the Epic 4G. It's not immediately clear what kind of internal storage the device will have.

• Available: Date not yet announced
• Price: Not yet announced
• Register for updates from Sprint here

Samsung Galaxy S on T-Mobile: The Samsung Vibrant

The Galaxy S ships as the Samsung Vibrant on T-Mobile. The Vibrant stands out mainly for the added software T-Mobile is including with the device: The phone comes preloaded with Amazon's Kindle for Android app, a 30-day subscription to MobiTV, and a month of free in-flight Wi-Fi access via Gogo Inflight Internet. It also includes a 2GB microSD card with a copy of Avatar as well as an "exclusive collector's edition of a popular game" (vague enough for you?).

The Vibrant will have some options for color customization, too: You can pick between a dark blue or lavender battery cover upon buying the device.

Aside from the included 2GB SD card, T-Mobile hasn't yet disclosed what kind of storage the phone will have. The carrier does say, however, that the devicesupports up to 32GB of external memory.

• Available: July 21; preorders begin July 1 at all U.S. RadioShack locations
• Price: $199.99, with two-year contract
• Register for updates from T-Mobile here

Samsung Galaxy S on Verizon: The Samsung Fascinate

Our final major-carrier contender is Verizon's Galaxy S, the Samsung Fascinate. The Fascinate will have 2GB of internal storage with a 16GB microSD card included. The phone, like Verizon's Droid X, will feature optional mobile hotspot functionality. Verizon hasn't yet released an image of the Fascinate, so it's not entirely clear whether the device will have any unique aesthetical elements.

One odd thing that caught my eye with the Fascinate: The phone will come preloaded with Bing Maps and Bing Search, a curious and rather atypical move by Verizon. The Fascinate will also have Verizon's standard suite of software, including its V CAST Music with Rhapsody, V CAST Video on Demand, and VZ Navigator applications.

• Available: Date not yet announced
• Price: Not yet announced

Samsung Galaxy S on U.S. Cellular

Small-fry carrier U.S. Cellular is hopping on the Galaxy S bandwagon, too. Aside from the standard basics, U.S. Cellular has yet to release any specifics about its device -- including what name it'll use -- so it's tough to say much about how its offering might compare to the major carriers' editions.

• Available: Sometime in the fall
• Price: Not yet announced

Samsung's Galaxy S scores in benchmarks

Samsung's Galaxy S scores in benchmarks

Samsung announced its flagship Android device, the Galaxy S (I9000), last week for Asia. The company is wasting no time to getting it to the hands of users. In fact, those in Singapore will be able to purchase one at the end of this week. We've just received an evaluation unit and will be doing a full review soon.

The new Hummingbird processor in the Galaxy S. (Credit: Samsung)

One of the most interesting things about the I9000 is its Samsung S5PC110 or Hummingbird processor. This chip is clocked at 1GHz and based on the Cortex A8 architecture. Announced late last year, the Hummingbird's full specifications are still not available on Samsung's semiconductor Web site. But at CTIA in the US early this year, Samsung revealed that the chip is capable of processing 90 million triangles per second, thanks to the PowerVR SGX 3D graphics engine. In comparison, the 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor used in devices such as theHTC Desire and Google Nexus One does up to 22 million triangles per second.
With the Galaxy S in our labs, we decided to run a few quick benchmarks to see how it stacks up against the HTC Desire and Nexus One smartphones. The apps used were Linpack for Android, Benchmark from developer Softweg Studio and Neocore from Qualcomm.
These applications are freely available from the Android market. In the case of Benchmark, we focused on CPU performance and 2D graphics performance. Neocore measured 3D performance as it rendered a videogame-like sequence, reporting the resulting frames per second (fps) achieved. PC gamers will recognize this process as being similar to using 3DMark on a computer.
Here are the results.

Linpack for Android
(Longer bars indicate better performance)

Samsung Galaxy S (1GHz Samsung S5PC110 processor, 512MB RAM)

8.419

Google Nexus One (1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 8250 processor, 512MB RAM)

6.940

HTC Desire (1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 8250 processor, 576MB RAM)

7.003

Benchmark by Softweg CPU performance
(Longer bars indicate better performance)

Samsung Galaxy S (1GHz Samsung S5PC110 processor, 512MB RAM)

783

Google Nexus One (1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 8250 processor, 512MB RAM)

704

HTC Desire (1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 8250 processor, 576MB RAM)

695

Benchmark by Softweg 2D graphics performance
(Longer bars indicate better performance)

Samsung Galaxy S (1GHz Samsung S5PC110 processor, 512MB RAM)

31.68

Google Nexus One (1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 8250 processor, 512MB RAM)

28.42

HTC Desire (1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 8250 processor, 576MB RAM)

28.46

Neocore 3D graphics in fps
(Longer bars indicate better performance)

Samsung Galaxy S (1GHz Samsung S5PC110 processor, 512MB RAM)

55.7

Google Nexus One (1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 8250 processor, 512MB RAM)

26.5

HTC Desire (1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 8250 processor, 576MB RAM)

26.5

As shown by the charts above, the Galaxy S beat the two HTC-made devices by a bit for CPU and 2D graphics performance. But when it came to 3D graphics performance, the I9000 trumped the Qualcomm-equipped smartphones, achieving more than twice the frame rates of both the Nexus One and Desire (see video below).

These tests were performed on devices running Android 2.1. As some other reports have shown, the Nexus One is even faster with Android 2.2 (Froyo), improving upon its Eclair benchmarks, especially in terms of CPU performance. Given what the Galaxy S is capable of now, it's mouthwatering to imagine what it can do with a Froyo update. Samsung has said this will come eventually but hasn't committed to a release date.
Does this mean the Samsung Galaxy S is the Android phone to get? Well, there are other factors to consider, most of which we will explore in full in a thorough review. Watch out for that in the next few days.

News: SAMSUNG OWN RECORD PERCENTAGE OF GLOBAL MOBILE PHONE MARKET

Samsung owned a record-breaking 21.2 percent of the global mobile phone market in the fourth quarter of 2009 and have gained the largest share of the market owned by a Korean company.

The handset market across the world increased 10 percent from October to December and totalled sales of 3.24 million mobile phones, said marketing researcher,Strategy Analytics.

Samsung’s market share, in 2009, rose from 3.4 percent to 20.1 percent and became the largest firm to grow among the five major mobile phone manufacturers.

LG’s market share climbed only 1.8 percent over the same period in 2000 whilst Nokia slid 1.7 percent.

Strategy Analytics said:
“While Motorola and Ericsson were struggling to enhance their profitability, Samsung and LG posted record sales again.”

“Samsung also achieved a record yearly sales volume of 200 million units.”

News: Samsung's bada Phone to be Shown at MWC

Samsung has confirmed that it will showcase its upcoming smartphone OS, the bada at the upcoming MWC later this month.

In a blog post on its bada blog, Samsung has revealed that the bada OS will feature the latest version of TouchWiz and that it would be very simple to use. We will also be seeing the first phones based on the bada OS at work at the MWC.  The first device based on the bada OS would be the bada S8200, which is set to sport a 3.7 AMOLED screen, HSPA, Wi-Fi, GPS, and a 5MP autofocus camera. It will also be powered by the now popular Qualcomm Snapdragon processor that powers the likes of the Nexus One and the Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10.

As of now, we know that the bada-based S8200 will be priced at around $575 (Rs. 27,000 approx). What we do not know is whether the S8200 will be amongst the device shown at the MWC.
As for the bada OS, from the early screenshots of it at work, it does look contemporary and quite usable. The big question is how Samsung plans to position it amidst the likes of the Androids, the Windows Mobiles and the Symbians of the smartphone arena.

UPDATE: Samsung Aims To Triple 2010 Smart Phone Sales To 18 Million

 

SEOUL (Dow Jones)--South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. (005930.SE) said Thursday it aims to triple its global sales of smart phones this year as it seeks to gain market share in a lucrative, but increasingly competitive, part of the telecoms industry.

"We aim to sell more than 18 million smart phones this year compared to 6 million units sold (globally) last year," J.K. Shin, president of Samsung's telecommunications Division, said in a press briefing.

At that level, Samsung's smart phone sales would represent a small proportion of the 260 million - 270 million handsets it aims to sell this year. However, the sector's growth potential is seen as significant, and Samsung is aggressively increasing its smart phone lineup as competition has intensified in recent months.

Particularly significant for Samsung will be the domestic smart phone market, which it said it expects to grow to sales of 4 million-4.5 million units this year from 750,000 units last year, even as the country's total handset market is expected to remain broadly static in 2010 with sales of 23 million units.

To exploit that pent-up demand domestically, the company plans to launch its first Android-powered smart phone in South Korea market in late February or early March, Shin said.

The Android smart phone has already been available in overseas markets since July last year. Android is a mobile operating system which offers a number of enhanced services to users.

"The year of 2010 will be a challenging year for Samsung as handset companies, smart phone manufacturers and even PC makers are rushing to roll out smart phones to attract customers," Shin said.

To improve its chances of gaining market share, the electronics giant said it will roll out smart phones based on various operating systems, including its own operating software 'bada', Google Inc.'s (GOOG) Android and Microsoft's Windows Mobile.

Samsung Electronics sold a total 227 million handsets, including smart phones in 2009, to achieve a market share of 20% and a double-digit growth in operating profit margin, the company said in a statement.

FIRST TAKE: Samsung Omnia Pro

FIRST TAKE: Samsung Omnia Pro

Samsung slaps a keyboard onto the Windows Mobile Omnia and sends it to work. Check out our hands on look at the Samsung Omnia Pro.

At Samsung Mobile headquarters, we recently had the opportunity to get a hands-on look at some of the manufacturers newest high-end, touchscreen phones, including the Samsung Jet and the Samsung Omnia 2. Rounding out the bunch was the Samsung Omnia Pro, a phone we reported on last month when it was originally launched. In following with current smartphone naming traditions (a la HTC's Touch Pro), the Omnia Pro takes the basic Omnia design and adds a keyboard to it. But in our hands-on time with the Omnia Pro, we found changes far deeper than the simple full QWERTY keyboard.

The Samsung Omnia Pro uses an interface that is dramatically different from the fun and widget-happy TouchWIZ 2.0 interface on the Samsung Jet. The Pro's interface is all business. Underneath, the Samsung Omnia Pro is running Windows Mobile 6.1, and the company says buyers will be able to upgrade to Windows Mobile 6.5 when it becomes available, probably this September, if Microsoft hits their release target.

In our time with the Samsung Omnia Pro, we found the interface to be useful for business users. It sacrificed flash and fun for useful information, bringing new messages, appointments and more to the top level for easy viewing. In landscape mode, the phone starts by offering up a simple shortcut menu to key business applications. Samsung is still using a multi-page interface for a main menu, but these were more static than on the Samsung Jet, with less customization and more solid productivity options.

The star of the show will obviously be the slide-out keyboard. In our time with the Samsung Omnia Pro, we found the keyboard to be large and comfortable. The phone uses an ample 3.5-inch, AMOLED screen, at a WVGA resolution of 800 by 480 pixels, and that gives a large keyboard plenty of room to hide when it's not needed. Keys on the Samsung Omnia Pro were flat, contiguous squares, more reminiscent of older HTC Touch Pro designs than the discrete keys on other side-sliding Samsung phones like the ill-fated <>Samsung Glyde. Like the Nokia E71, the Samsung Omnia Pro has a dedicated switch for 'business' or 'pleasure' modes. Press the button and the phone will switch to a personal mode, giving more attention to apps, shortcuts and sound profiles befitting a day off, rather than a day's work. For serious business users, it's a nice feature, and it acknowledges that more business users are using their smartphones for multimedia and other fun capabilities, and not just scheduling appointments and editing Word documents.

To that end, the Samsung Omnia Pro comes with a 5-megapixel camera with auto focus and an LED flash. The phone will ship with 1GB of internal memory, which seems like just enough for saving attachments in business mode, so music lovers will probably want to spring for an external card. The Omnia Pro can handle microSD cards up to 32GB. The phone will be able to integrate with a DLNA living room, and will have TV output capabilities for showing movies and pictures on a larger screen.

Pricing and availability for the Samsung Omnia Pro has yet to be determined. Rumors suggest the phone will be available late this summer for about 500 Euros. American versions of this phone haven't been announced, which is too bad, since Samsung has already made official the Samsung Omnia 2 on Verizon Wireless. Of course, like the HTC Touch Diamond and HTC Touch Pro, the Omnia and Omnia Pro would make a logical pair, but we're not ones to divine the will of the U.S. carriers.

FIRST TAKE: Samsung JET

FIRST TAKE: Samsung JET

Samsung fires the first shot in the mobile processor wars with their new 800Mhz feature phone. Check out our hands-on impressions of the Samsung Jet.

At Samsung Mobile headquarters, company reps gave us a hands-on look at their newest flagship feature phone, the Samsung Jet. The Jet is not a smartphone. It runs a proprietary OS instead of Windows Mobile, like the Samsung Omnia 2. Still, with its 800 MHz processor and advanced capabilities, this has got to be the smartest 'dumbphone' on the market. With companies beefing up their mobile processor offerings, we expect to see a new MHz war open up in the mobile phone world soon.

The Samsung Jet is a bit smaller than the Samsung Omnia 2, thanks mostly to the smaller display. The Omnia 2 uses an AMOLED touchscreen that is 3.7-inches diagonal. The Samsung Jet uses the same AMOLED technology, but the screen comes in more than a half inch smaller, at a still-respectable 3.1-inches. The AMOLED screen on the Jet looks fantastic, and users are going to enjoy the new technology as it trickles down into more and more phones. Colors look bright and fresh, and the phone is capable of much deeper blacks, lending a deeper contrast to the display. Also, the AMOLED technology uses 40% less energy than a comparably sized TFT LCD screen, according to Samsung. In our hands-on time, we took a look at the 180-degree viewing angle, and there was hardly a point where the screen didn't look crisp and legible.

Meet the new TouchWIZ, same as the old TouchWIZ?
The Samsung Jet uses an updated version of the Samsung TouchWIZ interface (to read about more TouchWIZ phones, click here). We were never big fans of TouchWIZ. The widgets seemed to require more screen real estate than the phone would allow. The same is true for the new TouchWIZ interface, at least what we saw in our hands-on look. On the new TouchWIZ 2.0, widgets can update live over the Internet, which should add more functionality to the phone, and to make up for the lack of screen space Samsung has endowed the interface with 3 separate homescreens, much like the Apple iPhone and T-Mobile G1 use multiple home screens. Just flick your finger to see more widgets, along with a separate wallpaper and other customizable options. This was a nice compromise for the UI, so we're curious to take a longer look at a new TouchWIZ phone and see if this solves the problem.

In addition to the new TouchWIZ screens, the Samsung Jet gets the new Samsung cube menu, a six-sided multimedia interface where each side is a shortcut. Samsung has a thing for cubes, and we remember the touchable cube from the ill-fated Samsung Glyde home screen. On the Samsung Jet, if you want to access the music side of the cube, you can either move the 3D model with your finger, or you can set the phone to recognize gestures. Flick the phone in the right direction and the cube will move, revealing the shortcut you need.

In our hands-on time with the Samsung Jet, we weren't very impressed by the cube design. While it was a cool idea, for sure, it didn't seem to add any real feature advantage, and it wasn't easier to use than a simple homescreen shortcut. We could see ourselves showing off the cube to jealous onlookers, but never really using it on a daily basis.

With great power comes great responsiveness

With its high-end processor, Samsung is promising that using the Samsung Jet will be a much more responsive experience. The company even claims an instant response from a 3D interface that will match the speed of touch. In our hands-on with the Samsung Jet, the phone certainly seemed plenty responsive, but we're still skeptical of these broad claims. The phone had the trademark feel of a resistive touchscreen, a technology that works very well with a stylus, but not so much with fingers. We'd like to see Samsung try their hand at a capacitive screen, like the screen on the Apple iPhone or the new Palm Pre. Capacitive screens work much better with fingers, and the Samsung TouchWIZ UI is definitely built for finger control.

Besides the interface, Samsung is putting that power behind the multimedia features on the Samsung Jet. The phone will be able to play DivX videos and a range of codecs, like the Samsung Omnia, but Samsung claims the phone will have no trouble adapting and resizing videos to the WVGA, 800 by 480 pixel screen. To store all those videos, along with music and photos, the Jet will come in 3 storage configurations, ranging from 2GB up to 16GB of internal memory. All models will expandable with a microSD card slot capable of holding a 16GB card, for up to 32GB total capacity.

If you build it . . .

For the Samsung Jet, the company built their own proprietary mobile browser, called the Dolfin browser. Though Dolfin is a strictly Samsung design, the browser is based on WebKit technology, which means it should render pages similar to other high-end Web browsing phones, like the iPhone and Nokia's Nseries devices, all of which use a WebKit browser. Instead of multi-touch, the Web browser, along with the photo gallery app, will use a one finger zoom. We've seen similar controls on HTC TouchFLO devices, and it works nicely as a compromise for a resistive screen. In addition to the one-handed zooming, the Jet's Dolfin browser will also use an ad-blocker, and will be capable of multiple downloads in the background.
The Samsung Jet will also be among the rare feature phones (non-smartphones) to have built-in Exchange ActiveSync access. Instead of using a separate app for e-mail and contacts synchronization, the Samsung Jet will have Exchange built-in at its core, so even without a smartphone OS the Jet will still be useful for business customers who use an Exchange account.

The 5-megapixel camera on the Samsung Jet will feature plenty of advanced options for picture taking, many of which we've seen on compact cameras, and are now seeing on cameraphones. The Jet will use auto focus and two LED flash lights to help keep shots sharp. The phone will also get face detection, smile detection and even blink detection to make sure the shutter snaps at just the right moment. Of course, with onboard aGPS, the phone will also be able to geo-tag photos.

Samsung has yet to announce an official release date for the Samsung Jet. The company was fairly certain the Jet would not be sold in the U.S., and pointed us instead to the Samsung Omnia 2, which has already been confirmed for a Verizon Wireless launch some time in the future. Pricing and availability have also yet to be determined.

12-Megapixel Camera Phone War Beginning

12-Megapixel Camera Phone War Beginning

When Sony Ericsson first unveiled its 12-megapixel camera phone at the Mobile World Congress in February, Samsung Electronics switched on the ignition of the competition surrounding the 12-megapixel camera phone. Samsung announced that it will release the world's first 12-megapixel camera phone with full-touch screen, named "Pixon12" (model M8910) this month in European countries.

The company said that the camera phone's "dedicated camera power key" gives users fast, one-touch access to the camera function, which allows them to simply aim and snap, capturing images as fast as an advanced digital camera,. With improved image saving time, users can move to the next shot within about 2 seconds. To enable users to take snapshots that yield perfect images, the camera phone, equipped with a 28mm wide-angle lens, includes new functions, such as "Touch Auto-Focus" and "Smart Auto."

The Pixon12 has a 3.1-inch AMOLED display with a contrast ratio of 10,000:1, and it offers power-saving features that increase battery life. The phone enables users to easily organize and manage photos as well as upload images and videos to popular social networking sites, such as Facebook, Picasa, Flickr, and MySpace.

Sony Ericsson has announced its 12.1-megapixel camera equipped smartphone named "Satio" (known previously as "Idou"), which will be made available commercially in the fourth quarter. The Satio features an "intuitive" touch focus and a 3.5-inch touch screen in the 16:9 widescreen format, which is capable of displaying 640x360 pixels. Other features of the Symbian OS-based smartphone include Wi-Fi, GPS, Google Maps, Bluetooth.

The company said that connecting to "PlayNow" enables users to download music, movies, and games to both a PC and the mobile phone, which includes specially developed ring tones and music tones as well as DRM-free music tracks and TrackID charts from around the world.

Meanwhile, LG Electronics also reportedly plans to launch a 12-megapixel camera phone in the fourth quarter of this year.

516 Omnia Wallapapers (240×400)

516 Omnia Wallapapers (240×400)

 

This great wallpaper pack was brought & share by Demieg. Plz give him thanks!

A huge collection of mobile wallpapers for omnia (240×400 and 400×400 screen size).

Click on preview thumbnails to enlarge:

Enjoy the download!

Main Download Link
Mirror 1 (Ziddu)
Mirror 2 (Rapidshare)

Third HTC Android Smartphone Leaks

Third HTC Android Smartphone Leaks

After what in hindsight I think many will agree has been something of a slow start, it seems Android is finally beginning to take off. The long solo T-Mobile G1 has recently been bolstered by the HTC Magic, Samsung I7500, imminent Cupcake arrival and now this...

Images have leaked of HTC's third entry into Googlesphere with the so-called 'Hero', a heavily chinned (even for HTC standards) handset that has a similar form factor to the G1.

Central to this comparison is a physical sliding Qwerty keyboard though the screen itself has been much enlarged and while we don't have any specific specifications, looks to have a much higher resolution. The trackball also disappears which might annoy some, though they should be appeased by the appearance of a standard 3.5mm headphone jack.

Other HTC fundamentals like HSDPA, WiFi, aGPS, Bluetooth, a microSD slot, yada yada should also make it through to the final spec.

Naturally some scepticism remains over the validity of these shots, but given HTC's glass door security I fully expect this model to pan out. Besides, if you were going to fake the next Android handset would you really spend your time conjuring the love child of a G1 and Diamond2?

Hmmmn, maybe...

Samsung's I7500 Android phone powers up

Samsung's I7500 Android phone powers up

Samsung has taken the wraps off of its forthcoming I7500, the first Samsung phone to be powered by the Android operating system. As well as coming with the full roster of Google features, including Maps and YouTube, the Samsung I7500 features a rich, battery-friendly 3.2-inch AMOLED touch display, a 5 megapixel camera with a LED flash and support for a wide range of music and video file formats.

Similar to the T-Mobile G1 and HTC Magic, the I7500 features a GPS receiver, allowing you to make better use of Google Maps along with Street View and Latitude. The I7500 also promises fast HSPDA internet speeds of up to 7.2Mbps, so those apps should come thick and fast.
Perhaps the most exciting feature of the I7500 though, is the fact that its memory can be upgraded to a rather nice 40GB. It comes with 8GB of internal memory, and can take microSD cards of up to 32GB in size, which means you'll be able to download a whole load of apps from Android Marketplace without having to worry about where to store them.
No words on price or what networks the I7500 will be available on just yet, although it is expected that it will arrive here in the UK from June this year.

Samsung Alias 2 arriving on May 11?

Samsung Alias 2 arriving on May 11?

The intermittent rumors about the Samsung Alias 2 U750 phone has surfaced again but this time with its release date. According to Phone Arena, the new Samsung phone will be launched on May 11 and will integrate some new interesting features.

Equipped with a magic keypad, the Samsung Alias 2 apparently features e-ink QWERTY keyboard which has the ability to transform itself from regular alphanumeric keypad into a full QWERTY one. This depends on how a user opens the clamshell for example, when users open it vertically a conventional keypad is revealed and when used for texting in horizontal mode it presents a QWERTY keypad.

Reportedly, this new phone sports a 2 inch QVGA display screen with 320 x 240 resolution and a 2 megapixel camera. It is also believed to incorporate shortcut keys for one touch access to Bluetooth and various other Verizon customizations.

Well, the magic does not end here the phone is also reported to consume less power as there is no use of back-light in daylight situations. Supposedly, the Samsung Alias 2 also packs in various other features such as voice mails, games, voice commands and alarm.

The magical phone is expected to arrive on May 11 through Verizon Wireless. The exact pricing details are not yet known but it is estimated to range from $100 to $130 with a two year contract.