We know that Verizon's version of the Windows Mobile-based
Omnia II superphone is incoming, and by all accounts, we would've figured on it looking more or less like its global counterpart -- but those tinkerers over at Big Red apparently can't leave well enough alone, because the phone that's appeared on Samsung USA's site actually looks a bit different. The most notable change is the move away from the original model's distinctive cubic center button, though the replacement -- a shield design in the same vein as the
B900 for South Korea -- really doesn't look any more user-friendly. Otherwise, there's not much to see here, but there's a brief mention of a relatively generous 1500mAh battery which should come in handy for spending hours on end using those YouTube, WeatherBug, and Facebook
TouchWiz widgets you've got installed, eh?
[Thanks, Austin]
Update: As many folks have pointed out, it's merely a button, not a true d-pad. Thanks, everyone!
posted Sep 22nd 2009 3:56AM
A "shield"? That's generous. The new d-pad shape reminds me of a fat lady in a thong. Eww. I have no desire to be pressing on something resembling camel toe when I use my phone. Pass.
If Samsung phones would keep their promises and Samsung would provide the same level of updates and firmwares provided by HTC or Nokia they would be the smartphone purveyors of choice of every geek; unfortunately that has never been the case.
My old Omnia (i900) was a jewel to look at and felt like a jewel to handle, but the few bugs it had made it a pain to use and in the 7 months I had it Samsung never deemed necessary to release a much needed update for their flagship model so that I ended up using only my HTC TouchHD (which I still have and love) and got rid of the Omnia.
The very same thing is happening to the poor fellas who bought an OmniaHD: it could be the best of the best smartphones, but while Nokia for its N97 released 3 new ROMs (a fourth is coming in a few weeks) and about one OTA update a day for the last 2 months thus solving all of its original problems, Samsung never released one byte of updates for the OmniaHD, which still suffers for all its original shortcomings.
And I am sure that they are not gonna change their attitude with this Omnia II
Shame; because the hardware is top notch, they look and feel great and touch wiz is a pleasure to use; but experience taught me that the smart thing to do is to skip these pretty new Omnias and wait for HTC's Leo instead.
You are kidding, right? HTC updates and firmwares are far in between and usually not worth the trouble. FYI the global Omnia II has had several ROMs so far, the latest can be installed for you at the service center. Sure, they should make it easier to just get the update from their website and even let customers know there are new ROMs available.
Also, my own Omnia I has had various different (official) ROMs as well - including fixes for bugs that annoyed me -, so I'm not quite sure what you are talking about in any case.
Either way, though the Omnia I was pretty fast I didn't like it much. Contrast to the Omnia II which really is a very nice device. I definitely prefer the Omnia II to the Touch HD and the Omnia Pro to the Touch Pro 2 (yes I do have all of those).
After using these new Omnia's it is incredibly frustrating to use the ever sluggish HTC devices. I hope the Leo will finally be a fast HTC device (we haven't seen a fast HTC in over two years, after all), and it may well beat the Omnia Pro. Until that time though, Omnia all the way.
@ anoyomouse
I don't know where you live but here in old , decadent Europe never get to see a Samsung update, I never had one for my Omnia 900 , and I tried hard to get at least some of the newer widgets but neither I nor any other Omnia users I was in contact on sacandinavian Omnia forums , ever managed.
When an update finally arrived last spring it was not possible for us to download it.
But the worst was that like all Samsungs it was beautiful to look at and very well made , but a pain to use.
In fact I opted to buy a Nokia N97 instead of an OmniaHD even though I could see that the OmniaHD was (slightly) better at launch day, because I knew that Nokia would be committed to fix all bugs of its flagship and Samsung would'nt give a dam.
In fact in 3 monts I had the N97 I got 3 New ROMs (a new one will come next month) and literaly dozens of OTA updates, at least one a day for the last couple of months.
As for a fast HTC I have 2 of them : the Hero ,( which after the latest firmware literaly flies and it's a joy to use) and the TouchHD (I also did'nt much like the TP2).
The Omnia Pro is definitely very intriguing.
I'll be watching it closely, it's beautiful, and like all high end samsungs , extremely well crafted, so it's definitely on my radar as a substitute for the TouchHD, but I doubt that it will convince me to get it instead of the Leo.
Of course I hope to be very wrong and very surprised because as an object of industrial design the Omnia pro is definitely nicer to look at, it's just that my experience with Samsungs and also LG ( I talk only about cell phones here) tells me that HTC (and sometimes Nokia) in the end has always turned out to be th best choice.
I'm surprised that you (engadget + readers) think it's a d-pad. Evolve your thinking.
When is this being released? I want to get rid of my Tour.
@Adammm - considering this will be on Verizon starting as a WM 6.5 device, and as far as I can tell, Verizon's flagship front-runner, October 6th is the earliest. However, even amid rumors of Verizon employees already having these and using them, there is a surprising lack of leaks (let alone official information) of any spec changes or images.
Now that a faq is up and being updated on Samsung's site, it would seem a release is imminent.
I prefer this design over the original as, frankly, the cube was an eyesore. The new button shape fits the rest of the phone much better in my opinion.
Either way, assuming it is out on the 6th or shortly thereafter, I'll be snatching one.
Wait, I'm confused, doesn't the global version of the i8000 have a 1500 mAh battery as well? Did Verizon state that they increased the battery capacity? If so, where is the source?
I remember seeing a spec sheet of the i8000 before showing that it had a 1430 or 1450 mAh. So not a huge increase, but it's something.
Oh ok, now I get it. I think the specs that came out in the spring mentioned that. It was 1440 mAh, according to this CNET Asia article.
http://asia.cnet.com/reviews/mobilephones/0,39051200,44831368p,00.htm
I don't care what the shield/cube looks like as long as Verizon doesn't cripple the GPS or anything. I'm moving from AT&T for this phone, and I've got my fingers crossed that it comes out untarnished and SOON.
For those of you who would like more life out of your Omnia please visit www.Omniarom.com
our team offers some real needed ROMs for the omnia which include WM6.5, TouchFlo, speed and memory improvments.
I myself am waiting for the release of the omnia 2 in the states just hoping that Big V doesn't ruin it
WHY, WHY, WHY?!? WHY does everybody keep calling this button a shield? It's still a cube! I know it's hard to see, but if you look really close, you can see that the button still has the 3D lines of the cube shape. The shape has simply turned from a proper geometrical shape into a sort of silly-deformed version of a cube. It's softer and rounder, just like the edges of the casing of this version are more curved than the i8000 model.
If you don't believe me, then save the image to your computer open it in any photo app, and crank up the brightness just a little bit. The cube lines will pop right out at you.