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Samsung Omnia

By Joseph Hanlon on 30 October 2008

In terms of features, the Omnia stands out as one of the best smartphones to date. It's a shame this doesn't translate into a phone we'd enjoy using from day to day.

Editor's rating:7.0 User rating:7.1

• 

  banisters_mind gave 8/10 on 20/11/2008 21:02 Report abuse

  Well I am back to add some more to this thread after having secured my own Samsung Omnia just over 24 hours ago. In what I can only describe as a momentary seizure of insanity I happily walked into an All Phones outlet asked if they had one I could take now and $699.00 later I walked out of the store armed with the Optus bundle that included the Samsung Bluetooth car kit. Whilst the phone is badged with the Optus network - I am told (reliably??) - it is not actually locked to the network. I am also told today that Adelaide has sold out of the first run of the Omnia which is testament, I believe, to the sleeper nature of this phone.
  
  So, in 24 hours I have managed to run down the battery completely through playing with every conceivable function I could on the phone. I am quite overwhlemed by having a true all in one device, having been used to the Symbian platform for so long. It is going to take me a while to get my head around the Samsung UI as well as the WM6.1 UI.
  
  Customization is kinda challenging but I have gotten my phone behaving the way I want it to. It's gonna take me a while though to truly get a grip of things.
  
  The phone feels nice, is presented stylishly. The retail box is smart and well set out. I've already put in an order for a leather flip case, screen protector and fm transmitter. A car charger wouldn't be out of the question either.
  
  I'm gonna love this phone I think. I guess right now the most appropriate descriptor for a first time smart phone owner is - overwhelming.

  • Good: The inclusion of a headphone extension lead with a 3.5mm headphone connector was a pleasant inclusion after the disappointment of the handset not having a dedicated jack as standard.
    The phone feels and looks real nice. Understated rather than ostentatious. The cam takes a much better picture than I thought.
    The podcast aggregator is a pleasant surprise so far as it's ease of use and configuration.
    A2DP inclusion is a master stroke. You got that Apple guy?!
  • Bad: The stylus is bleeping annoying!
    No cloth case or case of any kind in the box was a let down.
    No additional memory card in the box was also a let down - but I guess with 8Gb on board, I'll let that one slide.
    Having to remove the battery to put the memory card in it's socket is also bleeping annoying. Make sure you purchase a SDHC one so's you don'y have to remove it often.
    Data transfer of large files (ie. movies) great than 500Mb over USB connection takes freaking forever. I must be doing something wrong.
    Battery life is woeful at this point. Am def. thinkin a HC battery down the track.
• 

  rocky_mon gave 9/10 on 14/11/2008 13:22 Report abuse

  Best smartphone in the market, get the latest firmware from Samsung, the battery life will almost double. Phone is loaded with features and the extent of customizations is amazing. This as the name suggest does 'everything' :o)

  • Good: features, utilities you can install to improve the productivty.
  • Bad: no 3.5 mm jack
• 

  banisters_mind gave 7/10 on 14/11/2008 11:57 Report abuse

  Having salivated over the Touch HD on offer (sometime in the dim and distant future), I hadn't considered the possibility that there may be another smartphone that would meet all of my needs.
  
  I caught an ad on TV this morning just before heading out to work and I resolved to check out the specs on this one. Man - I'm more than a little impressed.
  
  Despite the software cons as outlined in the review above I am sure that subsequent F/W releases will iron out many of the bugs and gremlins found in the initial release. I mean - don't they always!!!???

  • Good: Multiple media format capabilities make this very attractive.
    A comparable feature set to the admittedly more attractive Touch HD.
    The price point may attract those who will find the Touch HD's a little beyond their budget.
  • Bad: No 3.5mm audio jack is almost unforgivable.
    Battery life appears to be an issue
    No stylus slot is also almost unforgivable...but none of these are by no means a decision maker against this phone.
• 

  shonrr gave 8/10 on 13/11/2008 22:12 Report abuse

  looks and sounds great to me! cant wait to get my hands on it :)
  
  does anyone know how much it costs for out right?
  
  

  • Good: 5MP Camera
    GPS
    Accelerometer
    DLNA
    Windows
  • Bad: No 3.5mm headphone jack
    No slot to store stylus
• 

  blackfalcon gave 8/10 on 12/11/2008 12:26 Report abuse

  Cheaper then I expected it to be, its only $699 RRP outright now according to Allphones. What i want to know is how the how is the Omnia is different from the much cheaper (according to ebay) Samsung F480.

  • Good: Pretty much everything feature you could hope for.
  • Bad: No 3.5mm Headphone jack, UI
• 

  mc choc gave 9/10 on 25/10/2008 21:56 Report abuse

  Verrry Nice!

  • Good: Looks good, its got lots of room for personalizing to ur taste. Letter recognizer picks up even the ugliest of handwritings...
  • Bad: Doesnt have a photon accelerator deduced from polytetrafluoroethanic fusion of sub atomical particles...
• 

  dolly gave 9/10 on 19/10/2008 14:41 Report abuse

  cannot wait for it to come to australian market.

  • Good: 5MP camera
    TV output
    touchscreen
    DIVX
  • Bad: low screen resolution,
    hard to see in sunlight
• 

  amanda89 gave 6/10 on 17/09/2008 02:27 Report abuse

  Im 19 y/o girl, the only things that make this better over my iphone 3g are...
  and im no 'apple fan girl' Win XP pro all the way vista drives me crazy too much stuff all at once

  • Good: divx playback
    msn/hotmail
  • Bad: I don't need a 5 megapixel camera - i have a proper camera for that.
    
    maybe if it had dig tv reception in it, like the n96 which also is its only redeeming feature *fat and ugly
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  blahblah blah gave 10/10 on 16/09/2008 16:31 Report abuse

  this phone looks cool

  • Good: :D
  • Bad: D:
• 

  sam gave 9/10 on 11/09/2008 19:44 Report abuse

  Received the Omnia SHG i900 a week ago on Orange in the UK. Very Nice.

  • Good: Divx Compatible
    16 Gig Memory
    Wifi
    5 megapixel Camera
    GPS
  • Bad: Would be nicer if it like the N95 came with 3.5mm headphone jack, that made the phone very user friendly. Also no map application comes with the phone, which is a pity.