Samsung i900 Omnia review
09/09/08 07:48:39 am by Steve - 1804 words
Categories: Reviews |
 |
Now it is time to review the iPhone look alike Samsung i900 (Omnia). This is yet another high end, flag ship of a phone. Can it stand up to the claim from Samsung that it is ‘A truly all-in-one phone’?
For various reasons I have not really been a fan for the later variations from Samsung, in the early days of splashing out cash for phones, my 1st choice was always for a Sammy. Lately I have been tempted away from them to seek the joys and delights of Windows Mobile, so, now Samsung are even entering that market, can I be tempted back?
The Samsung i900 Omnia (click images to enlarge)
What's in the Box?
- i900 Omnia
- Mains charger with propriety connector
- USB to propriety connector PC data cable.
- 2 part stereo headset allowing own set connection through an adaptor.
- Spare earpiece plugs
- Detached telescopic stylus – see review.
- Getting started disc
- Minimal quick start guide
As always, you can check out Matt's Samsung i900 Omnia unboxing video for more information on what's in the box as well as a quick demonstration of the interface.
Samsung i900 Omnia specification:
- Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional
- 8GB Internal (ROM) 16GB model also available.
- 128MB RAM.
- 3.2” WQVGA Touchscreen (240 x 400 pixels)
- Quad-Band 850/900/1800/1900MHz, HSDPA (7.2 Mbits)
- Bluetooth 2.0
- WiFi 802.11g
- 5 megapixel (auto-focus) camera, with face and smile recognition
- LED Flash
- GPS
- microSDHC (up to 16GB)
- TV Out
- FM Radio with RDS
- TouchWiz User Interface
- 1440mAh battery
- 112mm (L) x 56mm (W) x 12.5mm (H)
Around the device
General
The device is very well made, the chrome and black casing feels solid and doesn’t seem to attract the usual finger marks problems seen on most phones these days to the same extent. The back especially is difficult to mark. It is also not overly heavy at a stated 125g. It appears to follow along with a current trend to keep phone fascias uncluttered and minimal.
Samsung i900 Omnia front view
Top of the device there is the power switch and an LED status indicator. Also a very small reset hole.
Samsung i900 Omnia top view
On the left hand side of the phone, at the top end there is a lanyard connection or maybe the detached stylus connection, more later. Towards the bottom is the covered multifunction jack used for headset, PC connection and charging.
Samsung i900 Omnia left side
Top of the right hand side is a dedicated Main menu launch button; below this is the volume up/down rocker and finally the camera key.
Samsung i900 Omnia right side
The bottom of the unit holds nothing more than the mic.
Samsung i900 Omnia bottom view
On the back you can find the 5 megapixel autofocus camera and LED flash.
Samsung i900 Omnia back view
The screen on the i900 dominates the front as it is a 3.2” WQVGA Touchscreen, above you can see the small VGA camera, and below is the a Talk / Speakerphone button and an End / device lock key, these straddle the centred Trackpad.
Inside the back of the device is the side by side SIM card holder and the microSDHC card holder. The battery has to be removed prior to removing either card so no hot swapping here.
Samsung i900 Omnia back off view
Highlights
- Great camera
- Easy to use
- Great specification
Lowlights
- Non standard Connectors as usual
- Missing stylus compartment.
Review
At first I was determined that I did not like the i900 Omnia, it is too long and also resembles the iPhone so much, I was happy not to be a fan. The only reason for me that I took a second look was the specifications appeared impressive. Unfortunately, faults mentioned apart, this is a very nice device that I easily learned to live with and enjoyed a lot more about it than I thought I would have.
Samsung i900 Omnia vs Apple iPhone
There are some points I do not like, for example, it is relatively expensive in its group; however there has to be reasons why it is sold out almost everywhere. So here are some of my thoughts, good and bad.
Firstly when switched on everything is different, the usual Windows screens etc. are nowhere to be found, it took me by surprise to start with, and I have to say I did not like it. I felt that the main menu screen appeared childish in form, the icons appearing in a cartoon style, and the Samsung widget sidebar seemed a waste of time. Now having spent some time with the unit, I have to admit that it probably one of the easiest phones I have used it quite a time, connecting with my car kit and network etc where an absolute doddle. The layout and functionality as a breeze and the icon simplicity made it easy for even those not familiar with Windows mobile to get on in a plain and uncomplicated manner.
The unit certainly responds well and is quick in its opening of applications and the larger processor than standard is also noticeable.
Software
The Samsung widget is handy to use as it is acts as a shortcut to a lot of commonly used programs such as clock, photo album, games, music, radio, profile, notes etc. which can be dropped and dragged straight on to the main screen for launching.
It also boasts Dix VOD straight out if the box once registered. There is also a themes editor allowing the user to change the standard background colour and text colours to one of the multitude of colours available.
The vibration touch screen option was fun at the beginning where a touch of the screen was registered by the phone omitting a gentle buzz, I found that overall this was a little erratic, sometimes it would not register but carry out the command anyway and vice versa, for me in the end it was better switched off. The same can be said for the Auto orientation motion sensor settings, I found that this was better for me set on low as, the simple act of putting the phone down would trigger the screen flipping into landscape, and then having to flip it back again, although it was a handy addition when you did want it to work.
It was also good to be able to rid yourself of the Samsung settings and revert straight back to the standard Windows menus etc. in a way like have 2 different devices really.
Included in the settings are add-on’s such as GPS extra, which I assume downloads satellite positions on a regular customisable interval. There is also a facility to switch the Trackpad between a 4 way navigator or finger mouse, neither of which I find useful, but I know a lot of people do. And as more common on Samsung devices there is also the TV out connection.
Programs are again pretty standard as the device goes, Google maps as you would expect works very well. There is a smart converter for quick conversion of weights, areas, volumes temperatures and lengths. A Touch Player, specifically designed to be able to play music, videos etc at the touch of the screen.
ShoZu enables sharing and watching music videos, shows and photos delivered to your phone automatically again subscription and registration are required.
Apart from the few points already mentioned above, the other good and bad points are as follows;
There is no stylus compartment anywhere on the phone, there is a telescopic stylus included in an attachable case, I find this completely unusable and would imagine one of the easiest ways to scratch the unit would be to attach the stylus and then stow it in your pockets. The advice from Samsung is not to use pens, pencils or any other implements to activate the screen; it fails to mention how to reset the device with your finger?!
The Camera is great, the options and use of the 5 megapixel autofocus was superb and probably the best I have used in a long time, also included was smile as well as face recognition, which seemed to work well enough. I liked playing with such options as the panoramic mode. The photos achieved overall means that you can do away with your extra point and shoot camera, when going out.
Samsung are still insisting that they use their own connectors which drives me crazy, why can’t they adopt the standard miniUSB connections used by so many other manufacturers?
Samsung i900 Omnia USB connector
The screen is not quite a bright and vibrant as certain new devices lately, although adequate and I definitely preferred the manual settings over the automatic mode, I also had a minor issue with the fact then when displaying a photo, occasionally the phone would fill in the side with a section of the photo repeated, to make up for the longer screen. Having said that, when searching through lists and websites the longer screen was a pleasant extra, as you can see more of the page that you are viewing. Opera worked very well in this form and there is also a built in page zoom when the side of the screen was touched.
The call quality and signal strength indicator appear more than adequate, the earpiece and speaker phones work very well. I also found that the battery life was reasonably good with light to moderate use a couple of days between charges, heavier use of Sat Nav etc. reduces this dramatically.
Conclusion
It is very nice to have Samsung on the Windows Mobile road and this phone was I mentioned above really did grow on me, which was not a real advantage. I am still torn between the Diamond and the Pro, this makes the choice even worse, and the Xperia is likely next week!
I think for me, the advantages of the HTC devices still holds its for me, the VGA screen and the stylus issues mean that i900 not my preferred device of choice. But I was pleasantly surprised on how good it really is. It will be well received by many and also well liked, get over the length of the machine and get involved with the preloaded applications and the ease of use and this will prove to be one of the best phones around. As I covered at the start of the review those in the know have already brought theirs, and that’s why they are sold out!
It has got to be one of the best times in the mobile world for choice of good devices at the moment and more due to follow, will there ever be the ultimate device, or will the makers keep bringing out more and more great devices to part us from our money?
Review by: Steve
Permalink31 comments
I have not made a full list of the problems, but:
1. Poor RAM memory probably leads to many problems.
2. I had to force five soft resets and one hard reset in 1 day
3. Touch button replacement for D-Pad is rubbish
4. Camera is great
5. Widgets interface is useless
6. TomTom would not work
7. I hate the lack of a stylus in the device
8. The screen sensitivity is inconsistent
9. The auto-rotate is pretty (not enough to buy the device !)
10. Sound was fantastic - best I have heard in a PDA
11. I loathe the special connector and because it is on a side I doubt there is going to be a cradle
12. The haptic feedback was very inconsistent and since it did not work well it was distracting - I found myself waiting to see if it worked or not.
Anyway, I quickly got a Touch Pro (thanks Clove Tech) which is really good - just like my Tytn & Tytn II were excellent in their time.
But, I suspect I will be dropping the Touch Pro by the year end for the "new" Touch HD.
...
These seemed to cause the resets.
I'm sure if the Omnia is used "stand-alone" without these applications then it is acceptable.
The resets probably will get fixed with a ROM upgrade but the unlying problem is likely to be the limited RAM available.
All the above applications work fine on the Touch Pro.
Looks good, great camera, but shakey video/motion.
i've been around PC's and phones for years and concider myself pretty good at the tech side, but this is just too complicated for what it should be. It took ages to get the wireless network to take and the features are too pointless to believe.
I've switched back to my old phone, sony p910, older but it just makes more sense than the Omnia.
New OMNIA for sale!
You do need gpsgate to run TomTom but once that is installed it runs fine. One thing i would say is it needs a flash player
not had a single problem apart from the lack of ram which cleared with an update.
would be great with a flash player and also without my supplier charging me for watching youtube videos!
The South African box contains the following:
a quick start guide
the handset
the battery
a 8GB memory card with card reader
getting started CD
Garmen Navigator software for life CD
stylis
normal charger
car charger
headset
spare in-ear pieces
3.5mm adapter
USB cable
Car Cradle with suction cups
light of some sorts?
On/Off button also have integrated led. Charging red, charging complete green .
and...
can u have the background as a picture that you have taken urself?
If you all can;t help it, probably i will returned it and buy another other than samsung products!
And also can I download flv, real player video that i've donwlo in the internet to my omnia! Please assist me, ok.. Tq!
let me say a few bad things about it
1. battery on a smartphone with GPS WIFI and all those others things well yes its not going to last long, its small as you can get in a 6610. if you want long life then you will be holding a brick like the hw6915 my phone which has an extended battery for that every reason.
2. yes the gps will not work with tomtom, but there are way around it, i have just put on tomtom 7.50 on it with 7.50 maps speed cams post code etc. works like a charm best tomtom i seen on a phone.(that with gpsgate installed)
3. its a windows smartphone, forget widgets its an add-on to the windows phone, to be honest i like them, keeps the screen clutter free, clean and to one side open it when you need something.
4. omg poor ram, it has 60mb of internal ram, your crazy if you think it has poor ram, you need to set things to the storage card so you dont fill the internal memory. my phone has 30mb and it never says to me that its low on ram. you dont know how to use the phone. good thing you gave it back.
5. d-pad isn't good but works, but its a touchscreen phone don't need to use it for anything.
6. the screen sensitivity is great its 624MHz Marvell PXA312 processor makes sure what you click opens fast.
7. lack of applications, what do you want the phone to do, run your life. its a phone. and being a smart phone there are over 1.400 applications for it being sold on every ppc site you go to. i just put on it, youtube access which i didn't need, the opera that comes with it and explorer opens youtue links from its streaming player, you dont know how to set up the options.
other apps i installed (coreplayer, Britannica trivia, tennis, adobe reader, millions recipes, plant tycoon, brain games, lexigoo dictionary, vtap, pencil box deluxe, Ubook reader etc.
google maps and is windows live (free). which does the same thing but better than google maps for the ppc.
8. any other questoins happy to answer. top phone so far out there other than yes its battery will not last 3days if you use it 24/7. d-pad is ok. that's it.
. ipohone or omnia.. but after reading ur reply,, i decided to buy Omnia..
And I think that's the point everybody misses in the comparisons - Apple are the kings of the UI, so while the iPhone has far fewer features any user no matter WHAT their tech knowledge (I notice people on here asking how to accomplish such simple tasks on the i900 as how to set one of your photos as the wallpaper image) you will use every single on of those features to it's full extent.
The Omnia's better suited to someone who doesn't fear setting up a Windows device. Anyone who still runs Windows in it's default settings, ie: messy Start menu with all the apps just in their default locations where they were installed, horrible default skins and massive gadgets using too much screen real estate, shortcut icons all over the desktop - they may find elements of the i900 baffling. There's the usual digging around in obscure places to find settings that should be more obvious, and then duplication of options. For instance, the 'motion sensor' setting panel lets you configure the screen to auto-rotate or set it to manual. Clicking the 'manual' settings option actually puts you into the 'screen' settings panel, so why is there a separate 'screen' settings panel? It all helps to confuse the casual user and reveals some bad communication within the various programming departments at Microsoft. This overarching sense of "!@*!@*WTF!" from time to time will probably mean that a great many users simply will not use the whole feature set of the i900 to anywhere near it's capacity and that's a shame - great device let down by the software company.
All that being said, apart from poor touchscreen response and slow motion sensor reaction (once again a software issue, not hardware) and the silly stylus dangling on a cord (this was the biggest annoyance of all a simple storage slot would not have added too much to the device size and would've been more practical) this is one hell of a device with everything anyone could want in a handheld computing device if you're willing to put in the legwork and get it set up the way you work. My advice would be to see if anyone ports another OS to it (Symbian, Linux, Android) and roadtest with THAT OS to see if you get better mileage.
Rating: 8.5/10
Pros: Hardware features to kill every other device in the market. Expandability.
Cons: OS OS OS OS OS (Windows ruins it), stylus designed as an afterthought, slow interface reaction and a few glitchy bugs (see below).
---GLITCHES---
The i900 has a few known issues. One of biggies is a problem with the motion sensor - it appears to be software rather than hardware related and in true Windows fashion the 'fix' is unfathomably unconnected to the problem LOL. If you find that your motion sensor stops working, no matter how often you go into the setting for it and try turning it off/on or hard/soft reset the phone it won't start again until you plug into either the charger or USB. Usually sorts it straight away ;)
the Omnia to to just blank out, where you have no option
but to reset it? i have brought a memory card today will
that help?
also, i have been sent some songs via Bluetooth but can not
seem to send them on via bluetooth.. does anyone know why?
or how i am able to do this.
and last but not least, in regards to text msg is there
anyway of displaying the inbox like a normal phone, or will
it always be displayed in an email format?
Thanks
Im getting on really fine with it, i just found it hard at the beginning.
Its a great smart phone.
But i have a couple of questions.
- I have my language in italian.I can understand it. But i want to change it in english. How can i if there's no setting to??
-Can i keep more than 1 language inside??
-How do you use the camera at the front??
Anyone which can help me please mail me at crazyal11@hotmail.it
Thanks.
Any help appreciated...
Thanks
Read all your reviews on the Omnia - thanks, everybody.
Was tempted to buy the Omnia - currently available on cheap special offer at a certain high street phone chain...
Reason to buy: I use my phone and PDA for language work... I use foreign language dictionaries on the PDA and use internet access on my Nokia N73 to read foreign language newspapers online...
The Omnia is tempting because:
a) I can combine the phone with the Windows Mobile facility for installing foreign language dictionaries plus Word
b) the screen is large [I am getting on in years]
c) wi-fi access
d) can use it as a multimedia player for viewing video podcasts
e) fast processer...
However, a very significant number of reviews I have read over the last day or two give a negative overall impression...
I am having enough second thoughts not to proceed with my purchase. Enough second thoughts to persuade me to have a radical rethink about how to approach portability for language learning...
Any comments, guys?
I needed a WM device to run an Excel based application that
I need for my job, and the Omnia replaced my phone and PDA.
Also, runs Garmin XT really well. Well worth updating the
ROM if you have an older Omnia. Overall I would recommend
the Omnia to anyone who needs a serious business phone.
Comment feed for this post