Samsung Omnia W

Samsung hasn't exactly made a lot of waves with its Windows Phone devices. In fact, there are but two WP7 handsets available in Asia, one being the older Omnia 7 and the subject of this review, the Omnia W.

Design

The Omnia W is a much smaller device, and drops the metallic feel of the Omnia 7. Instead of a premium finish, the W feels like a cheap device, especially when compared with the sleeker looking Nokia Lumia 800, or the HTC Radar with its aluminum unibody chassis. As usual, Samsung has chosen black for the phone's color, which we feel doesn't really help the handset stand out.

The Omnia W features a 3.7-inch Super AMOLED WVGA (800 x 480 pixels) display, and is one of the best features that we liked about the phone. Colors are vibrant and the screen is easily viewable even in bright sunlight.

Located at the bottom of the display are the three standard buttons found on all Windows Phone devices. Instead of touch-sensitive buttons that most other manufacturers are wont to do, the Korean chaebol has added a physical button for the Windows key. It's similar to the physical button found on its Android range, though the Windows logo is visible on the button.

On the right edge of the handset are the dedicated camera and power buttons. The camera button lets you quickly launch the camera app even if the phone is locked. You'll find the volume controls located on the left while the 3.5mm audio jack is located on the top. The micro-USB port is located right at the bottom, just below the Windows button.

Samsung has packed a 5-megapixel camera on the rear and a VGA camera on the front for video calls (using its bundled Video Call app). However, we couldn't get it to work while calling Android and iOS phones. We understand this is probably due to the fact that it uses the older 3G video calling standards (which should work on older 3G feature phones). Note that this could be very expensive.

Lastly, the phone has a removable battery and just 8GB onboard storage but note that unlike most smartphones in the market, this one (like the Radar) doesn't come with a microSD port.

Features

You'll not be left wanting for connectivity options on the Omnia W, as it packs Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, A-GPS and HSDPA.

While Microsoft does not let manufacturers customize the operating system (unlike Android), Samsung has bundled its own apps like the aforementioned Video Call. Others include a Daily Briefing app for where you can get information about the weather, news and stocks. A FunShot app also lets you take funky-looking pictures while Photo Studio lets you do some basic editing.

Like the HTC Radar, the Omnia W launches with Internet Sharing built-in. This is quite handy when you need to share your connection with your notebook while on-the-go.

As for the 5-megapixel camera's image quality, we found that it doesn't seem to select the right white balance depending on your lighting. You'll have to pick the best setting manually for a color-correct picture. That said, the electronic shutter is fast. You can easily whip out the phone, hit the camera button, and snap a picture without too much of a delay.

Performance

The Omnia W features a 1.4GHz processor, which delivers a zippy performance when using the OS. We do note that you'll likely experience the same on a 1GHz handset--the only difference you may notice will probably be slightly faster startup times for apps. More CPU-intensive apps will also benefit from the faster processor, of course.

Battery life is pretty similar to the HTC Radar; you'll be able to get about a full day's usage with around 10-15 percent of power left over on the Omnia W's 1,500mAh battery. Be sure to charge the phone before leaving the office.

Note that this test is done without our usual settings as we were unable to set Twitter and Facebook apps with our usual two hour refresh interval test settings.

Lastly, call quality was adequate. We had no issues with the reception (apart from those that seem to be carrier related). Speaker volume was definitely loud, and you'll be able to feel the phone's strong vibrations in your pocket in case you are in a loud, noisy environment.

Conclusion

The Omnia W is an interesting proposition for consumers--do you get it since it's relatively cheap or do you fork out more for other nicer looking Windows Phone devices. With a price tag of S$498 (US$399) without an operator contract, we're thinking you might be better off with spending a bit more for the S$568 (US$445) HTC Radar, or if you have the cash, the Nokia Lumia 800 with retails for S$775 (US$621). The Omnia W is a good phone to have, but it lacks the premium feel of its predecessor and other similar handsets.