Samsung expands the Omnia family

Though Samsung's main focus for CommunicAsia 2009 is really its not-quite-a-smartphone Jet touchscreen handset, it is also making a strong showing in the Windows Mobile (WM) space, announcing four new devices for the Omnia family.

The Omnia II or I8000 is the successor to the very first Omnia SGH-i900. This updated model comes with a huge 3.7-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels, HSDPA connectivity, GPS for navigation and a 5-megapixel camera with two LEDs for lighting up dark subjects. The design of this handset is almost indistinguishable from the Jet aside from its larger size, bearing a cube-like menu button below the screen and a 3.5mm audio jack so you can use your favorite pair of headphones with it.

Those who prefer other form factors should look at the Omnia Pro series which includes the B7610 which comes with a slide-out QWERTY keypad and the B7320, a successor to the i600 Ultra Messaging with its non-touchscreen interface and BlackBerry-like design. There's also the Omnia Lite B7300, a mid-range smartphone with features similar to the original Omnia.

All these smartphones will ship with WM6.1 originally and will feature a free upgrade to WM6.5 when that becomes available. More detailed specifications of these devices are given in the table below.

Model name	In a nutshell
Samsung Omnia II (I8000) Click for more info	Notable features: Quad-band GSM with tri-band WCDMA HSDPA and HSUPA 3.7-inch WVGA (480 x 800) AMOLED display Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v2.0, USB 2.0 and A-GPS 3.5mm audio jack 5-megapixel camera with autofocus and dual LED Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional with TouchWiz 2.0 Upgradeable to Windows Mobile 6.5 2GB/8GB/16GB onboard with microsSD card slot 118 x 60 x 11.9mm Availability: To be announced
Samsung Omnia Lite B7300 Click for more info	Notable features: Quad-band GSM with HSDPA 3-inch WQVGA (240 x 400) TFT display Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v2.0, USB 2.0 and A-GPS 3-megapixel camera with autofocus Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional Upgradeable to Windows Mobile 6.5 250MB onboard with microsSD card slot 107 x 51.8 x 12.9mm Availability: To be announced
Samsung Omnia Pro B7320 Click for more info	Notable features: Quad-band GSM with HSDPA 2.4-inch QVGA (240 x 320) TFT display Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v2.0 and USB 2.0 3-megapixel camera with autofocus Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard Upgradeable to Windows Mobile 6.5 70MB onboard with microsSD card slot 118 x 59.8 x 12.6mm Availability: To be announced
Samsung Omnia Pro B7610 Click for more info	Notable features: Quad-band GSM with HSDPA 3.5-inch WVGA (480 x 800) AMOLED display Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v2.0, USB 2.0 and GPS 800MHz CPU Slide-out QWERTY keypad 5-megapixel camera with autofocus Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional Upgradeable to Windows Mobile 6.5 1GB onboard with microsSD card slot 112.6 x 57.8 x 16.2mm Availability: To be announced
Samsung Jet Click for more info	Notable features: Quad-band GSM with HSDPA 3.1-inch WVGA (480 x 800) AMOLED display Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v 2.0, USB 2.0 and A-GPS 3.5mm audio jack 5-megapixel camera with autofocus and dual LED TouchWiz 2.0 UI 2GB/8GB with microsSD card slot 108.8 x 53.5 x 11.9mm Availability: June 16 (Singapore) Price: S$698 (US$513.90)