The Samsung Omnia 7 is one of the first Windows Phone 7 Smartphones to be released, it is currently available in Europe, and the model tested in this review is a UK version.
The Omnia 7 features a 4 inch display plus a 1GHZ processor, and a five megapixel camera, the model we tested came with 8GB of built in storage.
Specifications
The Samsung Omnia features a 4 inch WVGA Super AMOLED display, with an 800 x 400 pixel resolution, processing comes form a 1GHz Qualcomm QSD8250 processor.
The handset measures 122.4mm by 64.2mm by 10.9mm and weighs in at 138g, storage wise you get a choice of either 8GB or 16GB, plus integrated 802.11 b/g/n WiFi, plus Bluetooth 2.1 and USB 2.0 via a mini USB port, the Omnia 7 also has a built in FM Radio.
The camera is a five megapixel version with a CMOS sensor, built in autofocus and a single LED flash, there is also a removable battery, and connectivity comes in the form of HSUPA, HSDPA, EDGE and GPRS. Have a look and our article on Android vs iPhone to see which smartphone and mobile platform is best for you.
Design and Display
The four inch WVGA Super AMOLED on the Samsung Omnia 7 is excellent, everything looks crystal clear and sharp, web pages look pretty good as do photos and also games, and the Windows Phone 7 menus look really good on the large display.
The Omnia 7 features a a home button on the bottom of the screen as well as a back button and a search button which will take you direct to the built in Bing search engine. On the side you will find a dedicated camera button as well as a power button.
The overall look and Feel of the Samsung Omnia 7 is very nice, as well as the stunning display, the back of the case is made from metal, and it seems to fair pretty well to finger marks etc, although we wouldn’t exactly call the back of the case beautiful.
Windows Phone 7 OS
This is my first time using Microsoft’s new Windows Phone 7 OS, and I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised with it. Microsoft have done a good job with Windows Phone 7, and it is a serious improvement over their previous mobile phone operating system.
The user interface is pretty good, and certainly different than say Apple’ iOS Or Google’s Android, moving through the various menus is easy, and the UI seems very responsive.
Games, Video And Apps, and Music
Both video and games look excellent on the Omnia 7, the display has a lot to do with that, and games seem to run pretty well, the Xbox Live feature is excellent, although we only had a chance to test out a couple of games, they worked great, and it looks like Windows Phone 7 has great potential for gaming.
Apps wise, the Samsung Omnia 7 comes with a couple built in, which include Microsoft Office, maps and a couple of others, plus you can download apps from the Zune market place and also the Samsung Zone, which features apps specifically for Samsung handsets.
Camera
The Omnia 7 features a five megapixel camera, which has built in autofocus, and an LED flash, and it doesn’t to too bad a job at taking photos, although the autofocus isn’t as sharp as we would like and it can take you a couple of tries to get a decent shot.
The camera is also capable of recording HD video in 720p, although at a 25 frames per second, and whilst the video is ok it definitely could be better.
Conclusion
The Samsung Omnia 7 is quite an impressive handset, definitely one of the better smartphones we have reviewed this year, and I was pleasantly surprised with Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 OS.
The star of the Omnia 7 is the display, it is sharp and crystal clear, everything on the display looks amazing, the handset has a decent built quality and everything on the smartphone seems pretty fast and snappy.
The camera could do with some work, although the autofocus is something that Samsung could easily fix via a software update, so lets hope this is something they have planned.
Overall the Samsung Omnia 7 is a pretty good smartphone, I was really quite impressed by the user interface and the Windows Phone 7 software, and whilst Windows Phone 7 is still a pretty new OS it could end up having a lot of potential.
If you are looking for a new smartphone, and fancy something a little different than the iPhone or an Android smartphone, we would definitely recommend you have a look at the Samsung Omnia 7.
The Samsung Omnia 7 is available in the UK from number of different mobile providers, the model we tested in this review was from mobile operator Three.
Have a look at our Samsung Omnia 7 gallery, for lots more hands on photos, of the handset and Windows Phone 7.
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