HTC Touch Diamond vs. Samsung i900 Omnia: Head-to-Head

02 July 2008
It’s PocketPC playoffs and HTC are giving Samsung a match at the GSM Arena. With two of the stars of the season arriving in our office all at once, we thought it’s a heck of an opportunity for some Diamond-Omnia-Diamond-Omnia-Diamond-Omnia game-set-match. We got two aces up to the challenge, so sit back and stretch out. Ah well, get that six-pack too and join us for the kick-off...

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  • s
  • sms
  • C54
  • 04 Jul 2008

Network - Samsung i900, quad band - 1-0
Diamond dimensions - 1-1
Diamond weight - 1-2
i900 screen size - 2-2
Diamond screen resolution - 2-3
Color - draw - 2-3
Diamond Touch Flo - 2-4
Diamond Stylus - 2-5
i900 card slot - 3-5
i900 cpu 624mhz - 4-5
i900 internal memory - 5-5
Diamond touch scroll - 5-6
i900 Landscape Qwerty keyboard - 6-6
Diamond graphic chip - 6-7
i900 5mp camera - 7-7
i900 flash - 8-7
i900 divx/xvid player - 9-7
i900 video editor - 10-7
i900 TV out - 11-7
i900 Battery - 12-7

Samsung i900 wins 12-7 overall
Samaung i900 is definitely my choice.

    • m
    • miro
    • js$
    • 04 Jul 2008

    Excellent head-to-head, though I was already leaning towards the Omnia since I refuse to pay $500 for a 16gb 3G iPhone.

    But a couple of things regarding the Omnia:

    1) Memory card slot is not hot swappable? Meaning you can just pull the memory card out, stick it in an adapter, plug it into a pc and copy data to/from it and then put it back in the phone? Does this mean you have to turn the phone off to pull out the memory card?

    2) The screen during web browsing. Browsing it definitely near the top of the list for me, but I suppose if it's just as good as the Tytn II (AT&T Tilt), then I'll be happy.

    3) Video and music aren't that important since I have an iPod Touch.

    Thanks for putting this together! It sounds like both phones have great features. Too bad these two companies can't do a join phone with the best of both worlds!

      • J
      • Jason
      • nim
      • 04 Jul 2008

      Dear GSMArena team,

      Very well done! A lot of persons have waited for a review like this. Still I'm very curious which one you would choose if you had to (must)choose???
      Personally I think I will choose the Samsung i900. I have tested the HTC, but I'm not impressed.

        • ?
        • Anonymous
        • nJI
        • 04 Jul 2008

        OMNIA has bigger screen, faster CPU, longer battery life, more memory & supports micro SD, better camera, landscape typing, and is better built... NO CONTEST FOR ME

          • K
          • Kal
          • vwd
          • 04 Jul 2008

          Most probably I would go with Omnia or wait some more time for samsung to come up with few more in the same line, but Diamond and it's UI looks so irresistible..mmmmm. Touch choice. Kudos to both. cheers!!

            • S
            • Shou Ji
            • M@T
            • 04 Jul 2008

            I used Omnia in 1 week & Diamond in 2 week :

            - In first take, diamond has better in glossy black casing. But after 1 week and next, Omnia look more elegance because fingerprint magnet in Diamond(give it look dirty everytime like Viewty).
            - If u compare about screen, I will go for Omnia. It's way a reason why Nokia always have a bigger screen. That screen size also important point for full touchphone. The Diamond like "Great resolution in wrong place". U also pleased with Omnia when viewing movie, thanks to 16:9 resolution(Diamond 4:3) & DivX Certified.
            - Omnia sound more better, thanks to 3.5mm audio adapter(comparing with my N95 8Gb, Omnia has more clear & surround but Nokia more powerfull in bass)
            - 3D TouchFLO more better looking, TouchWIZZ more faster. But accelerometer & haptic feedback give Omnia better in this side.
            - The only 4Gb memory in Diamond give me always look the free space.
            - U can compare Omnia camera with SE CyberShot or Nokia with CarlZeiss.
            - Omnia & Diamond comes with almost the same price in Singapore(without contract)

              • j
              • jacka$$1
              • 4Hm
              • 04 Jul 2008

              Shou Ji, 03 Jul 2008I got Omnia last week from Singapore. Samsung Omnia box com... moreI'm dying to know if the Omnia supports triband 3G. Please let us know and kindly leave a comment here and the thread I've started over at Howard Forums: http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=1391905
              Thanks!

                • j
                • jacka$$1
                • 4Hm
                • 04 Jul 2008

                bushido_427, 03 Jul 2008Hi, can anyone please confirm if the phone supports 3G UMTS... moreI know of someone getting the Omnia i900 this coming Monday that will answer whether or not the phone will support Triband 3G (850/1900/2100). Click on over to Howard Forums: http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=1391905

                  • ?
                  • Anonymous
                  • TIE
                  • 04 Jul 2008

                  Anonymous, 03 Jul 2008I think it is you who is siding with the Omnia. Can you im... moreApparently you, too, are bias. I think the Diamond is too small because it is for a smartphone. If it were some other phones, I would have said it was nicely packed.

                  Being a person who has used cell phones of almost every kind for the past 15 or more years, I can safely tell you that more buttons does nothing, unless you can make them work efficiently.

                  I think the buttons on the HTC Diamond should have been rid of to make space for more screen.

                    • b
                    • brynn
                    • nGi
                    • 03 Jul 2008

                    I have not read any comments yet and just studied the facts from gsm arena and its the touch diamond for me,,,so my next versus competition is between this and xperia altho the touch pro is even better than diamond with qwerty and better battery and more memory/card slot...So perhaps next shootout is xperia v htc pro...I am happy tho that htc have finally activated the graphics chip..Now i am going to read comments to see what you lot have said and voted for..

                      • T
                      • Tom Cruz
                      • UFI
                      • 03 Jul 2008

                      The Samsung i900 Omnia sounds really nice. How much does it cost? & when does it come out? Does anyone know? Thanks!

                        • b
                        • bushido_427
                        • Rdr
                        • 03 Jul 2008

                        Anonymous, 03 Jul 2008The hyperlinks in the last paragraph of the 8th page are le... moreHi, can anyone please confirm if the phone supports 3G UMTS/HSDPA 850? Thanks.

                          • ?
                          • Anonymous
                          • jJe
                          • 03 Jul 2008

                          darkmax, 03 Jul 2008Sorry to have to make my first post here this way, but the ... moreI think it is you who is siding with the Omnia. Can you imagine if the reviewer would focus his/her review on hand sizes? LOL. Well what if I say that the reviewer also failed to emphasize that the Omnia is too big for people with small hands? LOL. A 2.8 display is a good size for a COMPACT smartphone, and it's still bigger than most smartphones like Blackberry and Treo, so why is that a big deal? It's not like all the phones out there have 3 inch displays that the Diamond's 2.8 becomes a big issue.

                          Those two keys are handy. I know, because I have the Diamond and I use those keys quite often.

                          Sorry if the reviewer was being too general and did not consider your personal needs and wants.

                            • ?
                            • Anonymous
                            • 0Bi
                            • 03 Jul 2008

                            Paul, 03 Jul 2008Great review, but can you please post a couple of sample vi... moreThe hyperlinks in the last paragraph of the 8th page are leading to the videos from both cameras. Unfortunately, neither of them is impressive.

                              • S
                              • Shou Ji
                              • M@T
                              • 03 Jul 2008

                              Acid, 03 Jul 2008Does Omnia has a streo 3.5mm headphone jack? Can any bod... moreI got Omnia last week from Singapore. Samsung Omnia box comes with :

                              - Battery & Charger
                              - Leather Pouch
                              - 2 Stylus (u can placed it in leather pouch)
                              - PC Sync cable
                              - CD installer
                              - 2Gb Sandisk MicroSD
                              - 3.5mm audio adapter
                              - Seinnheisser headset (u can plug in to 3.5mm adapter)
                              - TV-Out cable
                              - GPS bundling

                                • P
                                • Paul
                                • MAE
                                • 03 Jul 2008

                                Great review, but can you please post a couple of sample videos,you have posted sample pictures, but not videos????, is this because it is no good????. Thanks

                                  • d
                                  • darkmax
                                  • TIE
                                  • 03 Jul 2008

                                  Sorry to have to make my first post here this way, but the reviewer is obviously siding with the HTC Diamond. There has been several mistake and over emphasis of the Omnia's weaknesses while those of the Diamond is brought down to a passing remark.

                                  For one, the Diamond is a tat too small for most males' hands. The Display is seriously small and that hampers the hi-res on the screen to a fault.

                                  The additional 2 buttons are really unnecessary on the Diamond unless one actually likes the idea of physically pressing on fixed keys.

                                  Anyway, I should not undermine the reviewer's authority here. All I have to say is that the reviewer is either a girl or a man with small hands.

                                    • A
                                    • Acid
                                    • UD8
                                    • 03 Jul 2008

                                    Does Omnia has a streo 3.5mm headphone jack?

                                    Can any body ans me?

                                      • ?
                                      • Anonymous
                                      • nJ6
                                      • 03 Jul 2008

                                      Thanks for a GREAT review on 2 great phones. Your review shows the Omnia is far better for my personal needs. (would xperia X1 also be a contender?)

                                        • B
                                        • Bishop
                                        • nAH
                                        • 03 Jul 2008

                                        Amazing review !!

                                        I was just wondering which phone i have to choose ... Now, i pretty sure i will go for the diamond !!!

                                        Many thanks ...