Counterclockwise: Samsung's pre-Android smartphones were multimedia beasts

21 October 2018
The Omnia and INNOV8 didn't have the "smartphone" thing quite figured out, but their multimedia features rocked.

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  • The Publisher
  • 64i
  • 17 May 2021

I still have my omnia i8910 HD. What a device that was. I feel in love with OLED and how it blew away lcd. Imported it to USA and never saw another person with one. Was also my first foray into what is now called rooting or jailbreaking. Fun stuff.

    • ?
    • Anonymous
    • 7AH
    • 16 Mar 2020

    Man, the Galaxy Wave was such a beautiful phone. I hope Samsung revisits that design language. It also had a metal body with a replaceable battery.

      • H
      • HgA
      • Kvp
      • 05 Nov 2018

      The Omnia was so iconic. The Omnia II is still looking great!

        • ?
        • Anonymous
        • 613
        • 29 Oct 2018

        I still prefer Samsung Windows Mobile 6.1 series, it's the true "Windows" phone.

          • S
          • S6 User
          • nFX
          • 23 Oct 2018

          Big Daddy, 22 Oct 2018I just love Samsung, but sometimes they just make too many ... moreI understood that the Bixby button can be remapped on the S9 & S9+ to Torch, Maps, Mute, etc, & that it's only difficult on the Note 9.
          I think there's an app on the Google Play, I'm sure this method was mentioned in the S9+ & maybe also S9 community pages, you could ask/ search about this there:

          https://m.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s9-reviews-8966.php

          https://m.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s9+-reviews-8967.php

            • D
            • AnonD-794217
            • wrc
            • 23 Oct 2018

            Big Daddy, 22 Oct 2018I just love Samsung, but sometimes they just make too many ... moreBecause Samsung trying to innovate and they can, then other company copying each of their innovation.

              • F
              • FreedaBees
              • nyP
              • 22 Oct 2018

              Believe it or not, but I still have and use a Wave S8500 as my main phone. I put a new battery in it about 6 months ago - just by opening a hatch - and it's now back to only needing to be charged once a week. No screen burn-in and no fade in the display's ability to display blue. Fantastic phone. At the time of it's launch, it had a great 5MP camera with manual control of exposure, ISO, focus range - which left the iPhone 4s camera in the dust. It also had cut and paste between apps, multitasking and you could use it as a WiFi hot-spot. You couldn't do any of those with an iPhone 4 at the time; you could later when iOS eventually got updated.

                just took my daughters old i8910 out of the spare/dead/damaged devices draw.
                Even with badly shattered display, it still works 100% ok, not been on charger for months, turns on OK, everything else still works OK, the hardware was very good for its time, its the os that daughter and I had/have problems with, we had got used to Sony-Ericsson's version of symbian s60 and earlier, the Samsung version seemed clumsy and slow in comparison with s-e's version..I would have liked to have seen Samsung do a winmo 6.5 version of the i8910, would have been much easier to use.. If I didn't have to muck about finding a sim adaptor etc, I would have posted this from off the old i8910... I still prefer the old Sony-Ericsson p series, almost as well built, but easier to use, we went through the entire 800/900/910i series, I even tried the backward step of the p1, the p800/p910i still pull lots of interest from folk when I use them for playing old lucas art games on, like day of the tentacle, Sam n max etc etc, students etc don't believe the devices are 10+ years old !!!

                  I just love Samsung, but sometimes they just make too many features which become an overkill..
                  My S9 would have been perfect if it didn't have this damn Bixby or at least I could remap the button. They invested so much money on this and soon it is not going to be a part of future flagships. And please Samsung, bigger battery please for small device too..

                    • i
                    • ithehappy
                    • gwL
                    • 22 Oct 2018

                    As someone who owned four of the devices mentioned here I can honestly say those were the days, even with average to good cameras, low powered SoCs and all that, there was something magical in these phones, especially on the OmniaHD, the Wave etc. We have great cameras nowadays, but not so much great phones overall, stupid trends like glass built, notch etc., didn't exist back then.

                      • M
                      • Max
                      • Mvv
                      • 22 Oct 2018

                      Awwww... no mention of the i7110 "Pilot", with Symbian S60 3rd...? That phone literally did it all, including an integrated optical mouse and radio FM _transmitter_.

                        • ?
                        • Anonymous
                        • I8m
                        • 22 Oct 2018

                        rizki1, 21 Oct 2018If I see an amoled screen with LCD together I think LCD is ... moreThat is called calibration. And most lcds are calibrated with an off white point as well

                          • ?
                          • Anonymous
                          • I8m
                          • 22 Oct 2018

                          Consumer2, 21 Oct 2018Then was multimedia beast. Now Huawei has this title plus b... moreYou've clearly never used either

                            • ?
                            • Anonymous
                            • I8m
                            • 22 Oct 2018

                            Anonymous, 21 Oct 2018How long samsung took to number 1 was ages... Huawei are... moreUmmm. Huawei was around for a good while. And it took a few years to get there.
                            Samsung was a big player even then. And pretty much rose right up to in droids.
                            And companies like Huawei wouldn't have gotten as far without the foot work of companies like samsung.

                              Anonymous, 21 Oct 2018How long samsung took to number 1 was ages... Huawei are... morejust a few years?
                              Huawei has been around for quite some while now, but not on every market.

                                u forget to mention one more OS.
                                there is still one more OS that Samsung used , which is Limo , samsung use it on Vodafone 360 M1

                                  Anonymous, 21 Oct 2018Samsung is in a good place now :). They could work on their... moreI wholeheartedly agree about that "legendary yet magical" button. It's a tad redundant to have such a button while I could scream "Hey Bixby" to my phone.

                                    • ?
                                    • Anonymous
                                    • UD{
                                    • 22 Oct 2018

                                    Anonymous, 21 Oct 2018LCD is on its way out thank god. Dont even compare the two.LCD aint going nowhere, not just yet, so pls stop dreaming

                                      ThunderCrackR, 21 Oct 2018Why are people always forgetting about the SGH-Z610? It was... moreBecause not a lot knew about this device...

                                        • ?
                                        • Anonymous
                                        • v3B
                                        • 21 Oct 2018

                                        Samsung is in a good place now :). They could work on their skin more, which still feels laggy from time to time.

                                        Also, Bixby and that button. Kill. It.

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