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Like having real bling and a bona fide luxury brandname on your smartphone? Armani and Samsung have teamed up to give you the latest Samsung Giorgio Armani, which will feature WM6.5, 3.1" AMOLED screen, 5MP camera, QWERTY keyboard, GPS and 8GB flash. It's a little on the bulky side, but hey! What's a little weight with that name on the front? If you want to know what it looks like, check out Engadget's gallery.

" SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 6, 2009-- Sprint (NYSE: S) and Samsung Telecommunications America (Samsung Mobile), the number one mobile phone provider in the United States1, today announced the upcoming arrival of Samsung IntrepidTM smartphone, a dynamic Windows® phone that lets the customer be productive on-the-go using America's most dependable 3G network (EV-DO Rev. A)2 domestically and through international roaming when traveling worldwide. Samsung Intrepid features Windows Mobile® 6.5 Professional, and improves on previous Samsung Windows phones with a user experience that offers a customizable Today screen to display the features the user accesses most often and shows important information like new emails, text messages, missed calls and calendar appointments. It also has a richer Internet browsing experience and new personalization options including a diverse selection of designer themes and the ability to create an original look for your phone with the built-in theme creator."

Another new device that will thankfully ship with 6.5. Wondering why their is no picture? Well for that gem you'll have to head over to the press release and click on the "Picture Gallery" link near the bottom. Whereas one would expect to see what the Samsung Intrepid looks like, instead one gets low and high res Samsung and Sprint logos. Classy - just want I want to see, a logo I already see everywhere else! Here's a hint though - the device looks quite a bit like a Blackjack from pictures purporting to be it on the web. Which makes it interesting as above it lists as a "professional" (e.g., touchscreen) device!

"We finally got a good, hard look at the Verizon-customized version of Samsung's Omnia II, and we've got good news and bad news: the good news is that the phone's a darker, more reasonable shade in person than it was in that press shot we'd seen before, but the bad news is that we've confirmed it's running 6.1. Anyone daring to release a 6.1 phone at this point is at serious risk of getting laughed out of the room unless they offer an upgrade path mere minutes afterwards"

The 6.1 default is a bit annoying at this point, so hopefully when this gets released a 6.5 upgrade will already be available online. That's wishful thinking of course, but it still might not be enough to sway users either way! Who is in the mood for some Verizon Omnia II action in the near future?

"Within the OmniaPRO lineup, the OmniaPRO B7610 is the premium device, featuring a high-resolution 3.5 inch AMOLED display and QWERTY keyboard. The OmniaPRO B7320 and OmniaPRO B7330 will target businessmen with a QWERTY keyboard and email/wireless internet capabilities. The OmniaPRO B7330 will feature HSDPA 7.2 Mps, HSUPA 2.0 Mps and Windows Mobile 6.5, providing the most versatile option for emailing and wireless internet use. Rounding out the new series, the OmniaLITE will have a user-friendly interface and various multimedia functions for younger users."

Samsung is seriously pumped over the Omnia brand, and is launching not 1, not 2, but 3 more Omnias after the Omnia II. With 5 Omnia's to chose from, it's a bit overwhelming. Check out their site for more information on each model!

"Oh, look, it's another place to buy bite-sized mobile apps, this one courtesy of Samsung. The company isn't exactly new to the whole application store thing, launching a little outlet for Nokia users earlier this year, but piggy-backing on someone else's platform and boldly blazing a trail of iFart knockoffs on your own hardware are two very different things"

So it looks like Samsung is jumping on the Application Store bandwagon, which is great because Windows Mobile doesn't have enough of them </sarcasm>. Who knows, perhaps Samsung will stock theirs with unique products that exploit the custom SDKs on their devices. Or more likely they'll put the same apps that will be in the upcoming Windows Mobile Marketplace, Handango's market, etc..

Samsung's TouchWiz 2.0 UI supposedly does a good job in hiding the standard Windows Mobile interface. Want to know how good a job? ai.rs blog has the goods with a gallery of screenshots.

"This morning, Samsung announced the list of countries that are slated to get the Omnia II in August. Missing from the list is the United States and other major markets including the UK, France and Germany. Pretty odd, considering we know Best Buy is (or was) slated to score it later this month. We’re guessing: 1) Something was delayed. 2) BBYM will get shipments on the 23rd but the handset won’t be available for sale until early September. 3) Samsung just can’t mention the US yet as there has been no official announcement with AT&T."

Release dates for the Samsung Omnia II (For this month) have surfaced, and while we may have a clue that the Omnia is coming to the US, US isn't listed in the dates. But hopefully we'll know more regarding that soon!

"This new Omnia is bigger and badder, with just about everything getting a refresh. The screen has gained half an inch- now up to 3.7" and the resolution has quadrupled to 480x800. AMOLED technology has replaced TFT for improved battery life and more vibrant images. Video capture is now DVD quality, and connection standards such as 3G, Wi-Fi and GPS are all on board, along with 8GB of internal storage."

Thinking of getting one? Want to know what the fuss is about? phoneArena have a fairly full review chock full of photos of the Omnia II, and are fairly complimentary on TouchWiz, battery life, and multimedia capability; so-so on the camera and call quality; and but disappointed on the actual speed of the device. That's really odd with a 800MHz processor on board - or are these fancy new interfaces outrunning the capability of the hardware to keep up?

"Sure, some of the latest Samsung Windows Mobile phones like the Omnia II aren't yet widely available but nevertheless, you might want to start to develop for or porting your existing application to it already. If so, Samsung has just released its Windows Mobile SDK 1.2 which offers APIs to use advanced features unique to Samsung phones."

Samsung has a few neat tricks in their phones that use private APIs that you normally wouldn't know about unless you take a look at their SDK. They've just updated it, so if you're developing for Samsung Windows Mobile devices, take a look.

"Dieter got his hands on the WiMAX-enabled Samsung Mondi back at CTIA in April and was less than impressed. Samsung decided to release the device anyway, and it comes alongside the launch of WiMAX service in Las Vegas. Sammy says the 4G Mondi will be available in Atlanta, Las Vegas and Portland, Ore. - three of the initial WiMAX launch cities - starting Aug. 1 for an undisclosed sum."

If, unlike Dieter, you're still interested in the Samsung Mondi, you'll be able to pick one up starting August 1 for some probably-not-so-cheap amount of money. Oh, and you can really only use it to it's full potential in a few markets (Even fewer than T-Mobile 3G!). But if you want it, you can soon have it.

"The phone runs on Windows Mobile 6.1 Pro (which I reckon will get an upgrade to WinMo 6.5 in the near future) and houses a fast 800MHz processor. It will also have an unspecified chip to handle graphics discretely, Stereo FM Radio with RDS, Wi-Fi, A-GPS, Bluetooth, Business card scanner, Pocket Office, Photo/video editor and Work/Life mode that could be something related to the user profile."

No idea when this is going to come out, and only a vague idea what it will eventually look like, save that it will have a slide-out keyboard and the Armani logo in gold accents. Still, the specs indicate a high-end device and no doubt a high end price tag with the Armani branding. The model number suggests it may be a rebranded Omnia 2, in which case we'll also see a 3.7" WVGA AMOLED screen, 5MP camera, and up to 16GB internal storage.

"The recently announced Samsung Omnia II GT-I8000 is Samsung's Windows Mobile successor to the original Samsung Omnia smartphone, one of the best selling Windows Mobile touchscreen phones ever. With the Omnia II, Samsung overhauled the original Omnia by adding the latest technology. While the initial release will run on Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, Samsung will offer a free Windows Mobile 6.5 upgrade later."

This is a very nice package - quadband GSM, triband HSPA, FM radio, 3.7" AMOLED WVGA screen, up to 16GB internal memory (depending on model), 3.5mm headphone socket, and a 5MP AF camera with LED flash. the::unwired.net thinks it will be released at the end of August or early September - anyone want one? Click through the link for the photo gallery.

"Samsung's already committed to offering Windows Mobile 6.5 upgrades to Omnia IIs released with 6.1, but just how necessary is that commitment going to end up being in practice? Microsoft's Austrian outpost has announced that the Korean company's latest WinMo superphone will be launching in the domestic market in September with 6.5 already installed"

Are Austrians ready for the Samsung Omnia II? Well, if They're game, it looks like Samsung will be accomodating sometime in September. The original Omnia is a sweet device, and the Omnia II doesn't look like it will let us down.

"Alongside Omnia Pro B7610, Omnia Pro B7320 and the Jet, Samsung has also unveiled the Omnia II i8000 and the Omnia Lite B7300 - so there's a total of five new phones announced by the South Korean company today (two more than Nokia)...First, let's talk about the Samsung Omnia II i8000, which doesn't look too different from the Jet."

Samusung announced not one, but four new models in the Omnia lineup. Apart from the i8000 Omnia II (pic above) we talked about earlier, there's the Omnia Pro B7610 and Omnia Pro B7320, as well as the Omnia Lite B7300. Details are still sparse, but it looks like the Omnia II will receive a free upgrade to WM6.5 when that comes out.

"Phone Area also says this handset has also appeared with the Cubic37 codename. Pair that with the cube button at the bottom of the phone, and it's getting pretty likely that it could sport Samsung's rumored 3D cube UI...Obviously this isn't something we'd see here with only the 2100MHz 3G band. But it's defintely something we'll an eye out for more on it in the future."

Ever since Samsung confirmed that the Omnia brand will be exclusively Windows Mobile, we've been waiting for another handset that could match what's been offered in the Symbian-based i8910. While this model won't sport HDMI out (that we know of), the rest of the specs are great: 3.7" capacitive AMOLED screen, Quadband GSM, GPS, and 8.1MP AF camera - at least as far as we know. Details are still sketchy and probably subject to change (the processor doesn't appear to support the camera resolution), so here's hoping for more than single band 3G support.

"In fact, the leaked pictures we're looking at here are China Mobile-branded, suggesting that the 3G- and WiFi-free device will find a home in an area of the world where EDGE doesn't matter much, much less HSDPA. Specs are said to include a WQVGA display, GPS, Bluetooth and USB 2.0, and quadband GSM, so at least you'll be able to take this puppy wherever you need to go -- and the 12.98mm-thin shell helps make the case, too."

Hey, not everyone wants or can afford an always-on internet connection. In fact, given that China's going it's own way with respect to 3G means that a super-spiffing HSPA device won't pull its weight there anyway. Having said that, Samsung might have paid a bit more attention to the looks of the B7300. If the low-end of the market is where you're at then any differentiation you can muster is worth a look at, what with the competition in that segment.

"But lo and behold, Samsung has stripped the new phone of its Omnia name, reverting back to the old number scheme that we loathe with every fiber of our being have all gotten used to. Thus, the Omnia HD (which just cruised past the FCC) is now the i8910."

Interesting bit of news - at least it clears up some of the confusion. When news of the i8910 first came out, the Omnia HD moniker led many to believe (including us) that it would run Windows Mobile. That it would run on Symbian instead was a blow, considering the specs (720p video recording and playback, 8MP AF camera). Would this mean that the Omnia brand will continue to be extended? One can hope.

"Now, Samsung has released the first Windows Mobile-focused result, Samsung Windows Mobile SDK 1.0. It offers APIs to use advanced features unique to Samsung phones. You might already have experience using advanced capabilities featured in the Windows Mobile APIs, like GPS, Bluetooth or multimedia support. In addition to the Microsoft Windows Mobile APIs, you can use Samsung APIs to access phone features such as the accelerometer, notification LEDs and haptics feedback."

Arne Hess over at the::unwired reports that Samsung's Innovator project is now available to join. By doing so you'll be able to access not only Windows Mobile APIs but also Samsung's APIs for device specific stuff like haptic feedback!

Both the Samsung SGH-i780 (European version) and Verizon Wireless' XV6900 (HTC Touch) have finally been blessed with Windows Mobile 6.1 upgrades. Visit our Windows Mobile 6.1 upgrade thread for links to these upgrades, as well as many more.

Product Category: Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional Smartphone

Manufacturer: Samsung

Where to Buy: Expansys [Affiliate]

Price: $689 USD (16 GB), $634 USD (8 GB)

Specifications: 5 MP Camera, 3.2 TFT WQVGA Touch screen (240 x 400), Bluetooth 2.0, Wi-Fi 802.11g, Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE, HSDPA 7.2 Mbits, TV-out, FM Radio, Integrated GPS, microSDHC, 1440mA battery

Pros:

• Fun to use & responsive;
• Sleek design;
• Innovative value-added features (e.g. flashlight, haptic feedback).

Cons:

• Widget Bar: full of promise, low on usability;
• No multitouch ability;
• Price and availability.

Summary: I've posted news on the Samsung Omnia over the last few months and found it to be interesting enough to purchase. What I found when I opened the box got me excited to be using Windows Mobile again, something I doubted could ever happen. Read on for my experience re-discovering the OS through Samsung's vision of usability. Read more...