One of the most exciting new launches from the recent IFA has been the latest touchscreen multimedia phone Samsung Omnia. Most of you by now will probably know about it’s specs, 5-mp digital camera, HSDPA and WiFi connectivity, Windows Mobile 6.1 running various Microsoft Office applications, a huge touchscreen that many have said is even better than the iPhone’s and a bundle of other functions such as handwriting recognition, etc…

So I’ve just seen a pretty good video and thought I’d share it here

Apparently the term Omnia means ‘Everything’ in Latin, and ‘Wish’ in Arabic, so the expectation associated to this new generation Samsung handset is pretty intense. Do we expect this handset to deliver on its foreign interpretation, or did somebody at Samsung get a new translator for Christmas? I’m sure we’ll find out pretty quickly.

By the time we had read through the ‘old testament’ style specification and features glossary, we were beginning to think we were on the verge of something special, an epiphany if you will. The actual first impressions of the design however were slightly different, as a second take was required to decipher whether or not I had been presented with a Samsung Tocco, on steroids.

However, the Samsung Omnia is presented in an extremely sleek black gloss finish, and actually only measures in at 12.5mm thick. Not bad considering an N96 is over 7mm thicker. Go back to the land that time forgot, namely when Motorola made nice phones, the touch screen mobile phone was little more than a fallacy and initial attempts at touch operation floated like rocks. I for one remember trying skimming an old Samsung E900 across the English Channel after giving the handset an intense jabbing , with a cattle prod. The Samsung Omnia’s touch screen though is so rich, intense, and reactive, whilst the 3.2inch screen is hugely refreshing and actually enjoyable to use.

The birth, or realisation, that main stream manufacturers can make money from smart phones started over the last couple of years, but nothing really came close to mass appeal until the I-Phone, and more recently the HTC Diamond. Both handsets have great appeal for their own ‘unique’ qualities, but the Samsung Omnia is truly a class above the rest thanks to its awesome Opera 9.5 web browser, that believe it or not, makes mobile web browsing tolerable.

The applications contained within the handset seem to also have purpose, and the ShoZu client Google packages gives great Google Search and Gmail response. The Omnia has a custom built A-GPS satellite navigation that uses wi-fi or 3G networks to give a much faster start up time, which is great when using the feature in your car. Unfortunately though, the Samsung Omnia doesn’t have a built in GPS application, so you will have to buy that, but Google Maps arrives onboard to get you started. Nothing quite like showing your friends your car is still in the drive on a night out.

Ultimately though this is a handset that screams high tech advancements, and the touch screen interaction is smooth and effortless. This might actually be the first Windows Mobile PocketPC that crosses the sunny waters to integrate as a multimedia entertainment device. Incidentally, we managed to watch a film on the Omnia on a recent train journey, using part of the phones gigantic 16GB memory, and the quality was terrific.

Just to round things up, as we do have limited space, the Samsung Omnia also has a 5 mega-pixel camera, built in radio, Pocket Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint, OneNote, PDF viewer), Microsoft Windows 6.1 Professional, and up to a 16GB memory.

I know I bravely mentioned earlier that many already think that the Omnia is much more powerful than the iPhone, here’s my list to support that…

• Ability to rotate in three directions in all applications
• Ability to connect to A2DP headphones or a Bluetooth keyboard
• Ability to tether the device to a PC with a wired or wireless connection
• 5 megapixel camera that captures video and has image stabilization with flash
• Download and store podcasts wirelessly
• Access the file system and connect as a flash drive or via Bluetooth to a PC
• FM radio with RDS support
• Office Mobile support (creation and editing)
• Cut, copy, and paste
• Handwriting recognition
• 3rd party navigation and turn-by-turn direction support
• Advanced 3rd party support (SlingPlayer, photo/video editing, etc.)
• Advanced Exchange/Outlook synchronization capability
• Haptic feedback
• Removable battery
• Removable storage card

I highly recommend you also check out Matt’s first impressions of the Samsung Omnia from ZDNet…

Meanwhile here are some photos…

[via ZDNet, DailyMobile]