Samsung expands Wave, Omnia lines

SINGAPORE–Samsung announced a slew of new handsets at this year’s CommunicAsia trade show in Singapore. In addition to the Galaxy 3 and Galaxy 5 Android entrants, the company expanded its Omnia and Wave portfolios with new Windows Mobile and Bada devices.

When it first announced its Bada mobile platform last November, Samsung said it was meant for low- to midrange devices. However, there seemed to be some contradiction as its first Bada phone, the Wave, came with a fast 1GHz processor and the Sammy’s best Super AMOLED display. With the new Wave 2 (S5250) and Wave2 Pro (S5330), the company will be realizing that plan. The two handsets come with a 3.2-inch WQVGA screen and 2.5G connectivity. High-speed Internet is still possible, as they feature Wi-Fi, though you’ll need to be within range of a hotspot for that to work.

A year back, Samsung greatly expanded its Omnia (Windows Phone) lineup with multiple products bearing different form factors. This time, the two new Omnia Pro 4 (B7350) and Omnia Pro 5 (B6520) are simply updates of the non-touch-screen B7330 smartphone. They come with pretty standard features, including a QVGA display (Pro 5) or 320 x 320-pixel screen (Pro 4) and HSDPA connectivity.

Here are the details of the new phones. For more of the action in Singapore, check out CNET Asia’s full CommuniAsia coverage.

Samsung Wave 2

Wow factor: With the Wave 2, Samsung is realizing its low- to midrange plans for the Bada platform.
Expected: August
Price: TBD
Notable features:

  • Runs Samsung’s Bada platform
  • Quad-band GSM/Wi-Fi/Bluetooth
  • Samsung TouchWiz 3.0 interface
  • 240 x 400-pixel display

Samsung Wave 2 Pro

Wow factor: The Wave 2 Pro adds a landscape QWERTY keyboard.
Expected: August
Price: TBD
Notable features:

  • Runs Samsung’s Bada platform
  • Quad-band GSM/Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/A-GPS
  • Samsung TouchWiz 3.0 interface
  • 240 x 400-pixel display

Samsung Omnia Pro 4

Wow factor: The Omnia Pro 4 has a BlackBerry-like design and runs Windows Mobile.
Expected: July
Price: TBD
Notable features:

  • Runs Windows Mobile 6.5
  • Quad-band GSM/HSDPA/Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/A-GPS
  • 3.2-megapixel camera
  • 320 x 320-pixel display

Samsung Omnia Pro 5

Wow factor: The Omnia Pro 5 has a landscape-oriented QVGA display instead of a square version found in the Pro 4.
Expected: August
Price: TBD
Notable features:

  • Runs Windows Mobile 6.5
  • Quad-band GSM/HSDPA/Wi-Fi/Bluetooth/A-GPS
  • 2-megapixel camera
  • 320 x 240-pixel display

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