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The Samsung Omnia M goes on sale on Wednesday, with Phones 4u confirmed to be flogging the Windows Phone-powered smart phone for its UK debut. But with specs that are hauntingly reminiscent of 2010’s Omnia 7, you might want to steer clear.
We first heard about the Omnia M back in May, when my eagle-eyed colleague Andrew spotted that its hardware was dead similar to that of Samsung’s earlier Windows Phone effort from two years ago. You get a 4-inch Super AMOLED screen, 1GHz processor and a 5-megapixel camera.
The only significant change is to the design — the Omnia M is a wee bit slimmer than its predecessor at 10.5mm thick. It has a similar rectangular build, though.
The Omnia M will run Windows Phone 7.5, which is currently the latest version of Microsoft’s tile-infused operating system. With specifications that echo early Windows Phone devices however, I’d be very surprised if the Omnia M receives an update to Windows Phone 8.
More likely is that the Omnia M will languish on the existing version of Microsoft’s patchwork platform, though it should receive the 7.8 update, which will introduce a revised homescreen.
Because Microsoft is preparing to hit current Windows Phone devices on the head with the obsoletion hammer, my advice to anyone interested in the platform would be to wait a few months — Windows 8 comes out on 26 October, at which point we’re sure to see a slew of more powerful, up-to-date mobiles from the likes of Nokia and Samsung.
If you simply must own the Omnia M, expect to fork out over £20.50 per month on a contract, or a shade under £290 to nab the phone SIM-free. That’s a lot of cash for a phone that has not a lot to offer, mind. For the first two months, Phones 4u will be the only shop to offer the smart phone.
By revealing that current mobiles won’t be getting Windows Phone 8, Microsoft has put its partners in the tricky spot of trying to sell phones to gadget fans who know that said blowers won’t be updated.
Has Microsoft made a mistake? Are you tempted by the Omnia M? Let me know in the comments or on our Facebook wall.
