Samsung has just announced a new Windows Phone called the Omnia M. It has a 1 GHz processor, 5 megapixel camera, 4 inch Super AMOLED display, 7.2 Mbps 3G connectivity, and a decently sized 1,500 mAh battery. What makes it strange though is that it has 384 MB of RAM. That’s not enough to run the full version of Windows Phone 7.5, but it’s also too much to run the low end version of Windows Phone 7.5. The Lumia 610 for example, Nokia’s “cheap” Windows Phone, has an 800 MHz processor and 256 MB of RAM. We expect to see a plethora of devices with the same specifications enter the market during the summer. The Omnia M though … we’re left scratching our heads. What exactly is Samsung trying to do here? Anway, how much will this thing cost? Samsung doesn’t say. Where is going to ship? It’s coming to Europe first, and then other regions later.
The real important question: Should you buy this thing? No. Why? Because next month Microsoft is going to hold an event for developers where we expect to hear the first details about Windows Phone 8, codenamed Apollo. While it hasn’t been officially confirmed yet, multiple sources, including our own, have said that today’s Windows Phones will not be upgraded to Apollo, so there’s no point in buying a device that’ll be obsolete by the end of the year. Also, while Windows Phone 8 will run Windows Phone 7.5 applications, developers looking to take full advantage of Apollo are likely going to be writing their apps using new frameworks that aren’t compatible with today’s Windows Phones.
So why did Samsung bother releasing this thing? That’s a very good question. Probably to keep prospective Lumia 610 or Lumia 710 buyers away from Nokia hardware, though that’s just speculation on our part.
Keep your eyes peeled for news from the Windows Phone Developer Summit.
[Via: The Verge]
Update: It should be noted that this has just 4 GB of storage. You can’t bump that up either.