Samsung has announced two devices for Verizon here in Vegas at CES, and one of those devices was the ATIV Odyssey, a mid-tiered Windows Phone 8 handset that should be landing on Verizon Wireless within the coming weeks, at what we’d imagine to be at a very affordable price point.
Here’s a quick rundown of the Odyssey’s specs:
- Super AMOLED Display (WVGA 800×480)
- 5-megapixel rear-facing camera with LED flash and full 1080p recording and 1080p playback
- Front-facing 1.2-megapixel camera for video chat
- Global Ready calling and email capabilities in more than 220 countries in the world
- Wi-Fi connectivity (802.11 a/b/g/n)
- 8 GB on board storage (actual formatted capacity is less)/ 1 GB RAM
- Support for up to 64 GB microSD card
- 2100 mAh battery
In our current world of “bigger is better” when it comes to smartphones, picking up the Odyssey is very nice. A 4 inch phone might seem pretty small compared to most smartphones out there today, but the Odyssey fits great in the hand, allowing you to feel like you have a real grip on the device.
The face of the device is just what you’d expect any Windows Phone to be. It’s very much a standard affair beyond the 4-inch WVGA Super AMOLED display of the Odyssey. Below the display, you’ll find the expected three Windows Phone buttons for back, home, and search. The left spine of the handset is where you’ll find the volume rocker and microSD card slot, and the right spine houses the dedicated camera button and power/lock key.The rear of the device houses the 5 megapixel pixel camera and LED Flash, along with the speaker grill at the bottom that stretches from side to side.
We’re not surprised to see that Samsung used plastics when making the ATIV Odyssey, especially give the tier that the handset finds itself in. Nonetheless, it very may well be one of the best Windows Phone handsets for a first-time smartphone user. The simple set of features still brings a decent camera, processor, and LTE support to the table, so it’s hard to complain about. We can only hope the pricing of the device will find itself somewhere in the sub-$100 range.
Overall, the Samsung ATIV Odyssey is a nice little phone that won’t break the bank when it makes it finally lands on Verizon shelves.
Check out the gallery below.