subject: Sporting a Familiar Look: The Samsung Omnia Pro B7610 by:Simon Drew [print this page] With a renewed vigor, Samsung has returned with their latest mobile phone in the form of the new Samsung Omnia Pro B7610. Expected to be released in Q3 of this year, this new device is Samsung's attempt to break into the big leagues when it comes to communicator mobiles. Here's a quick review of the Omnia Pro B7610.
Not Quite a Charmer
Much like other mobiles in this category (i.e. HTC Touch Pro2 or Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1), the B7610 is also a bulky handset. Its dimensions are 112.6 x 57.8 x 16.2 mm - its thickness attributed to its slide-out QWERTY keyboard. But then again it's actually quite light at 159 grams; that is if one were to compare it to its closest competitor, the HTC Touch Pro2 (178.5 grams).
With its massive body and bulky construction design, the sleek finish couldn't do enough to save the B7610's ergonomics. Samsung tried to put in some flair and creativity by adding a bright red battery cover on the back of the device, but even this couldn't work wonders - it actually looks a bit awkward and out of place.
Screening Process
One thing that's going for the B7610 is its 3.5-inch touch screen which makes use of Samsung's AMOLED technology. It is a high resolution display (800 x 400 pixels; 16M colours) that is able to produce excellent image quality. However, some believe that the B7610's resistive touch screen could have been better. Although it does perform decently, it is not in the same league with the Samsung Pixon 12 or the S8000 Jet, which both have capacitive touch screens.
The biggest issue of the B7610's screen is sunlight eligibility. Yes it's true that it is able to produce image quality of the highest level, but seeing it becomes a problem when it is exposed to sunlight. The glare of the sun makes it difficult for users to see and navigate through the mobile's menu.
Come On Board
The moment it slides out, users will be glad to realize that the QWERTY keyboard is actually quite a pleasure to use. The keys are aptly sized and are very responsive which means that composing messages can be done with ease. Although it is a fact that nothing beats the good old standard desktop keyboard for writing emails, the B7610's slide-out QWERTY keyboard is as good as it gets when it comes to mobile phones.
