Samsung beats Nokia to NZ in Windows Phone race
Nokia is banking on a Microsoft partnership to revive its fortunes - but Samsung could be the first to NZ with a smartphone based on Windows Phone 7.5 software.
Nokia’s Lumia 800 may be the most trumpeted smartphone based on Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7.5 software (aka Mango). After all, Nokia is betting the farm that its multi-billion Microsoft partnership can revive its fortunes.
But Samsung now seems set to beat Nokia to the New Zealand market with a Windows Phone 7 handset.
The Samsung Omnia W (Where do they get these names – editor?) features a 3.7-inch touchscreen, 1.4GHz processor, a 5 megapixel digital camera and support for 14.4Mbit/s HSPA+.
Samsung says the Omnia will be available by the end of November, with release confined to a single carrier (Vodafone).
Nokia has offered no New Zealand release date for the Lumia 800, but Vodafone has indicated it expects handsets in the new year.
Pricing has yet to be announced, but in the US, the Omnia W has been billed as a (relatively) low-cost Mango phone, priced at $US422 ($522), whereas Nokia's Lumia 800 will likely cost between $800 and $1000.
For the time being, Nokia NZ is focussing its attention on the N9, the first - and likely last - smartphone to run on the Meego software Nokia co-developed with Intel.
BELOW: Omnia W tech specs (click to zoom):
NBR staff
Mon, 31 Oct 2011
Mon, 31 Oct 2011
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Samsung beats Nokia to NZ in Windows Phone race
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