MWC 2010 - Samsung Unpacked
As the first of many more bada based phones to come, the Wave was a big focus at Samsung's Unpacked event at Mobile World Congress 2010. We got some hands-on time with this bada phone, including a video! *Update* - A slew of other new Samsung phones were spotted on the show floor as well as an extensive showcase of their apps and ecosystem. Check them out now!
Unpacking Samsung bada
Traditionally speaking, Mobile World Congress has always been the place to be when the most exciting mobile phone announcements take place. And that was proven true this year as well for Samsung as it hosted its annual Samsung Unpacked event to showcase its latest mobile line-up.
For 2010, all eyes are on Samsung's bada operating system (OS), which was announced in December 2009. While Samsung has made its stand to support its current OS partners, the fact of the matter is, bada (which means ocean) will be the first step for the Korean chaebol to woo developers over to work on its platform.
From the OS, to the developers, and now onto the final stage - the product. At the Samsung Unpacked event, the first bada phone, dubbed as the Samsung Wave GT-S8500, has just been unveiled. Cutting to the chase, we had some hands-on time with the Wave, and give you a quick video summary of the features found on this new bada-powered device.
 | Samsung Wave GT-S8500 - Key Specs
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With the Wave, the Korean chaebol is introducing their latest AMOLED technology on their inaugural bada phone. The 3.3-inch display with 800 x 480 pixels resolution uses Samsung's latest AMOLED OnCell technology, which they dubbed as Super AMOLED. In more technical terms, the new 0.001mm-thick capacitive touch sensors are deposited between the panel's substrate and the bottom polarizer film. This translates to the elimination of the glass display, thus giving way to less reflective displays, brighter and clearer images and most importantly, lighter devices.
Under direct sunlight, the Google Nexus One's (left) AMOLED display is totally washed out, whereas there is still a semblance of legibility with the Samsung Wave's Super AMOLED display.
The Samsung bada is not just the first Samsung device under the bada platform. It also represents Samsung's first foray into Bluetooth 3.0 and sports a 1GHz processor. Besides the usual hardware upgrades, software updates are also in order. In this case, we are looking at the new TouchWiz 3.0 user interface. On paper, the TouchWiz 3.0 UI seems to be having a strong focus on social networking. Besides the obvious aesthetic changes, you'll also get new widgets that give you instant access to your Facebook and Twitter news feeds.
Samsung's new TouchWiz 3.0 interface reshuffles its widget bar at the bottom, and adds more widgets for easy access to your social networking sites.
A 5-megapixel camera with LED flash resides at the back, and comes with advanced imaging features such as Blink Detection and Beauty Shot amongst others.
The microUSB port is protected by a sliding cover. At its side is the 3.5mm audio port, supporting 5.1 surround sound.
A side-by-side comparison of the Samsung Wave (left), Google Nexus One (center) and Apple iPhone 3GS (right).
In short, the Samsung Wave, as its name suggests, will be bringing a wave of change. Tied to its bada operating system, the Wave is going to be one of Samsung's key focus products in the months to come.
With the key focus covered, we give you a rundown of Samsung's Unpacked event in the next couple of pages.
Samsung Unpacked at Barcelona - Part I
Samsung opened its doors to its second Unpacked Event (the first was a three-country unveiling that saw the launch of the Jet last year), this time to coincide with the Mobile World Congress 2010 event at Hall 8 of the Fira Barcelona complex along Gran Via in Barcelona, Spain.
The entrance to the Samsung Unpacked event, which was held at Hall 8 of the Fira Barcelona complex, a distance away from the main Mobile World Congress
In the presentation hall, three ceiling high walls were mounted with display screens corner-to-corner that made you feel as if you're in a box looking out into the ocean. As the presentation went underway, the audience was moved from the surface of the ocean deeper towards the bottom, as different announcements were made.
Right from the start, Mr. JK Shin, President, Head of Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics, came on stage to welcome guests and journalists. He explained that despite the economic recession, Samsung saw its mobile business grow by 16% when others saw theirs shrink by 8%. This is thanks to it becoming number 1 in the touch screen mobile phone business.
Mr. JK Shin, President, Head of Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics welcomes journalists and partners.
Mr. JK Shin said that despite the economic recession in 2009, Samsung had tremendous growth of 16% as it became no 1 in full touch screen phone.
One objective is to herald in the smartphone era, making it available to everyone all over the world.
The democratization of the smartphone era is Samsung's commitment to offer smartphones to all regardless of need, cost, lifestyle and geography.
To fulfill this, Samsung plans to increase support for developers, continue to orientate around consumers and work with operators.
Mr. Shin further elaborated that Samsung is committed to making smartphones available for everyone across different lifestyles, cost, need and geographical locations. He terms it as the democratization of the smartphone era, and to do this, Samsung will have to support the developer community, orientate around consumers' tastes and lifestyles and collaborate with operators.
Mr JK Shin shares that by this year, Samsung Apps will be available in more than 50 countries. Its Bada platform will be a major driving force.
Mr. JK Shin also explained that Samsung Apps, the online app store launched in three countries last year, will see it launch in over 50 countries this year. He said that Bada, Samsung's new mobile platform, will be a driving force in its smartphone strategy.
The launch of the Samsung Wave, the company's first bada-based smartphone with Touch Wiz UI 3.0 and Bluetooth 3.0, including the ultra-bright Super AMOLED screen and 1GHz processor, signals the company's dedication in its multi-prong strategy to continue its no. 1 touch screen mobile phone position.
The highlight of the event was of course the Samsung Wave. Key features include the Super AMOLED screen, bada & Samsung Apps and Social Hub.
Super AMOLED improves over AMOLED technology by reducing the additional glass panel above the touch sensor.
Social Hub is an integration of contacts, inbox and push calendar functions that makes the new Touch Wiz UI 3.0 a seamless consumer experience.
Besides the impressive hardware behind the Samsung Wave (no pricing details yet, but we believe it should launch by Q2), an important aspect is the announcement of Social Hub. It integrates contacts, with an ultimate inbox and push calendaring, allowing users to call someone without having to exit what they're doing, social network direct without needing to jump into an app just to do so and so on. It reminded us of a combination of what we first saw in Palm's Synergy and Google's Android, but coupled with Samsung's Bada and the intense hardware specs of a smartphone like the Wave, we think the combination might give Samsung the edge in the field of mobile social networking.
Samsung Unpacked at Barcelona - Part II
Thomas Richter, Director for Portfolio Management, Samsung Telecommunications Europe, shares news that Bada supports dynamic Flash.
The challenge of course is how the company will work with developers once Samsung Apps and the Bada mobile platform become more widely available worldwide, as well as how the company will communicate its Social Hub features of integration, social networking and push across different apps to its consumer base who has, or once were familiarized with previous versions of Samsung products and UIs.
Of course, during the presentation, Mr. Thomas Richter, Director for Portfolio Management, Samsung Telecommunications Europe, also emphasized that the Samsung Bada platform supports the Flash UI and that the Wave smartphone is just one episode of bigger "waves" to come.
We look forward to seeing more "waves" from this company of course.
A model at the Unpacked event holding the Samsung Wave.
Journalists trying the Samsung Wave and its many functions and features.
Samsung's MWC 2010 Booth Highlights: Devices & Software
Samsung's booth is located in Hall 8, with wave design patterns to herald the introduction of the Samsung Wave, its first bada-based smartphone.
Besides the Samsung Wave, which of course stole the show alongside bada and Samsung Apps, there are of course other devices on display at the Samsung booth in Hall 8 of the MWC 2010 event.
Most of these items are already announced, or have been shown recently but it doesn't hurt to relook at them.
Here's a comparison of the brightness level and depth among Touch LCD, Touch AMOLED and Super AMOLED.
This diagram shows exactly how Super AMOLED allows for a thinner screen profile compared to TFT LCD and AMOLED. This is possible with the removal of the additional touch panel glass and adding the touch sensor on the AMOLED glass itself.
The Samsung Beam, which has yet to be launched, is an Android-based smartphone with a pico projector (which projects whatever you do on-screen in real time). It has a 3.7-inch Super AMOLED screen, on-spot mobile TV (optional) and 5-megapixel camera.
The Samsung Diva Collection series was introduced during the Amsterdam Fashion Week in November 2009 and it makes an appearance at MWC. Targeted at a female audience, this model (S5150 Olivia) has a 2.2 QVGA screen and 3-megapixel camera.
Here's the second Diva phone (S7070) which has a 3-inch WQVGA screen, 5-megapixel camera and a diamond-shaped jeweled button.
The Samsung B2100 is a waterproof and shock resistant phone. Being a sporty bar type phone, it is wrapped in an anti shock urethane material and comes with torch light, a large battery (1000mAh), Bluetooth 2.0/USB 2.0.
The Shark has a unique curvilinear design, especially for the candybar version. It comes with Samsung Communities, Multi IM (G-Talk, AIM and Palringo) and a 3-megapixel camera with Panorama Shot.
Samsung's MWC 2010 Booth Highlights: Devices & Software
Of course, besides the Wave, another most recent device announced by Samsung, is the Monte. This time, there were the candybar and slider version on show.
The Samsung Monte was announced just slightly over a week ago. Here's the wall panel at the Samsung booth dedicated to the Monte.
The Samsung Monte has a comfortable grip and organic body line. It features a 3.2-megapixel camera with Face Detection, and features like a pop-up SNS (social networking services)/Multi IM (G-talk, AIM, Palringo).
The Monte Bar is basically the same as the Monte except that it's a candybar version with an ergonomic rear body and smooth & rounded design. It also supports music recognition and background music.
The Monte Slider has a sleek and smooth surface design. The differentiation is of course the slide-out keypad.
The Samsung NP-N150 is the company's LTE Embedded notebook with an Intel ATOM processor and 10.1-screen (1024 x 600, LED). With LTE, it supports the 2.6GHz frequency (100Mbps download/50Mbps upload). It also comes with 3x USB 2.0, a 1.3-megapixel web cam, 6 cell battery (up to 8 hours), a 160GB hard disk.
The Samsung "Pine Tree" LTE RF integrated circuit supports the 3GPP band I, IV, and VII. Bandwidths supported range from 1.4, 3, 5, 10, 15 to 20Mbps.
Samsung bada and Apps
Besides devices, Samsung's initiative to go heavy on its bada platform, as well as build on its repertoire of apps for its Samsung Apps store, is clearly evident from the many booths where developers showcased the different apps they've created for the Wave (and future bada phones).
The Samsung bada IDE is based on Eclipse CDT, and the SDK consists of the UI design tool, GNU tool-chain, simulator and on-device testing environment. The IDE/SDK will be released to the public in March.
Samsung Apps is now available in a few countries (including Singapore) but will soon spread to over 50 countries by this year.
Samsung bada and Apps - continued
One of the Samsung Apps shown at MWC are two augmented reality games -- Kweekies and ARDefencer. Both utilize the camera on the Wave where by snapping a particular patterned square, certain items (be it a virtual character or a defensive tower type) will appear for you to interact with.
Here's a panel explanation of the two games in greater detail.
Another Samsung Apps shown was an adventure game where you move a glowing butterfly with your finger by touching the screen. The game is called Glo.
Here's an app from Samsung Apps that probably got some folks excited. The Chelsea FC app utilizes Flash to allow users to watch player profiles, stream videos and buy tickets.
Here's a look how the Facebook app looks on the Samsung Wave.
One of the more unique apps shown by developers for Samsung Apps is this one called My Places. It basically integrates social networking services like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace with Point of Interest (POI) creation and route calculation. An example would be a friend posts an interest POI on Facebook. You can track its location in relation to yours and check the fastest way to get there.
For emails, you can now integrate all your Web and social network accounts for easier access to your messages and emails.
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