Samsung i8910 HD: Miscellaneous Musings

Published by Steve Litchfield at 8:30 UTC, December 6th 2009

I'm repeatedly called a Nokia 'fanboy' in various comment threads by a small but determined set of Samsung i8910 HD-owning zealots*, and I'd like to respond with my own objective thoughts on the state of this Symbian flagship. Read on for what's good and bad about the i8910 HD (Omnia HD in some markets), along with a number of relevant links for further reading.

* Definition: "Zealot", noun, someone who is over-passionate about a belief device, to the extent that they fail to see positives in other beliefs devices.

First of all, it's absolutely 100% true that the Samsung i8910 HD represents the hardware pinnacle in the Symbian world. It even arguably bests the recently available Sony Ericsson Satio (which has its own issues, of course). And yes, I agree that the i8910 HD's hardware knocks most of Nokia's hardware into a cocked hat, with:

• 256MB of RAM
• 3.7" OLED and capacitive touchscreen
• graphics acceleration and fast processor, plus hardware decoding of a wide range of video formats
• 8mp camera with 720p video recording
• fashionable slate form factor, no moving parts, media-centric focus

Absolutely noone is disputing the i8910 HD's status in terms of being a lust-worthy bit of kit. It's still positively stunning. Read my largely positive detailed review of the Samsung i8910 HD for more on all the upsides of the device. Here it is, next to Nokia's nearest equivalent, the N97:

All things being equal, the Samsung flagship should have trounced everything before it, yet I still find the device sits unused for most of the time in my cupboard. For just a few reasons why, and to give the aforementioned zealots * (definition above) a glimpse into my objective thoughts on the matter, read on:

• There's even less internal flash memory (disk C) than in the much-maligned Nokia N97, leading to all sorts of problems for new users, though most geeks can work around this by using the 8GB/16GB mass memory more and by (see link below) even cooking custom ROMs which leave more flash memory free.
   
• Lack of kinetic scrolling - there are reasons why S60 5th Edition got itself a bad name and having to use fiddly scroll bars was one of the biggest. With the Nokia N97 and N97 mini having full in-page, in-list, in-dialog kinetic/flick scrolling, S60 5th Edition becomes, at least in part, comparable to the modern UIs on the likes of the iPhone and Android phones. On the other hand, the barebones 5th Edition UI seen here in the Samsung i8910 HD is mostly just as clumsy as in the Nokia 5800 and other more basic 5th Edition phones.
   
• Lack of support for User Data Preservation (UDP, very handy when updating firmware, as it means you don't have to reinstall everything) or Over The Air updating, both integral parts of Symbian OS but not apparently implemented by Samsung. This latter is just about essential in 2009/2010, every current Nokia Symbian phone has it, for example, and it's a terrifically convenient way of updating. It's also far easier for the average user, not needing a PC and also being reminded automatically when OTA firmware is available.
   
• There's a noticeable hiss on the audio track of any recorded videos. This can be fixed, after a fashion, by tweaking the mic gain down, though this does reduce overall volume and, most importantly, involves a trip into the weird world of 'secret' menus and general hackery, definitely not recommended for non-geeks.
   
  
• The Samsung approach to handling media files remains puzzling. There are still four obvious ways, from the main menu, to browse and play your videos (RealPlayer, Gallery, MediaBrowser and VideoPlayer) - with S60 already arguably being complicated enough, why on earth complicate things with four different applications to access/play the same content?
   
• Staying with media, one crucial element for any smartphone in the UK these days is full BBC iPlayer support, effectively turning your smartphone into a TV. Alas, Samsung doesn't yet have the right DRM capabilities to handle the BBC's programme download system, restricting you to streaming when in range of Wi-Fi.
   
  
• The clumsy TouchWiz 'widget' homescreen may seem like a boon to those upgrading from lesser Samsung feature phones, but it's next to useless for the Symbian power user. You can turn it off in Settings (switch the 'Homescreen theme' to 'Finger use') but then you've got absolutely none of the S60 homescreen plug-ins that we've been used to for years. E.g. Calendar summary, music player control, Wi-Fi scanning, device search. It all feels like a step backwards. thankfully. [thx to comment thread for correction here]
   
• Possible lack of future support. Samsung have stated that they don't plan on releasing any new Symbian phones in 2010 - and as you'll have gathered from the points here - they haven't exactly been falling over themselves to pour resources behind the i8910 HD in its launch year, 2009. And they're launching a whole new smartphone platform this week ('bada') - yes, Nokia also have Series 40 and Maemo, but they've clearly shown in text and graphics that they plan to increase their use (and support) of Symbian. Buying a phone with no guaranteed future in terms of manufacturer support and updates is like buying a sports car from a company that's about to stop making sports cars.
   
  A smartphone is an investment for most people - and that means buying it for the long haul, a year or two - and it's thus vital to be confident that the manufacturer will still be interested in the device at the end of that period. Now, Samsung haven't defaulted on the i8910 HD yet - and the likes of Nokia don't have a spotless track record here - but it's definitely something to bear in mind. It's worth noting that Italian firmwares keep being rolled out, as do some in the East, but this does bring me round neatly to....
  
  
• Distribution weaknesses. Nokia has the reach to make sure its Symbian phones get to all corners of the globe, in all languages and also subsidised on most operators. Samsung has seriously underperformed here, not believing in this device, with the result that it's only officially carried by a handful of networks across the world in a handful of countries. In the UK, a deal was struck with Orange, with appropriate crippling, and to this day if you want a SIM-free i8910 HD you probably have to make do with an Italian unit and change its language yourself using your knowledge of pigeon-Italian to find your way through the dialogs - every single time you update its firmware.
   
• There are plenty of other issues that need looking at by Samsung. There's even an organised petition, currently with almost 2000 signatures, with a detailed PDF that gives Samsung a to-do list.

It's at this point that the i8910 HD-owning zealots (and I call them this because they seem incapable of appreciating good points from other devices and marques) start directing me to underground geek forums where enterprising i8910 HD owners have got fed up waiting for Samsung and have started creating their own firmware images, mixing and matching the best features into a veritable firmware cocktail, from the various modules officially released by Samsung.

It's not all bad, of course. The II1 firmware, released three months ago, made the i8910 HD eminently useable as a day to day smartphone at long last, provided the owner is prepared to put in a little geek effort setting things up (Si parla Italiano?) and working around a few omissions (relative to the Nokia Symbian flagships).

Do I wish Samsung well with the device? Of course I do. I'm at heart a huge Samsung/S60 fan - or at least I want to be, and I get on famously with the guys at Samsung Mobile Innovator. But Samsung's firmware teams just keep (on the G810, on the 550w, on the INNOV8 and now on the i8910) letting me down with half-baked software and support. Which, at least, is one area where Nokia seem to be trying a heck of a lot harder.

Steve Litchfield, All About Symbian, 7 Dec 2009

News Discussion

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tenkom I cannot understand why always seem to be so harsh on phones having more than one way of doing things. Like the omnia having 2 video players, several ways of getting to you photos etc. You usually give htc phones the same because of Pocket IE and opera mobile being on the same phone. It may be unnecessary. But does it ACTUALLY matter? Only a complete moron would actually be confused by having 2 browsers. And certainly not the type of buyer that would buy an omnia(or any smartphone). Some would welcome the idea of having 2 choices since no mobile browser will work on every page(admittedly pocket IE is complete garbage). In fact I consider this a strength of symbian. Since between s60 web, opera mini, skyfire and now opera mobile there are very few pages you cannot get to. And if you always just use the same app you can just hide the other app away in some folder you never go to. Choice is good IMO.

I 100% agree with Tenkom. If you have a choice of ways of doing things, you can pick the one you prefer and stick with it. What's the problem?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Unregistered @UKJeeper. You seem to have misunderstood the problem with DRM and iPlayer. The DRM allows you to download and keep (for a limited period) BBC programmes for playback anywhere, anytime, unconnection. I love it and it's the killer app that keeps my with my current phone. Regardless of whether it is the fault of Samsung or the Beeb, lack of this brilliant facility is a drawback.

If you have a Macbook there is a fantastic bit of s/ware called iPlayer Downloader that strips out the DRM on iPlayer and lets you keep the stuff much longer. Solves the issue for me on iPhone, but does download .mov files which I seem to be unable to play directly on the N97 mini, but I guess there would be a free converter around if I looked.

Kev

Quote:

Originally Posted by UKJeeper At least down the 5th edition route. It'd be great if, as a Symbian Foundation chair holder, they looked into getting a future version (3 or 4) to install on the i8910. But i won't hold my breath. I can't think of a single phone that has ever been offically ported to a new OS. And i don't think this will be the first.

Given that S60 5th edition is also known as Symbian^1, Symbian^3 is not a "new OS", but rather a new release of the same OS. And I can think of plenty of phones that have been ported to a new OS release. People who bought the original iPhone in July 2007 can (and probably should) upgrade their phones to the latest 3.1 OS release. The T-Mobile G1 has been upgraded to 1.5, and then again recently to 1.6. Buyers of Omnia 2 handsets who are still running WinMo 6.1 are entitled to a free upgrade to 6.5. The Palm Pre's WebOS has been upgraded many times, from the original 1.0 release to the current 1.3.1. And what I'm talking here are manufacturer- and carrier-sanctioned upgrades, which can be installed without voiding your warranty. But you're partially right: I can't think of a single Symbian phone that has ever been officially upgraded to a subsequent OS release.
While certainly Samsung bears the brunt of responsibility for abandoning the i8910, maybe there's also a lesson to be learn here about the inherent non-upgradability of Symbian phones. I can't help but feel that the the i8910 future would certainly be rosier had this been an Android GE handset instead.

Quote:

Originally Posted by UKJeeper Its incredibly sensitive to touch, sometimes too much. Raindrops hitting the screen actually open apps and menu's! Annoying but also kind of nice.

I am confused. Someone help me please. AFAIK, don't capacitive screens need the electrical energy / pulse or something from your fingers to work and that is why they don't work with gloves on, stylus, etc. How do raindrops get the i8910 HD capacitive screen to work??

Quote:

Originally Posted by rvirga I can't think of a single Symbian phone that has ever been officially upgraded to a subsequent OS release.

Though it's probably not counted as 'official', the Nokia N97 now runs Symbian^2 to all intents and purposes. But yes, this type of mammoth upgrade has been somewhat unusual.

The N95 getting demand paging was another bug surprise - there have been 'backporting' examples if you look closely enough.

In Nokia's defense, there are generally more hardware-specific 'gadgets' on their phones and a wider range of form factors that, together, require a degree of customisation in terms of firmware than would be the case for, say, an iPhone to get upgraded.

Quote:

Originally Posted by slitchfield Though it's probably not counted as 'official', the Nokia N97 now runs Symbian^2 to all intents and purposes. But yes, this type of mammoth upgrade has been somewhat unusual.

According to a recent article here in AAS, Symbian^3 will include support for HD recording and playback, and possibly multiple homescreens with custom-sized widgets. Based on that, we could also claim that the i8910 runs Symbian^3, but that would be BS as well. Backporting/implementing selected features from Symbian^2 or Symbian^3 do not make a handset Symbian^2 or Symbian^3. Both the i8910 and the N97 are Symbian^1.

Quote:

In Nokia's defense, there are generally more hardware-specific 'gadgets' on their phones and a wider range of form factors that, together, require a degree of customisation in terms of firmware than would be the case for, say, an iPhone to get upgraded.

I can't think of a single 'gadget' that Nokia phones have and, say, Android and/or WinMo handsets don't; perhaps you can be more specific. And, up to now, Symbian^1 phones have come in just 2 form factors, pure tablet and with slide-out keyboard. Again, not different at all from the current WinMo/Android lineup. There's nothing that you can say in Nokia's defence in this respect, and you actually trying is just your fanaticism showing.

I know you're just trying to wind me up, but hey, it's Monday....

Quote:

Originally Posted by rvirga I can't think of a single 'gadget' that Nokia phones have and, say, Android and/or WinMo handsets don't; perhaps you can be more specific. And, up to now, Symbian^1 phones have come in just 2 form factors, pure tablet and with slide-out keyboard.

I was looking over the last 5 years. Nokia have experimented with 6 or 7 different form factors and screen sizes, plus have dallied with digital compass, Xenon flash, FM Transmitters, stereo speakers, multimedia playback controls, active kick stands, variable aperture cameras, LED torch mode, dual screens, active noise cancellation and a lot more, all more or less unique to Nokia - I'm sure readers here could pick out more gadgets. And they all need integrating in various ways to the on-board software.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rvirga Given that S60 5th edition is also known as Symbian^1, Symbian^3 is not a "new OS", but rather a new release of the same OS. And I can think of plenty of phones that have been ported to a new OS release. People who bought the original iPhone in July 2007 can (and probably should) upgrade their phones to the latest 3.1 OS release. The T-Mobile G1 has been upgraded to 1.5, and then again recently to 1.6. Buyers of Omnia 2 handsets who are still running WinMo 6.1 are entitled to a free upgrade to 6.5. The Palm Pre's WebOS has been upgraded many times, from the original 1.0 release to the current 1.3.1. And what I'm talking here are manufacturer- and carrier-sanctioned upgrades, which can be installed without voiding your warranty. But you're partially right: I can't think of a single Symbian phone that has ever been officially upgraded to a subsequent OS release. .

Perhaps i'm misunderstanding here but i was under the impression that the upcoming Symbian OS'es will be a completely different system to 5th edition and any other preceeding S60 OS. A whole NEW OS, rather than an upgraded version. Which is what you've referred to above. They are all just upgrades rather NEW OS'es. Definitely true in the case of Win 6.5 at least. The underlying architecture is the same. I did not think that was the case for future Symbian OS.

Quote:

Originally Posted by UKJeeper Perhaps i'm misunderstanding here but i was under the impression that the upcoming Symbian OS'es will be a completely different system to 5th edition and any other preceeding S60 OS. A whole NEW OS, rather than an upgraded version. Which is what you've referred to above. They are all just upgrades rather NEW OS'es. Definitely true in the case of Win 6.5 at least. The underlying architecture is the same. I did not think that was the case for future Symbian OS.

Roughly :
Symbian ^ 1 = S60 v 3 / S60 compatible / Non Touch
Symbian ^ 2 = S60 v 5 / S60 compatible / Touch
Symbian ^ 3 = S60 v ? / S60 compatible / Touch + Non Touch (?)
Symbian ^ 4 = ? / NOT S60 compatible / Touch + Non Touch (?)

:) Regards jApi NL

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