Samsung Bada powered Wave launches on Rogers and Bell today

[howard]

The Wave is now available on Bell and Rogers for $99.99.

It's powered by Samsung's new OS Bada (which means Ocean in Korean). So Ocean - Wave - get it?

Hardware wise the Wave packs a WVGA super AMOLED display (no one but Samsung gets those for now), 1Ghz processor and 5 megapixel camera with flash (unlike the Vibrant).



I used one before and it's a pretty modern device with stuff like push email (Exchange), a browser that works, an on screen keyboard that works and social networking integration built into the OS.

The big thing is that it's powered by Bada. While I'm sure everyone rolls their eyes and thinks "geez, another smartphone OS" there are some reasons why Samsung brought it out. First off it will save Samsung money on licensing fees which will allow them to sell cheaper smartphones, secondly if they do things right people who want a Bada phone will have to buy a Samsung. The last thing is more intriguing. Samsung makes everything; TV's, microwaves, dish washers, stoves, washers, dryers, etc, etc, etc. They could use a version of Bada for these devices later... after all I have been dying for an internet connected stove for some time.

Official specs from Samsung:

Samsung Wave (S8500) Product Specifications

Network 2.5G (GSM/ GPRS/ EDGE) : 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz
3G (WCDMA/ HSDPA) : 850/1900 MHz
Display 3.3” WVGA (800x480) Super AMOLED with mDNIe
Camera 5.0 Megapixel camera w/ LED Flash, AF
Face/Blink Detection, Vintage Shot, Beauty Shot,
Smile Shot, Panorama Shot, Geo-tagging, Image Editor
Video HD(720p) video playing and recording
5.1ch Mobile Theater
MPEG4, H.263, H.264, WMV,DivX, XviD Video Editor
Audio Music Player with SoundAlive, Music Recognition, DISK UI,
3.5mm Ear Jack, FM Radio/ Recording
Value-added Features Integrated Messaging ‘Social Hub’
(*Availability of Social Hub can be decided by market demands.)
Samsung Apps
(*Availability of Samsung Apps differs by country)
TouchWiz 3.0 w/Integrated phonebook, Voice & Motion UI
Dolfin Browser 2.0 / Pinch Zoom(Multi-pointed zoom)
A-GPS, On/Off Board Navigation(2D/3D Map), LBS
SMS/ MMS/ Email/ Video Messaging/Exchange ActiveSync
Accelerator Sensor, Proximity Sensor, GeoMagnetic Sensor
BPP(Basic Printing Profile), OPP(Object Push Profile),
PictBridge (USB Printing)
Offline & No SIM Mode,
RSS Reader, Communities & Mobile Widgets
Connectivity Bluetooth technology v 3.0
USB v2.0 (Full -Speed)
Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
Memory 2GB + microSD (Up to 32GB)
Size 118 x 56 x 10.9mm
Battery (Standard) Li-Ion, 1,500 mAh