Odyssey is imperfect, but like its
predecessor Focus 2, this budget Windows Phone has its own beauty…
The flood of Windows Phone 8 is now
retreating. HTC and Nokia have made their appearance famous with forceful statements
and even Huawei take action. Meanwhile, Samsung introduced itself by the hi-end
ATIV S, a new breath into Galaxy S III with the air from Microsoft. Nokia and
HTC are now having mid-segment models in the market. There’s just a gap needing
to be filled: a budget phone from Sammy. With the release of ATIV Odyssey, we
can believe that Windows Phone’s land will not be much dramatically changed in
the near future. (Of course, World Mobile Congress will quickly make out a liar
among us).
Samsung
ATIV Odyssey
ATIV S doesn’t have something airy or
colorful to race with Lumia 920 and HTC 8X. But in the middle segment, where ad
tricks and common styles are replaced with functions, may Samsung be able to mark
its position among RedMon followers? 2011’s Focus 2 and Focus Flash had a great
combination of price and functions by giving specs comparable to higher-end
rivals. More than one year later, the question is whether it is a successful
combination in a market that has been remarkably extended.
Hardware
Considering aspects, ATIV Odyssey is not
much different from other mid-segment models of Samsung. Below the cover are
similar components turning ATIV S into an appealing model. But externally, the
situation is completely different. The 4.8in screen size (720p) was shrunk down
to 4in, losing several pixels during such process. The Super AMOLED screen
feature WVGA – the resolution is more and more for cheapest Android models.
However, that is what people expect in
Windows Phone world, where HTC and Nokia used the similar resolution for 8S and
Lumia 820. It’s a pity when we got used to HD smartphone, shortages and
low-pixel resolution in display become more visible, especially with texts. And
in case you don’t notice, Windows Phone UI is simple blocks of colors and
texts. Though, it is not bad at all: the screen offer similar blacks that you may
find on other AMOLED models, along with colors that are biased towards
unnatural side. But, the familiar greens we realized in similar screens were
obviously clear here.
The device’s surface has nothing
surprising. Windows Phone’s capacitive buttons lies below the screen, right
when you have been expecting, while the chromium speaker grid, front camera and
sensor array are vertically line up on top. There’re also Verizon and Samsung
logos that are not much subtle, lying alongside the screen – only 2 of 4 logos
were immoderately ruined on the phone. Others, Verizon LTE and Windows Phone
logos, covers a large part of the 2,100mAh battery’s detachable cover. And you
have to pull it out to access SIM card. The panel is plastic-made, making it
look like aluminum, what ATIV S is having. On top lies 5MP camera and LED flash.
Two sides are covered in a cheap-looking plastic
chromium coat, giving us a hope that manufacturers will dislike it. Adding to
these fingerprint-attracting magnet bars are a usual arrangement of buttons and
ports. Along the right side is power/lock button and two-stage camera button. In
the left lie a volume rocker and a quite narrow port hiding micro-SD tray, a
rare treasure on Windows Phone. This slot can accept 64GB card, quite handy as
Odyssey has only 8GB of internal storage. Near the bottom is micro-USB port,
while the top surface contains the standard 3.5mm jack. Meanwhile, most of
these buttons may work as expected; the camera button feels quite soft.
The body is chubby and the smooth part
stays perfectly in palm, to such a degree that you mostly don’t feel its
slightly bulky 0.4in tilt surface. At least until you see it. The chromium bar is
to emphasize Odyssey’s thickness. The body is mainly plastic-made, making the
device look cheap, yet it has own advantage. First, it reduces the weight by 4.4ounce
– light enough for you to almost forget the phone is still in your pocket. Second,
it actually makes the phone sturdier. While we pleasantly exchanged some
sleekness for an expensive feeling of metal or glass, we highly appreciate that
Odyssey could survive after a pour of dirty water. In fact, I dropped it from a
stair and even after it collided with the 15-feet brick floor, it didn’t also
look worse than when falling off my careless hands. The Gorilla Glass 2 front
surface was still unscratched and the back lid was not even loosening after the
terrible fall. iPhone even couldn’t manage to live after the second step.
Odyssey is also Verizon’s newest model
having “Global Ready”, meaning beside from LTE radio and EV-DO Rev. It is also
packed with open GSM and HSPA. And don’t let the term of “global” deceive you.
GSM support on 850/900/1800/1900 band, along with HSPA/UMTS on 2100 band, means
that we could insert AT&T SIM into, although there may be only EDGE data
available.
Odyssey
is also Verizon’s newest model having “Global Ready”, meaning beside from LTE
radio and EV-DO Rev
Software
To tell the truth, there’s not much to say
about software that hasn’t been mentioned, Windows Phone 8 is still Windows
Phone 8, even on a smaller screen. UI is simply the nicest mobile platform at
present and enhancements are introduced with the newest updates that make
Microsoft’s favorite child not only a beautiful face. They include improvements
for multi-tasking, resizable tiles, Wallet and of course the real support for
modern hardware. But it’s likely that software improvements even shine more
brightly when attached with budget devices. Smoother operation and
better-exploited screen space mean that you won’t see how small Odyssey’s
screen is, until you have to type a long email.
The
phone’s specs
However, the most surprising is IE10. 919ms
score in SunSpider won by most of Android options in the market and was
slightly better than iPhone 5’s result (924ms). While the hardware plays an
important role in scoring, the efficiency of rendering machine of the browser
is also important, even more. Meanwhile there’s some small trivia annoying us
about IE’s newest version, they are surpassed by positive aspects. Thus, we
won’t waste any second for this problem anymore – IE10 was very great.
Verizon and Samsung packed some additional
apps, but they are easily removed and often inoffensive. Samsung includes Now
hub, which mainly get news and weather forecasts, along with a basic sound
editor and MiniDiary – the software is mostly useless, allowing you to sketch,
note and save photos. Clearly, that idea acts as a list of your daily routines,
thoughts and emotions (you know, it’s like Tumblr, but offline), but it feels
like a simplified note-taking app. Besides, there’s also DataSense, which is
not a Verizon app, but at now, it is exclusive for this provider.
