Samsung S8500 Wave preview: First look

Samsung S8500 Wave 360-degree spin

At 118 x 56 x 10.9 mm Samsung S8500 Wave is pretty compact and easy to slide in most pockets. The extra slim waistline contributes the most to this impression but there isn't much space wasted around the screen too.

Display

Samsung were obviously not cutting corners with design and the S8500 Wave is a pretty sleek device indeed. The slim metallic body is elegant and solid, and well resistant to fingerprints too.

Samsung S8500 Wave compared to the Apple iPhone 3G, Samsung Omnia HD Sony Ericsson Vivaz

As with any full-touch phone, the front of the Samsung S8500 Wave is dominated by the 3.3” touchscreen. And just a look at it is enough to prove us wrong – the device does have a killer feature, only it’s not evident by just scanning the spec sheet.

The 3.3” 16M-color capacitive touchscreen on the Samsung S8500 Wave is pure perfection. Hard as we tried, we just couldn’t find anything wrong with it. And certainly couldn’t think of anything at least remotely similar.

The display is just incredible

The AMOLED display technology has a great edge over LCD as far as contrast is concerned and that’s no news. But the S8500 Wave has the deepest blacks we have seen yet on a mobile phone. Of course, next to - say - the Omnia HD the difference isn’t so great, but it’s still noticeable. Besides, this time brightness got a boost too, which makes the S8500 Wave display image quality all the more impressive.

The viewing angles are also the best in business, outdoing the previous standard-setters by a wide margin. You can check out this short video comparison of the S8500 Wave display and an Apple iPhone.

The S8500 Wave screen sensitivity is impressive too, but that’s to be expected in a capacitive unit. The phone will respond to even a gentle click with a fingernail.

Finally, we come to sunlight legibility, which has probably been the weakest spot in any Samsung display so far. And the S8500 Wave was quite a surprise here too. Not only is this the most impressive unit indoors, but it doesn’t even lose a bit of its charm out in the bright sun.

So all in all, we are impressed by the Samsung S8500 Wave and its screen. In a crowded market where even the smallest improvements are a welcome rarity, this display is simply revolutionary.