Samsung confirms TouchWiz phones bound for US
updated 11:20 am EDT, Thu October 23, 2008
Samsung TouchWiz for US
Phones using Samsung's full-screen TouchWiz interface will finally reach the US in an official capacity soon, the company acknowledged today. Where the interface was previously available on Asia- and Europe-only devices like the Omnia and F480, the company now plans to introduce "several" devices to the US between late 2008 and early 2009 that carry the touchscreen software. The platform centers around a widget tray that can be customized with shortcuts to complete apps like a browser or media player as well as small, quick features like clocks.
None of the scheduled devices are named, though they're known through leaks to include the t919 for T-Mobile and may include a Omnia for Verizon that switches from GSM to CDMA.
The move brings Samsung into more direct contention with the iPhone, the G1 and other smartphone-class touchscreen hardware; while it already offers touch-driven phones like Verizon's Glyde in the country, these often run much more limited operating systems. TouchWiz runs either under Samsung's proprietary operating system or on top of Windows Mobile, as with the Omnia.
