Samsung Wave Y review

							Samsung Wave Y review: Young blood

The latest midrange offering from Samsung features the ever familiar Andr...wait-what
you mean, it's not Android? But it looks exactly like Android! Well, it seems things just
took a more interesting turn. The Samsung S5380 Wave Y runs the latest version of the
Bada OS, 2.0. Like us, you may be used to Samsung being almost synonymous with
Google's mobile OS these days.But they're obviously still pushing their in-house platform
on the Wave lineup, in case, you know, Android spontaneously combusts or something.

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Wave Y Samsung Wave Y
Official images of the Wave Y

But let's not be too brash-options are a good thing, and having one more smartphone
platform to choose from can't hurt. Bada 2.0 has had several revisions since its initial
release with the Samsung Galaxy Wave 3, and the latest stable build runs great on the
comparatively limited Wave Y hardware.

Here is the complete feature list, as well as the potential deal-breakers:
Key features

 3.2" HVGA capacitive touchscreen (320 x 480 pixels)
 Bada OS 2.0 with Samsung Apps
 832 MHz single-core CPU
 Quad-band GSM support with dual-band HSPA
 Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n connectivity, Wi-Fi Direct support, Wi-Fi tethering
 Built-in GPS receiver with A-GPS support, digital compass
 2 GB microSD card bundled in, support for up to 32 GB via hot-swappable slot
 Standard microUSB port and Bluetooth v3.0 with A2DP
 Standard 3.5mm audio jack
 Stereo FM radio with RDS
 Webkit-based Samsung Dolphin Browser
 YouTube client, Facebook and Twitter integration, including Samsung's ChatON
messaging app
 Shake-to-unlock and turn-to-mute
 H.263/H.264/MP4 video support with subtitles, AC3 audio support
 Voice recognition for both dictation and commands

Main disadvantages

  Bada OS has limited number of available applications
  Fixed focus 2 MP camera, no flash
  No screen haptics
  No proper Smart Dialling
  SatNav software only a 30-day trial
  Poor loudspeaker performance
For people coming from Android, the limited supply in Samsung's app store will be a
major question mark. But the Bada app store has been slowly building up content. And to
be honest, the likely Wave Y buyers are not coming from another smartphone. Samsung's
Y models are targeting the young and the Wave Y will most probably compete with the
Galaxy Y for the favor of the brand's loyal users looking to replace a feature phone.

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Samsung S5380 Wave Y live pictures

While obviously not as impressive as the Bada 2.0 flagship, the Wave 3, the Wave Y
provides a good amount of extras which do not push the price too high. That's good news
if you're shopping on a budget. The next page features our usual hardware tour.