Samsung has moved to take the wind out of Steve Jobs's sails this afternoon by unveiling its Omnia i900 smartphone just hours before the expected launch of Apple's much-hyped 3G iPhone.

Samsung's would be iPhone killer clearly draws much from its rival in terms of design. It features a 3.2in 240 x 400 pixels haptic touch screen which offers vibration feedback, as well as a 5-megapixel camera.

The phone will ship with 8GB or 16GB of internal storage, with further expansion offered via an SD card supporting a maximum additional 16GB.

The device runs on Microsoft's Windows Mobile and is due to launch officially at the CommunicAsia trade fair in Singapore next week.

Retail shipments in Europe are not expected until next month.