That's just it. They Didn't highlight the phone at all. All they gave us was a name and that's it. If Verizon had a premiere phone to compete against the lumia 920 and ATIV S, why wouldn't Verizon want to announced it more specifically to entice people to wait instead of trying out the lumia 920? Microsoft simply mentioned every WP8 device that was launching by year end. Is there one phone due out by year end the MS did not mention?
Possibly - we just don't know. The 822 was not mentioned at Nokia's launch either. Verizon does not tend to let out much until the launch is darn close to imminent. They would not want Microsoft to even mention a cheap phone that would cause backlash. They are not stupid. Even announcing the 822 just a few weeks out is odd for them, though they had intended to launch earlier but Sandy did throw them off a bit.
Couple that in with the fact that the Odyssey name matches the name reported in court documents that included specs - dual core 1.5GHZ snapdragon and HD AMOLED screen with a 4.65" display. I'm sure the name is just a coincidence - just like Verizon calling the HTC 8X the Accord - it's development code name.
I am very sure the Odyssey is a high end device. In fact, there have been some hints that it will be the highest end device released for WP8, surpassing the 920. The buzz inside VZW is that there are some secret killer features. I don't know what they are, but Samsung and Verizon both worked on this one spec wise.
The Marco is the ultimate budget phone.
Right...and how exactly is stating the NAME of the device...no specs...no pictures....driving up expectations? It's obviously having the exact opposite impact on me. I have zero expectations for the Odyssey. Precisely because all they did was mention its name.
A lot of people (including me) just assumed it was the ATIV S. Mentioning a name does create an expectation. They prefer not to have any mention if they can help it, but the rumor mills are always abuzz out there. They usually hate dates being assigned to because of the expectation there too - they have had many premiere phones delayed over the years.
It looks to me like Verizon rolls by designing custom phone chassis where I can only assume the primary goal is "how can we maximize the size and placement of our hideous logo?"
They do like the branding, but they tend to prefer to make sure a phone functions well on the network with minimal signal loss. Their to priority is to make sure their customers are able the talk, text, and use the web about as flawlessly as possible. They spend a lot of money checking how their network and their competitor's function every year to make sure their network functions well and that they are always better than their competition. They understand the appeal of the phones, but they find the phones worthless if the network is no good or even mediocre. Their customers agree. They have the highest degree of customer loyalty in the business and have maintained high rates of growth without expensive exclusive phones.
Case in point was when I was using a friends' iPhone 5. They are AT&T. Here in the heart of Tampa Bay I was using the LTE connection and it dropped down to EDGE while I was sitting in a static location. It was jumping between EDGE, HSPA, and LTE. No consistency in a place they apparently have great coverage. Same place and my brother's Razr Maxx had full LTE bars from Verizon the whole way. This has not been isolated in my experience. When I was playing with a 920 at an AT&T store, it was not able to get LTE coverage and also dropped down to EDGE. I've talked to a lot of AT&T customers who say this is a much more frequent occurrence for them than it should be.
Yet my old Trophy for VZW never loses the 3G signal unless it loses everything when I'm out in the middle of nowhere - and even then it usually gets a signal.
That's how Verizon rolls. Network first. Don't go crazy hyping phones. Make sure the focus stays on the network and not on the phones. Whenever they display the superiority of their network in simple terms, they end up getting huge customer booms from people dissatisfied with their competitors.
All that said, the Odyssey will be a high end phone with a HD display.