Ocean 2 release date sort-of announced
Posted by Justin B. on September 12th, 2008 at 11:38 PM
While the specific release date of the Ocean 2 hasn’t been announced, last night we received an e-mail from Virgin Mobile USA’s PR rep Jayne Wallace telling us the general time frame– the Ocean 2 will be released sometime in the 1st quarter of 2009.
This can be taken as great news and not-so-great news depending on how you look at it. It’s not-so-great for all the current Helions who have been waiting endlessly for the Ocean 2 through all the madness and mayhem that has happened in the past year. It can be taken as great news because there is finally an official source stating when the Ocean 2 is going to drop. Virgin Mobile obviously realized that the Ocean 2 was quickly outdated by the many new phones coming out and wants to work on that aspect of the OZ2.
“The Ocean 2 is not going to be 2008,” Wallace said. “It has been manufactured, and there is a commitment to putting it on the market, but it’s going to be in early 09 … just because the shell has been manufactured doesn’t mean it should be released right now. We want to put it out when it’s the best it can be.” (from PCMag)
September 12th, 2008 at 11:45 pm
So from 12 1/2 to 15 1/2 months without a new device (if it comes out in the first quarter of ‘09). not the best maketing plan for helio.
I hope that they are working on a lot more that just ONE phone. Hopefully there will only be one that will be obsolete as soon as it comes to market.
September 13th, 2008 at 3:37 am
This is good news, only because it’s finally been officially announced and put endless rumors to rest. However, it still sucks that we have to wait even longer for what we’ve already been waiting forever to recieve. I think it’s pretty shitty that Helio has done absolutely nothing to intice Helions to keep the faith and stay with them. Pretty much just sat back and let people leave without a single word or the slightest bit of information. Like so many are saying, “Too little. Too late”. But, I will continue to sport my Ocean and wait around for the Oz2. I personally feel it’ll be worth it. But, we’ll see.
September 13th, 2008 at 4:24 am
Better late then never…
Now the REAL decision of riding out my expired contract for 4-7 months
I hope they announce a real date SOON
September 13th, 2008 at 8:17 am
What I hate about this is they are sitting on a phone for so long. The problem with that is all the new sparkle is taken out of it because it’s taken 15 months to implement, meaning all the features already exist on all the other phones and generally means ours will be out of date. Anyone have any links to the features available on the OZ2 BTW?
September 13th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
suck for helio user i just bought a iphone 2day and it is cool hope helio does welll but yall suck meat for not takin it out earler
September 13th, 2008 at 4:16 pm
as far as i know, all the planned features that ive seen on other pages are already available on other carriers’ devices. i guess we’ll just have to wait some more.ugh.
September 14th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
yay i got my ocean in march 4 my b-day and i guess i will get the oz2 for my b day in march too!!!
September 14th, 2008 at 8:22 pm
this puts NO rumors to rest…just more speculation in my mind!these people should have NO clout/credibility until they learn how to treat their customers
September 14th, 2008 at 8:23 pm
I seriously doubt the ocean2 will be a good as the new android from tmobile or even towards that matter stack up to already existing phones like the iphone or even the panatec duo from att. I am a helio enthusiast ( I bought three oceans one for me my brother and my friend) but to be quite honest helio has dropped the ball tremendously with not that many selections for phones or even reasonable family plans. I talked to a helio representative and they said I can use my deposit to pay my cancellation fee. I really did not think I would be canceling my helio service but I compared what I paid to other similar data phones a moth and I would be saving alot of money just switching to another phone company.
Right now…I would rather have a true smartphone like a blackberry or even ( as much as I hate steve jobs and everything apple) a iphone. Then need to impliment a sim card type phone in order to even think about attracting customers because I don’t think besides people who work in fye or another store that gives a helio discount will be attracted to helio in the future. Helio recently got bought by virgin mobile…have you seen virgin mobiles phone selection…its kinda a joke…virgin mobile caters to people who do not want annual contracts….not people who are looking for innovative new phones..
I as a helio customer am very disappointed with the quality of phones helio has offered and hope for helio’s sake there new phone implements something revolutionary or the new google os….
If you shop around at other phone companies (especially at att) you will see all of helio’s phones and virgin mobile phones are really just bad versions or older versions of new phones (i.e. att panatec duo compared to the ocean).
September 14th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
heliocity.net has retained SOME integrity…however,the same can’t be said about helio itself
September 15th, 2008 at 7:26 am
I sell Helio in Daytona beach fl. Sales are down yes but as foar as the marketing it is better to see who has what in there phones and match it and release it later with a better price point or just totally blow the rest of the phones out of the water. i do know the oz2 will have a 3meg camera and now possibly better i dont see why it will not be voice activated and hopefully it will also have tell me and im sure it will be a great new device in helios line of phones. Virgin just wants to do this right and you have to cut them some slack on the situation
September 15th, 2008 at 9:32 am
if they’re waiting to release it that late, the features on it have GOT to be cutting edge and amazing. otherwise, it’s just another phone that wont sell well.
September 15th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
400 dollar paperweight?
they need to drop more than just the oz2. Now being backed by a company that WANTS to grow (not just a partnership experiment) they need to bring out at least 1, but 2 would be better, new phone per quarter if they want ANY market share. going 5 quaters with out a new device is laughable in this market. If they had continued to put out 3-4 phones per year…. they would have retained a lot more customers, and probably gained a lot more as well.
September 15th, 2008 at 9:48 pm
Considering I have zero faith in any device that Virgin Mobile releases, I have to expect this will do exactly what the original Ocean did: Pretend to compete with all of the other high-end devices, but come up far far short. Just might be time for me to move on from Helio. Or should I say “Helio… Powered by Virgin Mobile” ::rolls eyes::
September 16th, 2008 at 11:58 am
You are all taking for granted that it actually releases in Q1 2009…I wouldn’t be so certain.
September 16th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
ok ive had enough of being in the dark and having grey areas. its shitty and bad business. i love how reliable my service has been yet i need something new to sink my teeth into. im think sidekick 08. i use to have a sidekick 2 and i have a ocean now i miss my swoosh sidekickin abilities and cheap decent service.
September 16th, 2008 at 5:43 pm
K Haltz – The Sidekick name is a highly respected name in the cell industry. I kind of understand what you mean by ‘cheap decent service’ but at the same time it’s far from cheap. Helio or Virgin Mobile is more of what I would call cheap. The Sidekicks have always been wonderful phones and Danger has put out a wonderful OS. Just like the Apple/iPhone, if there’s any bugs they get an update out within a month or two. I say go for the Sidekick, I’ve had the Sidekick 2, 3 and LX. Wonderful devices.
September 16th, 2008 at 10:21 pm
im tired of old cells i want more reasonable and afordable options. id like to stay wity helio/vm, yet theyre still yet to impress me with something new anytime soon. ive had a sk2 and my friends have/had ids lx and sk3 and never had near as much problems as i have with oz1 and theyre rougher. my speakers went out 2 times and screen went out(opened both ways). i am on my 3rd phone oz1 right now. im not wantin a fin. i want something with a qwetery keys. so im wait till 09 something. thank you helio.
September 17th, 2008 at 3:59 am
i got a few phones when i left helio…1 of which was the sidekick lx limited edition tony hawk and i love it WAY more than i ever did my oz1…and yes,if you use codes and do you research it can be cheaper and really the only trade off’s have been gps and youtube(big deal)and you get so much more…includin a more stable OS
LOVE MY SKLX tony hawk edition 
September 17th, 2008 at 7:45 am
k haltz! hit me up…somehow
September 17th, 2008 at 10:09 am
um like how
September 17th, 2008 at 11:26 am
i’ve been up and down with helio. love the plan offerings. and was super excited to get a mysto. but as you all know (those with mystos) what kind of problems they come with. i always think to myself that at the time of getting my mysto i might have been happier with an iPHONE. so now i’m playing the research game and trying to find a phone that will last me more than a year without wanting “the latest and greatest”. i’ve been more than satisfied with my previous phones… now i’m looking at WMM phones. there are some awesome looking HTC phones about to hit that look mighty appealing. and the “oz2″, or whatever ya’ll call it, had better have at least all that these phones do or it’s adios. do you have anything to say about this helio? what about you loyals out there?
September 17th, 2008 at 11:44 am
scatstanford@gmail.com
September 17th, 2008 at 4:27 pm
im in a big debate now. i am wondering if it will be worth the wait take the gamble or cash my chips now and leave
September 18th, 2008 at 5:07 am
IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THIS….HELIO HAS BEEN STROKING EVERYONE FOR THE LAST 15 MONTHS AND LEAVING EVERYBODY BLU-BALLED. HOW DOES IT FEEL TO HAVE AN OBSOLETE BRICK IN YOUR POCKET (OCEAN) FOR THE ENTIRE YEAR OF 2008 AND THEN HAVING TO START OFF 2009 LAYING OUT AROUND $300 FOR ANOTHER OBSOLETE BRICK. DO YOURSELF A FAVOR, INVEST IN THE EARLY TERMINATION FEE AND SWITCH OVER TO A CARRIER THAT PROVIDES THEIR CUSTOMERS WITH OPTIONS. VIRGIN MOBILE’S ACQUISITION WILL ONLY CHEAPEN THE HELIO BRAND AND THE QUALITY OF THEIR PHONES.
September 18th, 2008 at 10:38 am
almost 2 years now with helio, started with a drift then bought a heat and fin on ebay to spice it up a bit. love my fin, but the shortcomings in the software and applications are huge. want an iphone but that att&t plan sucks so bad i think im gonna really take a look at that android phone t-mobile is releasing next week. im gonna wait till my contract with helio is up (2 mos) but ive waited too long for some kind of awe inspiring phone from helio. the ocean and the leaked pics of ocean 2 are just looking too large for me. i joined helio for their cutting edge phones, now im realizing this company has run out of steam and its time to jump ship. good luck to all of you who stay on…but im tired of treading water with Helio
September 18th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
agreed i am outta here i got a 95 dolla bill for oct and a the eft my gf can stay im gettin the sk08 and she can have the heat and my ocean.
September 18th, 2008 at 5:18 pm
well I didnt leave yetr byt i threaten and got a lil info from a rep with a cute voice. She told me you can get the red heat and a white mysto in america. SHE ALSO CREDITED me 25 dollars of my bill for a few months inorder for me to stay.
September 19th, 2008 at 9:27 am
I totally agree with everyone here. I bought my ocean thinking that it would have html on it and it doesn’t. The damn thing freezes up so often tat I don’t want to do anything. The aim on the phone can be real slow, I had better service on my heat than my ocean, And the battery life sucks. In order to keep me and I’m sure a lot of other Helio members we need more phones and cheaper plans. Besides that a better screen. The Dare for verizion has a much higher resolution than the ocean does even though they both have the same megapixel camera!!!!!! @ first I loved my ocean… But now it has run dry.
September 19th, 2008 at 9:29 am
Oh and I hope the ppl at Helio and Virgin Mobile actually comes to this site because they need to read this shit and hear our cries!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I’m out of this bitch… Oh yeah and I must say the screen on the Oz2 is a lot bigger than the first one. I hope the Quality is a lot better.
September 19th, 2008 at 12:10 pm
regaurds to my last previous post when i was talking to reps from helio. after me bout to outs my account one chick at the call center told me expect big things to happen with helio. she said vm has a lot to offer helio. they have special benefits gear toward vm which will include helio. vm is supposedly fix things up with helio. i was promised the oz2 is rumored to look like what has been post online and still unknown when it comes out. didnt know if or when new phones will come out. but she explained to me bout helio exclusive phones in which we currently have.
September 20th, 2008 at 1:16 am
[...] is this sweet little gadget coming out? According to the folks over at Heliocity, they received an e-mail from a higher-up at Virgin telling them it’s not slated until early [...]
September 20th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
I’m so lost with what to do now. I have to wait until 09 now to have an Ocean 2, or any new Helio phone for that matter? I have had such a good experience with my Ocean over the past year, but there really are a lot of other great options out there now. Honestly, the overpriced plans are the only thing keeping me from an iPhone (I OWN one right now that I’m using as an iPod touch basically). I have had nothing but good experiences with Helio, but they really haven’t given their customers anything to help them stick around. And this is knowing they have customers who crave new technology and features…with each new AT&T and TMobile device that comes out (I boycotted Verizon when i left for Helio, they suck worse than anyone ever) I grow closer and closer to leaving; hopefully I’ll be able to help myself hold out and the Ocean 2 delivers some cool new things for us.
September 26th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
think about it. now that the iphone 3g is out, maybe they are making a few changes to the original oz2 we’ve been waiting for. it is along time to wait till ‘09 for a phone that should have been out in ‘08. we can only hope they have an iphone next to them to make sure the oz2’s features supercede it.
September 29th, 2008 at 8:00 am
Well it is about time there has been an updating regarding the Helio Ocean 2. I have been eagerly awaiting it after reading about it on this website quite some time ago…
I think that Helio’s plan to release it in 2009 is best, so that it will be able to compete with newer phones that will be released towards the end of this year. There is no doubt in my mind that they’re still tweaking the phone to really compete with Apple’s iPhone, something I doubt that they really wanted to compete with.
All-in-all, I really hope that the Ocean 2 is released as soon as possible in the first quarter with little to no flaws. I am still not sure whether or not I am going to order it right away (typically these types of releases have recalls within the first month).
One thing I do hope that they fix/optimize in the Helio 2 is faster navigation and execution within the phone and browser. Often times, my Helio freezes up. I also hate the “Ultimate Inbox”. It’s a pain in the butt and slow to browse through text messages, and deleting text messages is also a pain in the butt when you have to delete them out of each folder (and it takes up to 3-5 minutes literally to wait for the messages to clear out each folder).
Come on Helio, show us what your company is truly capable of with the release of the Ocean 2!
You guys are truly a top-notch cell phone service provider already, with amazing and friendly customer support. The acquisition of Helio by Virgin Mobile is an outrage to me (Helio, you guys could have done way better…you guys offer Virgin Mobile much more than Virgin Mobile has to offer for Helio!), so it’s really time to show your customers and the world how great and advance/superior Helio cell phones and service is to leading service providers!
October 7th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
The G1 T-Mobile is coming out October 22nd and Im outta here…everyone should get out while they can….we have been strung along far too long and they (Helio by Virgin Mobile) are just toying with our intelligence, $75 isn’t nothing to quit. Im heading over to T-Mobile…I no longer want a thick phone….that always freezes and shuts down…and Im so tired in dealing with the customer service who cant speak a bit of english…and they sound like the same person everytime ummmmm. I agreee…with one person…..Helio and Virgin better be stopping by and visiting this feed back by once loyal customers to know disappointed fed up FORMER to be CUSTOMERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!
October 7th, 2008 at 4:32 pm
I mean $175 isnt nothing to give up the contract….and they better be reading the feed back by once Loyal customers to NOW, very disappointed and fed up soon to be FORMER CUSTOMERS!!!!!!
GET OUT WHILE YOU CAN……….THEY ARE ONLY GOING TO KEEP PUSHING THE DATE TO LATE JUNE OR JULY…WATCH AND SEE
October 8th, 2008 at 11:53 pm
Wow, this is Good and bad News. My contract just ended with sprint. I thought of getting the Helio Ocean out right now. But, when i heard Number 2 is coming soon.(not so soon!). 2morrow, im out to get myself a freak-N tmobile prepaid. I think i can deal with it, until they finally announce the release date for the 02phone. Come on guys make it quick! Christmas wouldn’t of had been a bad idea! i mean, come on. Its only logical. lol
January 15th, 2009 at 8:49 pm
i’m waitin for the oz2 to come out…i had the ocean for 1 year now and never had any problems. had the drift before that’ no problems…dont kno y ppl hate on helio so much, they are the best phone company i’ve had…my ocean is way faster then my friends sidekick, and has alot more features on it…so hopefully the oz2 comes out very soon