Samsung U100 - Martin's Quick Review

Ever since mobile phones first came out, and resembled a house brick complete with relevant size, mobile phone manufacturers have all been aiming to provide the public with the smallest models possible. After all, with the fashion conscious British buyer, small equals beautiful, especially where mobile phones are concerned. Now, with its U100, Samsung may just have made the phone that's going to lead the market.

Size Is Everything

Coming in at just 5.9 mm deep, the U100 Ultra Edition 5.9 (to give it its full title, and one where the depth is incorporated), Samsung are proudly hailing their handset as "the world's slimmest phone", and you can't really see how anyone can argue with this. And when you throw in the fact that it's only 50 mm wide and 105.5 mm tall, as well as weighing a light 66g, you can't really argue with that.

Small Doesn't Mean Basic

Although you might think that Samsung would have to cut corners to get the phone down to this size, you'd be wrong. Surprisingly, the U100 has all the features much larger mobile phones have, and actually outshines some of its more fuller-sized friends.

For instance, the fact that it's a "bar phone", where there is no need for a flip or slide design, means that the screen is a healthy 1.9 inches in size, and allows for some fantastic images via the 262,000 colours at the screen's disposal.

The screen also comes into its own when used alongside the generous 3.0-mega-pixel camera that the U100 has. Not only can you take and view crystal clear pictures, but the budding photographers out there can also make use of the camera's features, such as zoom and editing, as well as a video capture and playback mode.

If there is one thing that slightly lets the U100 down when it comes to the camera, it's the fact that there is no autofocus feature, which as anyone will know can lead to some shaky and indecipherable pictures, especially of you're on a night out! Additionally, the camera lacks any kind of flash, which severely limits any night shots.

Wired For Sound

If you think the camera and display are generous features in this tiny phone, then you'll be equally delighted with the audio side of the Samsung U100. Usually, mobile phones this size can lose out on some of the more popular features, but not this little beauty. Not only does the phone support the usual suspects such as MP3 and polyphonic ringtones, it also allows the newer MP4 and H263 media software, for even better performance.

The only downside to the audio features on the Samsung U100 is the fact that there is no option to add any external memory or mini SD cards. Since the phone only comes with 70mb of internal memory, you are rather limited as to the amount of songs that you can store for playback through the media player.

The Icing On The Cake

Despite the niggles that the camera and the audio side of the U100 has, the other features should still whet your appetite for Samsung's baby. Just to top things off, how about full Bluetooth compatibility with computers and printers, to make it just as easy to print your pictures as it is to take them? And if you're feeling just a little bit lazy, and don't want to have to type in a new contact immediately, the Voice Recorder feature allows you to set a reminder or dictate details to view at a more convenient time.

With all the normal features associated with a more top-of-the-range phone, like Java gaming, tri-band compatibility and WAP 2.0 internet services, the Samsung U100 comes out with all guns blazing, and sets an impressive mark for others to follow.

The Samsung U100 with 12 months free line rental is available online, along with a wide range of other mobile phone cash back deals. These offers are certainly good options if you're looking for maximum savings on your next contract.