Samsung U600 review

Samsung U600 Review

Reviewed by: Andrew Lim

Reviewed on: 2 May 2007

With about 60MB of onboard memory you can store around 15 songs on the phone itself or pop in a microSD card (up to 2GB) and store around 200 of your favourite songs on it. The microSD card can also hold all your photos among other things.

Around the round four-way navigation key there are touch-sensitive keys that might annoy some people

Indeed, the U600 can be attached to your PC via a USB cable and used as a mass storage device that will hold anything you can fit on to it, or a microSD card, including applications and work documents.

By attaching the U600 via USB to your PC you can also charge it, synchronise media files, use the provided Samsung PC software to connect your PC to the Internet via your phone, and synchronise your Outlook contacts and tasks.

Other noteworthy features include the various small improvements Samsung has added to the U600's interface, making the overall user experience easier and more straightforward than on older Samsung phones.

For example, when you finish writing a text message and go to send it, a list of recent recipients pops up. Then there's an application called Smart search that lets you search through your entire phone for files, in a similar way to how you would on a PC.

Performance
The U600's camera performs well and produces clear, well-focused pictures that are great for MMS messages and suitable for small prints. Our only niggle is the lack of xenon flash that means shots come out with a blue tinge in low light.

Audio quality during calls was good. Everyone we called on land lines said it sounded clear and loud. The loudspeaker worked as expected but it could do with some more volume and you'll probably want to use a headset for hands-free.

Battery life was good for such a thin phone and we didn't need to recharge the handset for over two days of moderate to high use. Samsung quotes 4 hours of talk time and 270 hours of standby time.

Conclusion
If Samsung's latest thin offering doesn't convince you then you should check out the Sony Ericsson K810i, which also comes with a 3.2-megapixel camera, MP3 player and expandable memory slot. If you're set on getting a thin phone then another Sony Ericsson phone, the W880i, is worth a look.

Otherwise, niggles about the lack of built-in 3.5mm headphone jack or adaptor and the fiddly touch-sensitive keys aside, the Samsung U600 is a good thin phone with plenty of features that we enjoyed using.

Edited by Jason Jenkins
Additional editing by Kate Macefield