Samsung i600

With such a wide range of devices on test, it’s often a physical attribute that catches our eye before anything else. And, in the case of the Samsung i600, it’s the phone’s anorexic profile that really marks it out.

It measures a stick-thin 12mm at its narrowest – half as thick as some of the other phones – and although it has a full QWERTY keyboard, it just disappears into your pocket.

But the i600 doesn’t rely on looks alone to impress, as it’s also endowed with a surprising richness of features. Top of the list is HSDPA connectivity for internet connections of up to 3.6Mb/s and, although there’s no GPS, you do get Wi-Fi, plus a 1.3-megapixel camera and a front-facing one for video calls.

It’s a shame the i600 is stuck on Windows Mobile 5 and there’s no touchscreen, but the phone has all the key features a smartphone needs. There’s push email, and document support is good thanks to the inclusion of Office Mobile. It’s nippy to use, too.

The i600’s small size does have an impact on general ease of use, however. The keyboard’s diagonally sloping keys are too close to each other to make typing comfortable and we don’t like the fact that the number keys are interspersed with the letters, either.

For these reasons, we couldn’t make the i600 our top choice this month, but there isn’t much else wrong with it. If you like your smartphones slim, it’s worth a look.

• - Labs Winner -
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