Review: Samsung U100

Samsung U100 Review

Phone rating:

In a nutshell: Wow! The U100 is the slimmest and lightest phone ever. It's half the weight of a typical phone and a quarter of the thickness. Put this phone in your bag or pocket and watch it disappear! Yet it still has a 3 megapixel camera, a video camera and a music player. The U100 is now obsolete, but for a modern twist, try the Samsung U800 Silver. The best Samsung U800 deals are currently to be found at Dial-a-Phone.

Review: June 2007.

The U100 is the second of Samsung's second-generation Ultra phones to arrive in the UK and is the replacement for the Samsung X820. The U100 replaces the X820 as the thinnest phone in the world! The U100 shaves 1mm off the already skinny X820, measuring an astonishing 5.9mm thin. At the same time, the U100 is a narrower phone, and this is a welcome improvement, as it makes the keypad easier to use, especially for people with smaller hands. But Samsung weren't content just to make this the world's slimmest phone - it's also the lightest. At just 57g it weighs about half as much as a typical mobile. Really, when you put this phone in your jeans or shirt pocket, you're going to forget that it's there! The U100 is the ultimate for anyone who prefers their gadgets miniaturised!

The X820 was a popular phone, but never as popular as the slide-design D900, and we expect that the U100 won't match the huge popularity of the U600 slide phone either. That's partly because slide phones are the "in" look of the moment, but also because the U100 misses out on several of the features of the U600. We'll compare the U100 with the U600 in a minute, but first let's take a look at what the U100 has to offer.

The first thing that you notice once you've got over just how thin and lightweight it is, is the neatness of the design. The keypad is small, but easy to use and the phone is very ergonomic. However, if you've got large hands you might find it just a bit too small for comfort. The LCD display is a bright TFT display, the same as used on the X820. It isn't the biggest screen around, for obvious reasons in a phone this compact, but it's perfect for the size of the phone. Samsung's new black & white user interface is easy to use and very smart in appearance. If you're just using the phone for talking and texting, you'll find it very easy to use.

When you spend £200 on a phone you expect it to have more to offer than just its size, and the U100 has plenty up its sleeve. Despite its tiny size, it comes with a 3.2 megapixel camera, which takes pretty good pictures, and records high quality video clips too. However, just like the X820 the U100 has no flash or autofocus, so its not going to replace a dedicated digital camera. Likewise, the phone comes with a high quality MP3 player that supports a wide range of music formats (MP3, AAC, AAC+, e-AAC+ & WMA) and delivers good quality audio using a Bang & Olufsen digital power amp. However, it won't ever replace your iPod because the memory of the U100 is limited to 60 Mbytes (enough for around 15 songs) with no option to add a memory card.

The U100 has good connectivity options, with support for wireless Bluetooth 2.1 and a fast USB 2.0 port. It also has a TV-Out connection which enables you to watch your videos or photos directly on a TV. It can handle all kinds of messaging, including email, has a fast EDGE connection to the internet, can browse web pages at a push, and has the usual range of personal organiser functions that you'd expect from a modern mobile. Battery power is something that's definitely of interest with the U100, since its predecessor the X820 had fairly poor battery life. The U100 incorporates Samsung's new OPUS (Optimized Power Usage Solution) technology that is designed to get better performance out of a smaller battery, and initial impressions are that battery life is OK.

It's perhaps not fair to compare the U100 with the U600 slide phone, since the U100 is so much smaller. But we're going to, because if you're considering buying the U100 it's an obvious question. The key thing to understand is that it's not a fair comparison: the U100 is half the size of the U600, so you just can't expect it to do as much. The point of the U100 is that's it's the smallest & the lightest. If you want a phone that will simply disappear into your pocket or handbag and that will gently wow you every time you pick it up, then the U100's your phone. If you want more power from your phone, choose the U600. The U600 has a larger, higher resolution screen; it has a camera with autofocus and a flash; crucially it has a memory card so you can store lots more music and videos; and it's quad band too. Although the U100 has a camera and a music player, they're just there for fun. Understand this and you'll be the happy owner of the world's thinnest mobile!

Features of the Samsung U100 include:

• 3.2 megapixel camera with 4x digital zoom
• Video camera
• Display: TFT LCD, 262,144 colours, 220 x 176 pixels
• MP3 player (MP3, AAC, AAC+, e-AAC+, WMA formats)
• Digital Power Amp (ICE power® Technology by Bang & Olufsen)
• Ringtones: 64 voices, MP3 ringtones
• Speakerphone
• Voice memo recorder
• Messaging: SMS, EMS, MMS, E-mail (POP3 / SMTP / IMAP4 / SSL / TLS)
• Java games
• Document viewer
• WAP 2.0, GPRS Class 10, EDGE
• Personal organiser functions
• Phone book (1,000 entries)
• Text / Photo / Video Caller ID
• Memory: 60 Mbytes
• Connectivity: Bluetooth 1.2, USB 2.0, TV-Out
• Flight mode
• Triband
• Size: 105.5 x 50 x 5.9 mm
• Weight: 57g
• Talktime: 4.5 hours
• Battery standby: 300 hours

Samsung U100 Consumer Reviews

Love your mobile? Hate it? Please share your experiences to help other people choose the phone that's best for them. Please do not review this phone if you have not used it. This is a review site, not a forum, so please don't just ask questions. Please do not use swear words or offensive language, and please, no advertising!

Average rating from 33 reviews:

Reviewed by Masoud abasi from Iran on 16th Feb 2009
This game very good but download is very hard
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Reviewed by cheekybee from England on 21st Jan 2009
Had this phone for a year. It replaced my X820 which I snapped by sitting down with it in my (front) trouser pocket. I've found it just as good as the X820, however I only use the phone, camera and movie/music player functions. My only negatives are that the screen has started to 'bloom' at the bottom and that the battery cover is becoming prone to sliding open on its' own. Am looking for a replacement but haven't found anything comparable yet - even the U800 is 9.5mm.
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Reviewed by Shahram from Iran on 1st Dec 2008
Very nice phone.Beautifully thin and with very good signal reception.Ideal for those who like to have a slim phone hidden in their tiny pockets and those who are fed up with bulky phones loaded with too many unnecessary applications.
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Reviewed by g from scotland on 16th May 2008
best phone ive ever had, u don't even notice it wen it's in ur pocket. all te features r great and ain't let me down yet
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Reviewed by rajanththakumaraswamy from china on 3rd May 2008
no its dumb samsung u600 is way better way more popuLAR way mre good lookin an has ay more features wish i cud giv it 0 stars but it wont allow it so this disabled phone should be thankful that i gave it a 1
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Reviewed by KleptoElektro from Australia on 18th Mar 2008
G'day folks. I left a review a few days ago about this phone(U-100). Well, the phone is dead. I was transferring an MP3 file via Bluetooth to the phone and the slimmest phone in the world seized up and wouldn't respond. I removed and replaced the battery to reboot the phone but it now only gets to the startup screen and seizes up completely again. Perhaps I overheated the Bluetooth chip(if there is such a thing). Who knows. Anyway, maybe I shouldn't have recommended this phone. It looks good but perhaps they forgot to allow for adequate cooling of the chips. Amazingly thin, but that's all it is.
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Reviewed by KleptoElektro from Australia on 11th Mar 2008
Great phone. Had it for a week. Good battery life. Screen produces great colours. Camera is excellent in the daylight. Video is not to bad either. Posted example on YouTube: youtube.com/watch?v=LWbdugz_Mgo Keypad is good. Keys are tactile. Only complaint about the keypad is that the center menu key launches the browser and thisThe ccan't be changed. This is a bit of a pain when you press it accidentally. Call clarity is superb and reception is excellent. Great little phone. Grab one if you can.
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Reviewed by Allen from Australia on 27th Feb 2008
I just got rid of my bulky n73 and you know what sure it doesnt have a memory card and its sms txt imput is nowhere near as good as nokias but aside from that its seriously the coolest phone ever!! Everyone who sees it wants one!!
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Reviewed by Marc from Australia on 24th Feb 2008
I think its a really cool, except for the fact that it is quite wide, it might not fit in some of my pockets...but other than that its such an awesum fone :P
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Reviewed by Bill from Scotland on 14th Jan 2008
I have had 2 of these, and both of them died while sending a text 2 months after I got them I really wish this phone could last longer than 2 months becuase it is such an ace design, but it just doesn't seem worth it if it breaks after 2 months. DO NOT BUY THIS PHONE.
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Reviewed by Vinny from China on 20th Dec 2007
An excellent phone in every way except for the SMS text, which is much slower than my Nokias.
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Reviewed by mobzzy from Bahrain on 7th Dec 2007
making slim phones technology is very easy. first samsung produces the phone of normal thickness and then they place it on the railway track and allow the train to pass over it..............bingo U100 is born.LOL watch out if you have a pet dog keep this mobile out of reach as your dog may mistake it for a dog biscute. however this mobile is a wonderful device and one need to tap their pockets more often than before to find our whether U100 is still sitting in there.
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Reviewed by phil from philippines on 14th Nov 2007
it's just perfect..! really. love it.!
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Reviewed by tony from Nigeria on 7th Nov 2007
this phone is something else first time i saw it,i feel in love with it and i would get it for my self alone
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Reviewed by L30NNi<3 from England--X- on 4th Nov 2007
Heyy,, i think thi phone is really good its simple and all you could really need! Buy it if your not bothered about it being thin because i say its fab!! Luv Ya X P.S. Some people write wayy too much.. =)
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Reviewed by Osama Dafalla from Sudan on 2nd Nov 2007
ooooooh, wow, i just love it. i'm the type of person that changes their phone every 2-3 months, but i don't think i'll be changing this one any time soon.
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Reviewed by Jeremy Batchelor from England on 29th Oct 2007
This is my personal view only as I think this phone is a revolution in design for the style conscious. My previous phone was the X820 which is still a wonderful phone, it will be set aside but will never make the exchange route or bin. While using mine I noticed it seemed like no one had ever seen one of these really slim phones. I was constantly looked at if I ever got this thin phone out to use. Many a time I would get requests to have a look at it. That speak for itself. I however dis-agreed with the comments about the phones camera (at 2 megs on the X820)as I found the camera a dream when down loaded to my Sony laptop. The new U100 now comes with a 3meg camera and I can not wait to see the results when downloaded to my laptop. My hands are far from small and have not had any problems with using the keypads on either phone - new model or old. So it goes to show that not all reviews are going to be spot on? The main reason I opted for the X820 and now the U100 is the fact it is so small it can be hidden away in your top pocket and no one need know you have a phone. Keep it on silent and a little discretion will always keep it that way. The features of the phone are many and its a really great "smallest phone in the world" to own. I have been awaiting this day when camera and phone unite as one in the top pocket. When these phones get to 10 meg we can all dispose of the digital camera. Well in fact mine hardly ever comes out now - there really is no need. Ok may in the night after the sun has set. Never mind any negatives you might read they are all over come by the shear beauty of this phone - it is like no other in its class. Functionally it is the same as most of the phones out there. Its a little like to Nokia's key pad, you get use to the functions and so on and it grows on you. This phone is unlike a Nokia functionality but I do like it. May be the difference with most reviews to this one is I have been using the phone every day for a year (X820) and the new U100 performs just as good, whereas most reviews only play with them for a limited number of days even hours. You make up your mind by purchasing one - you will be converted but please do not tell everyone as it won't be such an exclusive gadget any more!
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Reviewed by katrina harper from england on 10th Sep 2007
that fopne is gdgd and that they ar e so thin
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Reviewed by Cico from Croatia on 4th Sep 2007
Extraordinary phone, everything is perfect, just one thing: Camera takes too much space, I would replace it with FM tuner, and that would made it the best phone for long time to come.
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Reviewed by Jillian from UK on 2nd Sep 2007
it's a gr8 fone everythin i wanted; lite nd simple i luv it but it tk me ages 2 find a sutble contract wivvodafone or even a suitable 12 mnth contract i cldn't find any shops dat sold it so i gt it ovar da net. wen i did gt it it woz gr8 jus wot i were lukin 4 id recommend it to any1 lukin 4 a small annd simple but yt sleek fone
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Reviewed by Prem from Bahrain on 31st Aug 2007
hey...this thing is so slim, i can't make it's presence in my trouser pocket. frequently i put my hand in the pocket to make sure it's sitting there. well,despite the slimness samsung has not compromised anything on its features and performance but at times i feel the hand set is producing some heat in my ears and giving me a slight uncomfort feeling in my head & neck. probably i will get used to it in due course. all in all this model is a rocker.
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Reviewed by Christiana from Turkiye on 24th Aug 2007
Just the best! i loved it
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Reviewed by James from Monaco on 10th Aug 2007
Just come honme with one and love it, BUT just realised NO MEMORY CARD SLOT. Urgh! I have to take it back. What a shame, major oversight.
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Reviewed by Prasad from Libya on 1st Aug 2007
Slim, nice camera but 60MB memory is not practical. Screen size should have been bigger. Why not an external memory slot…!!
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Reviewed by Dragan from Canada on 30th Jul 2007
excellent phone in general. I was looking for an ultra thin mobile that would disappear into my trouser's, which this unit does quite well. The only negative is that i find i drop alot of call's with this mobile, this is probally due to the fact that it is a tri band, and not a quad band. I would recommend this phone for it's ultra thin design and appearance. However i will probally upgrade to the sony t650i once it is realeased.
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Reviewed by umi from uk on 29th Jul 2007
dis iz da best fone for bellin ya homeboys
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Reviewed by Steven from England on 21st Jul 2007
Just Bought this phone and what a phone it is!same thickness as a ipod, superb design. all of my friends want one. this has got to be the best looking phone on the market so far. a lot of great features included for the small size of the phone, including a 3.2 mega pixel camera! the best sexy phone i have ever seen. going to be a big hitter for 2007!
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Reviewed by Ratnesh from India on 21st Jul 2007
Its really cool just like lindsay lohan with its slim feature line dimension. Get it and feel like a partner carrying lindsay in your pocket. Extra ordinary slim figure.
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Reviewed by paul from uk on 20th Jul 2007
I got my new U100 from UK and it is small and slim will recommend anyone to get one and also it is free contract and phone all free
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Reviewed by amiee--x from england on 23rd Jun 2007
ive had this fone..love it totally..very sassy and girly..and jus had so much fun wiv it..untill i had to be a right tawat..and drop it in da bath lol :(:(
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Reviewed by dave orpin from uk on 19th Jun 2007
brillant but you could lose it if you dont relize its not in pocket
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Reviewed by Ovie Albert from Sapele, Nigeria on 16th Jun 2007
Yeah,. This is a real sleek and nice phone... Apart from one thing. No Memory card. I would have prefered Samsung to have added Memory Card function than to sacrifice that for slimness. I think they ought to come out with U100i, which would include memory card functionality as an improvement!
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Reviewed by Sam Osgood from UK on 14th Jun 2007
Remarkably thin, i'd say dont buy it unless ur responsible, and not afraid! As other Samsungs, it has everything you need.
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Samsung U100 links