If there's one thing Samsung knows how to do really well it's make very thin phones crammed with lots of features. This time round it has pumped out one with a 5-megapixel camera that's only 15mm thin--6mm slimmer than the Nokia N95, the only other 5-megapixel camera phone currently on the market.

Design

The G600 isn't the most revolutionary-looking handset in the world and sticks very close to Samsung's traditional slider phone layout. It's not ugly, but it doesn't have the wow-factor of slider phones such as the LG Chocolate or Shine. It comes in a rather tame two-toned grey casing that keeps in line with the Samsung's generally serious aesthetic--it certainly won't raise any eyebrows. What will impress you, given its feature set, is how slim it is, measuring a compact 15mm thin.

Average looks aside, the G600 feels good to hold and use. Its screen is large enough to view without squinting, there are no annoying touch-sensitive keys to press and the keypad is usable. The camera on the back is also well protected behind the slide.

Features

The G600's 5-megapixel camera is by far its star feature, which is probably why Samsung decided to keep it nice and safe behind the slide mechanism. You access it by opening the phone and then pressing the dedicated shutter button on the side. Pressing this shutter button very gently in camera mode activates the autofocus, which takes a bit of getting used to as it's very sensitive. The camera lets you adjust a variety of settings, including picture size and flash mode.

The G600's flash is unfortunately only an LED photo light that doesn't illuminate as well as a Xenon flash, such as the one found on the Sony Ericsson K810i. You can whack the ISO up to 800 but the shots come out far grainier. Aside from taking photos, you can also use the G600 to shoot video.

The G600's music player is comprehensive, supporting a variety of formats including MP3 and AAC. You can set your music to shuffle mode, rate it and listen to it using proprietary headphones or wirelessly via stereo Bluetooth ones. Other noteworthy features include an FM radio, an expandable microSD slot that can support up to 2GB and a Google search bar that lets you access Google directly without going through the browser--useful if you want to search for something quickly.

If you're choosing between this phone and the Nokia N95, which also has a 5-megapixel camera, then it's worth keeping in mind that the N95 has HSDPA (3.5G), Wi-Fi and built-in GPS. It is worth noting, though, that this camera-phone is much more pocket-friendly, although it's a shame it's not 3G.

Performance

Call quality on the G600 was very good--it's something Samsung noticeably takes very seriously. Calls sounded loud and clear but the speakerphone was relatively quiet and could have been much louder.

The image quality from the camera was good and while it's apparent that a 5-megapixel sensor isn't as good without a full camera lens to support it, the shots were clear and crisp enough for large prints. Unfortunately, shots in low light weren't as clear due to the lack of a proper flash.

Battery life was good lasting over two days, although it will run out quicker if you use the camera a lot.

Conclusion

The G600's camera performed brilliantly compared with the majority of camera-phones currently on the market, although the Sony Ericsson K810i edges it with its better flash. If, however, you're looking for a good camera-phone with 3G and Wi-Fi, the Nokia N95 is definitely worth checking out. Overall, Samsung has done it again, producing a thin phone packed with features--even though we would have liked to have seen 3G, it's an enjoyable phone to carry around and use.