Samsung U800 Soul b review: As busy as a "b" can be

Inspiration is one thing you can't deny the Samsung Soul lineup. Well, that goes to the Ultra too, though all of them thin and sexy handsets are pretty much doomed to oblivion by their own offspring. Back in the day, we said the original U900 Soul was to crown the Ultra lineup. OK, we take it back; it has started a dynasty of its own. The bloodline grows stronger and spreads over different form factors. The latest Soul handset has a b index appended to its name, but any B-list connotations seem out of place here. 

   The obvious shortfall is in the imaging department: Soul b is the only handset in the lineup to miss a 5-megapixel shooter. As for the rest, the pedigree is there. The ultra thin but solid brushed metal bar goes beyond looks and style. Samsung U800 Soul b boasts 3.6 Mbps HSDPA, a 16M-color QVGA display, 3 MP camera with LED flash and 1GB of microSD-expandable onboard memory. 

  
Key features:
2.0" 16M-color TFT LCD display of QVGA resolution 
3G with HSDPA (3.6Mbps) support 
1GB of onboard memory, microSD expansion 
Nice and responsive D-pad 
Cool brushed metal casing 
Just 9.9mm thickness 
3 megapixel camera with LED flash 
FM radio with RDS 
Bluetooth (A2DP) and USB v2.0 
User-friendly keypad 
Office document viewer 
Main disadvantages:
Tri-band only 
Camera has no auto focus 
Somewhat slow interface response 
Slow first-time access of the microSD card 
Limited browser capabilities 
QCIF video recording at most