A model shows Samsung Electronics’ Ultra Edition mobile phones, celebrating their acceptance to the Guinness World Records 2008. Samsung said it won three categories including the World’s Slimmest Phone. / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics

By Cho Jin-seo
Staff Reporter

Samsung Electronics said Sunday that it earned three Guinness World Records this year with its Ultra Edition series mobile phones, and 11 iF Design Awards including two gold prizes.

The firm said that its 5.9-millimeters thick SGH-U100 phone was recognized as the world's slimmest phone by the 2008 edition of the Guinness World Records.

For other categories, its 10-million pixel camera phone, SCH-B600, was named the camera phone with the highest picture resolution, and SGH-Z370, which is 8.4 millimeters thick, was recognized as the slimmest third-generation (3G) phone.

``Super-slim design and high-resolution cameras are both the mobile industry's big trends,'' the company said in a press release. ``In this context, the acceptance of Samsung handsets to the Guinness Book represents our technology leadership in the global mobile market.''

The Ultra Edition series waslaunched this year as Samsung's new flagship lineup. By using magnesium and glass fiber alloy to forge the casing, its engineers managed to pack various functions such as a camera and Bluetooth wireless chip in the 5.9-millimeter phone without sacrificing durability.

The Guinness World Records is an annually published reference book that lists an internationally recognized collection of world records, such as what is the tallest building in the world, or what is the fastest time to eat a 12-inch pizza by one man. The book was first published in 1954 by the Irish beer company Guinness for promotional purposes.

On the same day, Samsung celebrated receiving two gold prizes at the iF design awards, which is considered one of the three most prestigious awards in the field.

A new touch-screen phone named Croix, meaning cross in French, was picked as one of the most brilliant user interface. Digital Story, a package of five digital gadgets, was honored for its box design.

``A masterpiece of interface design. All of the functions are very minimalist and follow the principle of `croix' (cross) navigation,'' the award committee said about Croix on its Web site.

indizio@koreatimes.co.kr