LG Cell Phones are really taking over the touch screen market. And if you thought LG Arena was cool wit till you read about the new phone from LG, the LG Viewty 2 or Viewty Smart. This phone can be thought of as a an LG Arena with a much heavier camera and DiVX support or an LG Viewty with S-Class interface and and improved processor. Either way it is an improvement to two of the best touch screen phones produced by LG.

The LG Viewty Smart comes with the all new S-Class interface, the same interface that iphone users admired when it was first introduced in the LG Arena, you can read more about the S-Class interface in my LG Arena review. Looks wise there is very little resemblance between the LG GC 900 and the original LG Viewty but there are a lot of welcome additions to the LG GC 900 for example Wi-Fi has been added; something that was missed in the original Viewty. As of now the phone comes in a silver-black combo; the front of the phone is all black while the back is silver. However an all silver aluminum casing is expected to arrive soon.

Just like the original Viewty, the first impression anyone gets when they see this phone is that of a camera. And with an 8 Megapixel camera this device is more of a camera than a phone. But when one starts up the phone and uses the S-Class interface they think of it as a camera-phone on steroids

When it comes to memory the LG Viewty smart has an internal memory of 1.5 GB and can support a micro SD card upto 32 GB. The internal memory of the LG GC 900 is much lower than that of the Arena. One would expect a DiVX supported phone to have at least 8 GB of internal memory.

Some of the main features of the LG Viewty Smart are:

• 3″ 16M-color capacitive TFT touchscreen of WVGA resolution (480 x 800 pixels.
• S-Class Touch UI
• 3G with HSDPA (7.2 Mbps)
• Wi-Fi and GPS receiver with A-GPS
• 8 megapixel autofocus camera, Schneider-Kreuznach optics, LED flash
• Hot-swappable microSD card slot
• Accelerometer for screen auto rotate
• Multi-touch input
• DivX and XviD support
• Dolby for Mobile audio enhancement.

While some of its more noticable disadvantages are: (more…)

LG Arena may as well be the best phone released in 2009 by LG Cell Phones.  This phone is the flagship of the LG touchscreen phones with their new S-class user interface.

What makes the LG Arena Special among other things is its brilliant S-Class user interface (UI) which LG designed specially for this phone. The S-Class UI promises fluidity that has never been experienced before in any of LG’s previous touch screen phones. One might even say that the Arena may be the only phone that can compare with the excellently smooth and super responsive UI of the iphone. The iphone has always been set as a standard for comparison of touch screen phones and it looks like the arena may finally be able to compete with the iphone. With the S-Class the user gets a cube interface, the screen contains a 3D cube that you can turn around to reveal one of 4 sides: contacts, widgets, shortcuts and a customizable home screen.

When it comes to memory LG Arena comes with an internal 8 GB of memory which can be expanded to 40GB via the microSD card slot. This even exceeds the capacity of iphone or any other multimedia phone.

Another thing one notices after turning on the phone is the WVGA resolution i.e. a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels which is extremely impressive for a 3 inch screen. The LG Arena also comes equipped with an accelerometer for screen auto rotate and the much loved multi-touch input.

Some of the features of the LG Arena are:

• 3″ screen with a WVGA resolution.
• Quad-Band Support.
• 3G.
• Wi-Fi and GPS.
• 8GB internal memory.
• 3D hardware accelerator.
• DiVX and XViD support.
• Mobile Dolby sound system.

While some of the more noticeable disadvantages of this phone are:

• Poor visibility in sunlight.
• Cannot record in DiVX format.
• Maximum email attachment size is 1 MB.
• Has an LED flash whereas such a camera should have come with either a strobe or xenon flash.

Design:

Unlike the other phones I have reviewed here, this phone does not have any form of hardware keys on the front panel. The three hardware buttons that we have seen on the cookie, viewty and renoir are not present in this model. Instead these keys are in the form of touch sensitive buttons and are present on the massive screen itself. These touch sensitive buttons are the “call” key, the “call end” key and the “multitasking/shortcut” key. Above these keys we have the massive 3 inch touch screen. The most beautiful thing about this screen is its massive resolution of 480 x 800 pixels. Such a high resolution on a 3 inch screen results in more pixels per inch than any directly competing handset can offer. Above the screen we have the earpiece along with the VGA video call camera. And thats all there is on the front of the phone.

On the left side of LG KM 900 Arena we have the USB port. The port is hidden under a nice sliding lid, the same one as was in the Viewty. The lid is a nice addition and prevents the port from getting filled with dust and dirt. It is sad that LG are still using their own proprietary cables and ports in their phones. It would have been nice to see a microUSB or miniUSB port on this phone. On the right side of the phone we have the volume rocker keys and the camera shutter key. At first these buttons appear too thin and a pain to use but one eventually gets used to them.

The bottom of the LG Arena is completely clean and has no ports or buttons. On the top of the phone we have the 3.5mm standard audio jack (A welcome addition ), the power key and the back panel release button. (more…)

The LG KP 500 or LG Cookie is something really special baked by LG.  LG Cell Phones have proved with this model that touch screen phones with some very decent specs can be affordable and within everyone’s reach.

The LG Cookie is a wonderful phone having some decent specs and a very interesting user interface to say the least. The LG Cookie has a 3″ 256K-color TFT touchscreen. The first thing that you’ll notice about the phone is the fun widget interface. Linux users may be familiar with this interface as it is part of the Kubuntu desktop. Widgets have also been used in Windows Vista; the sidebar at the right of the screen that holds the time and calender and other widgets. Now that you are familiar with widgets, imagine this fun-interface on your mobile phone. Widgets can be added or removed, they can also be moved around. The Viewty could have used an interface like this

LG Cell Phones has made sure that the cookie comes in various flavors. The LG Cookie comes in black, brown, silver and gold. Cookie is also available in pink and silver but these two are exclusive to Orange.

LG Cookie has various attractive features i.e. a Quad band GSM phone, a 3 MP camera (which is very good for its price), an accelerometer for auto screen rotate, multi-tasking with a real task manager and so much more.

LG Cookie is not all that good as it does have some disadvantages, the more prominent ones are no 3G support, no Wi-Fi, video recording could have been better, there is no autofoucus and unlike the Viewty the phone cannot support DiVX file formats.

Design:

The dimensions of the phone are 106.5 x 55.4 x 11.9 mm. That makes it the smallest and thinnest touch screen phones around, also at only 89 grams it is the lightest phone in its category.

The front of the phone looks pretty much like the LG Renoir due to the three hardware keys below the screen i.e.  a Call and an End key on either side of the Multitasking key that brings up a menu of shortcuts and a task manager. However the keys don’t look exactly the same, I had mentioned in my review of the Renior that LG Cell Phones could have done a better job with the keys as it made the phone look a bit ugly. And it looks like LG heard our prayers and the hardware keys on LG Cookie looks nothing like those on the Renoir.

The buttons are smaller than the Renoir’s and are placed in a stylish chrome frame, they’re also much responsive. The keys are slightly concave, which adds to the excellent design and feel. (more…)

As Promised, here is the complete review of the LG KC 910. Ive mentioned most of this already in the Preview: LG KC910 post. But here i will explain in more detail.

The LG KC 910 may be considered as the improved version of the Viewty. A lot of new features have been added and a lot of mistakes were corrected. This LG Phone falls in the same touch screen category as the Viewty. The main attraction of the LG Renoir, aside from the 3 inch touch screen display is the 8 mega pixel camera with advanced features such as smile and blink detection.

While some of the more prominent features of this phone are complete wireless connectivity such as HSDPA, Wi-Fi and GPS. DiVX and XVid recording and playback capability. An 8 mega pixel camera, an onscreen QWERTY keyboard and automatic screen rotation make it one of the best phones in the market today.

You guys may have noticed in the preview pictures and I may also have mentioned that the keys below the screen seemed a bit out of place and gave a “cheap” look. But once you have this phone in your hands you will know that the buttons below the screen only add to the beauty of the phone.

Design:

The dimensions of the phone are 107.8 x 55.9 x 14 mm. These are almost the same dimensions as of the LG KU 990 Viewty. The KC 910 is only 5mm taller. As this phone has been derived from the Viewty, it has almost the same feel as that of Viewty.

On the front of the phone we have the impressive 3 inch touch screen display, which takes almost all of the front face of the phone. The screen and the front of the phone have the same mirror finish as the Viewty had. Below the screen there exist 3 actual (non-touch) keys. These are the green call and the red call end key, along with a special menu key in the middle that opens up the application launcher and the task manager.

[smartads]Above the screen, there is a light sensor, that detects the light setting and accordingly adjusts the brightness of the phone, hence saving battery power. Besides the sensor is the video call camera that can be used when making video calls via 3G.

On the right side of the phone we have the volume up and down keys along with the camera shutter key. The shutter key also starts up the camera. Besides the camera shutter key is the image stabilization and lock key. On the left side of the phone we have the micro SD slot along with the USB port. The USB port is used to connect the data cable, the headset and the charger. The micro SD slot can support cards up to 8 GB. While on the back of the phone we have the all powerful 8 megapixel camera along with a powerful flash. The back of the phone is a beauty and its metal finish makes it all the more attractive. (more…)

LG Cell Phones announced their next power house in August, The LG KC910. This cell phone is expected to be the next iphone killer. The main beauty of this phone, aside from its excellent 3 inch display is the all powerful 8 megapixel camera. LG Cell Phones announced this phone as a response to Sony Ericcson’s C905 & Samsung’s Innov8. Both of which come with an 8 megapixel camera. However the KC910 is much slimmer than both the C905 and the Innov8, measuring at 14 mm thick compared to 17.2 & 19.5 thickness of Innov8 & C905 respectively. The other advantage the LG KC910 has over the other two is that it has an excellent 3 inch touch screen display whereas the Innov8 comes only with a 2.8 inch display and the C905 comes with a 2.4 inch display, both of which are not touch screen.

The dimensions of the KC910 are 107.8 x 55.9 x 14 mm and is reported to weigh in at 114 grams. LG Cell Phones have also totally covered the connectivity front in this phone, as this is a quad band phone; GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 and also comes with the powerful 3G meaning faster uploads and downloads speeds. Quad band means that this phone will work anywhere in the world. The KC910 also has Wi-Fi; 802.11b/g. The display will be a TFT 3 inch touch screen having a maximum resolution of 240 x 400 pixels. Just like the LG Viewty it will also be able to play and record videos in DiVX and XViD format. The KC910 is also reported to have a built in GPS receiver.

The camera is a stunning 8 Mega pixel having Schneider-Kreuznach optics and a lens cover. The camera has a maximum resolution of 3264×2448 pixels. The camera also comes with a Xenon Flash thus making it a completely professional camera. We also have a secondary VGA camera that can be used for video chatting via 3G. More advanced features of the camera include Camera geo-tagging, face, smile and blink detection.

The video camera is also what is to be expected from a 8 mega pixel. It can record in VGA resolution at a stunning 30 frames per second (fps) and at QVGA resolution at 120 fps. the recorded videos will be in DiVX format thus minimizing video size and conserving memory.

The KC 910 will be available in stores in October 2008, although mo one knows how much this beast will cost.

Specifications:

Display: TFT touchscreen, 256K colors, 240 x 400 pixels, 3.0 inches.

Network: 2G Network: GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 190. 3G Network: HSDPA 210.

Battery: Standard battery, Li-Ion.

Size: 107.8 x 55.9 x 14 mm. Weight: 114 g.

Camera: 8 MP, 3264×2448 pixels, autofocus, video(VGA 30fps, QVGA up to 120fps), xenon flash; secondary VGA videocall camera.

Features: SMS, EMS, MMS, Email, WAP 2.0/xHTML, pre-installed and download able Games.

Connectivity: GPRS: Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 – 48 kbps, EDGE: Class 10, 236.8 kbps, 3G: HSDPA, 3.6 Mbps,  Bluetooth: v2.0 with A2DP, USB: 2.01

Memory: Internal memory unknown, microSD card slot supporting up to 8 GB card.

The LG KE990 Viewty is the same thing as the KU990 Viewty except for some slight differences. Since this LG Cell Phone is the same thing as the LG KU990 Viewty so I will not be writing a full review again. To read the full review of the KU990 click here.

By looking at the image to the left, the difference between the two models becomes very clear(the front camera is missing and the flash). There are mainly 2 differences.

The first is that the LG KE990 does not have 3G connectivity, whereas the KU990 does. No 3G means no front camera in the KE990.

The second main difference is the flash. The KU990 comes with a strobe flash whereas the KE990 comes with a xenon flash.

The lack of 3G and a xenon flash makes the LG KE990 a more cheaper Viewty. The KE990 is best for those people that would like to use the excellent features and camera of the Viewty but have no use for 3G. Also in many countries of the world 3G is still not available or is very very expensive. The KE990 would be best used in such places.

Specifications:

Display: TFT touchscreen, 256K colors, 240 x 400 pixels, 3.0 inches.

Network: 2G Network: Tri-Band(GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900).

Battery: Standard battery, Li-Ion 1000 mAh, Stand by time: 430 hours, talk time: 4 hours.

Size: 103.5 x 54.4 x 14.8 mm. Weight: 112 g.

Camera: 5 MP, 2592?1944 pixels, autofocus, video(VGA 30fps, QVGA up to 120fps), xenon flash; secondary VGA videocall camera.

Features: SMS, EMS, MMS, Email, WAP 2.0/xHTML, pre-installed and download able Games.

Connectivity: GPRS: Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 – 48 kbps, EDGE: Class 10, 236.8 kbps, Bluetooth: v1.2 with A2DP, USB: 2.0

Memory: 100 MB shared memory, microSD card slot supporting up to 2 GB card.

The LG KU990 Viewty is a beauty. It may well be the only phone that competes with Apple’s iPhone in terms of style and features. However some consider that due to the way powerful 5 mega pixel camera this LG Cell Phone ranks much higher than the iPhone. The Viewty is a wonder to use and in terms of features and applications it is a powerhouse.

Some of its more prominent features are 3G support for faster uploads and downloads and for video calls. 5 Mega pixel camera with image stabilizer, it can record videos at 120 frames per second, has a 3 inch display and can playback videos in the DiVX format. The only problem with this phone is the lack of hot-swapping the memory, meaning we have to turn off the phone in order to remove the memory card.

Design:

The dimensions of this LG cell phone are 103.5 x 54.4 x 14.8 mm which makes it almost the same size as the iPhone, and weighs only 112 grams. On the front of the phone we have an impressive 3 inch touch screen display having a resolution of 240 x 400 pixels. Below the touchscreen we have 3 normal keys, the green call key, the red end key and the clear key. The clear key can be used as a backspace key in text editing or to go up one level in menu. Above the display there is a secondary VGA camera. This secondary camera can be used in 3G video calls since taking self photos on a VGA camera in the presence of a 5 mega pixel camera will be kind of stupid.

On the left of the phone we only have the port for the charger/data cable/headset. While on the right side of the phone there are a number of keys, we have the dedicated camera key, a key lock function, which can also be used to take pictures with image stabilization and finally we have a slider key that changes camera modes between still camera, video camera and image gallery.

The back of the phone resembles the look of a professional digital camera. LG Mobile Phones have added a 5 mega pixel camera to the Viewty with Schneider-Kreuznach optics. The camera also has a hardware jog wheel that is used for zooming while taking pictures, it can also be used for adjusting the brightness and for zooming in and out of images in the gallery. The hardware jog wheel is also used to control the volume. The camera also has a strobe flash. The odd thing is that the camera lens is not protected by a lens cover of any sort. I dont know why LG Cell Phones did not feel the need to protect such an expensive lens? (more…)

The LG KS20 is yet another fashion touch screen phone from LG. It also supports 3G, meaning way faster upload and download speeds. This LG cell phone has a 400 MHz Qualcomm MSM7200 processor, 128 MB of RAM and 256 MB of ROM and a MicroSD expansion slot. We also have Wi-Fi support in this phone. The software or operating system used is Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional, which is a real charm to use on the KS20. All these features make the LG KS20 the perfect pocket PC.

Design:

LG Cell Phones have designed the KS20 with a beautiful 2.8″ touch screen display. It supports QVGA resolution of 320×240 pixels. Above the large display we have the LG logo along with the earpiece. A secondary camera also exists above the display which can be used to make video calls over 3G and can also be used to take pictures. Right next to the camera we have an LED which is invisible when it is off but comes on when the Wi-Fi or Bluetooth is in use. Looks very nice when it is on.  Below the display we have a thin bar which contains the call key and end call key, between these keys we have the joystick which looks too small to use and uncomfortable is exactly the opposite, the feel of the joystick is great, is responsive and very comfortable to use.

To the left side of the phone we have the USB port which is used to connect the carger, headset or data cable. The volume up and down keys are also located on the left side. To the right side of the phone we have the power key and the microSD card slot, the right side also houses 2 custom shortcut keys for internet explorer and camera, but they are fully customizable and can be pointed to open any application or function. On the back of the phone we have the 2 mega pixel camera along with an LED flash.

Camera:

The KS20 comes with a 2 mega pixel camera along with an LED flash, although it is a 2 mega pixel camera the results are remarkably excellent. It may well be the best 2 mega pixel camera available in the market, the pictures are bright and clear, indoors or outdoors, they have almost no noise. The flash can be set to be always on, off or on auto. It can record in 3gp format at QVGA resolution at 15 fps. They could have done better with the video but I guess thats all the 2 mega pixel can offer.

Specifications:

Display: TFT touchscreen, 256K colors, 240 x 320 pixels, 2.8 inches.

Network: 2G Network: Tri-Band(GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900). 3G Network: HSDPA 2100.

Battery: Standard battery, Li-Ion 1050 mAh, Stand by time: 270 hours, talk time: 3 hours.

Size: 99.8 x 58 x 12.8 mm . Weight: 92.5 g.

Camera: 2 MP, 1600×1200 pixels, autofocus, video, flash; secondary VGA videocall camera.

Features: SMS, EMS, MMS, Email, WAP 2.0/xHTML, pre-installed and download able Games.

Connectivity: GPRS: Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 – 48 kbps, EDGE: Class 10, 236.8 kbps, 3G: HSDPA, 3.6 Mbps, Wi-Fi: 802.11b/g, Bluetooth: v2.0 with A2DP, USB: 2.0

Memory: 128 MB internal memory, microSD card slot supporting up to 4 GB card.

LG Cell Phones have announced their latest symbian phone, the LG KT610. Its a dual display phpne with a full QWERTY keyboard, lets check it out in more detail.

Design:

The dimensions of the KT610 are 108.9 x 53.9 x 17.2 mm and weighs around 99 grams which is really impressive for a phone with dual displays and a qwerty keyboard. The phone comes only in black color.  When the phone is closed we can use the secondary display of 256K colors, 1.45″. It is a 4 line display and can be used for telephony and messaging. Below the screen we have 6 rows of keys of adequate size, hence they are easy to press and use. The two halphes of the phone are connected by only two hinges and LG Cell Phones have done a wonderful job here. The two halves are connected with such perfection that there are no creaks or wobbling when opening or closing the phone.

When we open the phone we are greeted by a full QWERTY keyboard. The keys are placed atlest 1 mm apart therefore making it very easy to locate the keys and type. The main display is located here and is a TFT 256K display. It is of 2.4 inches so we can have a lot of fun with such a big display with symbian applications. It has a resolution of 320 x 240 pixels.

We do not have any keys on the sides of the phone as everything is accomodated in the keyboard whereas the memory card slot is placed on the right side of the phone. On the back of the phone we have a 2 mega pixel camera which is sad, without any lens cover which is even sadder.

Camera:

There is not much to say about its camear, its a standard 2 mega pixel camera without any flash capability. So dont expect any imaging miracles from this camera. They could have at least added a 3 mega pixel camera here, I just dont get it why they went for a 2 mega pixel camera. It has a maximum resolution of 1600 X 1200 pixels. We also have a secondary camera that can be used in video chatting.

Software:

The operating system used in the LG KT610 is Symbian OS v9.2, S60 rel. 3.1. The use of symbian means great things since we can install almost unlimited numbers of 3rd party software’s. This set comes with 3G capabilities meaning faster upload and download speeds.  It also has GPS mapping capabilities. But the most disappointing thing in this phone is that id does not have Wi-Fi capabilities. Who in their right mind designs a communicator kind of mobile without the option of WLAN. Its just madness.

Specifications:

Display: TFT, 256K colors, 320 x 240 pixels, 2.4 inches, Second external 4 line 256K display, 1.45 inches.

Network: 2G Network: Tri-Band(GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900). 3G Network: HSDPA 2100.

Battery: Standard battery, Li-Ion.

Size: 108.9 x 53.9 x 17.2 mm . Weight: 99 g.

Camera: 2 MP, 1600×1200 pixels, video; secondary VGA videocall camera.

Features: SMS, EMS, MMS, Email, WAP 2.0/xHTML, pre-installed and download able Games.

Connectivity: GPRS: Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 – 48 kbps, EDGE: Class 10, 236.8 kbps, 3G: HSDPA, 3.6 Mbps, Bluetooth: v2.0 without A2DP, USB: 2.0

Memory: 64 MB shared memory, microSD card slot supporting up to 4 GB card.

The LG KF700 also known as the LG Virgo is one of the latest LG full touch phones. Its 3 inch touch screen display and slide mechanism makes it stand out from the rest of the phones. The phone has 3G capability which means faster upload and download speeds.

Design:

The dimensions of this LG cell phone are 102 x 51 x 14.5 mm and weighs around 110 grams; not the lightest phone available. The LG KF700 comes with a beautiful 3″ touch screen display with a resolution of 240 x 480 pixels, the large resolution is a nice touch but this can also be a problem for many people. As due to the unique screen resolutuion special custom wallpapers will have to be used and you will really have a hard time finding java games for this phone that will fit your screen resolution. The front part of the phone only contains the large display and the menu can be accessed via the touch screen when the phone is closed (when slider is down) when the phone is slided up we see the nice looking keypad with different shades of grey. This keypad pattern has become a signature pattern of LG since the release of chocolate.

On the left side of this LG Cell Phones we have the special scroll key that can be used for menu navigation. This is a really helpful tool and I really love to use the scroll wheel in my pocket pc and am glad that LG has added this to the KF700 sadly you cannot press the scroll key, instead you will have to use the adjecent ok key, which is also located on the left side of the phone near the scroll key. It would still would have been better if they had added the ok button within the scroll key. On the right side of the phone we have the USB port where we can connect the headset, data cable and charger, a dedicated camera key and a lock function for the touch screen. On the back of the phone we have the 3 mega pixel camera, an LED flash and the special scroll key. On the top of the phone we have the memory card slot.

Camera:

This LG Cell Phone comes with a 3 mega pixel camera with auto focus and an LED flash. It also claims to have a digital image stabilizer. Due to the unusual display resolution of 240 x 480 pixels, the camera only uses the center of the display as the view finder. The dedicated camera cay can sometimes be a nuisance. In this phone LG wanted to add more function to the camera key and wanted to integrate that camcorder into this key also so in order to take an image all you have to do is press the key once and in order to start the camcorder you will have to press and hold the camera key. This can be a problem as those people who do not have a habit of locking their keypads can accidentally turn on the camera a lot. As for video recording it can record in QVGA resolution at 15 fps.

The camera supports a maximum resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels and its results are very good. This phone was never advertised as a dedicated camera phone so dont expect too much from the camera.

Specifications:

Display: TFT touchscreen, 256K colors, 240 x 480 pixels, 3.0 inches.

Network: 2G Network: Tri-Band(GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900). 3G Network: HSDPA 2100.

Battery: Standard battery, Li-Ion 800 mAh, Stand by time: 400 hours, talk time: 4 hours.

Size: 102 x 51 x 14.5 mm . Weight: 110 g.

Camera: 3.15 MP, 2048×1536 pixels, autofocus, image stabilizer, video (QVGA 15fps); secondary videocall camera.

Features: SMS, EMS, MMS, Email, WAP 2.0/xHTML, pre-installed and download able Games.

Connectivity: GPRS: Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 – 48 kbps, EDGE: Class 10, 236.8 kbps, 3G: HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps, Bluetooth: v2.0 with A2DP, USB: 2.0

Memory: microSD card slot supporting up to 4 GB card.

Check out more LG Cell Phones reviews.