2 More Windows Phone 7 Handsets from LG
According to various sources, the Korean phone maker LG will have two more handsets coming that will be using the new Microsoft Windows Phone 7 operating system. With various mobile phone manufacturers already announcing their devices, it seems that LG has decided to take their lead in the WP7 race further with two more phones.
LG was the first phone maker to announce a handset for the WP7 OS and they have been the first to show the device in images and also in action. What is more is that the LG Panther is also the very first WP7 handset revealed that would have a slide out QWERTY keyboard – a major feature that is not present in other devices.
With the Panther already announced and ready to go, LG was able to establish themselves as the current ‘lead’ among WP7 handset makers –but with the simultaneous launch this coming October, LG’s position as first will not mean much. By having more devices however, they will still carve out a much larger niche than what the Panther can make.
The two new devices aside from the Panther are the E900 and the C900. These two smart phones have been brought up in a Microsoft database listing, revealing that the said devices will be using a special mobile version of IE7 that is designed strictly for the WP7 OS.
However, without an official listing or mention from LG, the actual specs or even basic details of the two devices are pretty much unknown –and some are even speculating that one of the handsets might be a designation for the Panther (which means LG will only have two devices and not three).
Since Microsoft has already given out specifics on the minimum hardware requirements for the new WP7, the least we can expect is that both devices will have capacitive WVGA touch screen displays and 1GHz Qualcomm CPUs.
People in the UK Like to Save
LG Electronics recently held a small study on the app preferences of smart phone users in the UK and according to their findings; it appears that locally, people prefer to save.
With more and more app enabled smart phones in the market, LG has seen it fit to understand and learn what kinds of apps people tend to gravitate towards. Despite the constant messages from various economic leaders that that the recession is over, people still prefer to take the cheaper road of finding more ways to pinch down on the spending.
It’s a great thing actually, as such a mindset allows for better and wiser decisions for actually making purchases. The same applies to apps. The study has shown that people like apps that save money and time over other categories. The third on the list is the apps for physical fitness and emotional health (as well as mental well being). Fourth would be practical guides and directions to places to go to and last on the list are games.
While the results may sound strange, it may also be due to the fact that the study is a matter which apps people prefer to use, not which apps they have downloaded. Ironically, most of the apps that have the most downloads do not necessarily have the most users. More often than not, some apps simply get downloaded out of sheer curiosity. Practical apps on the other hand are actually being sought after directly.
LG’s research has also shown how big the app market in the UK truly is. According to the reports, the average annual amount spent by people in the UK on apps is about £422 million. This number is expected to rise with each coming year as more and more people prefer to use smart phones over conventional handsets.
Taking a Quick Look at LG’s New Devices
2010 is proving to be a very productive year for many mobile phone manufacturers. Taiwanese manufacturer HTC already has several devices coming out this April and it has been confirmed that they are already working on more Android smart phones to be released later on.
Korean based LG is not going to be left behind by its competitors as they have recently confirmed that their LG Panther smart phone is ready and waiting for the upcoming Windows Phone 7 series mobile platform. The device is a touch screen smart phone that has a slide out QWERTY keyboard which matches the type 2 chassis requirements of WP7. The device is expected to come out later this October.
LG just announced 5 more smart phones that will be coming out in the next few months.
Starting off the list is the LG Cookie Music media smart phone that comes with some pretty impressive mid-range features. The device is equipped with a 5 mega pixel camera, Dolby technology for superior music quality, 4GB of internal memory, a 3.5mm external audio jack and of course, 3G HSDPA support.
Other upcoming devices include the KS365 touch screen GSM smart phone. The phone will have a 2.4 inch quarter VGA touch screen along with a 2 MP camera, a slide out QWERTY keyboard and an FM radio.
LG is also bringing out the Pure and the GT405 smart phones. The Pure comes in a slider form with a 5 mega pixel camera and support for HSDPA. While the GT405 is a touch screen device with a new 3D version of the LG S-class user interface.
Lastly, the LG Jaguar 5 is a basic candy bar device that comes with a VGA camera.
Get to know more about LG’s 5 new mobile phones at Mobile Choice UK.
First WP7 Device: LG Panther
The new LG Panther is currently taking the title of first device for the WP7 mobile platform.
While the OS is not yet shown on the device itself, LG and Microsoft have confirmed that the new smart phone is indeed made for the Windows Phone 7 series and it will be sporting a groovy 5 mega pixel camera and a slide out, physical QWERTY keyboard.
Initial shots of the device are promising. While there is nothing revolutionary about the form factor, it is very practical in terms of functionality. The slide out keyboard will certainly attract a lot of users who love to use mobile messaging functions such as text and email services. The actual keyboard itself is a 4 row layout that has decent sized keys for easy typing.
The fuss about WP7 is far from dying out as MS proves to the world that they still have what it takes to create a good operating system. The unveiling of the OS at the Mobile World Congress certainly drew a lot of good attention to the new user interface that reinvents the way we use and access information on mobile phones. Phone functions are divided into several pages for contacts, media and other functions, making WP7’s UI easy to move around in.
Speculations about the hardware for the WP7 hit a new high last week as the different chassis types were discussed at length. With the CPU for the OS already pegged to be using Qualcomm technology, many are speculating the Snapdragon processor to be WP7’s minimum required CPU. Images do reveal that the device comes with a 5 mega pixel camera with LED flash.
According to reports, the LG Panther is expected to come out later this coming September.
Read more about the Panther and WP7 at Mobile Today UK.
The LG GD880 Mini – Less Mini, More Wow
The new LG GD880 Mini is synonymous with LG’s exotic and stylish range of products. The Mini appears, at first glance, to be LG’s most refined touch-phone device. Top LG directors have said that the Mini has been designed very much in keeping with the feedback received from customers.
Despite its ‘mini’ tag, the Mini isn’t actually a particularly tiny device, although it is somewhat smaller than the LG BL20 New Chocolate. LG, with the Mini, have decided not to engage with the smartphone rage that currently grips the industry, staying within its own S-Class operating system. First impressions of the design show an artfully designed device with an excellent, pixel-rich screen displaying extremely vibrant colours. Its 3.2-inch 480 x 854 pixel resolution says all it needs to, and also features tough scratch-resistant glass – excellent for those of us tired of flimsy devices that collect scratches like some of us collect mobile phones. The touchscreen is also fast and ultra-responsive few mistakes are generally made when writing texts. The only slight caveat is that it is very sensitive, and will register even the most feather-light of touches, so be careful.
The device itself is fairly light at 99 grams and is ergonomic and comfortable to grip. It is LG’s thinnest phone – and no doubt this will appeal to the style-tragic, although it is not quite as thin as Toshiba’s TG01. In terms of the construction, the Mini gives a fairly minimalist feel with square angles and straight lines housing black plastic and brush metal. The screen font is also fairly simple and is helped by the fact that the front of the Mini has no keys at all. Usefully, for those of us who have been disconnected before when bumped on public transport, the screen features a proximity sensor that turns the screen off and simultaneously locks it during a call.
On the top of the Mini, we can find a 3.5mm audio input jack, as well as a covered micro-USB port. There is also a power and lock key here. All of these keys are easy to find and are user-friendly. The device also features a 5-megapixel camera, with the lens being housed in the top-left-hand corner of the phone. The camera is decent enough, but unfortunately features no lens protection which can raise concerns about scratch accumulation for some people and also has no flash, which will be limiting to those looking to take snaps in different lighting conditions. Despite the fact that the back cover of the Mini is easy to remove, it is firmly held in place and there seems no danger that it will fall off. It covers the battery, which is a 900 mAh Li-Ion, as well as the SIM card.
By tapping the Status Bar at the top of the screen you can launch a new menu that can switch Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on and off as well as change profiles and take a look at all recent events. The home screen of the device also features a dedicated shortcut to the device’s main menu, and all items within the menu are easily accessible simultaneously – a departure from early LG incarnations. The device also has native Twitter and Facebook, both of which are easy to access for those into social networking. The music playing capability of the Mini is a real step up from the BL20 New Chocolate, and it features a ‘now playing screen’ which displays album art, where possible, as well as a spinning vinyl icon for presentation.
Internally the phone’s equalizer settings are fairly standard, although LG’s set-piece Dolby Mobile is particularly excellent. The 5 megapixel camera’s processing also allows it to take decent enough photos, although the video streaming was less impressive – and it is to be hoped that this facility improves when the device hits retail.
LG’s Second Android Based Mobile Phone the GT540
The LG GT450 is a promising device, and seems to have made the headlines. The LG GT540 is LG’s second Android based mobile phone. This is one of the many phones that will cater to the social networking community. The smooth round edges on this phone seems to be inspired from the Sony Ericson W595, but the LG GT450 looks a lot better. This mobile phone will be available in several different colors. This mobile phone has a screen resolution of 320×480 pixels and a resistive touch screen, and has 3 megapixel (Auto Focus) camera on the backside. The LG GT 540 has an SNS manager to take care of the social networking side, which can launch the social networking sites such as Twitter and the ever popular Facebook. This phone can also work 3G networks, so surfing the web can be a breeze. Other connectivity features include Bluetooth and WIFI. The LG GT 540 also has integrated GPS receiver and works great with Google maps, which means you’ll never be lost again, while using the GPS.
For those who love watching videos on YouTube, this phone offers you quick YouTube launcher. You can launch YouTube with a quick touch on the YouTube icon and start watching videos. However, if you are a music lover, you’ll love the fact that this mobile phone can play virtually all types of music files, which include MP3’s, and you can add tons of music files, thanks to the expandable memory, which can be expanded to 32 GB. For the movie fans out there you can download movies onto your LG GT 540 and watch them on the go, this mobile phone is capable of playing several different types of video files, which includes MPEG-4 and DivX. However, the price on this phone is a mystery, and you’ll only find out when it hits the shelves.
In the end, this is a great phone in general, that anyone would consider buying it. In addition, it is also a great phone for staying in touch with friends and family members.
LG release their new phone, the LG BL20 Chocolate
The new BL20 Chocolate from LG features all new applications and systems to make the phone stand out from all previous models. To start with, the phone features hidden navigation keys, only visible when you open the slide part of the phone. This is a small luxury but it really makes the phone look fantastic. The LG BL20 Chocolate uses a 5 megapixel camera to capture great looking photographs which can then be uploaded to social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, or transferred across to a computer for editing or storage.
The new text scan feature of the phone allows you to take a photograph of something like a business card or letter, and the phone will transfer the image onto your phone in real text, so you can save them onto your phone to save you carrying them around with you. Perfect for keeping note of all the business cards you accumulate or even capturing a piece of school work this handy application is bound to come in useful for anyone at some point.
At the bottom left part of your control pad is a area called the widget hot keys. This will bring up your 4 most used applications or other ones set by yourself with one click, saving you having to go through all the menus to find them. This can include things like an address book, mp3 player, contact lists or text messages. The phone looks great as well as being a great performance phone and is noticably smaller than the BL40 Chocolate, so if you are interested in getting your hands on one have a look online for what deals are available.
LG GD910 is proving a great success in the UK
The Watchphone from LG may look like something out of a James Bond film, but it is actually a phone released at various times over the past year. LG decided to make the phone as a sort of novelty, but it proved so successful that they have produced and released more. The LG GD910 doesn’t just act like a novelty item either, it is a useful fully functioning phone.
Using state of the art voice recognition technology, to make a phone call all you have to do is ask the phone. You can then say the person’s name you wish to call, and it will automatically dial. Perfect of using whilst driving a car, you rarely ever have to touch the phones screen. But if you do need to send a text or anything else that requires you to touch the screen, it is extremely durable and scratch proof, meaning the watch will not get damaged easily.
All the devices are handmade, and are strictly limited to 1 per person, and even still it is very hard to get hold of one. They retail for £500, which may seem a lot of money, but you can get the LG GD910 on Orange pay as you go tariff, which saves you from being tied down to a contract plan. The phone is not always available, due to various batches being released at different times throughout the year.
Is the LG GW990 Worth the Buzz?
The LG GW990 mobile phone is scheduled to be available in retail stores during the latter part of 2010. Paul Otellini demoed the handset for the first time during his Consumers Electronics Show keynote speech. The phone will be using the Linux based Moblin 2.1 operating system and is heavily based on the Intel Moorsetown platform and has been dubbed a Mobile Internet Device (MID). This is not the first time that the concept has been flirted with. However, it will be one of the first times that a MID Moblin 2.1 operating system handset is actually being sold.
The phone has some pretty impressive specs. It comes with a huge 4.8 inch full touchscreen display with a resolution of 1024 x 480. The display supports LTE 4G Tech and has an aspect ratio of 2.13 : 1 in regards to memory it has 512MB RAM and 16 BB of flash memory built into the phone. Persons who need more than that will be able to add it via the phone’s MicroSD card slot. The GW990 it is a 3 G device and utilizes an 1800 MAh battery.
Individuals interested in purchasing the LG GW990 mobile phone will be able to do so some time in 2010. While LG has not given a definitive release date they have announced that it will be available sometime during the third or fourth quarter of 2010. The mobile phone manufacturer (LG) is very excited about this particular phone as is the mobile phone community at large. It is a unique handset and how it fares commercially will be interesting to see, especially in this growing and crowded mobile phone market place.
The LG GW990 has generated a lot of buzz and excitement, so much so that the handset was demoed at the Consumer Electronics Show. Though the phone won’t be available for at least 5 months, there will be a ton of discussion (and hopefully more information from LG themselves) and interest in the handset until then.
LG GT540 Incorporates Android 2.0
LG has decided to join the world of Android 2.0 via the LG GT540, a low priced handset that comes in a variety of colors. What the LG GT540 lacks in specs, it sort of makes up in style. It is a pretty cool looking phone that can be purchased in the following colors, pink, white, black and dark grey. Chrome accents are incorporated into the design of each phone. As of right now, the LG GT540 is only slated to be released in Europe with some fantastic LG GT540 deals.
The GT540 is not the highest spec phone coming up for release but it still fares a little better than handsets like the GS200 or LG Pop.
The GT540 is expected to have a 3 megapixel camera (with tagging and face detection), resistive touchscreen display with no keyboard. It does have a few buttons that are appropriately sensitive. The buttons are similar to what can be found on the LG’s S-Class UI. The phone also comes standard with 3G HSDPA connectivity, 3.5 mm jack for headphones, WiFi, Bluetooth and a microSD slot which allows users to add memory if necessary.
Owners of the LG GT540 will be able to download numerous apps. One pretty cool one is the New Media Player with DivX support. Another really neat feature is the handset’s social media manager. This is a widget that allows users to easily and quickly access their social networking websites, for example Facebook.
The LG GT540 is set to be available for sale in April of this year (2010). There has been no information released concerning price or what companies will carry the phone.
The GT540 is a nice phone. It doesn’t have the most impressive specs but it is a quality handset. Though the phone’s price hasn’t yet been shared with the public, it is rumored to be affordably priced. This makes it a good option for persons just entering the mobile phone market and it may also be a nice choice for those persons who don’t require top-notch specs.