Price Range: $286.00 - $329.00

It’s dark, with a dark LCD screen, and just an LG logo and a silver OK button to give any clue about what to do with it. The hidden keypad is touch sensitive and glows red when in use. When opened, the full keypad is available. There are also buttons around the edge for volume control and multimedia - MP3, camera and video. The design works well and looks fantastic, although the touch-sensitive keys are quite sensitive and take a little getting used to.

The LG KG800 Chocolate comes with a built in video feature which allows the user to record, play & store video in the gallery. The user can record & watch 3GP videos on their KG800 Chocolate which is all displayed on the LCD 256k colour screen. The user can edit, change settings & add effects easily to ensure the perfect video is recorded & saved.

Surprisingly, the touch sensitive controls are very accurate, though you do have to make sure you use the tip of your finger to press them, rather than use a finger nail. The KG800 would be useless for a female with long nails, as the d-pad works off the heat in your finger tip. When the slide is closed, the d-pad turns off, making it impossible to press the keys with your leg . The non-touch sensitive numeric keypad does not have any spacing between the keys, but each key is convex in shape and quite large, producing one of the best keypads I have used on a slider handset.

Specifications:

Network GSM
Form Factor SLIDER
Message Email
MP3 Player yes
Bluetooth yes
Ringtone 64ch
Internal Memory 128MB
Standby time(h) 200
Java yes
Digital zoom yes
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
USB yes
Color Black
Video Camera yes

Price Range: $239.00 to $324.00

The KG290 from LG Mobile

The KG290 is a smart looking 1.3 MP camera phone from LG. With the addition of tri-brand it means you never have to leave this phone at home when going abroad.

The LG KG290 Rhino mobile phone is one of the latest in a line of LG slider handsets not only incorporating sophisticated good looks but at the same time maintaining value for money for the customer.With its 1.3 Megapixel Camera and ability to capture video the LG KG290 will appeal to those Mobile Phone users who enjoy the fun things in life enabling you to share those special moments with friends. Added to this is an MP3 player and FM radio allowing you to listen to your favourite tracks whenever you want.

With its silver finish, smooth sliding action and petite dimensions, the KG290 is certainly one of the tastiest-looking budget handsets we’ve seen in a long time. The phone is also pretty easy to use as its main menu is laid out as a typical 3×3 grid of icons. It looks and feels very similar to the menus on the latest Sony Ericsson or Nokia handsets, so most people will instantly feel right at home. LG has also added a handy shortcut menu to the standby screen, which assigns functions to the four direction keys of the central D-pad. It gives you almost instant access to things like the text message screen, silent mode or contacts book.

Specifications:

Network GSM Tri-band(900/1800/1900)
Form Factor Slider
Message SMS/MMS/VideoMMS
FM Radio Yes
MP3 Player Yes
Bluetooth Yes, Ver. 1.1
Ring Tone MP3/AAC/AAC+/AAC++
Internal Memory 5 MB
Memory Slot Micro SD
Java 2.0
Camera 1.3 MP
Digital Zoom 4 x
Built-in Game Yes. 2 EA.
USB/PC Sync Yes, Ver. 1.1
Speaker Phone Yes
WAP wap 2.0
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps

Price Range:

A new experience in design and usability

A stunning, feature rich handset that’s perfect for the style conscious as well as music fans. It is your portal to a world of infinite possibilities.

LG’s KE500 slider looks very exquisite and stylish, but I wouldn’t have expected less. It strongly resembles the design of the Chocolate series and has been manufactured by using the same glossy and shiny material. The black color version that we tested was a real fingerprint catcher, thus a great disappointment. There’s also a neat similarity with Shine, regarding its display which can be used as a mirror when it’s not lighted. But this has been kept to a basic level and will not help you too much as the image reflected is not that good. The slider lacks the sensitive keypad system, but includes the same D-pad for navigation through menus and the same easy to use soft keys.

The brightness of the display seems good, but it is unusable outdoors in strong light. Even if small KE500 scored pretty high when tested with different benchmarks and that was partly determined by the powerful processor included and by the Mobile XD technology that has been embedded by the manufacturer.

Specifications:

Network  GSM
Form Factor Slide
Message SMS, EMS, MMS
Built-In Camera 2M CMOS
Camcorder MPEG4/H.263/H.264
FM Radio Yes, with RDS
MP3 Player MP3/AAC/AAC+
Bluetooth Yes, V2.0
Memory Slot MicroSD
Java Yes, 2.0
Digital zoom 4 x
GPRS EGSM: 33 dBm DCS 1800: 30 dBm PCS 1900: 30 dBm
EDGE EGSM: 27 dBm DCS 1800: 26 dBm PCS 1900: 26 dBm
USB Yes
SIM card type Plug-In SIM, 3V/1.8V
Color Silver
Phonebook 1000 entries
Call Log Memory 40 dialed, 40 received, 40 missed calls
T-Flash Externa.. Yes
Flight Mode Yes
WAP Yes, 2.0

Price Range: $241.37 to $339.90

Exquisite Design with a Luxurious Metal Casing

Incorporating a mirror LCD screen and encased with the protective and alluring properties of stainless steel, the award winning KE970 has been meticulously designed to leave a lasting impression. Hidden beneath the sleek, mirror finish of the KE970 lies a bright LCD screen that shines through when needed. 262,000 colour, 240×320 pixel QVGA display. Use the screen as a viewfinder for the 2 megapixel camera. Supports Photo ID so photos of contacts will appear on the screen as soon as they call. Customise your display with photos or wallpaper to make it truly your own. With the support of Flash Lite, use exciting Flash files to decorate your screen.

The large screen provides a screen resolution of 240 x 320 pixels on a 2.2 Inch high colour screen. The screen provides the user with a sharp & clear viewing tool which comes with the stylish mirror effect feature. The user can take photos & record video footage with ease using the built in imaging features. The user can save, edit, share & store their photos & video footage. The LG KE970 Shine comes with a photo album & video gallery which allows the user to store & locate their photos & video easily.

The Shine’s features are decent, but its brains don’t really match its beauty. We’ll start with the basics first. The phone book holds a healthy, 1,000 contacts with room in each entry for four phone numbers, an e-mail address, and notes (the SIM card holds an additional 250 names). You can save contacts to groups, assign them a photo for caller ID, and pair them with any of 20, 40-chord polyphonic ringtones.

With the built in music player, listen to your favourite tunes on the go. Quickly access your music by pressing the dedicated MP3 button. The music player supports MP3, AAC, AAC+ and AAC++ file formats. Use MP3, AAC and AAC+ and polyphonic files as ringtones. Record 3GP videos and playback your favourite moments using the video capabilities of the KE970.

Key Features:

2 Megapixel camera with Schneider-Kreuznach certified lens
Multi-function scroll key
Music and video at your fingertips
Wireless connectivity with Bluetooth
Expandable memory slot and portable mass storage device
Document Viewer
Tri-Band
DGE

Specifications:

Network GSM
Form Factor SLIDER
Message Email
Resolution QVGA
MP3 Player Yes
Bluetooth Yes
Ringtone 32ch
Internal Memory 32MB
Memory Slot microSD
Standby time 280 hours
Java Yes
Digital zoom Yes
GPRS Yes
EDGE Yes
USB Yes
Color Silver
Video Camera Yes

Price Range: $395.00 - $449.00

Full Metal Body A true innovation, SHINE offers a new experience and style to mobile phones, allowing a device so cold and emotionless to carry such naturally attractive and premium value with its stainless steel material base. Wide Mirror LCD Catch a reflection of yourself within ‘SHINE’. The half - mirror LCD maximises brightness and completes the design with cool and simple look. It is supplemented with multi-angle vision technology that allows you to view the display contents from all different angles. Multi Functional Scroll Key A perfect blend of design and technology, multi functional scroll key provides maximum functional features achieved through minimal process at the comfort of your fingertips.

The phone comes with a built in camera which can capture photos up to 1600 x 1200 in size. The camera is a 2 megapixel camera complete with a Schneider Kreuznach lens. The Schneider Kreuznach lens provides the user with a high quality camera lens which will ensure the user captures the perfect shot each & every time the camera feature is used. The camera comes with a 2 x digital zoom, flash & auto focus feature. The user can change their camera settings & options to suit their photography needs. The user can use the continuous shot mode to capture up to nine shots per photo capture. The user can store their treasured photos in the photo gallery, remove unwanted photos by deleting them or share their photos with others using the MMS service or email service.

The 2-megapixel autofocus camera comes equipped with a heap of photo-taking options, including a variety of resolutions, five white balance settings, a delay timer and artistic effects. An inward-facing VGA camera allows you to make 3G video calls. Video and audio are handled with style within a basic multimedia player, with supported formats including MPEG-4, H.263, 3GP, WMV and ASF for video, and MP3, WAV and AAC for sounds. If you fancy transferring a heap of tunes from your PC, you can do so via USB or Bluetooth.

Key Features:

Bluetooth
2.0 Megapixel digital camera
Tri-band GSM

Specifications:

Network WCDMA
Form Factor SLIDER
Message Email
MP3 Player yes
Bluetooth yes
Ringtone 32ch
Internal Memory 512MB
Java yes
Digital zoom yes
GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
USB yes
Color Silver
MP3 Ring YES
Video Camera yes