Wednesday, April 30, 2008

The LG KS20 Smartphone: A Review



I've been using the LG KS20 regularly ever since I received one during the LG KS20 launch party held last month. The KS20 is LG's first Windows Mobile 6 Smartphone in the region. I'm a big fan of LG. In fact, my all time favourite mobile phone is the LG Shine which I'm currently using. And like the LG Shine, the LG KS20 is built for style and elegance.

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The LG KS20 is powered by Windows Mobile 6 and integrates the latest in connectivity and productivity technologies in a compact and slim device. The one obvious thing that you will notice about the LG KS20 is that it looks similar to the beautiful LG Prada phone. I understand that the chassis of the KS20 is modeled after the Prada. Ah good choice LG! So lookswise, the LG KS20 is a stunner. I love its black and silver surface and its slim and sleek body. At only 12.8mm thin, it is definitely the thinnest Windows Smartphone I've used.

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The LG KS20 has
a 2.8” LCD flat touch screen with an intuitive touch system that users can navigate and input instructions with a stylus as well as with their fingers. The touch screen responded well even when used with my fingers.

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One of the best thing about the LG KS20 is its tool bar at the bottom of the display which is pretty handy. The icons are big enough for anyone to use their fingers to launch some of the LG KS20's basic operations like internet, email and phone.

The LG KS20 features a full complement of multimessaging and multimedia functionality that you would expect from a Windows Smartphone. You'll find push email, instant messaging, video calling, an inbuilt FM radio and a full complement of office productivity applications from Microsoft, such as Outlook, Office, and Windows Live for Windows Mobile. You can also sync with Microsoft Exchange out-of-the-box, create and edit Word and Excel documents, as well as view PowerPoint presentations. I like!

When it comes to internet surfing, the LG KS20 is a joy to use thanks to its unsurpassed flexibilities in wireless connectivity options with its built-in WiFi and support for HSDPA (high speed downlink packet access) wireless broadband at speeds of up to 3.2Mbps. I've tried logging into my Wifi network at home and other hotspots outside and I encountered not much problems when surfing my favourite blogs and other websites.

The LG KS20 also comes with a 2 mega pixel camera with flash. Its Schneider Kreuznach autofocus lens is a gem. I reckon it is the same lens that is used in the LG Shine. 2 mega pixel may not be a lot to most people but I think the LG KS20 like the LG Shine, takes very good photos and it especially excels when it comes to close up photography as you can see from these shots I took.

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The video quality of the LG KS20 is also pretty acceptable. Here's a clip I took of the LG Shine using the LG KS20.

Full feature list of the LG KS20:

* Video Telephony: 2.0 Mega Pixel + VGA videoconferencing Camera
* 3.6Mbps HSDPA Capability
* Full-Touchscreen and 2.8” Wide Flat LCD Screen
* Natural Handwriting Recognition
* Internet Environment: Windows Mobile 6/Windows Live/Windows Media DRM Playback
* MMS/Push E-mail/Java/WAP2.0
* Bluetooth 2.0 / MP3 Player
* MicroSD External Memory
* 128MB Internal Memory
* FM Radio

And specs:

* Radio Bands: HSDPA (3.6Mbps), WCDMA, Tri-band (GSM/GPRS/EDGE)
* Display: 240 x 320(QVGA), 2.8”, 262K TFT-LCD
* Dimensions: 99.5mm x 58mm x 12.8mm
* Talk Time/Standby Time: 4hr/400hr
* Battery: 1050mAh
* Weight: 92.5g

Overall, I think the LG KS20 is a good attempt by LG to create a new line of stylish Windows smartphones. I love the sleek beauty and the reliability of the phone. The battery life is also excellent. I'm not a heavy user so therefore I did not have to charge the phone daily. But there are some complains. The startup time could have been faster. I timed it at around 25 secs. I would also prefer if there's a touch keypad to input text that is more finger friendly. The default one by Windows is best used with a stylus. Also, I find that getting out my sim card from the phone really takes some finger acrobatics and the stylus is also difficult to pull out at times.

Previously:
Bloggers at the LG KS20 Launch
LG KS20: The Unboxing Pics

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

excellent shootings!

Anonymous said...

IZ: Your lovely donuts close-ups pic is making me crave for some donuts! Anyway good review.t

Anonymous said...

"The startup time could have been faster. I timed it at around 25 secs."

Dude, generally all Windows Mobile smartphone are slow at starting up.

Anonymous said...

Lovely phone. How's the reception/voice quality?

Anonymous said...

All smartphones running Windows mobile OS more or less have the same functions so if I were to go out and buy one, it will come down to performance, looks and price.

Anonymous said...

iz: lg shld just make u their poster boy! btw i really bought the ks20 last week lah!

Anonymous said...

Hey IZ, I need to get a new PDA phone. Any lobang? Discounts if I buy it via you?

I.Z. Reloaded said...

Mr Big: Dude I'm not a sales person from LG. Ha! But I'll try to check with them.

dann: Poster boy? I'm shy aye.

Anonymous said...

if u lock the phone, does it have a privacy lock tt prompts for password? im quite paranoid abt other pl accessing my phone...

LG KS20 said...

Password Lock is a built-in feature in all windows mobile phones - not only of the KS20.

Indecisive said...

i'm thinking of buying either LG KS20 or LG KU990, but still can't make up my mind... i prefer the KS20 for its Wifi n OS:Windows, and the KU990 for its camera/video n multimedia apps. ... however, i really like the KS20, just want to know its sound quality ... if possible, can u give any other phone that has the same sound quality as KS20 as a comparison... and ur suggestion which phone should i buy.. *whew*... :D.. pls n tq...

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