Type away on the LG F9100
LG F9100
The product: Cell phones with integrated QWERTY keyboards usually involve a trade-off. While they're great for composing messages, the addition of a keyboard usually means the handset is quite bulky. We're seeing some innovation, however, and LG raises the bar with its F9100. Not only is it one of LG's few candy-bar phones, but the front face of the mobile also slides to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard. While the keys are understandably small, typing messages is much easier than on a standard cell phone keypad. Features are somewhat limited, but you do get text and multimedia messaging, instant messaging (AOL, Yahoo, and MSN), voice commands, polyphonic ring tones, and a color display.

The F9100 uses GSM technology and offers support for GPRS data speeds. Its features include:

• Slider design
• QWERTY keyboard
• Color display
• Support for GPRS data speeds
• Voice commands

The prospects: LG takes a new design step with the F9100, but the result is a relatively compact handset that is incredibly functional.

The overall design is a bit boxy, but the color screen is a nice touch. With such a limited feature set--it has no Bluetooth or speakerphone--the F9100 isn't very business-friendly, but it should be right for teens. The lack of a camera, however, may be a liability for the younger set.

By Kent German, associate editor, CNET Reviews