LG Prada 2: Hands-on with LG's refitted fashionista
LG's chic new Prada phone -- aka the LG Prada 2 -- hit the catwalk yesterday to show off its luscious touchscreen and slide-out Qwerty keypad
Yesterday we sashayed along to the launch of the chic new LG Prada phone -- aka the LG Prada 2 -- to find out what the fashion-conscious phone has to offer. The original Prada phone was one of the first touchscreen handsets to hit the UK market, but it was fiddly to use, especially for texting. LG has taken this on board and tailored the Prada 2 to include a dedicated slide-out Qwerty keypad.
But there's much more -- the Prada 2 might look similar to its predecessor, but our first impression is that it's one of LG's best touchscreen phones yet. For starters, the Prada 2's screen is superb and responds to a gentle touch, similar to the iPhone or T-Mobile G1. Click 'Continue' to see more info and pics.
The LG Prada 2 will be available in the next few months for free on a monthly contract. Exact deals have yet to be announced.
At 17mm thick, the Prada 2 isn't the thinnest phone out there and some bitchy critics at the event thought it was a little too chunky for its fashion-phone status. Given that it's got a slide-out Qwerty keypad, we don't think it's that bad, and while you won't want to cram it into a tight pair of jeans, it will fit comfortably enough in the average pocket.
On the back of the LG Prada 2 sits a 5-megapixel camera with LED photo light and auto-focus. You can use the camera to shoot still pictures and video, and it will also shoot slow-motion videos, similar to the Viewty. The LG Prada can also play DivX movies, which look great on its large screen.
Flick the keypad out and you're ready to start bashing out emails or texts. We found it easy to use -- make more Qwerty phones like this please, LG. You can also use the keypad to type URLs and search terms when you're browsing the Web, but we weren't overly impressed with the Prada's browser. We'll reserve final judgement for the full review, though.
In terms of connecting to the Web you can use HSDPA (3.5G) or Wi-Fi. There's no GPS, which is a shame, and no built-in 3.5mm headphone jack. The screen has iPhone-like multitouch features, so you can zoom in on pics by pinching the screen, for example. There's also an acceleremoter that can sense which way you're holding the phone and tilt the screen accordingly.
It's all about accessorisation -- you can also buy a watch called the Prada Link, which connects to the Prada 2 via Bluetooth and displays incoming calls and text messages. You can use it to silence or reject calls and read full texts on it, similar to Sony Ericsson's Bluetooth watch.