LG InTouch Max GW620: LG's first Android phone out today -- but not really

LG's first foray into the world of Android handsets has touched down on two networks -- or so the company thinks

Richard Trenholm

Richard Trenholm was CNET's film and TV editor, covering the big screen, small screen and streaming. A member of the Film Critic's Circle, he's covered technology and culture from London's tech scene to Europe's refugee camps to the Sundance film festival.

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Richard Trenholm

Jan. 18, 2010 5:45 a.m. PT

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LG's first Android-powered mobile phone, the InTouch Max GW620, has been announced on two networks today, with pricing details confirmed -- or at least that's what LG thinks.

The GW620 was teased last year, when it was known as the Etna, and has arrived slightly later than its original end-of-2009 launch date, but what the hey. It runs Android 1.5, and you can choose between the standard Android interface or an LG user interface.

The GW620 can be found on the T-Mobile and Virgin Mobile networks. LG says the GW620 is out today on both networks -- but that's news to T-Mobile, which has the phone slated for February release. We're following up with T-Mobile to see if the manufacturer's right hand doesn't know what the network's left hand is doing. According to LG, you'll get the phone for free on a £20-per-month T-Mobile contract lasting 24 months, including unlimited data.

Virgin Mobile will give you the phone for nowt with a £22-per-month, 18-month contract, including unlimited texts and data, once they get some in stock. Click 'Continue' for more features and pictures, and hop over to our Android showdown to see how the GW620 stacks up against other Android handsets.

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The GW620 boasts a 76mm (3-inch) touchscreen. It includes a social-networking manager called LinkBook, which adds your friends' social-network profiles to your main address book.

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Here's the back of the GW620, with its 5-megapixel camera. Faces are automatically recognised and tagged in pictures, and tapping on a face in a photo lets you message your mate via text or a social network.