Hi all. I'm 31, working as a IT Network Manager. I love films, music, scuba diving, performance ca...
Hi all. I'm 31, working as a IT Network Manager. I love films, music, scuba diving, performance cars, F1 & Rally.
Member since:25.05.2004
Reviews:5
Members who trust:3
The Viewty, such a strange name for a mobile handset.
However don't be fooled by it's estranged name and looks. It is an amazing handset and i believe it to be this years must have gadget.
I'm sure that most people will say "oh but what about Apples iphone?, that is much better!". Having not had the pleasure of using the iphone yet i'm sure it is a very nice handset but do i really want to pay £269 for the iphone and have a contract on a Service provider i don't like (o2).
I had the Viewty free on Orange panther 45, which i believe is a very good deal. Lots of minutes (900) and unlimited texting. As well as free internet browsing for 3 months and orange magic numbers/orange wednesdays - Great!
Now for the facts, the handset is really well made. It's back panel is metal, which is needed to protect the camera surroundings and battery. It's a nice feature and is really nice to hold in your palm as it's cold to the touch.
To look at the viewty you get a fairly plain view, with it's large screen and 3 small (ish) call/end & cancel buttons. That isn't to say that it's not a lovely looking handset. Chrome/black sides break up the overall black appearance and at the same time give it that "expensive looking" appeal.
The screen is an absolutely amazing feature of the viewty. It's so easy to use and is very very resposive to touch, unlike the Samsung F700 which needs a hefty prod to realise you wish to use it. There is one lock button to stop the screen being used or accidentally pressed whilst in your pocket. Press once to wake up and then again to unlock it ready for use. It also offers handwriting recognition too as well as a virtual QWERTY keyboard for use with some but not all applications.
The right handside of the handset houses the camera buttons, one to change modes between Camera,Video Camera & Play functions. You also have the press sensitive button to take picture or video. The left handside houses the slider for charging the handset as well as /PC/headphone/TV Out connection, neat little feature i thought as most have uncovered ports or have little rubber covers which are sometimes a pain to remove. This has one covered port which does it all. Neat!
The rear of the viewty obviously houses the camera lens. Which is uncovered. Some might say this is a problem, i think not, i quite like the fact of using screen protectors on my handsets/gadgets so having an exposed small section of camera lens is not a problem. Ebay - Screen protectors for the viewty come with a camera screen protector! Result and all for less than a £5'er! The camera is outstanding, perhaps not as fluid as that of the Samsung G800 as that has optical zoom built in. But still the viewty ceases to falter. Excellent image quality for 5 Megapixel.
On top of this, it has the ability to upload videos directly to YouTube (check with your service provider first) and to shoot video at 120 frames per second, which allows you to slow it down and watch it in slow-motion. Although i must say i've not yet used this feature. I'm sure i'll have hours of fun with it soon enough though.
The software on the phone is very good, having used the N95, G800 & F700 recently for a a lengthy time i feel this phone wins hands down. Although the N95 does have the Symbian OS and is more "tweakable". LG i'm sure will bring an update for the handset out soon and it's only going to improve things. It has a nice Music player which is functional, easy to use/read and offers playlists & visualisations.
My handset being on orange has been modified to include slightly different menu items. Most service providers do this with their handsets, sort of a customisation of them. Instead of Music mine says "Orange Music" and has a slightly different icon from that of the standard install. Which i might add is my only issue with my actual handset. I'm working on getting LG to send me an original version of the firmware to reset back to factory.
I has an FM radio for all those frequent radio listners out there. A voice recorder/applications/games/organiser etc just to name a few of the other features offered. You also get a stylus with the viewty to use instead of your finger. When you touch the screen theres an audible sound (cusomtisable) and a vibration (customisable) which adds a nice little suprise each time you touch/navigative the screen.
The only thing that the viewty lacks is WiFi. This is think is an oversight on LG's part but it doesn't take anything away from the phone as you can use HSDPA to browse the web at high speed, it just costs more if you do not have an internet useage policy built into your tarrif. I've never really browsed the web that much on my mobile so can say not having WiFi makes no difference. I'd rather use a 19" monitor/PC and broadband for that instead.
The software is comprehensive and is compatible with Vista (yey).
So to Summarise, the viewty is in my opinion the best phone this year for value/functions/features & looks. Neat little handset which pretty much does everything you could want it to, with the addition of an almost perfect touch screen (no multitap)!
This years best buy for me!
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Advantages: Touch screen, 5MP camera, web browsing, fashionable appearence Disadvantages: Lack of Wi-Fi, lack of Sat Nav/GPS, occasionly un-responsive screen.
AshleyM138 04.03.2008 (04.03.2008)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of
LG Viewty KU990
Dec 12th, 2007
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