LG KS360 mobile phone : LG Mobile announces the launch of the LG KS360, its vibrantly coloured, feature-packed mobile phone specifically designed for messaging on the move. The LG KS360's sliding QWERTY keypad and high-spec messaging features mean that users can send SMS, IM, email and have the ability to access social networking sites all from one device. In addition, the LG KS360 cell phone comes with touchscreen dialling, a 2MP camera and MicroSD card slot. The LG KS-360 cell phone is available in Titanium and bright blue, White and soft pink, Black and red and Black and silver.With the KS360's slider QWERTY keypad, users can write messages quickly and accurately. To make messaging easier, once the full length keypad has been opened, the 2.4" screen automatically rotates 90 degrees using accelerometer technology. At just 16.8mm thin, this handset has been designed to fit easily into a pocket or handbag, a convenient alternative to lugging a laptop around. A fairly unremarkable looking phone at first glance, the LG KS360 looks like a pretty standard slider phone when you first see it. But the unique selling proposition here is that the slide-out keypad has a full QWERTY arrangement rather than a standard number pad.
However, the KS360 may also prove a slow burning hit with an audience at the opposite end of the spectrum: those who never got their heads fully around predictive text.In this world of endlessly generic and forgettable mobile phones then, the LG KS360 is a refreshingly focused handset and with LG ruthlessly cutting out the features it deems unnecessary, this has allowed the KS360 to outperform our expectations in its most crucial areas.
First up is build quality. The LG KS360 is remarkably well put together. It feels solid in the hand but light at just 106g thanks to the shedding of those premium features, while the spring loaded sliding keyboard gives confidence it will be working many years down the line. In fact, the overall effect is a handset which wouldn’t look out of place alongside many of the more expensive Windows Mobile and Symbian-based smartphones on sale. The large 2.4-inch 256k colour screen is also vibrant and offers surprisingly responsive touch screen dialling when the keyboard is folded away.
As for the camera, it may be fixed focus but its two-megapixel snaps are certainly above average and decent quality images can be produced in fair lighting conditions. Bluetooth V2.0 also makes it inside along with threaded SMS similar to that of the iPhone, email, an instant messenger application and the inclusion of a microSD expansion slot with support for cards holding to 4GB of storage.Of course all of these plus points would be irrelevant if the LG KS360′s key selling point was poorly implemented but this is one of the best mobile keyboards I have used short of a BlackBerry and easily sets a new bar for affordable devices.
The buttons are well spaced, clearly labelled, backlit and – while they can feel a little stiff initially – typing quickly becomes second nature. Smart integration of a lockable Fn key also means numbers are easily accessed and four way arrow keys allow for easy navigation and editing of text. In addition, smartly thought out soft keys in the top left and right corners of the keyboard mean navigating the various menus is a breeze whether the screen is in portrait or landscape modes.
"With the popularity of social networking sites and instant messaging amongst younger audiences, the LG KS360 handset has been designed so they can access these features when away from their computer. This handset is perfect for this segment of the market. Its vibrant colours, easy-to-use QWERTY keypad and fantastic messaging features offer users a simple and fun device that will enable them to communicate with each other instantly," says Newing. With the KS360's slider QWERTY keypad, users can write messages quickly and accurately. To make messaging easier, once the full length keypad has been opened, the 2.4" screen automatically rotates 90 degrees using accelerometer technology. At just 16.8mm thin, this handset has been designed to fit easily into a pocket or handbag, a convenient alternative to lugging a laptop around.
Yes, we have seen plenty of QWERTY keyboards on phones before, but rarely on a device as compact and as affordable as the LG KS360. At 102 x 51 x 17mm in size, the KS360 is about the same size as a typical "candy bar" monoblock phone. And although we don't know the exact pricing of the KS360, LG state that it is aimed at young consumers which indicates that it won't be too expensive.The keyboard on the KS360 is interesting for a couple of reasons. On the positive side, the key spacing is very good which should help when composing messages. On the negative side, the layout is a little more creative than usual - the space bar is where the V and B keys usually are, so the bottom row of keys is split. It's perhaps not as bad as the Dell Vostro keyboard because you won't be expecting to touch type on the KS360, but it still might take a little getting used to.
LG KS360 The screen is a 2.4" 240 x 320 pixel panel that can display in either wide or tall orientations, switching automatically when the phone is rotated. here was a time when a mobile phone was just that: a mobile telephone, but as text messaging and even emailing on the move became popular features on the vast majority of handsets, users have also had to become ever more adept at tapping away at their keypads to stay in contact.
With email and instant messaging now added to that list too, our mobile phones as much devices for typing on as talking, so it is perhaps unsurprising manufacturers have spotted a new niche in the non-smartphone market.In the case of LG, it has taken cues from the burgeoning smartphone arena to create the KS360. This is a handset which borrows from the common sliding Qwerty keyboard form factor as seen on whole range of smartphones out there, but also cuts away many their premium features to put a messaging friendly device in the hands of the mass market.
Given this seemingly unflattering description it is perhaps best we start out by telling you just what the KS360 is lacking: 3G connectivity, GPS, WiFi, an autofocus camera and large amounts of onboard memory. Still, to attack this handset for what isn’t there is rather missing the point. The LG KS360 is a phone which is designed to appeal to the heavy emailer and/or texter, the sort who sits around the dinner table unsociably typing away, who huddles texting in the cinema and whose handset leaps out of their hip pocket with the regularity of a gunslinger in a Hollywood Western.
