The Renoir - A touch-screen work of art (LG KC910)

Member Name: JJJJ

Product:	LG KC910
Date:	27/03/09 (528 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great Features

Disadvantages: Browser a bit unresponsive

I'm someone who doesn't usually have the best of relationships with mobile phones - a bit like women really, I get on well with them at first, but then they get angry and I accidently lose them in a pub somewhere *insert laughs here*

The LG KC910 (also known as the 'Renoir') is my latest handset which I bought after extensive internet research about which model would be best suited to my needs. The phone, housed in a pleasing black and chrome shell, is a touch-screen device that comprises more features than I could ever possibly need.

Costing in the region of £280 - £350 sim-free, the Renoir is clearly a copy of the iPhone - a device I was initially looking to buy, but was put off by its rather limited two-megapixel camera.

Therefore, the LG Renoir's lure of eight mega-pixels was ultimately more appealing, and I have subsequently found it to be the best phone-camera that I have ever used. To operate, you simply twist open the lens cover on the back of the phone to reveal the Schneider lens and... Hey Presto! the camera springs into life. Offering a range of features bettering even some dedicated digital cameras (optical image stabilisation, blink detection, decent ISO range), this really is an impressive piece of kit - and it takes good photos too.

Similarly, the movie camera is excellent and easy to use, offering slow-motion recording at up to 120 frames per second - wow! It is also really simple to transfer recordings to a computer via the USB cable included, and the phone can support a TV-out cable which allows the viewing of your creations on the big screen.

As well as the iPhone, another mobile which I initially considered buying was the Samsung 'Pixon' which, although sharing the same beautiful appearance and camera stats as the Renoir, doesn't feature Wi-Fi (allowing you to access the internet free in a range of locations). That said, my experience of browsing the net on the Renoir is a fiddly process. Although it can handle a variety of webpages without any difficulty (including youtube and BBC iPlayer), the actual system of navigation is fairly tricky and unresponsive - hopefully something which LG will sort out in the next model.

As I mentioned earlier, the Renoir is a touch-screen phone. This means that there are only three 'physical' buttons on the whole of the device - to enter numbers and text you use the virtual keypad which appears on the screen when you need it. The screen itself (3 inches, and made from plastic rather than glass) is fairly responsive, and if I hadn't used an iPhone in the past, I would have said that it was excellent. That said, the screen is of a much better quality than the Renoir's predecessor, the 'Viewty'.

The user interface and menu system looks stylish and is really easy to use - everything is self explanatory, and there are no tricky features that aren't explained. Want to make a call?... press the call icon - want to write a text?... press the text icon, it's as simple as that.

Other features of note (all explained thoroughly in the bulky manual) include an FM radio, GPS system (which can be used by downloading the 'Google Maps software'), bluetooth, a selection of games, plus all the usual mobile phone bits and pieces - alarm, calculator, organiser, stopwatch, etc etc.

As well as the camera, the Renoir's music player has equal billing as the devices main feature. It is the first phone to incorporate 'Dolby Mobile' - an audio processing system designed to provide the best sound possible on the go. Music (in Mp3 form) can be stored on the 8GB Micro SD Card which should ship with your Renoir, and can be played by the phones internal music player which resembles Apples 'iTunes'. Sound quality is very impressive, although I would argue that it is seemingly no better than listening to tracks on an iPod.

The battery life of the Renoir is very good indeed. With moderate use, I have found it to last between two and three days in-between charges - and that has included some web browsing sessions, phone calls, texting, and game playing - pretty impressive.

Last, but perhaps most importantly, we get to the in-call sound quality - the crux of any phones performance. I am happy to report that when receiving calls, the Renoir provides a crystal clear sound, with a volume that can be adjusted via the rocker buttons on the side of the handset. Also handy is the speakerphone option, which has an impressive maximum volume and is similarly clear.

In conclusion, after owning the KC910 for around three weeks, i'm happy to announce that it is without doubt the best phone I have owned to date. Although the slightly disappointing web-browser stops it from achieving five-stars, everything else is incredibly impressive. With its stylish looks, excellent features and great sound quality, I would highly recommend this particular model - and best of all, it works well as a phone too!... just don't leave it in the pub.

Summary: Great Touch Screen Smart Phone

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