LG KC910 Renoir - Viewty successor with 8MP, Wi-FI & GPS

[Tejstar]

This has now been officially announced. It can be seen as the Viewty successor with a 8MP camera, Wifi, GPS among other features.

This is due to launch in October and it looks like the competition will really hot up in Q4 this year what with the phone going up against the SE C905, Samsung i8510 and Nokia N96. No information on pricing yet.

Features:

3-inch 400 x 240 resolution display
Touchscreen-based handset
14-millimeters thick (17.2mm of the INNOV8 and 19.5mm of the C905)
Quad-band GSM / 7.2Mbps HSDPA
Bluetooth 2.0
WiFi
microSD expansion slot
Xenon flash (alongside a Schneider-Kreuznach lens)
Video recording (30 fps and slow motion 120 fps QVGA)
TV output
DivX and XviD support
Built-in GPS

[Tejstar]

Here's some piccies of what it looks like. Similar to the Viewty, although with more stylish buttons at the bottom. The pictures don't show how thin this really is, but this could be a very desirable mobile. My only issue with LG is that with the Viewty there was a distinct lack of support which made me sell it in the end. I just hope they don't make the same mistake with this phone.

[Mayhs]

i wonder what the OS will be?

[Tejstar]

No word yet. I thought the OS for the Viewty was fine although it tended to be more sluggish than other units other like the iPhone.

[tugboatbill]

Tejstar, apart from the xenon flash and the Touchscreen - which I am not a big fan of - what are the advantages of this phone over the new Samsung?

[Sy1441]

Originally Posted by tugboatbill

Tejstar, apart from the xenon flash and the Touchscreen - which I am not a big fan of - what are the advantages of this phone over the new Samsung?

Reliability if going on brand pedigree is anything to go by.

[Tejstar]

Originally Posted by tugboatbill

Tejstar, apart from the xenon flash and the Touchscreen - which I am not a big fan of - what are the advantages of this phone over the new Samsung?

Not much apart from no disclosure on whether it has any internal storage in it.

Reliability wise I didn't have any problems with my Viewty.

[tugboatbill]

OK, should be an interesting few weeks coming up then

[Tejstar]

Given the upcoming competition I think the main issue will be pricing. However, the Viewty was priced reasonably so I doubt there'll be too much of a premium attached to this device.

[ste1000]

Originally Posted by Tejstar

Given the upcoming competition I think the main issue will be pricing. However, the Viewty was priced reasonably so I doubt there'll be too much of a premium attached to this device.

I Think the main issue will be the software both of the phone itself and the PC support. I have a viewty and the LG PC suite that accompanies the phone is terrible! I wouldn't consider another LG phone until people reported that this issue had been cleared up.

[Tejstar]

When I had the phone I didn’t even use the PC suite – it’s something I tend to ignore on most phones that I’ve owned. I tend just to take the memory card out to transfer photos/music etc. This reminds me of another thing that bugged me about the phone, you had to take the battery out to get to the memory card which was a real pain if you needed to hot swap regularly. Also, the fact that only 2GB was readable wasn’t ideal – I know you could stick in higher capacity cards but you could only ‘see’ 2GB which in an age of high multimedia content wasn’t the most well thought out. I really hope this phone addresses that issue.

[Tejstar]

The official announcement has been released.

LG to Unveil Viewty’s 8 megapixel Successor

Seoul, Korea, September 4, 2008 --- LG Electronics (LG), a worldwide technology and design leader in mobile communications, announced that it would launch the LG-KC910, the only 8 megapixel multimedia phone with a full touchscreen interface. The LG-KC910 boasts top-of-the-range camera capabilities and the latest multimedia features, all combined with a 3.0 inch full touchscreen.

“With our new flagship handset, the LG-KC910, we’ve once again combined a high-end camera with top-notch multimedia features and full touchscreen interface to provide the ultimate multimedia experience,” said Dr. Skott Ahn, President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company. “According to our customers a full touchscreen interface is essential for fully utilizing high-end multimedia features and this is one of many areas where the LG-KC910 excels.”

The LG-KC910 is the perfect successor to the multi-million selling camera phone, LG Viewty. Like its predecessor, which debuted as the slimmest 5 megapixel phone, the LG-KC910 will be the slimmest 8 megapixel handset on the market at just 13.95 mm when released. This phone combines the latest multimedia features and an intuitive user interface evolved far beyond what Viewty offered. With this phone LG has created a multi-sensorial experience like no other, providing enhanced viewing enjoyment, superior sound and better use of touch.

The LG-KC910 leads the industry with its 8 megapixel camera, which is being developed to include Schneider-Kreuznach certified optics, a xenon flash and ISO sensitivity up to 1600. Further strengthening the phone’s camera features are image stabilization, auto-focus, manual focus, Face Tracking, Smile Shot and blink detection. An embedded GPS receiver gives the LG-KC910 the ability to geo-tag photos for later plotting on an interactive map. A variety of creative shot modes, so far only found on standalone digital cameras, will be included.

The handset’s perfect repertoire of high-end multimedia features provides the ultimate multi- sensorial experience. The LG-KC910 is the first handset for the global market to include Dolby Mobile, an integrated suite of audio processing technologies which brings depth and richness as well as clean, powerful bass to the music listening experience.

Video features are just as advanced as audio features. The LG-KC910 can record video from 5fps up to 120fps, which allows it to record in both fast and slow motion. The phone also plays DivX and Xvid movies straight out of the box, without the need for additional encoding.

A 3.0-inch WQVGA full touch LCD screen is the ideal canvas for experiencing and interacting with the LG-KC910’s multimedia features. A customizable interface, with numerous widgets and shortcuts, makes the phone’s myriad features even easier to use.

Rounding out the phone’s comprehensive feature set, are A-GPS enabled navigation, compatibility with the latest 3G HSDPA networks for connections up to 7.2Mbps and Wi-Fi for even faster internet access. The phone also includes a Jogging Buddy program that uses GPS technology to help track workouts, a feature sure to please exercise enthusiasts.

The KC910 will be available for purchase beginning in October. LG will release additional technical specifications and information on the LG-KC910, including details on its comprehensive capabilities and pet name.

[supersub40]

Originally Posted by Tejstar

When I had the phone I didn’t even use the PC suite

Whilst its not great i use the PC suite all the time for hooking my viewty up to my laptop as a modem and its works great.

Also works fine for synching with my work and home PC's without any bother. Its not the best desigened interface etc but it works well enough for me.

I may well go for the new version it looks good but quite a lot to choose from at the mo, lets see some professional reviews

[Tejstar]

Competition is as intense as I remember. Choosing my Q4 update this year is going to take a long hard think unlike most years!

[supersub40]

Originally Posted by Tejstar

Competition is as intense as I remember. Choosing my Q4 update this year is going to take a long hard think unlike most years!

Omnia, Viewty2, Diamond, Xperia maybe they are all pretty much the same?

seems like the specs are getting very similar, I think user Interface might be the deal breaker which one is closest to the iphone experience