LG U830 3G Phone Review
Review Date : 26th February, 2007 by 3G.co.uk editorial staff
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Chocolate plus 3.5G wizz

LG has spawned another member of the Chocolate family but this time the familiar-looking U830 arrives fitted with a 3.5G wireless engine.

Just as the RAZR pepped Motorola’s fortunes, the Chocolate phone revitalised LG’s position in the UK market. Its touch-sensitive controls and black livery were a highly stylish combination that proved very popular. But as we’ve seen with Motorola and its RAZR dynasty, success can breed lazy design habits, with the manufacturer peddling umpteen subtle takes on the same    style principle.


It’s early days for LG’s Chocolate and Black Label Series, but signs are worrying. Case in point is the new U830 Chocolate phone. Exclusive to 3, the U830 is identical to its 2.5G counterpart, the KG810. Sure enough, it’s now fitted with superior features and a 3G / HSDPA motor ( perhaps it’s a good time to tell you that 3 is currently trialling its HSDPA network and has yet to officially launch ), but a little more design imagination wouldn’t have gone amiss

 
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If you’ve read 3G's review of the KG810, you will know that its clamshell form limits the impact of its red illuminating touch keys. Its front three marginal music keys are the only ones with this feature, unlike the more prominent phone controls of the original KG800 Chocolate slider phone. Despite this, it still remains rather elegant.

As we said, it’s good to see LG seriously upping the feature ante along with its 3.5G refit. The U830 is a tad larger and heavier, but it’s hardly noticeable. What’s more striking is the U830’s display quality. The resolution has moved on from 220x176 pixels to 320x240 (QVGA) pixels, while the front screen boasts an impressive 128x160 pixels and 262,000 colours. Both displays are very sharp and detailed.

The camera has also been hiked from 1.3 megapixels to a more respectable two and despite occasionally suffering from over exposure, the photo quality is decent enough.

Internal memory has been given a welcome boost, but LG has again neglected to include a memory card slot. The rise from 128MB to 180MB is encouraging, but this still limits the potential of the music player. 180MB won’t hold many tunes and don’t forget you will have to share this with other multimedia gubbins.

 
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Still, the U830 comes packed with music functionality including A2DP support and a 3.5mm headphone jack adapter. However, it does feel like a wasted opportunity, especially as you have 3’s extensive music store on hand for full-track downloads.

The U830 plays out much like the KG810 with a keypad that’s festooned with shortcuts galore, including access to profile setting, mobile TV, contacts, messaging, video calling and the 3 music store. And it’s straightforward to use.

Once 3’s HSDPA network is up and running the U830 can change gear for faster download times. But until then you’ll just have to make do with a very stylish 3G phone, despite LG disappointingly not moving on one iota from the KG810 in terms of design.

Am I seeing double ? With almost identical designs you could mistake the LG U830 (3G) for the LG KG810 (2.5G) in a line-up.

Check out this handset at 3G's own store
Review date
26th February, 2007
Best features
Touch-sensitive controls
Two-megapixel camera
180MB of internal memory
 
Video calling
Specification
 Details
Size
98x49x14.8mm
Weight
93g
Display
External and internal 262,000 colours
Display resolution
External 128x160, internal 320x240 pixels
Camera

Two-megapixel/VGA
Video recording / playback
Yes/yes
Audio playback
MP3, AAC, AAC+
Connectivity
Bluetooth, USB, Infrared, A2DP
Internal memory
180MB
Memory card slot
No
Java
Yes
Games

Downloadable
Messaging
SMS, MMS, IM
Email client
POP3, SMTP, IMAP4
Ringtones

Polyphonic, MP3
Internet browser

Yes + EDGE
GPRS
2.0, xHTML
Frequency
Tri-band, 3G, HSDPA
Talktime
120 minutes
Standby
180 hours
Pros

A very stylish design plus it’s HSDPA ready when 3 eventually rolls out its 3.5G network.
Cons

It is stylish but LG has disappointed by sticking with the KG810 design.
Verdict

It’s nothing new, but the U830 is the most stylish of the new breed of HSDPA phones.
3G Total Score
85%
Check out this handset at 3G's own store
 

This review covers the above mobile phone only and does not address the performance of any 3G Network. The score is based on a 3G mobile phone checklist.

Copyright : You are advised that this material is the copyright of www.3G.co.uk and is our own personal view only. (C) All rights reserved 2007. Whist every care has been taken in the preparation of this review, the author nor 3G.co.uk cannot be held responsible for the accuracy or authenticity of the information it contains, or consequence arising from it.