14 DAY TRIAL // While most of the handset manufacturers are focusing their efforts on the performance and high-end features of their products, LG has decided to revitalize its older Prada fashionistas mobile phone. Unfortunately, the second Prada in the line has kept the same two-year-old design. The only new thing that has been added seems to be the nice and comfortable QWERTY keyboard. Still, once you add that, you automatically change the target of the phone. Far from being a sleek device, LG KF900, also known as Prada 2, looks exactly like its Prada 1 predecessor, but much bulkier and heavier. Suddenly, the phone targets 2 niches now, businessmen and fashionistas.
Announced in October 2008, LG KF900 Prada 2 made it on the shelves in December 2008 and can be presently bought for around 400USD, depending on the location and plan. The only color available on the market is Black.
Design
Almost two years have passed since the first Prada handset has been announced and it still has its fans. Presently, LG has tried to surprise consumers adding a new product to its fashionistas phone line-up – Prada 2. Boasting improved technical features, the LG KF900 doesn't look much different than its “elder” brother. On the contrary, if you look at both, you won't find any difference at first glance, except for the fact that Prada 2 is a little bit thicker, thanks to the QWERTY keyboard that has been added. At a closer look, one can also notice the secondary front camera for video-calls, which misses in the older version.
LG was previously known for its amazing imagination, regarding handset design, but now it seems that it almost didn't care about Prada 2. The phone looks more like a Pocket PC, such as Xperia, and will probably make fashion lovers a little bit cautious when checking out the phone. I cannot say the same thing about businessmen, who will be happy to find that Prada 2 is much lighter than Xperia, weighing only 130g (including battery), compared with 145g. Actually, the phone remains pocket-sized, measuring 104.5x54x16.8mm. The front part of the product features a 3-inch touchscreen, a small secondary video-call camera on the upper right part, and an in-call speaker and the Prada logo just above the screen. Below the display, there are three available keys: Accept calls, Reject calls and the Back key. The right side of the phone includes a microSD slot, a Lock/Unlock key, a Shortcut key and a dedicated camera key. The left side only gets the dual volume key, while on top of the phone you'll find the usual LG proprietary port. The 5-Megapixel camera has been placed on the upper part of the back cover of the device. It features an LED flash and a self-portrait mirror. The back hood has been made from a stylish plastic that feels like rubber to the touch. Unfortunately, it's a fingerprint magnet and will need frequent cloth wipes. In fact, the whole device is made of plastic, which makes it much lighter than other phones of its size (Xperia, HTC Touch HD). The QWERTY keyboard is very comfortable with generous keys and enough space in between. It feels much better to text than Xperia's keyboard. It also features excellent white backlighting for use in dark environments. Even though the first row of keys is a little bit harder to employ because of the low space that is left between the upper part of the phone and the keys, it's still one of the best keyboards on the market. Highly responsive and soft to the touch, the LG Prada 2 keyboard is one of the great assets of the device. Overall, except for the fact that the design is old and dull, I have found that the construction of the phone is pretty sturdy and user-friendly.Display and Camera
LG Prada 2 features a 3-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen, with the same unusual 240x400-pixel resolution and supporting 262k colors. Everything on the screen looks excellent, with good color contrast. Unfortunately, you cannot set the contrast of the screen, but only the brightness. When your fingers touch it, you'll notice that it features the “haptic feedback” technology, but also that the screen is multi-touch compatible. The device can only be controlled with the finger, as it’s a capacitive display, which will not work with the stylus, fingernail or the likes. Usually, the display doesn't catch fingerprints, but only if you keep it covered with the protective plastic. Eligibility in strong sunlight for outdoor use is somewhat mild. The backlight for the three contextual keys placed on the bottom of the display is red. The screen also features an accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate, but it is only available with some applications in the phone's firmware.
While more and more 8-Megapixel camera phones are making their way onto the shelves, they're still low on numbers, so 5 Megapixels is still good for a phone such as Prada 2. LG continues its collaboration with Schneider-Kreuznach and embeds the German company's optics. Thanks to these lenses, the pictures don't get too much noise and there are no color distortions. Still, the quality is pretty much “hurt” by the lack of details. Users can take pictures with a maximum resolution of 2592x1944 pixels. The camera is protected by a metallic frame that surrounds the lenses, the LED flash and the self-mirror portrait. The dedicated camera button has been comfortably placed and can be used with ease. The camera also features auto-focus, an LED flash, but misses important features such as geo-tagging, as well as face, smile and blink detection. The lock/unlock key near the camera button also controls the digital image-stabilization function. Unfortunately, it doesn't have too much functionality and cannot be compared with the much better mechanical optical stabilization used in digital cameras. The interface of the camera is pretty complex even for a veteran user, and can be compared with LG Viewty's. Starting with the full preview of the pictures, Macro and ISO function, LG Prada features a medium quality camera. Users can also take advantage of three available shooting modes (normal shot, burst shot and panorama). The usual White balance and Colour tone settings are also available and can be used whenever needed. Those who are expecting to shoot high-quality clips will be disappointed by the LG Prada 2 recording-camera capabilities. The maximum resolution that can be used is of 720x480 pixels, but the quality is a real letdown. The camera supports movie-capturing in VGA resolution at 30fps. Overall, LG Prada 2 can be tagged as having a medium quality camera, which can take pretty decent pictures that will most likely satisfy its target needs.Menu and Software
LG KF900 Prada 2 features an upgraded version of the highly acclaimed Flash UI and can be controlled only with the finger. The first thing I have noticed is the fact that it's not fully customizable anymore. This means that you won't be able to rearrange your menu icon the way you feel it will serve you better. This was one of the strong points of the previous LG Renoir handset, but has been skipped with this model. Still, the number of animations has been kept at a high level. While the layout of the menus has not changed too much, there are some tweaks that improve the usability. Besides the fact that you get more options for everything (like widgets), you have now two more Home screens available that can be accessed by simply sweeping your finger to the left or right when in Home screen mode.
The phone also features a Picsel viewer application, which supports Word documents, Excel files and PDF files. Another drawback that I have found is the lack of a YouTube client, which hasn't been embedded into an LG handset. You will still be able to get to the mobile web version and watch clips. The phonebook of the device looks standard and accepts 1000 contacts. You will be able to separately see contacts stored on the device's memory and the SIM ones, according to the choice you make. The Main menu has been organized into four parts accessible from the tabs placed on the right side of the screen. The first one on the top will give you access to the phone and messaging functions, while the second represents the multimedia and entertainment area included in the handset’s firmware. Productivity tools (Calendar, Calculator, Unit converter) are available by tapping the third tab. For Settings, check the last tab. The most important feature of the phone is the Task manager, which can be accessed by clicking the second from the bottom keys on the right side of the phone. You can switch between various applications that you are working with, but I wouldn't recommend that, as the phone will work too slowly. When the Home screen is displayed, clicking the Task manager key will bring up a window with configurable Shortcuts. Unfortunately, as I have mentioned above, you cannot “abuse” this feature, as the phone's interface is kind of slow, especially when running more than one application. While the snappiest on the market, LG Prada 2 is still a leap forward, compared with previous models such as Viewty or Renoir. Another great asset to the user interface is the Status window, which can be activated by touching any of the icons on top of the phone (clock, battery, and signal). It displays information about battery, memory, network, and enables quick access to Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Profiles. The Java emulator 2.0 MIDP works with all Java-compatible software, but has a file size limit that cannot be exceeded.Communications
LG KF900 supports the GPRS and EDGE connectivity, both class 10, but also the HSDPA 7.2 Mbps (HSDPA 900 / 2100) technology and Wi-Fi. Data transfer speeds are average, but the integrated browser and the large screen definitely enhance the browsing experience. Tested on the EDGE and 3G networks, the phone has performed pretty well, as you can see from the screenshots.
Other connectivity tools include the Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP support and the USB 2.0 for PC synchronization (with charging). The Bluetooth connection has reached an almost 97 KB/s sending speed and a 70 KB/s receiving one. When connecting the USB cable, you'll be able to choose from 5 modes: PC Internet, Mass storage, PC Suite, Music sync and iSync. All of them are intuitive and easy to use, so there's nothing more to add here. In terms of messaging, the slider is compatible with a wide range of type messages: SMS (300), MMS, EMS, email (no SSL support), and Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP. Unfortunately, the phone doesn't feature an on-screen QWERTY keypad, so you'll have to slide it for faster typing. Still, I do not consider this as being a drawback, for the keyboard is exceptional. Another thing missing is the Handwriting recognition. I have been a little bit disappointed by the integrated browser, which lacks Flash. That is the reason you won't be able to watch clips on YouTube, or any other kind of movies using the integrated browser. Nevertheless, you could use Streaming, if you make the correct settings, according to your network operator's coordinates. Another drawback of the browser is the very long loading time, which can be shortened if you install Mini Opera. The high-speed USB Mass Storage support enables users to synchronize the phone with their PC. They can now access the internal memory of the phone when they are synching it with the PC, and they’ll be able to receive calls. They can also connect the phone to a TV, as the former features a TV-out function (NTSC and PAL compatible).The quadband (GSM 850 / GSM 900 / GSM 1800 / GSM 1900) network-compatible slider has a good GSM signal reception. The in-call sound quality is surprisingly good for an LG device, thumbs up.
Processor and Memory
LG Prada 2 features a medium power ARM9 family processor, which runs at speeds of up to 201 Mhz. This could have been better, especially since LG has included an improved Flash UI that asks for a better CPU than those usually embedded in mid-budget handsets. When accessing the memory card, you'll notice delays when browsing the file manager. The low processor is mostly the cause for this.
The phone comes with 60 MB of internal memory and a 1GB microSD card included in the sales package, which can be upgraded through the microSD slot card up to 16GB. We have tested it with an 8GB microSD card and everything has worked smoothly. The memory is hot-swappable.Multimedia
LG KF900 Prada 2 features almost the same music player that Renoir has also embedded, with some cosmetic changes. Users will be able to filter their music by artist, album, and genre, or make their own playlists. The music player now features an Equalizer setting with 5 predefined modes, but no possibility for customization. The sound is very good, especially when LG has added good quality earphones in the sales package.
Moreover, these can be changed with your own headphones thanks to the 3.5mm adapter that also comes with the earphones. The FM Radio features RDS, can only store up to 50 base stations and can be played through the loudspeaker. Both radio and music player can be run in the background and accessed on the Home screen through their correspondent widgets. The only thing I have been disappointed with has been the Gallery. It has been reshaped and can now take advantage of the accelerometer sensor, so you can see the pictures in landscape mode. Unfortunately, if you have like 100 pictures in the Gallery, it will take around 30 seconds or so to display the snapshots. Also, zooming is very slow due to the low CPU. Otherwise, scrolling among pictures is pretty smooth.Battery
LG KF900 Prada 2 features a 950 mAh Li-Polymer battery, which depletes harder than expected. The official numbers stated by LG – 400 hours in standby mode and three hours of talking – are low, as it stands to reason.
Overall, I have gotten about four days of use with about 30 minutes of talking, ten pictures taken, 25 MB of data transfer thorough Internet navigation, and I still had around 5% of the battery. This is better than any other LG handset that I have tested.Impressions
LG Prada 2 is definitely one of those weird devices that you wanna buy and then change your mind, and then wanna buy it again. Prada 2 is another proof that LG really takes into consideration all the feedback it receives from its users and continuously upgrades its proprietary interface. In my opinion, the only drawback of the phone stands in the obsolete design, which doesn't manage to attract people the way its predecessor did 2 years ago.
The Good
The Bad
Sales package
LG KF900 Prada 2 Handset; 950 mAh Li-Polymer Battery; Stereo Earpiece with 3.5mm adapter; 1GB microSD card; Wiping cloth; USB Data Cable; Protective film; CD-ROM; User Guide.
