Review: LG Viewty smartphone

We hoped, when Apple’s touchscreen iPhone appeared last year, that it was only a matter of time before other manufacturers followed suit.

Sure enough, LG is hot on Apple's heels with the touchscreen Viewty phone.

The appallingly named Viewty (its proper name is KU990), combines phone, camera and portable music player, but takes it one step further as it also comes with the ability to edit photos.

On any other standard-sized phone it would be hard to see the point of this, but the Viewty’s 3in screen is big enough to see exactly what you're doing.

The software, which is extremely easy to use, is especially handy for cropping people who've accidentally made their way into pictures from the phone's 5-megapixel camera. We particularly liked the Muvee application, which makes slideshows of photos taken, in different styles, and sets them to music stored on the phone.

However, we were disappointed to find that we could not adjust the colour or brightness of phone images, which tended to come out very bright, lending the people in them a ghost-like pallor. Despite this, we were impressed with the camera’s face-detection technology, which does exactly what it promises, and focuses the camera on people's faces. The only other complaint about the camera is that there is no protective lens cover, which could be a real problem for those people who like to throw their phones in their pockets next to a set of keys.

LG has also made concessions to those who like to share video footage with the rest of the world, allowing users to upload their recorded movies directly from the phone onto Youtube. Design-wise the Viewty really is a beauty, with its sleek black housing, and despite its many features it is also very light. The t ouchscreen is extremely bright and clear, and very sensitive, making it easy to navigate the phone's menus.

The keyboard that appears on the touchscreen is hard to use for text messaging: in some cases we had to press a letter four or five times before it was recognised. The Viewty’s saving grace, though, is that it recognises handwriting, so we were able to write directly onto the screen, a technique that worked well once we were used to it. It's also easy to access and view websites using the built-in web browser, and it can be used to read and send email.

As with most modern phones call quality was extremely good, with clear voices at the other end of the line. The Viewty also comes with a USB cable for synchronising contacts with the computer, and for charging the battery (there's also a mains charger), stereo headphones, a hand strap and a stylus.

Overall, while it's not as versatile as the iPhone, this is a very impressive, stylish phone that's easy to use.

Vista compatible: Yes