LG KG920 review

LG's KG920 is the first mobile phone to reach the UK with a built-in 5-megapixel camera. Unsurprisingly, it is this camera that is grabbing everyone's attention, but the KG920 is, ultimately, a mobile phone. With this in mind, we have two main questions to answer: Is the camera good enough to let you do without a separate digital camera, and how well does the KG920 function overall as a phone?

Design
If you are looking for a phone that is small, neat and pocket friendly, you shouldn't be looking here. The LG KG920 measures 108mm by 50mm by 18mm and weighs 130g, so it's more of a beast than a baby. It is not enormously oversized, and certainly takes up less space than a separate phone and camera would, but it isn't likely to slip neatly into a jeans pocket when you head off for a night out.

If you are looking for a phone with more buttons than the console of the space shuttle, then you are looking in the right place. On the front you have the 12 keys that comprise the number pad plus three softmenu buttons, Call and End keys, a long key marked with a C which is a back button and a square navigation button with a central 'OK' key. The navigation button has tiny icons on its four sides which indicate the shortcuts available when you press each one. The buttons sit in an unusual arrangement below the screen, and we found them quite difficult to get used to.

Four further buttons sit in two pairs along the left edge by the screen. When you are using the camera the top two are shortcuts to zooming in and out while the bottom two turn the flash on and off and let you configure the self timer. When you are not using the camera, the bottom two take you to the phone's calendar software and music player.

On the left edge there is a volume rocker and the button which launches the camera software and then takes snaps. The right edge has three covered connectors for the headphones, mains power and for a miniSD card.

On the back is the camera lens with a mechanical sliding cover to protect it. Even with the cover opened the lens is nicely recessed and so should be difficult to scratch.

And then there is the twist. The screen and numberpad areas do a complete 180 degree swivel, so that you can get the lens and screen facing the same way. This is to make it easy to shoot self portraits.

The screen is not as large as we might like, but it is sharp and bright, and its 240x320-pixel resolution means that it delivers clear, crisp image.

Features
The LG920 is all about taking pictures. That is not to say the phone doesn't do other things, but you are going to buy it for its photographic prowess.

The 5 megapixel resolution, however, is only ever part of the story. There are a lot of pixels there -- more than we've ever seen before in a phone -- but there needs to be some solid additional capabilities if you are to be encouraged to leave the digital camera at home.

The xenon flash helps in this department, catering for pretty reasonable indoor shots. But it is counterbalanced by the fact that the 4x zoom is digital rather than optical. The autofocus is another plus, as are the plentiful shooting modes, with options like macro, landscape, sports and dusk modes, though many digital cameras offer more options here. The flash provides a red-eye reduction option and filters for black and white, sepia and negative styles are included.