LG KF300 review

LG KF300 Review

Reviewed by: Flora Graham

Reviewed on: 23 April 2009

The handset kept us alerted with loud tones, and the extra-wide speaker means that calls come in loud and clear. We would have appreciated a built-in screen reader and voice commands, which LG has on some of its other handsets, to round off the accessibility features. We also missed a shutter sound when taking shots with the camera.

Camera obscura
We could live without a fake shutter noise, but the 2-megapixel camera let us down in other ways. Our shots were washed out and noisy in good light, and, in dim light, too noisy to use. The delay between pressing the shutter button and taking a shot is about 1.5 seconds, so it takes a steady hand to take a reliable photo. We'd love to see anti-shake control in a handset like this. But the camera's user interface is easy to use and it would do for the occasional emergency snapshot if you run into Elvis down the shops.

The KF300 also shoots basic video. We found the colours washed out and the KF300 doesn't respond quickly to changes in lighting, but it could prove worthwhile for grabbing a few seconds of the adorable grandchildren's antics. It's worth noting that, although the camera interface makes it easy to fire off our snapshots in an email or MMS, the video player isn't so helpful. Without an easy way to sync the phone with a desktop computer, videos are unlikely to ever make it off the small screen.

Listen up
The lack of easy syncing could also be a problem when it comes to taking advantage of the KF300's media player. There's room for a microSD card to beef up the paltry 14MB of built-in memory, so, with the help of a card reader, you could still pack some tunes on board, but you'll need nimble fingers to wedge the card in place underneath the battery. If you can't be bothered, the handset also has an FM radio, which has a decent interface but is rather slow to run and shut down.

You'll need headphones, and the KF300 has a proprietary headphone socket. Happily, LG has included an adaptor along with some basic earbuds, so you can plug in your own cans and pump up the volume.

Conclusion
The LG KF300 is a thin, easy-to-use clamshell that could satisfy curmudgeons who've been complaining that phones have become too tiny and too flashy. It also has some handy accessibility features, like resizable text, although we'd like to have seen more, such as a screen reader, to make the KF300 truly accessible.

Wallet-friendly and with a decent user interface, the KF300 is a good choice for people who struggle with the overblown features and tiny keys on many newer handsets.

Edited by Charles Kloet