LG Arena is set to be LG’s flagship mobile phone for 2009. Leaving aside the screen for a moment, the reason we should be so excited about the LG Arena Mobile Phone is its use of the brand new user interface LG have developed named S-Class, seen here for the first time. This is a touch interface and in a similar way to HTC, uses a 3D graphical ‘cube’ to access all the phone’s features but doesn’t throw you into the depths of Windows Mobile once you select an icon! Instead you are presented with a vertically scrolling rola-dex style menu which you ‘rotate’ with your finger if you pick multimedia, a home screen-style page and a more familiar 3×3 grid of icons elsewhere. A main screen exists which can be used instead of the cube and provides total phone access including less often used features. The large screen has plenty of space for icons and can even be used in landscape mode for even more. Best of all, the cube’s content will be customisable and everything looks fast, responsive and packed with great little animated touches – the gallery looks amazing for instance! LG say that S-Class is ‘unlike anything seen on a mobile phone before’ and at this stage, it looks like they’re right!
Of course, the other big selling point of the Arena is the screen. It’s a 3″ item with a fantastic 800×480 resolution and comes complete with multi-touch too! The WVGA screen lends itself very well to playing video and the Arena supports the DivX codec out of the box and Dolby Mobile sound technology, making the KM900 a real multimedia powerhouse. The metallic chassis which conceals all this hardware is attractive without breaking new ground, but we do love the 105 gram weight, an area which often gets out of hand in this market segment.
The Arena won’t be left wanting in the connectivity stakes either, as it will be a 3G mobile phone with support for HSDPA, plus there will be Wi-Fi for the ultimate speed. GPS will be built-in and Google Maps looks likely to come pre-installed too. Found on the rear panel of the Arena is the lens for the 5 megapixel camera which in addition to stills will also shoot video, while around the front above the display hides a video call lens. The LG KM900 even has an FM transmitter to broadcast your music to any nearby radio.
Summary of the LG KM900 Arena
After you see or try S-Class, you’ll be instantly converted to LG’s new UI – it truly is one of the most exciting new systems we’ve seen since Android and is sure to make the Arena a best seller. The display, which could equally be the phone’s headline feature, is superb and you’ll have everything else one could need from a mobile at your fingertips. Expect to get admiring glances and some ohh’s and ahh’s when you start using this beauty, as the LG Arena is set for stardom!
The New LG Arena KM900 Mobile Phone is available to Pre-Order for March 30th From Dial A Phone from £22.08
