14 Apr 2008
The LG KF510 is a stylish GSM slider phone from LG. It really seems like the LG KG800 of 2008. Based on the same idea it is a beautifully designed mobile phone handset with a mixture of touch sensitive and standard keys. The features it within are relatively unexciting for 2008, especially considering the hype LG created, but it does still pack a strong feature set into what could become a rather fashionable package.

The LG KF510 is only 10.9mm thick, pretty good for a slider phone, and 104.5mm length by 49.5mm width. For its size the KF510 is slightly heavy at 110g but that's still not exactly a great weight in your pocket. LG have clearly gone to great lengths to ensure this is an extremely attractive device to rival the likes of the far more expensive Nokia 8800 Sirocco. We're not sure why LG are making such a big deal of the "real metal body" but the tempered glass front creates a great look and prevents scratches. The colours are superb and remind you of the difference between metallic and non metallic paint on a car. Available in Stardust Dark Grey and Sunset Red, the KF510 has gradated colour that changes in tone along the length of the handset. The back of the handset is simple and smooth as the camera lens is hidden until the slider is opened. All this before the KF510 mobile phone is turned on, and you can tell we were a little awe struck.

Despite being similar to the LG KG800 which was put on the market a year and a half beforehand, the design of the LG KF510 is not particularly usual. On the front is a 2.2 inch TFT screen and below it is a touch sensitive navigation pad. The quality of the screen is outstanding, something that is being taken for granted on new LG and Samsung handsets. There is a small light sensor that allows the brightness of the screen to automatically adjust based on the ambient lighting, protecting your eyes when using the mobile phone in a dark room and also conserving batter power.

When you slide the KF510 open, you can access the standard number keypad. The modern justification for this layout is that certain activities like navigating menus can be completed faster with touch sensitive keys while other tasks like quick dialing and texting are much faster with a standard pressure keypad. After using the Apple iPhone and LG's own KU990 Viewty, we're in full agreement. Even with vibration feedback, touch sensitive keys are slower when a lot of keys need to be pressed. That vibration feedback is present on the KF510 so that you know when a menu selection on the navigation pad is accepted, without even looking at the screen. As for the navigation pad, in terms of usability we found it great for scrolling through large menus, especially when looking at music files. However, for standard menu navigation it takes a while to get used to and can result in the occasional incorrect selection. Something else that LG made a big fuss about that we weren't so impressed with is that as you use the navigation pad, the lights on it change. It's a fun effect but the novelty value wears off and then it just detracts from the otherwise smart look of the KF510 handset.

For it's price, the LG KF510 has a decent camera, with 3 megapixels resolution and an LED flash. The autofocus, red-eye reduction and shake reduction are more unusual within this price range so we were very pleased to see them on the KF510. On the other hand, that LED flash didn't perform particularly well, especially not when compared to the xenon flash of the LG Viewty. The LG KF510 has LG's standard new media player supporting a wide range of music formats and standard MPEG4 video. Fortunately the Micro SD slot supports cards up to 4GB compared to the 2GB support on the LG Viewty, so this is in fact a more feasible primary music player. Don't expect to get much onto the 16MB internal memory though.

A tri band GSM phone with EDGE, the internet browsing experience on the KF510 is OK but appears sluggish in comparison to the many 3G and 3.5G handsets on the market in this price range. The standby battery life benefits at 400 hours although the quote talk time battery life of 4 hours calls for some caution. The quality of voice calls was absolutely fine and the mediocre flash aside, the performance of the 3 megapixel camera was also good.

Overall we do like the LG KF510 but it is not without its flaws. Whether this new version of the touch sensitive navigation pad proves to be popular or not remains to be seen. Either way this is a great looking handset with a securely good set of features.

Reviewer: sze theng - comeron highlands
Reviewed on: 14th July, 2008
Rating: 10/10
i like mobile LG KF510..
it preety n beautiful...

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