LG Shine

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LG Shine Dimensions (w/h/d): 51 x 100 x 14 Weight: 119g Talk Time: 3 hours Stand By: 280 hours Camera: Camera Resolution: 2.0MP Handset Type: Slide Coverage (Band): Dual Video: Bluetooth: Mp3 Player: Mp3 Ringtones: MMS: Java Games: Radio: GPRS: Email: Internet Browsing: 3G: Flash Memory: WiFi:

Dimensions (w/h/d): Weight: Talk Time: Stand By: Camera: Camera Resolution: Phone Type: Coverage (Band): Video: Bluetooth: Mp3 Player: Mp3 Ringtones: MMS: Java Games: Radio: GPRS: Email: Internet Browsing: 3G: Flash Memory: WiFi:

Dimensions (w/h/d): Weight: Talk Time: Stand By: Camera: Camera Resolution: Phone Type: Coverage (Band): Video: Bluetooth: Mp3 Player: Mp3 Ringtones: MMS: Java Games: Radio: GPRS: Email: Internet Browsing: 3G: Flash Memory: WiFi:

Our Review of the LG Shine

The LG KE970 is the second handset to join the ranks of LG's elite Black Label series, after the pioneering LG Chocolate fashion phone, and was – and continues to be – a big hit with consumers after its release in early 2007. This time round instead of the curvaceous plastic of the Chocolate, LG have gone the other way and opted for a sharp etched metallic finish from where the KE970 takes its more common name. The Shine is literally a dazzling piece of mobile design; it appears to have been buffed from every angle and it positively gleams when you first take it out of the box.

The LG Shine is a dazzling piece of mobile design; it positively gleams when you first take it out of the box.

The only aspect of the Shine's exterior that isn't formed from metal is, naturally, the display cover, but even this has been given a reflective mirrored finish which has a hint of polished chrome about it. When the main display is inactive and the screen fades from view, the mirrored aspect of the cover is really noticeable, although like all mirrors, the screen cover is a bit of a finger print magnet, so resist the temptation to touch it if you can! The screen itself measures 2.2" across its diagonal and has a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels, is TFT enhanced and displays images in 256K colours.

Like its Black Label stablemate, the Shine is a super slim slider which is barely a centimetre thick – it looks more like a Zippo lighter than a mobile phone. Although unlike the Chocolate, where the various features and functions are accessed by way of a series of responsive touch-sensitive keys, with the Shine, everything is controlled by a central rollbar and two buttons mounted to either side. The rollbar interface works much like an elongated jogwheel, and takes a bit of getting used to; be patient with it, and you'll soon be wheeling your way through menus and web pages in no time at all.

The rollbar interface works much like an elongated jogwheel. You'll be wheeling your way through menus and web pages in no time at all.

The built-in 2 Megapixel camera comes enhanced with a Schneider-Kreuznach certified lens, 2 x digital zoom, autofocus and flash, meaning you can get up close and take pictures in poorly lit environments. It is also capable of recording video in the QCIF format, with a maximum recording resolution of 176 x 144. The MP3 player is an improvement on the one featured on the Chocolate, in that it allows you to make your own playlists, and it's pretty easy to do so. The same equaliser options ('Jazz', 'Rock' and 'Concert' etc) are available, and again, you can't permanently fiddle with the EQ settings. The music player and camera lens shutter are accessed by a pair of dedicated keys which are located on the right hand side of the Shine's chassis.

The 50MB of on board memory can be sufficiently expanded to 2GB with microSD, should you need more space for images and music files. The Shine features Bluetooth and USB (cable included) so moving files to and from other devices and computers is no problem – PC Sync works best when the official LGPCSync software (which comes included) is used. The integrated WAP browser works well, but doesn't allow for zooming in or for pages to be viewed in landscape mode; the Shine does however allow for Java apps such as Opera Mini to be installed so this is not realty a problem.

Still, access is not as fast as it is with its 3G sibling, the KU970 Shine, so tech-heads after faster speeds should check this out. For those whom mobile browsing is no concern, the original Shine will more than suffice as a stylish and durable handset. All in all, the Shine is a worth addition to LG's Black Label canon and worth hunting down now, as it's a fraction of its original asking price.

 Pros

Mirrored silver finish looks fantastic.
Music player an improvement on previous LG models.
Part of the Black Label series.

 Cons

Rollbar is fiddly at first and takes getting used to.

Our Rating

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The KE970 Shine is a not only a highly fashionable item, it is also a high-tech piece of kit, cementing LG's reputation as leaders in balancing form and function.

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CHRISTMAS...

Review by: stephanieb from Newmills, 26th December 2007

This phone is good for people who are on the go full stop :)

But if your mainly wanting the phone for memory..
then you will have to buy the memory thing :)

Its a GREAT phone untill its scrashed :/

And i have the Silver one :)

BUT the good thing is it comes with a little charm which can be used to clean the screen :]

So I think its a must have :] View Full Review

stephanieb from Newmills gave the LG Shine a

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