LG GM750 Preview

Introduction:

Microsoft did pitch us a curve when they announced LG was going to be their exclusive partner for Windows Mobile 6.5 phones. We keep asking ourselves the same question over and over again “Why LG with their two Windows phones and not the undisputed leader HTC?”. So far the manufacturer has announced only two cell phones running WM6.5 – the LG GM730 and LG M750. They both utilize the company´s proprietary S-CLASS 3D interface and the only difference between them is the overall design. What´ve got in our hands now is a prototype of the LG GM750 for Vodafone, the carrier that will be selling the handset in Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK.

Design:

We may soon have to reconsider our views on the sizes of Windows phones, because several really compact devices have rolled out lately; say the GIGA-BYTE GSmart S1200 and HTC Touch2. The LG GM750 measures similar overall size, but its body is relatively hefty and feels pleasingly solid in your hand, despite the fact it´s made of plastic.



You can compare the LG GM750 with many other phones using our Size Visualization Tool.

Similarly to most LG handsets with touch-sensitive screens, the GM750 sports a 3-inch display. It comes with WQVGA resolution and just doesn’t deliver the impressive images that WVGA models do. It utilizes resistive technology, but we couldn’t find a stylus or a compartment for it in the phone. Perhaps, the retail units will come with one and it will be attachable to the phone similarly to the Samsung OMNIA. Frankly, we don’t remember desperately needing one during our tests.



The buttons on the front side got us slightly puzzled. At least at first sight, they look like standard, touch-sensitive send and end keys and another one that you use to confirm selection (i.e. Enter). The latter also functions as an optical pad, so you can use it as a D-Pad or mouse cursor. What we are surprised at, however, is that the send and end keys can also be used as functional buttons - they get assigned functions that appear at the bottom of the screen, even when you get an incoming call. This is rather confusing really, so we hope the issue affects just our prototype and not the retail units.



The volume rocker is on the left hand side, while the camera shutter, multitasking button and microSDHC slot are on the opposite. The LG GM750 doesn’t feature 3.5mm jack, but comes with standard microUSB port.



As a whole, the phone looks pretty cool, something typical of all devices of the manufacturer. LG´s unique design sticks out a mile and you can confuse the device for the ARENA KM900 when you see its interface. How come? Read on and you will find out.

Interface:

LG introduced their S-CLASS 3D interface for feature phones earlier this year with the release of the LG ARENA KM900. What we like about the interface is its beautiful face and various home screens. Still, we believe most people would like Samsung´s latest TouchWiz better – it´s faster and more user-friendly. Both Korean manufacturers seem to follow one and the same strategy when it comes to Windows Mobile and its personalization, providing personalization packs that cover almost all interface elements. From the first OMNIA handset that featured skin-deep personalization, Samsung has being improving their software gradually. The OMNIA II rolled out about a year later and is perhaps the most properly personalized handset as of now – you can hardly notice it´s Windows Mobile that powers your device. What we have found out about the GM750 so far tells us LG has aimed at the same target. Still, aside from the start menu, there are several other differences to the interface version running on feature phones of the manufacturer.



The start screen features 5 and not 4 pages as the LG ARENA KM900 does. To the ones dedicated to widgets, multimedia, favorite contacts and shortcuts has been added a new one – it tells you about upcoming, missed or recent events. Aside from notifying you of them, it also gives quick access to your call register, messages, emails, organizer (calendar, tasks, alarms) and basic settings. As a whole, the screen provides decent functionality and you will probably have no reason to leave it often.




You switch between pages by sliding a finger against the display or optical pad and this is accompanied by a nice transition effect. However, the 3D cube for easier navigation between them is missing. Instead, you´ve got the multitasking menu (the button with similar designation). Similarly to the way the menu works on the Samsung OMNIA II and the latest high-end feature handsets running TouchWiz, all active applications are visualized as cards or list (the other option on Samsung devices is grid) and you can kill one or all running tasks simultaneously.



The shortcuts at the bottom of the screen make for a nice novelty feature. All in all there are 10, but you see only 5 of them at a time and need to slide a finger to call up the other. One of them gets you to the main menu of the S-CLASS 3D interface and from there, you can access all phone functions. We wonder why LG has left the standard Windows Mobile start menu, given the S-CLASS 3D one is really comfy.



The best thing about the S-CLASS 3D interface is that most basic functions are personalized and finger-friendly. Take the phone contacts for an example – there is a slider that gets you to any letter and you can use bare fingers. But this is not all. Creating new contacts is personalized as well. The number of categories has been decreased by grouping similar types of data together, say, you can enter mobile, home, work etc. phone numbers by opening the group “Numbers”. LG has also personalized the phone calendar, alarms, messaging, email client and most of the settings.



The keyboard is intelligent and changes depending on what you do, so you don’t have letters when you need digits etc. There are two layouts – QWERTY (landscape and portrait) and standard numeric keypad. Moreover, you can rely on the handwriting recognition.

Camera and Multimedia:

Are we going to surprise you if we tell you the 5-megapixel camera of the LG GM750 sports the same interface as the LG ARENA KM900? It looks great and delivers relatively rich functionality, including shooting modes, effects, white balance etc. We hope the retail units will provide image quality that is higher than what most Windows Mobile phone offer. For now, take a look at the pictures we took with the prototype, but don’t jump to conclusions.





The maximum video resolution is WQVGA, which is a far cry from today´s standards. We wish the phone could capture at least VGA videos.



The music player is the same as the version on feature phones running S-CLASS 3D, but does not work in landscape mode. The lack of 3.5mm jack will certainly make the LG GM750 less appealing to music lovers. Finally, the phone doesn’t offer built-in support for DivX and Xvid, but this is as easy to fix as getting a third party application.



Expectations:

With the appealing overall design and properly personalized interface of the LG GM750, LG can get off to a flying start on the Windows Mobile market. Certain functions start relatively slowly on our prototype, but if the issues have been fixed, the retail units can prove to be a major rival to all mainstream Windows Mobile phones. What we can do at this time is congratulate LG on the great work they have done with the proper integration of S-CLASS 3D into Windows Mobile and wait for a final, retail unit of the promising smartphone.