LG's KE850 PRADA official: iPhone says, wha?
By Thomas Ricker 
posted Jan 18th 2007 4:42AM
posted Jan 18th 2007 4:42AM
Check it Apple, LG just went official with their iPhone look-a-like LG KE850 Prada phone which they proudly tout as the world's "first completely touch screen mobile phone." Er, unless you consider the ones from Motorola, HTC, and others. Still, this is more than likely a dig at the iPhone which they can rightly make since the KE850 will hit select mobile shops and PRADA stores in the UK, France, Germany and Italy at the end of February and parts of Asia before March is through. Sadly, the KE850 is a non starter for the US market since this version is limited to tri-band GSM 900/1800/1900 with EDGE data. It's smaller than its fruity peer at just 98.8 x 54 x 12-mm resulting in a more compact, 3.0-inch display presumably with that 240 x 400 resolution we heard about earlier. In case you're keeping track (and we know you are), the iPhone goes quad-band GSM with EDGE and WiFi in a 115 x 61 x 11.6-mm shell sporting a 3.5-inch, 320 x 480 display. Also, the KE850 seems to lack any significant on-board storage opting instead for microSD to boost capacity. Like the iPhone, it packs a 2 megapixel camera (with Schneider-Kreuznach lens and LED flash) and Bluetooth 2.0. However, there's no mention of multi-touch capabilities, an on-screen keyboard, or the accelerometer and proximity sensors found on the iPhone. The KE850 PRADA's UI is Macromedia Flash-based and opts for a minimalist, white-on-black display as opposed to the more, shall we say, OS Xish GUI we've already seen floated. Feature-wise, the KE850 comes with a video player supporting MPEG-4, H.264, and oddly, H.263 normally used for video conferencing; a document viewer supporting Microsoft's PPT, DOC, XLS formats, PDF and TXT; an audio player with support for MP3/ACC/ACC+/WMA/RA formats; and a "music multitasking function for messaging," whatever that is. How much? €600/$778... that's how much. Still, a compelling choice for those who can't wait for the iPhone's Q4 European introduction or 2008 Asia launch. Click-on for more pics.[Via AVING]
Perfect
Co-developed with fashion house Prada, the KE850 is a high tech, high fashion tri-band GSM mobile phone. In spite of its appearance, it isn’t a smartphone. Think of it more like a feature phone on steroids. Not being a smartphone doesn’t make it any less exciting of a device, of course.
Imran
http://www.mobilephoneupdates.com
How about this was released Months before the iphone. ( At least in the USA ) therefore I don't see it as a copy.
Its probably useless to argue on this web about IPhone VS LG. There are too many apple fanboys out there.
"js
Well it's a known fact that engadget editors have been Apple fanboys... just look at the CES coverage at http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/12/viiva-las-vegas-the-engadget-crew-departs-ces/ , scroll halfway down... they are using Macbooks!!!"
You are Kill's
Hi,
I would like to purchase the new LG KE850 Prada, but do not know much about it. Can someone please tell me if it has Wi-Fi? And is it true you can not retrieve a contact from the phone book and call; that you have to input the number manually every time?
Thanks to all who take their time to read this.
Vince.
look, i have the Prada phone. it has a beautiful design. I'm very happy with it and it's really easy to use. as soon as i got it i was already using it like I've had it for years.
about the the buttons at the bottom...its like that for a reason!!....the Prada phone comes with a case...it isn't a soft one and so...if u get a call...(since its touch) the call will automatically answer. so they HAD to make those 3 buttons at the bottom.
and having 3 buttons doesn't cause any problems anyway.
I just ordered this phone, and I'm really excited!
LOUIS VUITON,VERSACHE,BURBERRY,RALPH LAUREN,LACOSTE,PRADA,MANOLO'S IS ...GENIAL IS COOL
I agree! That girl in the photo has some huge man hands, it makes my stumach turn, damn!! Im thinking shemale, ouch! lol!
ok so i have this phone :D [i'm glad i got it] but i have a hard time tryin to get used to
it since i had a blackberry pearl.... i found it wit t-mobile and so far i havent seen any one wit it!
i got mines for $450 w/o tax....
I have this phone (and yes it does work in US) its a very gorgeous phone but other than that there is nothing special....
Recently i unlocked my 3GS 3.1.2 iphone and i want to know if its safe, i used http://www.unlock-iphone.org , please tell me if its safe
The phone being GSM does not preclude it from being used in North America.
it looks beautiful.
The girl in the picture above has the biggest man hand i have ever seen.
oh, the price :) apple ftw
Apple launching in US, LG launching everywhere else. Let the games begin
You can certainly see the Prada design. It really is beautiful.
BTW isn't the US market something like 5-10% of the global mobile phone market?
It does actually look pretty good - especially the black GUI. Button free? Yeah, right! So why does it have 'call answer' and 'call end' buttons below the screen.
My opinion is that the silver-like buttons work against the whole minimalist look. i think the iPhone is more capable than this - and it's bigger size makes it more useful too. I've heard a lot of people complaining about LG's phones build quality.
I totally agree
It's total bullsh** when LG says that they are the first.. Check out this device back from 2003:
http://www.mobileburn.com/review.jsp?Id=547
Yeah, I think that's mentioned in the article too...
"The KE850 comes with a video player supporting MPEG4, H.264, and H.263 for video conferencing"
Lets get this right. How does it have support for video conferencing when this phone doesnt even have a secondary camera neither 3G or HSDPA in the slightest sense?
Though it is bloody sexy phone
Quote: "Like the iPod, it packs a 2 megapixel camera..."
You mean iPhone
Correction.
"...Like the iPod, it packs a 2 megapixel camera..."
You mean the iPhone, right? And I'm still pre-ordering the iPhone.
hey are your eyes blurred ??? it says clearly "Like the IPHONE, it packs a 2 megapixel camera "
I don't know about the phone...
> opting instead for microSD
That's alone is already well worth any promise of Apple.
Simon wrote:
> How does it have support for video conferencing when this phone doesnt even have a secondary camera neither 3G or HSDPA in the slightest sense?
What about Wi-Fi? I have "investigated" my opportunities for video conferencing/alike, and I can say that anyway you look at it - video isn't easy. You always have to prepare environment - random video chat in random place is total waste of bandwidth: you see nothing - your partner(s) see nothing - good if everybody can hear each other.
Probably in future - with some video/voice enhancing technologies and advanced noise cancelation, random phone video conf would be Okay. But right now IMHO it is waste.
The problem with those removable drives is that the manufacturers never fully support the newest cards. So in LG's case you're most likely stuck with a 2gb max card or the ever so irritating card-swapping… I take the integrated 8gb any day.
Simon,
I updated the text. Didn't mean to imply that it worked for video conferencing, only that it included the H.263 video codec normally associated with VC.
Yannik,
True, but it lacks support for GSM 850 thereby limiting coverage and providers.
Thomas
Hahaha Thomas. You guys need to double check before posting ur blogs. Same goes with my previous comment :S Must've been too much bad english from watching english dubbed chinese martial arts movies =P
It still doesn't make sense when phone manufacturers stick a second camera on their phones for VC...
My God.... The Size of her thumb in the 1st pic!! :P
It dont have Wifi ????
Could engadget please stop using Apple as the benchmark for everything? LG unveiled the KE850 nearly a month before Apple unveiled the iPhone, yet the LG is the "lookalike"? How's that fair?
As Yannik pointed out, a tri-band phone will work in America. Yes, it limits your network options, but the iPhone will only "officially" be available on one network also, "thereby limiting coverage and providers".
Also, why the negative spin on expandable storage?
"Could engadget please stop using Apple as the benchmark for everything?"
It IS the benchmark as a) everybody knows the iPhone, b) specs have been available for some time now, something that cannot be said about the KE850.
"Also, why the negative spin on expandable storage?"
Because you can add another $100.
look, apple was the first because apple had been planning on making the iPhone for a LOOOONG time, they just kept it neatly tucked away so they could surprise the world, which they did.
"and oddly, H.263 normally used for video conferencing" ... excuse me? Has anyone EVER seen a phone capable of playing video that DIDN'T support H.263?
Hey Engadget...you might want to correct your article as T-Mobile operates primarily on the 900/1900 GSM bands in the U.S. This phone will work just fine in all T-Mobile coverage areas.
Maybe this is our booby prize for getting screwed by Apple ;)
I'm in Asia, but I'm not buying it.
By 2008, iPhone should have 3G with HSDPA. I'd rather wait for that, even if it takes two more years. By that time too, I'll be able to work on my documents, presentations and spreadsheets on the iPhone, even just minimally.
"...their iPhone look-a-like LG KE850 Prada phone..."
Has someone altered the space-time continuum or is Engadget just ignoring the facts and lapping up Apple/Jobs propaganda. Again.
Hang on, there'll be an anti-Sony article any minute now. And one where Jobs claims they invented the internet. And it will be reported favourably here.
With Verizonwireless leading the U.S in sales in really disturbs me that the newest lastest hottest phones go on junk networks like TM or Cingular. CDMA is the strongest most reliable network in the U.S Tried and Tested! C, mon and give us something better than that cheap Chocolate
Again it just goes to show you, that once the hoopla dies down, and the iPhone really is available in Europe, it will probably be pretty passé.
Yup I'm still p*ssed about Mac(iPhone)world this year having nothing for Mac's in it.
No, iPhone desn't say wha? because Apple already knew about this phone before they launched theirs. You know that. We know that. (Question is for how long before....?)
How much does Jobs pay you guys?
Yup have to agree on the fact that this article makes it look like an iPhone lookalike.
It was anounced BEFORE the iPhone, has already won design awards and to those saying it is expensive that is more than likely the price in Europe without any network connection (which are usually only 12 or 18 months anyway). With a connection the price will be considerably lower through the network subsidies.
If the rumblings about Apple partnering up with Vodafone are true in UK/Europe, and the handset is not available unlocked then it looks like this one will be the handset i'll be picking up (shame as wouldn't have minded passing on my Nano to have the 8GB version).
Im personally not a fan of LG but this looks great. Would love to see a comparative analysis though. How does it compare to Moto Q, blackjack etc..
But here is one site that compared the Moto Q, blackjack, Treo & iPhone.
http://www.zolved.com/blog/view_entry/20146/Is_the_iPhone_better_than_Moto_Q_Blackjack__Treo_a_quick_
When will you guys do this?
Typical LG junk and self-delusional hype as being a 'market innovator' of some sort. Practically every component they use is a foreign invention, while Apple had been developing the iPhone software and design for at least 2 1/2 years. LG in all likelihood simply got wind and decided to copy Apple by releasing its comparatively cheap looking and low tech copy.
As one poster noted, the Finns beat both companies to the punch by 3 years for claim of world's first touch screen phone. But iPhone's revolutionary UI, iPod compatability, Muti-touch interface, OSX, proximity sensor, rich HTML browsing (not WAP) and many other high tech innovations already make the LG clone look like something from 5 years ago. I'll wait 'til June and get the real thing from Jobs & Co, thanks.
It wouldn't be the first time a Korean company has copied Cupertino. Last year Samsung was taken to court for illegally using Apple icons in its phone menus. It might have a similar look on the outside but the software running on the LG copy is lame and simply years behind the iPhone. LG have again mistaken that the revolution Apple demonstrated last week is in function, not just form.
@MLK
You either work for Apple, or are just an idiot. You dismiss LG as "self-delusional hype" but then proceed to call the iPhone a "revolution"! What's actually "revolutionary" or NEW about the iPhone?
To me, it certainly isn't the multi-touch interface which was invented by someone else; the eventual mobile version of a 6 year-old OS; or the iTunes compatability which has already been done. Neither is it the size-of-an-iPod size but size-of-a-nano capacity; camera which everyone has; HTML browser which has been done before; or piece-de-resistance proximity sensor.
In fact, for me, the only things I could think of which might be useful improvements over my current phone are the looks-better-than-Opera web browser and cooler (if not little more functional) interface. These are MORE than offset by the major features it lacks, such as the lack of 3G (why have such a nice browser but only be able to use it at decent speed when you're in range of wifi?) and external memory.
MLK, you've obviously been brainwashed by the slick marketing of Apple. You're
fast to bash other companies as copycats but you forgot that apple was forced to
pay Creative Zen for $400 Million (if i remember correctly) for infringing some of
its patents for mp3 players. So who's the BIG copycat? You may not want to admit it
but its Apple!!!!
I don't know about that comment "first completely touch screen mobile phone." I use to have a Motorola 388c and guess what... it was touch screen only!
Give me a break. LG can only claim to be the "World's First Company to Release an iPhone Knockoff". End of story.
Stop making it a double standard. Apple is pretty much the ONLY company on the Internet where people make it their duty to call something a knockoff of it when it clearly isn't. A knockoff is something that is trying to sell to you AS THAT COMPANY'S PRODUCT. Where on this LG phone do you see A: The Apple logo B: the words iPhone C: the interface looking "like OS X". NOWHERE.
This is a competing product, not a knockoff.
Please. Please. Please stop this nonsense.
Two questions:
1. Who's the chick in the picture?
2. What are her digits?
Is it just me, or does that model look like Jordan Capri?
wow... I think they should wait and release it once they get manufacturing to the point where they can lower the price a bit.
Is it just me, or does that model look like Jordan Capri?
J. R.--
The model did look familiar and I didn't know why, but I had no idea who Jordan Capri was, and so googled the name. Two words: not work-friendly.
Thank you for perpetuating the stereotype of geeks reading Engadget looking at pr0n.
As for the phone: no quad-band, no WiFi, no 3G--in Europe! Even the iPhone beats this, and that is one seriously over-hyped piece of tech.
Apple: PLEASE release the iPhone so that engadget will shut up about it. Why does EVERY post have to be referenced to the iPhone. This is worse than the over-hyped Q hysteria.
Apple iPhone deserves all this hype, and it will live up to it when it arrives. Don't be fooled by another phone that might look like an iPhone, that's where the similarity ends.
Who cares--it's not playing to be the iPhone. When are you people going to understand that? The only similarities are that they're DESIGNER* cellphones and are using touchscreens only.
The iPhone will live up to the hype from its base consumers and those that don't more than the base specifications coming from Apple.
* You have to be stupid to think that Apple's devices have not been designer electronics so far--they're appealing to the mass market, not the smarter hundreth...thousandth of us. They're looking for people who want easy design, need for little technical knowledge, and giving the illusion of not having to know anything else (which is a nightmare to those who know anything).
I'm not ripping on the iPhone for what it isn't, but I'm stating what it is. If you're hyped up for it, good for you. Frankly I'm sticking with my crappy Treo 650 and my seperate iPod 5G (which sucks by the way), unless I want to splurge a signing bonus on that. I'd rather spend it on an ultraportable laptop. :P
while I agree that it isn't a knockoff the iPhone is much nicer. It lacks a lot of the features of the iPhone for (more than likely) a significantly lower price.
It is Java based vs OSX based I would much prefer the OSX based one as it can do all the Java one can do and more. I think the only thing I like about this one is SDmicro card. I just saw someone released a 4gb card so I would assume by the time the iPhone comes out the cards will probably be larger than the 8gb offered by Apple.
Nonetheless I am a T-Mobile subscriber so i can't get the iPhone anyway
@ abc : "It IS the benchmark ... b) specs have been available for some time now, something that cannot be said about the KE850."
really? what kind of processor and how many Mhz/Ghz is the iPhone running at?
iDiot
lol @ iPhone being the benchmark... maybe when it uses current technology it will be.
That's a $300 phone, the rest goes as a donation to the Prada brand.
Andy says:
Two questions:
1. Who's the chick in the picture?
2. What are her digits?
Finally someone says something about the chick!
drop the phone, get me the girl...
Well it's a known fact that engadget editors have been Apple fanboys... just look at the CES coverage at http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/12/viiva-las-vegas-the-engadget-crew-departs-ces/ , scroll halfway down... they are using Macbooks!!!
"iphone look alike"? hello! nobody knew anything about the i phone 2 weeks ago. not unless LG has a time machine!
This PRADA will work with other companies? because the iPhone wil work only with CINGULAR (or AT&T).
I was scoping this thing out even prior to macworld with an eye to replacing my bulky Sony-Ericsson V600 with something a little more pocketable.
Now that the iPhone's been released my impressions are that it's still way pretty, but if the interface was anywhere near as slick as Apple's LG would be doing a lot more to promote it. I personally don't think relying on outboard storage is a disadvantage, but $170-270 is a petty big premium for a few months jump start, especially for a phone without WiFi and 850mhz.
And releasing a phone with EDGE makes some sense in the US market since the extremely sparse coverage probably doesn't justify the trade-off in added weight and bulk, but in Europe with wall-to wall 3G?
I think I'll be making the wait until June.
JR -Only in that she has eyes, hair, nose, a mouth.
Joe -Sorry you're so freaked out about it but, yes, a touch screen "fashion phone with music and video playing capabilty and a at least superficially similar feature set is going to be compared to the iPhone. Get over it.
Kev -You're right, but 3 pleases? You gotta save something for really imporrtant issues like begging for your life ..........or a new iPhone. Sorry, I couldn't resist.
"first completely touch screen mobile phone"
yeah, i love the two very real buttons, for send / exit. great use of touch-screen there. i mean. yeah. :(
JS said:
"Well it's a known fact that engadget editors have been Apple fanboys... just look at the CES coverage at http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/12/viiva-las-vegas-the-engadget-crew-departs-ces/ , scroll halfway down... they are using Macbooks!!!"
Hm, so now you are automatically a fanboy when you use a product of some brand??
So I am a Apple fanboy too, because I am writing this on a Mac mini...oh, no, wait, I also have a windows PC! Damn, things get confusing now, because I also have a Sony-Ericsson mobile...and a Philips TV....
Use your head, JS, just using some brand's product doesn't mean you can't be objective on other brands anymore. I'm not saying they are objective, I'm just saying your reasoning is short-sighted.
Oh, and to the one calling OS-X six years old, that's just making things seem far worse then they are. Anybody who knows that it's been six years since it was introduced, surely also knows it had mayor upgrades 4 times, keeping it ahead of the competition. No way on earth could you honestly compare this with XP, which is 7 years old and had only one upgrade.
If you're trying to make a point, don't exaggerate, because it simply weakens your point.
Amen
Kev
It's hard to understand how an OS with over 90% of the market share can be said to appeal to the smartest 1000th of a percent, while the company with 6% at best penetration is appealing to the mass market, especially since any market research I've seen shows mac users to be better educated with higher income levels than PC users.
What exactly does (pick your version of) Windows do better than the mac other than gaming and getting viruses?
I'd be curious to know, especially since just about every major media outlet in the country not wedded to Windows by way of title or user base has long given up pretending that OSX isn't the superior OS in virtually every way except market share. By major, I mean Time, Newsweek, Consumer Reports, PC Magazine, Fortune & Business Week. Oh yeah, I forgot, you're in the top .001% of smartness. Of course those guys aren't smart enough for you. Too bad it's not showing it's not showing in your comment.
Your answer, unfortunately, reeks of corporate IT guy with limited knowledge of anything except Windows worried about what will happen to his paycheck when the rest of the country finally wises up and makes the switch to the more reliable and capable Mac OS.
PS While I started using Macs with the first version of Photoshop and use them today whenever I have a choice, I'm not a typical fight-to-the-death-for-your-side fanboy. I switched to the PC in the mid late 90's when it was hard to find a compelling reason not to and if Windows ever gets better than the Mac again, I'll have no compunctions about switching back.
I really don't understand people who have their identities so tied up in a platform that they would do otherwise.
I'm just tired of hearing the same ignorant crap from the die-hard PC crowd about how macs are dumbed down for people unable to grasp the complexities of the Windows OS.
Just because fidgety, crash-prone and unreliable Windows machines mean more work for the IT team, doesn't mean Macs are any less capable for the user.
Don't hate. Elucidate.
Note to all: Just so you don't read anger where there isn't any imagine the following in say Barry White's voice.
djfred I see the NetRatings study mentioned a lot but an interesting note is that the principal analyst had to eventually admit that Apple is a major client. Although of course he swears it had nothing to do with the study or the results.
I don't berate people's choice of what is 'better' for them but better is not an objective term, it's just opinion. I admit aesthetics of the box is tertiary for me so I'm not Apple's target customer. Performance, ease of hardware upgrade & customization, hardware options and price are more important to me.
I'm tech agnostic and use multiple OSes and machines so no fanboy here. The ability to use Unix, Linux and yes windows on a single machine for a low price is a big draw for me. The nearly infinite hardware choices from numerous PC makers is another draw. Some of which are pretty darned slick looking, of course that's an aesthetics opinion like everyone else's.
The whole virus thing is pretty overblown since a home user pretty much has to try to get a virus. They don't just creep in... unless you're on a network with those people who are pretty much trying to get one. And even then it's pretty much a non-issue since most people will at most get a notice from the AV software that it quarantined it.
The makers of my first three computers aren't even making computers any more (yep i'm old), not even sure if one company still exists. I'm old enough to have seen Apple IIs new on the store shelves and used the first Macs. They come they go so I'm not married to a computer maker. If Macs become the dominant species why should I care. I'll evolve. But for the moment they aren't my thing and I don't really need hyperbolic excuses for why they're not. They don't do what I want when I want and they're not better,,, for me.
"However, there's no mention of multi-touch capabilities, an on-screen keyboard, or the accelerometer and proximity sensors found on the iPhone."
No mention of an on-screen keyboard? Do you honestly think they need to mention that? How else do you expect it to work?
The rest are unproven iPhone features. Since when did the iPhone set the standard when it hasn't even proven itself a decent phone? Apple may have "reinvented the phone" as the proadly boasted, but in doing so they ignored the fact that all touchscreen-only phones have failed in the market so far. The iPhone isn't the first and this one isn't either.
Funny that you'd ignore one compelling feature that the iPhone does have: the iPod dock connector and iTunes integration. It's really the only new, compelling feature it has.
There's only one reason to introduce a Prada-branded phone and that's to appeal to wealthy, fashion-sensitive customers. Designer products are a market of their own and Apple is only half-way that kind of manufacturer. Paris is more likely attracted to the Prada phone than the iPhone while gadget geeks likely feel the opposite. Business users will laugh at both.
The study BTW. It wouldn't surprise me if it's true. The data is presented as an average of all those who buy one or the other platform. All that it says is that lower income people choose the option they can afford - lower income people on average have lower education levels. You can choose any 2 choices where one on average costs more and you will see the same skewed data.
A study that actually breaks out numbers at each economic level or education level for instance to say how many total people with an income of $100K - $150K bought X vs. Y might be interesting. But then how to define educational level. Is an equivalent level of education in physics and acting truly equivalent? It would be to the study wouldn't it?
The only purpose of these type of studies is to give a particular group feel superior to those of lower means. To use another persons lower economic status to make yourself feel superior to them is pretty common in our society, isn't against the law but perhaps it does say something about those who use it to bolster their egos.
The screen of this thing is 240x480 and not 320x480.
Well said, Glacia, and thanks for doing your part to keep the discussion civilized. I've got my shades on, lights down low with my rayon shirt unbuttoned and gold medallions dangling in my chest hair ala Mr. White.
Looking at my post, I realize I did come across as being anti-PC. I'm not. If you need it, you need it and that's all there is to it. You know who you are and there's no need to get defensive about it. For me, the computer is a necessary tool to produce the work I need to produce, not an end in itself. The mac works better for me and that's a fact I can easily attest to because I use both platforms. The work I do tends to vary pretty wildly from real simple word processing stuff that doesn't require a lot of muscle to CPU-intensive 3D work and my MacBook Pro is more than capable of handling both with aplomb as is my PC. For me the difference came down to small things details like ease of use and fewer distractions.
There definitely have been times when I've needed to use software that wasn't written for the mac and I've been very happy on those occasions that I knew how to use a PC.
My comments were directed more directed specifically to the comments by Kev about the stupidity of mac users than they were to PC users in general and I think they make much more sense in that context. Here's a small excerpt.
******* You have to be stupid to think that Apple's devices have not been designer electronics so far--they're appealing to the mass market, not the smarter hundreth...thousandth of us. They're looking for people who want easy design, need for little technical knowledge, and giving the illusion of not having to know anything else (which is a nightmare to those who know anything).*******
Hard to see why I got worked up enough to respond since usually that type of thing just flows right over me. Probably that I've seen so much of it lately always in vague terms without data to back it up. Who knows, maybe they've all been written by Kev.
I really was just trying to bait Kev into coming up with something that would unequivocally demonstrate the range of his superior intellect or at least something a little more tangible and coherent than " looking for people who want easy design, need for little technical knowledge, and giving the illusion of not having to know anything else (which is a nightmare to those who know anything)" Whatever that means.
I'm not really interested in prolonging or adding fuel to the age-old debate about which platform is better, but your points were very well made and worthy of response, so I'll give it my best shot.
You're right in your assertion that better is in the eye of the beholder and right to call me on my use of it. I'm pretty sure I didn't mention beauty anywhere in my second comment.
I'm not familiar with the NetRatings study to which you refer, so I'm definitely not qualified to comment one way or another as to it's objectivity. I was referring to specific articles in each of these publications. Consumer Reports is definitely an example of unbiased reporting since it accepts no money from advertisers and relies on data from their own lab testing as well as feedback from users to draw their ratings.
I do tend to pay attention when the staff of PC Magazine recommends OSX over Windows because they're obviously geared more to Windows users. However, none of those magazines or articles was geared to the type of user who has Unix, Linux, and Windows on a single machine. I agree that you are probably best suited to a PC, although it did occur to me that a machine that runs everything except OSX would be less practically functional than one capable of running all of them -OSX included. But that's only true if you need or care about OSX.
I have to disagree with you about "ease of hardware upgrade" being an advantage on Windows. PC's definitely offer more expandability in the way of slots, backwards compatibility and the like but it certainly isn't as painless as on a Mac. If that doesn't bother you, then it's not a problem.
There's undoubtedly some truth in what you say about viruses not jumping onto computers by themselves but for me the answer was to just avoid it all together. I mean, why go to all that trouble keeping your line of defenses strong and clogging CPU with anti-virus software, when avoiding is as simple as buying one machine that's capable of running both Windows and Mac. Blaming the user for getting the virus only works until the first one slick enough to make it past you -unless by "try to get" you mean download things.
In any case, the freedom to download porn and torrents without fear of angering the virus God's is an advantage that Mac users enjoy right now and one that more people take advantage of than would probably be willing to admit.
I don't feel all that old but my first attempts at illustrating something on a computer was on my dad's Amiga so I guess I am. I am old enough to remember how difficult it was for businesses just to implement PC's into the workplace in the mid 80's when there were about 50 competing platforms and no consensus standard. If it wasn't for Windows 95 coming on like it did when it did, we'd probably still be trying to muddle through. All hail Bill Gates.
That's something you won't hear from too many die hard mac afficianados. I hope it's enough to convince you I didn't mean to get personal. Peace.
PS Glacia. I didn't see your second post when I posted my response.
You're wrong about the only purpose of the study being to bolster the egos of those fortunate few. The study itself was just a marketing study commissioned by marketers to sell to advertisers and demographers to make money selling things to people. They were just engaging in information harvesting and probably storing it on a PC!
I do agree completely with you about it being meaningless in the larger sense and mean-spirited as a viewpoint. I did think twice about putting it out there for that very reason. However, it made perfect sense in the context of refuting Kev's ridiculous rant about Mac's being for stupid people and PC's for the enlightened few, so I tossed it out there anyway. I actually did it precisely to combat exactly that smug holier than thou thinking that pits one group of people against another on the basis of status and prestige. Evidently I did a very poor job. I'd still like to hear something from Kev that speaks directly to the points I raised, but I'm going to abstain from the comment section for a few days. I'm spending way too much time.....
sorry didn't mean to interrupt, nor trying to act on glacia's behalf, but i personally feel that you've misunderstood her point regarding the surveys.
the said bias wasn't something stemmed from sponsors/advertisers (basically financial gains) nor the point made was something to critisise the survey(s)' objectivity.
just purely from a statistical point of view, taking a look at the market share and the difference in prices of the OS's (or at least the hardwares that come with those OS's), the poll and tally collected (assuming a random sample) is meaningless. and, again, from a statistical point of view, to truely achieve objectivity and unbiasness, to compare the two OS's will require exact same market share, availability, accessibility (physically), prices etc. only then the tally will reveal more insights towards the reason of choice between the 2 OS's.
I like the name.....it could catch on like a new phone might be called gucci and various other high fashion name.....
and just a quick example to highlight what i was trying to say: if you were compare the average income of vertu users versus nokia users, and i deduce that vertu's a 'better phone' and subtly suggest that vertu users are better/smarter.
i'm sure u see my point now.
If you think I was ripping on OS X, I wasn't. I was ripping on the iPod for being an overrated device. OS X is fantastic but I personally wouldn't use it for more than just every day stuff.
Apple...
Shove THIS up your hard drive!!!!!
What is Prada?
The girl has a pretty face. But hold one second... DID ANYBODY NOTICE THE F*#%ING MANHANDS!?!? Beastly! I HOPE that is a PS'd picture, otherwise, well, you know.
As for the phone, it looks like LG guessed what the iPhone would do, and did their best to design accordingly. I'd say they missed the mark. 1)It's overpriced for its features. (Sad when comparing it to the iPhone) 2) It's Europe only (For now)
T Mobile operates solely on the 1900 band. One for those people who say you need 850 within the US, unless you are living in the boondocks, most places support 1900. So yes, this phone is more than adequate for the US.
Remember, ALL GSM phones were tri-band (900/1800 EU, Asia Band - 1900 N.America Band) before 850 was introduced. Heck, I still have several of the old Nokia models that I have that only support 1900.
So remember people, unless you live in the boondocks, 1900 is T mobile's entire GSM network band. Don't be fooled by people who say you NEED 850 band. You don't.
Remember, knowledge is power. Refer to gsmworld.com for more info if you still have questions as to what country and what carriers provide which band in ALL COUNTRIES that provide GSM and 3 G. VERY INFORMATIVE.
Even the headline is wrong. Shouldn't it be -
"LG's KE850 PRADA official: The phone provisionally called the 'iPhone' but the actual name may be less cool, says, wha?"
NeoChosenOne,
Here's a map of T Mobile's 1900 band coverage for the US:
http://www.gsmworld.com/covmaps/gsma/us/we/comb/0_0_0.png
So "boondocks" as you describe it, references more than 50% of the US soil (not population) lacking coverage. T-Mobile uses 850 for roaming. Besides, that frequency works better inside buildings. That's why quad-band is important. Yes, tri-band will work, at a severe price, making it a non-starter for most.
Thomas
€600/$778????
everyone complains that the iphone is too expensive at $499.
but no one even mentions the €600/$778US price for this "Prada" phone. don't forget, you still need to buy sd cards as well.
talking about expensive phones, did everyone forget about the Bang & Olufsen Serene, with 3hr talk time, vga camera, circular keypad and oh yes the $1300 price tag.
The iPhone is NOT $499 US. It's $499 with a 2-year contract with Cingular, and Cingular is pretty expensive when it comes to a decent plan. You won't find this with prepaid. Or, if you do, it'll be $700 or more.
You can keep the phone, I'll take the girl. Wow is she gorgeous or what!?
i know this is off topic.. but. the woman in the first picture has the hands of danny devito.
looks cool, but guys can't be seen with a phone that says PRADA. It's cool if it doesnt have the logo.
Just a quick note to the people complaining about the answer/hang up buttons on the LG model.
Do you really thing the iPhone won't have any other buttons than the touchscreen? It obviously will need a lock type button or else the screen will get turned on, or worse make calls maybe, every time you jiggle your pocket or someone bumps into you.
It's obvious those two buttons on LG's phone serve the same purpose. You will probably have to press the answer button to enable the screen and then click the hang up button to disable/lock the screen.
get your facts strait
where says
"LG just went official with their iPhone look-a-like LG KE850 Prada phone"
should say
LG just went official with their LG KE850 Prada phone and award winning phone desing that Apple iPhone (trademark owned by Cisco) blatantly copied.
man~ the only thing apple know is to copy other companies~~ this LG phone came out way before iphone~ dumb idiots who commented that iphone came out first do some more research retards~
It’s still little more than a phone of today’s standards. What seems to set the iPhone apart, is that it truly has a mini-computer running it, rather than a simple phone-based operating evironment, it run Mac OS X. A fully functional web browser, brings the whole internet to you, rather than the substandard browsing capabilities of my Palm T5. Plus, choice of 4 or 8 gigs of memory for music & video. Plus, it comes with the excellent syncing software iTunes. From the patents that Apple has applied for and received, don’t expect to see multi-touch on any non-Apple device. Even Jobs said that they patented the heck out of it. Since the LG comes with a doc reader, sounds like there isn’t a need for a keyboard nor does there appear to be the option of downloading & viewing pics. Nice phone, definitely leading edge for today. Still no iPhone killer or contender. Now you see microsoft’s next zune model, in a year or two.
"€600/$778????
everyone complains that the iphone is too expensive at $499.
but no one even mentions the €600/$778US price for this "Prada" phone. don't forget, you still need to buy sd cards as well. "
And the LG has less features, and a dogshit interface.
Woot.
Lets also take a moment to keep things in perspective. As of now Jobs has stated that the Iphone will not be open to developers.. so what? does anyone REALLY think that, that will stop third parties from developing? Thats the beauty of OS X, applescript, widgets. This is also the very FIRST edition and a feeler into the waters. With the coming generations of Iphones, what is now only raw potential, amazing ascetics, and a bold vision, will be transformed into what Jobs so correctly stated as the complete multimedia device. Does anyone really think there wont be games on your Iphone? touch games that will have an almost Wii feel? the core animations make this almost a given.. the integration with Ilife will eventually win out business in the coming generations of Iphone. What exec wont want one of these when it does EVERYTHING they want? the Iphone IS the future, there is no way around it.. not THIS iphone,.. but it isnt far off... Books,.. You will be able to grab your pages and TURN them, giving the rustic "oh i'm reading a real book" feeling.. imagine having your entire library in your pocket.. the applications are endless, and OS X brings it to you.. Someone mentioned in a previous post that OS X is nothing but a nice GUI on a BSD/Unix Frame.. Know what I have to say about that? GREAT!!!!! What more could you want? you get all the advantages of your GUI, all the stability of UNIX. That leads me to my next point. Someone else mentioned Macs are for the idiots of the computer world (paraphrase). This Macbook i'm currently typing on is the only Mac i have ever owned. I have found the control of my system equaled only by UNIX/Linux.. umm wait... what was that again? oh ya...Forgot! Duh.. Windows.. geeze, I use it.. I dont LIKE using it.. but I use it. Why? because I have a couple games and an odd program or two I want to run. I don't miss screwing with msconfig every time something goes wrong and I have to troubleshoot.. hell, I dont miss troubleshooting. I have logs that tell me whatever is messing up, WHY it's messing up, and generally gives me a damn good idea how to fix it.. opposed to getting a fatal exception error with some long memory address that means NOTHING.. How is Windows how the Tech savy again?.. i digress from my original point.. the phones... Watch the coming generations of Apple Phones. This one is just the tip of the iceburg.
What's the deal with this girl's thumbs.. I mean seriously, she's cute, but they appear to be.. man-thumbs.