Can't leave the comforts of your speedy, reliable network, but aren't ready to carry the brick-like Voyager to appease that touchscreen hankering? Verizon might finally have a solution with the LG VX9700, which just passed the FCC. The above leaked image of the phone shows it to be similar to LG's Prada phone, but apparently there's no designer branding to be had here -- just like AT&T's upcoming Prada-inspired LG Vu. Other than that, erm, innovative menu, rumored infos include a 3.2 megapixel camera, micro USB, microSDHC, and an on-screen QWERTY keyboard for text input. Word is the phone was slated for the end of the month, but now might be delayed until April. We suppose we'll be finding out soon enough.

Mmmm, the LG Prada (AKA, LG-KE850) was just turned out in silver. 18 European countries including the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy will see the new version of LG's touchscreen later this month. Besides the color change the phone now features a proper on-screen QWERTY, not just T9 -- thank you LG! Really, that's all we could hope for.

[Via Akihabara News]

Phone Scoop appears to have caught LG a little unprepared with a pair of handsets that haven't been officially outed, and as far as we can tell, aren't on the docket to be announced this week at CES. First up, the AX565 clamshell is allegedly Alltel-bound (and we'd tend to agree from the silkscreened label on the front and all) and features an unusual square touchpad for external music control, stereo Bluetooth, microSD expansion, and a 1.3 megapixel camera. Now, onto the moneymaker: the mighty Vu, a Prada-esque handset that should usher in AT&T's MediaFLO age when it gets around to launching in the next few months. We'll keep you posted if we get any more intel on either of these suckers.

The silent, yet eerily palpable rivalry betwixt LG and Apple continues, secretly, growing subtlety with every new phone release (as you can see in the Windows Mobile-based KS20). Or maybe these two companies just love this design -- certainly Nokia is fond of it. It's hard to say really, but what isn't hard to say is that these phones do look alike, and there's no way around it. Please forgive the German showgirl for the upside down iPhone handling -- they haven't had the fortune of holding them here. After the break, be sure and note the UI of LG's KU990 -- the company's other widescreen touch phone -- and its familiar look. One thing's for sure: they all smudge the same.

We wanted to get down and dirty with LG's other touchscreen phone -- the KU990 (AKA the Viewty) -- a 5.1-megapixel cameraphone that also does Flash, but the company's staff would barely even let us get close. It's true: the German showgirls and Japanese press handlers were less than forthcoming with the goods, but after a round of strong drinks and some serious sweet talking, we got to demo some of the phone's functions -- though there appeared to be a lot more lurking beneath the surface. Check the gallery for some "hands-on" action, and feel free to write letters suggesting LG's people to lighten up.

Want to argue about which of among trio of sparsely-buttoned large-touchscreen devices takes the cake? Now's your chance. The contestants: Apple iPhone, HTC Touch, LG Prada. Rumble on.

The shot we've waited six months to take. (For the uninitiated, the LG Prada came first.) One more shot after the break.

We heard it was coming, now sure enough LG announces their DMB-packin' Prada phone looking every bit like that hasty mockup we rendered back in January. Besides a big floppy antenna to snag digital TV from the air, the new LG-SB310/LB3100 packs the same 3-inch touchscreen we know and love(ish) as well as the original's 2 megapixel camera and 12-mm thinness so in-ness these days. Yup, S.Korea first as these DMB handsets tend to go.

We were lucky enough to get a little more extended look at LG Prada phone than your regular hands-on, and we have to say, we were actually pleasantly surprised. The smooth, glassy surface was far more reactive to our touch inputs than we might have thought, although if this is what the iPhone experience is going to be like, we might still shy away from the QWERTY input -- too messy. Still, we did a top-to-bottom interface walkthrough of this thing, so if you've ever wondered about the inner workings of the Prada phone, now's your chance to see it in action. Trust us, you won't be disappointed.

[MP4] Download in wide VGA, 68MB
[MP4] Download in wide QVGA, 45MB
[AVI] Download in wide VGA, 95MB
[AVI] Download in wide QVGA, 42MB

It's not like we haven't seen RFID in luggage before, but a highly focused company is looking to make that niche blossom into a thriving industry with its latest BagChip system. RFID Limited is currently marketing its chipped luggage tags to airline industries as a means of reducing human error and decreasing the amount of luggage lost in transit. Additionally, the company is adding a dash of glitz and glamor to its BagChipElite lineup, which will reportedly be designed to match luggage crafted by the likes of "Chanel, Dior, Gucci, Prada, and Louis Vuitton." Of course, there's nothing like a little knockoff material to grace the side of your entirely overpriced luxury bag, but unless the company lands approval to use the branding of these high-end boutiques, we guess you'll end up with second rate pattern mismatches. Nevertheless, there's no hard details regarding when we can expect to see these hovering around in airport kiosks and travel shops, but until RFID Limited sweet talks the airlines into providing support, we doubt this gets very far.

[Via BoyGeniusReport]

The scuttlebutt from Telecoms Korea says v2 of the LG Prada (KE850) is already in the works. Sorry US readers, they're not adding the 850MHz band just yet, the new version expected to hit in April will sport terrestrial DMB mobile television. Makes sense, since our friends on the Korean Peninsula loves 'em some mobile TV tech something fierce. But man, how did they convince the Prada execs to approve a design-mucking, telescoping antenna typically needed for T-DMB reception in Korea? By the way, that's our rendering pictured up there -- not LG's -- but we'll bet it's not far off from the final product. Anyway, with the US in the throws of a Qualcomm FLO fest, our apparently pedestrian tastes look even less likely to be fed anytime soon. Well, until June anyway.

Read -- Telecoms Korea (subscription required)

One doesn't need look hard look at Apple's iPhone to see the similarities between it and LG's Prada (KE850), but now the momentous whispers have finally gotten to the head of LG Mobile Handset R&D Center, and it's on. While Apple fights its meager battles with trademarks, and we're left to wonder just how much loot Jobs and friends stand to make off this thing, Woo-Young Kwak has reportedly dubbed the iPhone an outright "copycat" of the device that won the International Forum Design Product Design Award. Of course, there are those out there trying to maintain the peace, as Mr. Kang-Heui Cha, Senior Manager of MC Design Research Lab, has stated that LG's handset "focused on interfaces," while Cupertino's pride and joy "emphasized a music phone concept" -- but even that seems like a weak argument at best. But hey, Steve's already voiced his opinion on the highly controversial "to DRM or not to DRM" issue, so we expect hope a rebuttal is already in the works, as this one's got the makings of a real catfight. [Warning: Read link requires subscription]

We don't have much information yet, but as you may have noticed, LG is now on Microsoft's official list for Windows Mobile licensees. We have it on authority that they've got two devices planned, one of which being a Windows Mobile take on their KE850 Prada Phone. Being that Microsoft mandates Windows Mobile devices require a certain minimum of hard buttons to operate, LG is working on a specially tweaked WM6 Pro interface to make their device actually usable without all those cluttering buttons. The other device LG's working on, as we understand, is something a little more Chocolate-like. More, of course, as we get it.