LG Shine CU720 Review
January 13, 2009 by CoreyO
Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine – and how. The LG Shine does exactly what the name suggests with its metallic glossy finish and a display that’s also a mirror. If you’re an ugly duckling there’s no worry about the mirror breaking as this phone is solid. Of course we won’t be fooled by pretty phones. It’s not always what it looks like on outside; it’s always how it performs on the inside. Let’s scrutinize…
Style:
It’s a shiner. There’s no reason the rename this phone to LG Dull. It gleams like a ray of sunshine. This isn’t always a good thing. The glossy finish attracts fingerprints so it will require frequent swipes with a cloth. You know how beauty is; high maintenance. It comes in three colors: Red, Black, and Silver. The silver is shinier than the black but the black still has a shine to it.
It’s a solid phone as well weighing in at 4.23 ounces and measuring 3.93 inches in height, 1.99 inches in width, and 0.59 inch thick. It has a smooth feel that may be felt as slippery for some who like more grip to a phone.
The keypad is flat and slippery as well, but sleek looking. The display turns on when any of the keys on the pad are pressed. The screen is 2.25 inches with 262K color support. The brightness, font style, and backlight time can be adjusted. The LG Shine offers a choice of either icon or list menu. It looks simply marvelous. The display has “multi-angle vision technology.” This allows a person to view the display from a number of angles effectively. The display isn’t polluted by glare and the images are clear and colors are realistic without saturation or darkness.
Navigation is done with a nub, a metal circle that rotates 360 degrees. This navigation wheel is rather small and a bit sensitive. Hit the wheel to the left and you get the MyStuff folder, to the south is the contact’s list, to the top opens a new text message, and to the right opens the instant message application. Two soft keys are on both sides of the wheel that need a bit of pressure to be activated.
The camera’s lens, self portrait mirror, and flash are on the back of the LG Shine. On the right spine are the volume keys, the camera key, and the multitasking key. The left spine has the microSD card slot and headset port that also acts as the charge port.
The keypad is revealed as you slide the phone open which is helped by a spring mechanism taking over once the phone is opened or closed half-way. On top of the keypad is the Talk, Clear, Back, and End/Power keys. This keypad is flat and crowded making the possibility of mistakenly hitting the wrong keys greater than normal, especially for the large finger person. This keypad is not the type to be pressed with your eyes closed because of the closeness but it isn’t impossible since the keys have a bit of a separation that can be felt. Compared to other phones though, the keys do have strong back pressure.
Battery:
Talk time is claimed at 3 hours and standby time is claimed to be 10 day, 10 hours. This is with the help of a standard 900 mAh researchable Lithium-ion battery. Moderate usage of media and moderate talk time will last 2 to 3 days without a charge but if you use your phone for serious media play, then a daily charge will be required.
Memory:
70MB with expandable microSD card of up to 2GB.
Camera:
The LG Shine has a 2.0 megapixel camera with auto focus and a Schneider-Kreuznach certified lens. The auto focus will take 4 seconds to hone in on the subject and it will take around 9 seconds to take a picture. Resolution ranges from 1600 x 1200 to 160 x 120.
The flash is LED, making indoor shots look pretty good. There is no night mode though so taking spy pictures at night is out of the question. Pictures are sharp enough though to take pictures of homework notes or pages of books.
Outdoor photos are pretty clear but a bit of overexposure are expected. Indoor pictures turn out better with plenty of lighting.
Video is taken with a resolution of 320 x 240 and 176 x 144 with .3gp. MMS video messages can be a maximum of 42 seconds. The audio and video quality has pretty good sync for a video phone.
SOFTWARE
Internet:
The WAP browser of the LG Shine can view full HTML pages and makes it possible to download the Opera Mini Browser for additional Java applications. The browser supports cookies, authWallet, certificates, bookmarks, and more. Apps include: notepad, calendar, calculator, alarm clock, tasks, tip calculator, world clock, unit converter, date finder, and d-day counter.
Media:
AT&T offers plenty of multi-media content. They offer eMusic and Napster, enabling you to download music. They also offer Pandora radio, XM Radio, Music ID, and music videos. (Transferring it from your PC is much cheaper.) The music player supports MP#, WMA, and AAC files. The music is put out through the mono speakers – which sound okay, having nice volume – and Bluetooth stereo headsets as well as regular headsets. Bluetooth sound is excellent.
The display of the LG Shine makes for great video display. There is also CV which offers weather, news, entertainment, cartoons, sports, comedies, and more. If you’d rather watch TV then MobiTV and HBO mobile is available in landscape mode using QVGA resolution.
If you’re a gamer, the LG Shine supports Java games and game downloads are available over the air. The game speed is quick with nice sound and smooth graphics.
Messaging:
The LG Shine is nice for SMS, EMS, MMS, and email. The email supports IMAP4, SMTP, and POP3 protocols. Attachments are limited to 300KB, sent or received. Files after the maximum will not be received. 150 messages for three accounts – 50 each – can be saved and the inbox hold 30 messages. New to LG phones is Bluetooth messaging and the LG Shine has it. Typing a message is done with T9. The phone keeps a record of the last numbers messages are sent to so adding the number to a message is simple. The contact list capacity is 1000. Start typing the name and the corresponding names show up as letters are typed. The phone allows for storing 4 numbers – mobile, home, office, and fax – and an email per contact.
Calling:
Through AT&T the LG Shine is a quad band GSM world phone. If a place, anywhere in the world, has GSM services, then this phone has service. The LG Shin supports UMTS/HSDPA 3G on US bands of 850/1900 MHz. Reception is decent with 2-3 bars of strength of 3G in well serviced areas. The Shine has fast data speed and video streaming when the reception is good but suffers when the reception does. One way video calls are capable through video sharing.
THE Gist of It
Some of the Bad: Fingerprint magnet and keep the sunlight out of the way of the display or else visibility is impossible. Joystick stinks for gaming. The battery life could always be better.
Some of the goods: It sure is pretty. The LG Shine is great for multitasking and videos have excellent quality because of the display. The camera takes some nice pictures and we like the fact that it has auto focus.
The features of this phone are decent and are up to par with today’s market population. Call quality and data speed is good with 3G. Bluetooth makes the music sound like a concert. The multi-media are decent as well. For the price, this phone features of the LG shine is worth the buck and will make you look a bit more attractive and important – as long as you swipe the phone with a cloth every now that then.
You can plan on picking one up for $49.99 with mail in rebate and 2 year contract through AT&T.
Other LG Reviews
“Mobile Tech Review” on LG Shine
