MWC 2009: LG announce Windows Mobile / S-Class GM730

[Guest Paul (MVP)]

As revealed in our liveblog of the event (which included a watch-phone video-call cameo from none other than Steve Ballmer), LG have announced a new Windows Mobile based handset, the GM730 as part of a massive new partnership with Microsoft!

Based on Windows Mobile 6.1, the new handset fuses a Windows Mobile core with LG's innovative new 'S-Class' UI, as seen on the LG Arena.

Covered in more detail at the LG MWC site, the GM730 features:

- Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional
- LG S-Class user interface
- Dolby sound with 3" WVGA screen
- 5.0MP Camera with autofocus
- DVD resolution video recording and TV out
- WiFi and A-GPS
- Metal design with tempered glass screen
- 11.9mm thick
- 1000mAh battery
- HSDPA
- 8GB internal storage with microSD expansion

Sounds to me like LG are going to be quite the force to be reckoned with going forward...! With the Omnia range no longer Windows Mobile based, this feels to me like exactly what was needed! :(

Press Release follows...

P

[teaser]

LG Electronics (LG), a worldwide technology and design leader in mobile communications, today announced LG-GM730, its newest handset in LG’s smartphone line-up, which makes advanced smartphone features easy to use. This, the first smartphone to use new version of Windows Mobile OS integrated with LG’s advanced 3D S-Class User Interface, will be on display at the Mobile World Congress 2009 in Barcelona from February 16-19.

LG Electronics steps forward to the smartphone market making statement that users don’t have to outsmart to their smartphone.

The LG-GM730 is the newest phone among LG’s easy-to-use smartphones line-up to come. The company has recently signed a special contract with Microsoft, allowing them to be the first manufacturer of a phone with the new version of Windows Mobile. On top of Windows Mobile, the LG-GM730 will provide LG’s dynamic, direct and intuitive S-Class User Interface.

“The combination of Windows Mobile and our new 3D S-Class User Interface will make the LG-GM730 the most functional and easiest to use smartphone ever created,” said Dr. Skott Ahn, President and CEO of LG Mobile Communications Company. “This phone is a springboard for us. We will launch a number of smartphones this year; most of them will follow this same winning formula.”

Built-around a 3D cube layout, S-Class User Interface provides four customizable home screens. The simple flick of a finger instantly turns the cube from one side to the next. S-Class User Interface eliminates nested menus wherever possible, providing more direct access to features and applications. Even setup for e-mail is simplified, requiring just one click. Internet Explorer 6.0 enhances the web experience.

The LG-GM730 also incorporates LG’s signature style, with a slim, seamless profile and smooth, stylish rounded edges. At just 11.9 mm it is the perfect on-the-go. Despite its small size, it still manages to pack in all the essential productivity software, with room to spare.

More technical specifications will be announced soon and the LG-GM730 will be available for purchase in the first half of 2009.

[/teaser]

[Guest Shuflie]

Can you make resistive touchscreens with tempered glass?

[Guest ferryrich]

The GM 730 actually has a WQVGA screen according to that microsite

[Guest Paul (MVP)]

Yes, the Touch Diamond has tempered glass.

P