You know it. Some of you have even smacked your lips over it. But alas, there's still no word on the LG Prada II launching in the States, even as this follow-up to the first LG Prada phone debuted in Europe yesterday.
Is it fair? Heck no. This thing has a 3-inch capacitive multitouch screen with active Flash UI and a slide-out physical QWERTY keyboard packaged in an elegant yet simple design aesthetic. The minimalist in me can't wait to get my hands on this.
There's something about the word "Prada" that makes my ears perk up. While no one can miss the brand name emblazoned on the front, the inner kibbles and bits are no joke either. The Prada II upgrade features 3G, 5 megapixel camera with LED flash, slow motion video recording and DivX playback. It also has a full HTML browser, Wifi access, video calling capability, dual-band HSDPA, quad-band GSM, stereo Bluetooth, FM radio, TV-out, a doc viewer, 60MB of onboard memory and a microSD card slot.
I console myself with the fact that it doesn't have GPS, and that the starting price is also a walloping 600 euros (a little over $800 US). Plus, it's 17 mm (roughly 3/4 inches) thick. While that's not bad for a phone that includes a physical pull-out keyboard, it's a bit too thick to fit into my skinny jeans comfortably. And at that price tag, this phone wouldn't be getting crammed in anywhere.
Upscale, fashion-conscious customers can also get a matching waterproof Prada Link Bluetooth watch for just another 299 euros ($370 US). Sadly, there's no sexy spy action on this stainless-steel-and-leather timepiece, since it doesn't allow phone calls. But it does display call notification and texts.
The folks at LG and Prada certainly thought this cell phone was special. Not every new gadget gets it own dedicated micro site.
No word yet on whether it will chauffer the kids to ballet class while the phone's owner jets back from St. Moritz, but I'm sure it's in the works for the next release.