LG Prada 3.0 Pro Reviews

There’s plenty to like here, but the audio and video can’t match the design quality

A slim, light and stylish Android 2.3 handset with distinctive styling and an attractive customised operating system, but battery life is poor and there's no Android 4.0 yet

Sure, most of you have probably made your mind up about this phone as soon as you saw Prada in the title, emblazoned on the box and etched on the screen. The good news is that this fashion phone's specifications aren't a joke -- unfortunately, it's last year's flagship specs, dressed up in a Prada suit -- a bigger 4.3-inch number. The understated, stylized black-and-white skin will be an acquired taste; but it also magnifies that LG Nova display -- for better and worse. Those whites will boom out from black backgrounds in daylight on that NOVA display, but it looks washed out in comparison to AMOLED rivals. We're torn on the design, too. It echoes one our favorite handsets from last year, but doesn't inspire the same wow factor -- things have moved on. This is a designer phone, but while it's solid, at the same time it's plain -- although Prada would probably prefer the term "classic." It's running a specification sheet we saw around this time last year -- are you willing to pay up for that label? Off-contract, it's going to set you back £500 ($787); while it's better looking than the rest of LG's smartphone fare -- and far less temperamental -- it also costs around $150 more.

LG set out with a clear goal here: to reboot one of its best-selling lines, and make it relevant in today's smartphone-orientated market. The Prada Phone 3 marks a leap forward in aesthetics, build quality, and user experience for a company whose current lineup is sorely lacking in all three. I want to love this phone, I really do. It gets so much right — it even had me liking an Android skin up to a point — but yet it all falls apart under scrutiny. HTC has just released its One series, which is being universally praised for its design. Apple’s iPhone 4S is as near to perfection, visually, as it can be, and Samsung will likely reveal a new design for its Galaxy S III that competes with both on specs and aesthetics. It’s no longer enough for a manufacturer to just release a good looking device — it has to deliver a truly cohesive experience. I’d be surprised if this generation sells as much as the last, but I hope this isn’t the last Prada phone, as LG is tantalizingly close to making one that I might actually buy.

Fashion is fickle. Spring/Summer’s must-have is passé in six months time; that gives the PRADA Phone 3.0 four “seasons” to endure over the average two-year contract. Still, the speed of smartphone turnover is arguably even more rapid: LG’s NOVA display may be bright, for instance, but it’s a long way from the 720p of rival devices from HTC, Samsung and others. Fashionistas drawn in by the PRADA branding will find a serviceable, if not outstanding, handset in this LG, something with the label cachet to match their bag, sunglasses and wallet. They may find the photos they take in dimly-lit, exclusive nightclubs don’t do a particularly great job of proving which celebrities they partied with, however. Those who see smartphone first and brand later, meanwhile, have some more compromises to balance. The PRADA Phone has a bright screen but at the cost of pixels; its UI is distinctive but it’s on top of old Android. It takes superlatives to challenge the top tier of handsets on any given day, and here they’re in short supply. The PRADA Phone 3.0 by LG may be shiny and alluring this season, but it’s no investment piece.

Slim and subtle, the Prada phone by LG 3.0 is elegantly designed and quietly efficient. The black and white styling onscreen and off works tremendously, though you can dial up the colour if you want to. It’s fast and effective, with a decent camera and good-looking display. It’s certainly aimed beyond the fashionista know-alls but it won’t be for everyone – the Prada logo attracts a price premium.

Overall, the LG Prada 3.0 is an impressive but not a wonderful handset. We love the black and white Android skin, but accept that it isn't universal. We like the slim build, but the thin plastic back plate is a let-down. The general specifications aren't bad, but they're not exactly cutting edge these days. Ultimately, the Prada 3.0 is more of a triumph of style than substance, but if you have a Prada handbag to match it with, that will undoubtedly be reason enough to buy one.

Overall, the LG Prada 3.0 is a good handset, but not a great one. Its specs feel a slight beat out of date, so that the fashion brand is a bit behind the times. But then, if you want the designer name, you might not care too much about that, and you might be prepared to pay the price being asked for. We do like the large screen and the super-thin design, and the black and white skin is great while it lasts - but inevitably it doesn't last long enough. Fashionistas might end up loving it, but those who want the best features on offer today ought to look elsewhere.

There is a lot to like about the Prada Phone by LG 3.0. It is one of the best LG phones that we've seen of late, combining a smart design with some of LG's best features and most importantly stability in the software so we could be confident everything would work as it should. The Prada theme is only really skin deep and that's both good and bad. It's certainly a good-looking phone and it's nice to find that the application of a designer label doesn't divert this device from its true purpose. It's still a smartphone and a very capable one at that. It might not boast the latest and greatest figures, but when it comes to daily use, we were perfectly happy with what it offered. This is a Prada phone you can buy, safe in the knowledge that you won't get laughed off the block by the Android crowd.

In summary, the Prada Phone by LG 3.0 is definitely a head-turner with its slim profile. Its customized, no-frills user interface got us very interested, to the point that we were constantly editing new apps with the template wire frame icons. Speed-wise, there’s no complaint from us with its dual-core 1GHz processor which performed splendidly and effortlessly in running apps smoothly. What we were not too comfortable with was the pricing. At S$1,088 without a telco plan, the Prada phone is perhaps one of the pricier smartphones in the market. In today’s context, we see similar devices such as the HTC Sensation XE launched at S$868. Even Apple’s latest iPhone 4S, while starting from S$948, offers a lot more in terms of storage capacity at 16GB, versus the Prada phone’s 8GB internal storage. While we would like to consider the Prada phone as a premium device, the use of plastic materials and slightly below average battery mileage are two of the biggest barriers for a buyer to overlook.

It's a good thing that LG has relied on Android for the third Prada phone. This way, the collaboration has yielded a phone which is both stylish and functional. Although a bit bigger than normal, the LG Prada 3.0 looks cool and manages to stand out from the Android pack. However, this doesn't mean that it's the finest design of the year. Although it scores well in the appearance department, we can't go over the fact that it's made of such low-quality materials, such as the cheap-feeling plastic on the back, which is absolutely inappropriate for such a fashion-centric handset. As a smartphone, the Prada 3.0 is on par with most of the other high-end Androids out there, so it's more than just an expensive phone. Actually, when it comes to price, you shouldn't be afraid of the LG Prada 3.0, as it costs just as much as any other high-end Android. Still, its specific looks and overly-simplistic interface won't be for everyone. For us, "normal" users, suitable alternatives to the Prada 3.0 can be many other premium Android phones, like the Galaxy S II, Sensation XE, Xperia arc S or the DROID RAZR. But of course, these alternatives are suitable for only one part of the audience. For the other part, there's only one Prada.