Though overshadowed in volume by regular mobile phones, PDA-phones and handhelds have always had the latest and greatest when it comes to technical features. Unfortunately, most of them lack a crucial element--style. That's a factor which is becoming a major consideration even among techies who used to just focus on the features. That's why brands like LG are a welcome addition to upcoming handhelds. The company has a reputation for making some good-looking mobile phones, and that's something it will bring to the PDA-phone world with the KS20.

Pros

At just 12.8mm, the KS20 is the slimmest Windows Mobile 6 handset with a touchscreen you will be able to find. It's just a hair thinner than the Samsung SGH-i780 which has a depth of 12.9mm. The chassis of the KS20 is modeled after the Prada phone, which was well-received because of how good it looked. With its uncluttered facade and pocketable size, this handheld is definitely one of the prettiest ones you can find without a keypad.

Aside from the regular shortcuts found on the standard WM6 Today screen, LG has also added large buttons for convenient thumb tapping. This is crucial for quick operation because there is no keypad or many physical buttons.

Looks are not everything though, and the KS20 also comes with a full suite of features. This includes HSDPA connectivity, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. It has a 2-megapixel camera at rear and another above the LCD for making video calls.

Cons

Though it looks good, there will be a group of users who require a physical numeric or QWERTY keypad. This makes the KS20 direct competition to devices like the E-Ten glofiish X800 or HTC Touch Cruise but not the HTC TyTN II or Samsung i780. However, if LG is in this market for the long haul, we are hopeful it will add more Windows Mobile devices to its portfolio with varying form factors.

Bottomline

This product has already been launched in Europe with some operators, but hasn't made its way to Asia. According to a spokesperson from LG, it will be available in Singapore some time this month. The company cannot confirm its price and wider Asian availability at the moment.