The megapixel race continues as LG adds a whopping 8-megapixel camera on to its latest touchscreen phone, the LG Renoir.
What we like
The LG Renoir is a neat-looking touchscreen phone with curved edges and magpie-attracting shiny surfaces. At the heart of LG’s new touchscreen is an 8-megapixel camera that comes with a substantial lens cover and dedicated shutter key so that taking pics is a simple affair.
Picture quality in daylight was good with photos coming out colourful and sharp. There’s face-detection and smile-detection, which takes a picture as soon as someone smiles. You can also use the camera to shoot video and slow-motion footage, should you find yourself shooting a fast-paced action shot.
Aside from shooting films you can also watch DivX or Xvid films but be warned not all resolutions are supported so check first. Connecting to the Internet can be done using HSDPA (3.5G) and Wi-Fi, and navigating around town or geo-tagging pics can be done using the Renoir’s GPS.
What we don’t like
We were very happy to see that the Renoir packs a xenon flash but it doesn’t pack much punch and didn’t illuminate dark scenes enough. We were also happy to see that Dolby had integrated its sound technology but the lack of a standard 3.5mm headphone jack made us weep a little.
The LG Renoir’s screen and interface are behind certain touchscreen offerings and even though it’s pitched as a camera phone, we still want a good user experience everywhere else. It’s just not as refined as we’d hope for from the company that brought us the LG Chocolate.
Conclusion
As far as camera phones go, the LG Renoir is quite impressive but it’s let down by lacklustre proprietary software and lacks the refinement of other LG phones. This feels like an unfinished product in certain ways and while we want to love, we don’t. We think better things are coming from LG soon.