LG Fuels 8-Megapixel Craze With Latest Cameraphone

With the introduction of the LG KC780, LG Electronics is the latest to jump in the megapixel race for cell phones.

The latest camera phone from LG packs an 8-megapixel camera, and it may prove to be a good convergence device for shutterbugs. But mobile professionals may be turned off by the lack of connectivity options and productivity features.

"We found that most of the time people use the camera on their mobile phones to take pictures of themselves, their families, friends, and significant other," said Skott Ahn, president and CEO of LG's mobile communications company, in a statement. "With this in mind, LG developed the LG KC780 with a number of face-enhancing features to augment its high-quality 8-megapixel camera."

The KC780 has Schneider-Kreuznach optics, autofocus, and flash. Additionally, there's built-in software that automatically detects faces, and there's an optional "Beauty Mode" that lets users remove spots and imperfections from photos of people's faces. The camera can also be used to record video that LG said is "DVD-resolution."

The camera phone has a sliding form factor, and the 2.4-inch screen can be used to view Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and PDF documents. But the KC780 only has EDGE connectivity for on-the-go Internet access, which may not be fast enough for some mobile professionals.

The KC780 does have Bluetooth version 2.1, and this can be used to pair with a computer to use the phone's camera as a Webcam. The camera phone also has a multimedia player, organizer, accelerometer, and expandable memory up to 8 GB via the MicroSD slot.

The handset measures 4.2 by 2 by 0.5 inches and weighs about 4.2 ounces. LG said the KC780 will go on sale in November in Europe, and will then expand to other markets.

The KC780 is the second cell phone from LG to sport an 8-megapixel camera as the company recently rolled out the LG Renoir. Samsung has also introduced a pair of cell phones with a hefty camera, the Innov8 and the Pixon.