Fridae

The good: Responsive; slim profile; elegant design; micro-USB slider cover prevents lint from getting into the port; will receive Ice Cream Sandwich update.

The bad: UI theme doesn't extend to other apps; slow camera; touch-sensitive buttons are hidden until you touch the screen.

The bottom line: This fashionable smartphone makes for a great companion for your other Prada-branded accessories, and doesn't compromise too much on performance. 

Review:

The Prada phone by LG 3.0 is the third handset from the Korean chaebol's collaboration with the Italian fashion house. Targeted at fashion-conscious consumers, this handset comes designed with Prada's signature Saffiano pattern. Besides its pretty looks, the smartphone packs formidable specs such as an 8-megapixel camera and a dual-core 1GHz processor.

Design

From the first glance, you'll know that this is a Prada device thanks to the Prada imprint on both the front and the back of the handset. It's not ostentatious, but rather, feels like this classy smartphone was meant to be Prada-branded device. Furthermore, located at the rear cover is where you'll find the famed Saffiano pattern, which incidentally, gives the handset a very good grip. 

The Prada 3.0 also keeps to a very uniform flat design--no irregular bumps distort the clean finish of the smartphone. While the handset does not have the biggest screen, at 4.3 inches, the WVGA (800 x 480 pixels) display is similar to the one you'll find on the Samsung Galaxy S II. 

One thing the smartphone has going for it is its slim 8.5 mm profile--and mind you, this is not just at the thinnest point. 

The only thing we didn't like about Prada 3.0 is that the four touch-sensitive Android buttons are hidden when not in used, and there's no option to toggle it to remain on permanently. This means you have to tap somewhere on the screen to get the buttons to light up, unless you've already memorized the position of the keys, of course.