Having been quick on the draw with its first UK 8-megapixel mobile sharp shooter, the Renoir KC910, LG has now doubled its 8-million pixel cameraphone line-up with the release of the KC780.

While the Renoir is pitched as a high-end touchscreen device, with a roster of the latest must-have gadgetry, the LG KC780 is a more modestly equipped sliderphone, aimed at bringing 8-megapixel cameraphones to the mass market.

It has a more affordable price tag than the Renoir and other 8-megapixel competitors. But it also has a more down-range set of features than its stablemate - and other current 8-megapixel hot-shots such as the Samsung Pixon and i8510, and the Sony Ericsson C905.

Basic connectivity

Clearly, much of LG's attention has been paid to the KC780's camera abilities. There's no 3G support on the KC780, let alone Wi-Fi connectivity, with this tri-band handset running data over lower speed GPRS/EDGE. It doesn't do any fancy touchscreen control either, relying on a more conventional mobile user interface, and you won't find GPS or smartphone functionality – all options available on other 8-megapixel competitors.

The camera is where the main action is here. Its 8-megapixel sensor is supported by Schneider-Kreuznach certified optics, and there's a dual-LED flash on the back for low-light shooting. Its autofocus-equipped camera gadgetry isn't as extensive as the Renoir's lavish touch-operated system, but it does have more than your average mobile snapper. Video capture too is a few notches above the norm.

Although it doesn't offer 3G functionality, the LG KC780 does have a fairly standard, if unexciting, set of mid-level feature to keep mobile users going. Music and video players, and an FM radio add to the entertainment quota, while a rack of organiser tools are to hand. A novel Bluetooth webcam feature is employed alongside the regular Bluetooth stereo headset and file transfer options.

Sleek sliderphone

The KC780's slider design is reasonably slim. At 105(h) x 51(w) x 13.7 (d) mm and 119g it's not particularly petite, though. The design of its bodywork is workaday sliderphone, and cased in unspectacular black plastic, it's not particularly hot in the style stakes.

The controls are well-sized with a conventional layout, based around a navigation D-pad, flanked by softkeys under the display and traditional Call, End, and Clear keys. In standby the Clear key also operates the phone's Dashboard function, which brings up calendar, image viewer and a clock features on screen, which you can scroll through and customise.

The Clear key position is a bit tight against the D-pad, which means you do have to be careful with pressing the down arrow, but otherwise controls are pretty straightforward.

It has a decent-sized display or a mid-range handset - a 2.4-inch screen offering QVGA resolution. It's clear and bright enough for viewfinder purposes and video playback, though doesn't match the big-display touchscreen phones for sheer screen space. A motion sensor accelerometer flips the display orientation according to how the phone's being held.

Simple controls

The numberpad on the slider is nicely configured too, with slight bumps under each number and chrome dividers between rows helping fingers to differentiate keys on the otherwise smooth surface.

Sweeping around the phone, a MicroSD slot on the side provides room for memory cards up to 8GB (none is supplied in the box), while there's a typical camera shooter button and volume/zoom controls. Unsurprisingly, there's no 3.5mm standard headphone socket for using your own headphones, the KC780 working the usual LG multi-connector on the side of the phone for charging, USB connection and earphones.

Apart from the Dashboard, it's a fairly straightforward, standard-issue LG mid-tier user interface. The D-pad offers typical shortcut options, while the main menu is a grid-based set-up (though you can swap for lists if you prefer). Sub-menu options are mostly in list format, with numbered options for quick selection via the numberpad rather than scrolling.

Camera focus

With a limited set-of marquee features, the 8-megapixel camera's performance is the focus of this handset.

The good news is that it's well capable of taking high quality images, with the 8-megapixel shooter producing sharply detailed shots that offer good tonal reproduction. Its auto system adapts responsively to changing lighting conditions, and the autofocus appeared reliably precise and efficient, with an impressive macro shooting close-up mode.

Utilising a normal two-step autofocus set up, there's a momentary 1 - 2 second lag as you press the shutter button for a quick shot, so watch out when snapping moving subjects.

Speedy snaps

From standby the camera takes around 3 seconds to start up after pressing the side camera key.