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As a lower-cost taste of touchscreen action, the LG POP GD510 is a lovely little handset. Its touchscreen user interface is comfortable to use, tidily constructed and doesn't stretch the new user with unnecessarily fiddly controls. The design is smart, slim and stylish too.
Of course, as a sub-£100 handset you're not going to get all the high-end features of more up-market touchscreen handsets, and while responsive enough for its LG A-Class UI to be usable, the resistive screen feel is no match on more sophisticated capacitive displays on higher grade devices. Still, that's not what the POP is all about – and it should be a big hit with its target audience.
We liked
The slim, compact design of the LG POP is immediately appealing – stylish, smart and very pocketable, and that single button hits the minimalist nail on the head.
We found the user interface straightforward to navigate and operate, with just enough homescreen tricks to add to the user experience rather than over-complicate it. Its iPhone-alike main menu and accelerometer auto rotation give it a snazzy look and feel for such a budget device.
The POP also has a good spread of features for the price, with an impressive audio performance through the in-box headset. Text messaging was relatively easy on the digits too for a touchscreen device. We were also pleased with battery life.
We disliked
The lack of 3G capability or Wi-Fi may not be a deal-breaker for its target audience, but it does slow down any online activity. The browser user interface is quite attractive and adds to the usability, but it can be slow without 3G to pep it up, and we had trouble loading some richer websites.
Although we liked the camera interface, the lack of autofocus was limiting, and any sort of flash would be welcome for shooting in darker places like clubs and bars.
Video capture quality is pretty poor, and in video playback we'd have liked to have seen DivX and Xvid support.
Widgets were welcome on the phone, but the selection available was a bit limited.
There's no in-box MicroSD card, but slipping one in, we found it a touch slow browsing content from the card if there were lots of files. Although decent earphones were supplied, we still would have liked to see a 3.5mm headphone socket or adapter in-box.
Verdict
The LG POP GD510 is an entertaining, relatively low-priced taste of touchscreen action that delivers an enjoyable and comfortable user experience. Sure, it doesn't have all the top-end gadgetry and lacks high-speed connectivity, but if its features tick the box for you, the slim, chic and cheap LG POP GD510 could be on your hit list.
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