LG Electronics, one of the global leaders in digital and electronic products, has expanded their domain to wireless communications. Over the last decade, LG has designed and introduced innovative mobile phone models that are at par with the best cellular phones in the market. In the fourth quarter of 2006, LG added another entry to their successful record: the LG EnV. Also called the VX9900, and distributed by Verizon Wireless in the US, it is a smart device that will surely be the EnV of its peers.

The LG EnV is a sideways clamshell that operates like a mini-laptop. When closed, it resembles a mobile phone with numeric keypad and external display, and hinges open to reveal a QWERTY keypad and larger internal LCD screen. The dimensions of the EnV: 4.64 x 2.08 x 0.78 inches, and weight of 4.60 ounces. The external LCD screen is 1.25 inches, and displays 65,000 colors and up to eight lines of text. The EnV can be opened to 180 degrees, and the internal LCD is impressively large at 2.24 inches and 262,000 color display. Up to 15 lines of text can be viewed here, plus video, web pages, and photos.

The phone possesses a 2.0 mega pixel digital camera with auto focus and 2.5x digital zoom. There is also an LED flash, night mode, self-timer, and shutter mode control. Photo quality is great, as they can be taken in varied resolutions as well as adjusted for brightness and color. Videos can be captured up to one hour long, and saved in QVGA quality. Videos and photos can be attached to MMS and email, saved in the internal 64MB memory, or in the microSD card.

As a mini-computer, the LG EnV truly is something other phones will be envious about. It has EVDO support, which means internet connections speeds are tops. Web pages load ultra fast, and messaging, whether via email or IM, can be done in a flash. Verizon also offers multimedia services for their subscribers, like VCAST for on-demand live TV broadcasts, VCAST Music Store for audio downloads, games supported by BREW, and others, all of which can be enjoyed on the EnV. The phone also has Bluetooth, and can sync up with your laptop or desktop PC. The USB cable, however, is sold separately.

The LG EnV is enabled with GPS as well. Verizon subscribers can take advantage of VZ Navigator, so their mobile units can give them turn-by-turn driving directions from the speakerphone. The LG EnV also supports Verizon’s Chaperone service, in which parents can keep track of their child’s whereabouts using the mobile phone.

As a media player, audio quality was satisfactory, and streaming video displayed well with minimal pixellation. According to critics, the EnV is a little bulky and hefty. But overall, performs to meet the needs of the busy businessman or the entertainment fanatic. The EnV has voice dialing, voice memo, calendar, to-do list, games, customizable graphics and ring tones, plus more fun and functional features you might want to check out. The EnV package comes with wall charger and user guide.

No other mobile phone manufacturer has come up with a design like the dual-sliding Ocean. Sliding the phone vertically reveals the regular numeric keypad most mobiles have, but slide it horizontally, and a QWERTY keypad comes as a pleasant surprise. The huge 2.4 inch LCD screen can be viewed at portrait or landscape orientation. It has 320 x 240 pixels resolution, and can display 262,000 colors.

What else has the Ocean got? For starters, proudly announced as Helio’s hippest smart phone, the Ocean is equipped with Evolution Data Optimized (EVDO) technology. Ocean users can enjoy high speed internet access for downloads, communications, browsing, and streaming video right on their mobiles. Plus, the Ocean is enabled with a Global Positioning System (GPS) browser that runs well with Google Mobile Maps. The Helio Ocean also lets owners use the Buddy Beacon, which lets them digitally locate where their friends are, and displays their location onscreen in real time.

Can the Ocean take photos? Of course it can, and with smooth and crystal clear videos to boot. The rear of the unit houses a 2.0 mega pixel digital camera with LED flash. Still photos can be taken in eight resolutions to as large as 1600 x 1200 pixels. The Ocean also has color balance settings, different shooting modes, photo frames, and a selection of preview modes. Videos can be recorded with audio up to two hours long, and can be saved internally or on an external SD card. Photos and videos can be shared via Bluetooth, USB, SD card, or within a message or email.

How well does it send messages? The Ocean is capable of sending and receiving Short Message Service (SMS) and Multimedia Message Service (MMS) formats. The user does not need to select SMS or MMS from the menu before creating a message, as the Ocean already can determine it before sending. If a message contains text only, it will be sent as SMS. If there is an attachment such as photo, sound, or video, it immediately assigns it as MMS. The QWERTY keypad makes it easier for text input.

Some of the other features of the Ocean include voice memo, calendar, alarm clock, voice dialing, calculator, world clock, photo ID, and caller groups. The Ocean can alert in vibrate mode, or with any of 16 included polyphonic ring tones. There still hundreds of things to be told about the Helio Ocean. Who would have thought that a relatively young mobile company can come up with something as ingenious as the Ocean? Helio does show a lot of promise, and they will definitely keep their fan base coming back for more.

The Helio Ocean has shown much promise, according to many users that rated the product compared to T-Mobile’s Sidekick 3 and Apple’s iPhone. Regarding the release date, the Helio Ocean had a head start by a couple of months, as the two contenders were released in late June 2007. In terms of price, the Helio Ocean and the Sidekick 3 aren’t much different, but the iPhone’s suggested retail price is a whopping $499 to $599.

The Helio Ocean boasts of being the only mobile phone that’s a dual-slider, meaning it can reveal a numeric keypad or a QWERTY keyboard depending on the angle you slide it to. The Sidekick 3 swivels open to reveal only the QWERTY keyboard, while the entirely touch-based iPhone has no keypad at all. Having two keypads is definitely better than one or none, since most users look for faster and easier ways of inputting text.

Talking about a digital camera, all three smart phones have it. The Sidekick 3 has a 1.3 mega pixel camera with flash and zoom. Both the Helio Ocean and iPhone have 2.0 mega pixel cameras, but only the Ocean has zoom function and LED flash. Images should come out better as compared with the other two devices. Plus, the iPhone does not record videos. Video quality and length is much better on the Ocean (up to almost two hours) than the Sidekick 3.

Let’s move on the messaging. When it comes to sending Multimedia Message Service (MMS) formats, the Helio Ocean brings home the bacon. The Ocean is the only smart phone among the three that allows picture messaging, while the Sidekick 3 and iPhone have yet to work on that department. Instant Messaging (IM) on Yahoo!, AOL, and MSN are supported by the Helio Ocean and the Sidekick 3, but the iPhone? Forget about it.

How about gaming abilities? Every phone user wants to have some fun and entertainment while on the go, right? The Helio Ocean and the Sidekick 3 both support and allow game play, where additional games can be downloaded over the air. On the other hand, the iPhone does not have games and will not download over the air.

Think the Helio Ocean’s done? Not yet. Who wouldn’t want to have Global Positioning System (GPS) on their phones? Thankfully, the Helio Ocean supports it, as users have access to Google Mobile Maps to give them driving directions and locate millions of points of interest. Sorry, the iPhone and Sidekick 3 can’t do any of those.

If this evaluation were a tournament, the Helio Ocean would take the trophy. Truly, the Helio Ocean has shown that it can compete with the best of the best in the market.

The Helio Ocean has a suggested retail price of $295 with subscription. It has an oval body with smooth curves, and it measures 4.3 x 2.4 x 0.8 inches. The Ocean has a mass of 5.6 ounces. The phone makes up for the extra weight by packing in a unique dual-sliding feature. You can slide the Ocean vertically or horizontally to choose between tapping on a numeric keypad or on a QWERTY keyboard. Also, the 2.4 inch LCD screen has a 240 x 320 pixel resolution and displays over 260,000 colors. You can view the screen on portrait or landscape mode.

Like what I said, you can drown in this Ocean if you don’t familiarize yourself with the features. This baby has an amazing 4,500 capacity phone book. I’ve never heard of a phone with this contact-organizing capability. Each phone book entry can contain six phone numbers, four email addresses, three street addresses, three Instant Messenger (IM) ID’s, two web site URL’s, nickname, title, company and department, plus notes. Even a human couldn’t have that much data on him. Not only that, each of the 4,500 contacts can be tagged with a photo ID or polyphonic ring tone ID, so you can immediately know who it is when a call comes in.

With that amount of information, how are you supposed to find the number or contact data that you need? Never fear, the Ocean has a direct search feature. Whenever you start typing in the first letters of the name of your contact, the Ocean immediately flashes the names similar to it, narrowing down your search. This option is also super convenient when surfing the web. Simply tap on a search keyword on the QWERTY pad when the phone is idle, and a list of helpful websites will be shown. For example, type in the name of a music artist, and you instantly get lists of song downloads, photos, ring tone downloads, and others.

As mentioned earlier, you can add IM ID’s of your friends on the Helio Ocean. You can add contact names from Yahoo! Messenger, MSN Live Messenger, and AOL AIM. The cool thing about this is that your Ocean will alert you anytime any of your friends are online on any of these three IM clients. How about that?

You don’t need to get soaked if you want to take on the Ocean. You just need the right know-how and you can use this brilliant invention to your advantage. Have fun!