LG Cookie Gig KM570 deals & review

In a word or two

A music-oriented, budget phone, the LG Cookie Gig KM570 has a great design, price and interface.

The Design

With a chrome-like edging and brushed metal finish on the battery cover, the LG Cookie Gig KM570 has a look that belies its budget status, although the case is made from plastic. The handset looks neat, is extremely lightweight at just 87g and feels good to hold and use.

A similar size to the LG Arena phone, the LG Cookie Gig KM570 is the latest Cookie phone from the LG range which includes the original Cookie KP500 and the Cookie Plus. Available in a choice of silver black, violet and blue, the Cookie Gig has a 3 inch resistive screen and three home screens.

On the first screen are all the widgets such as Pocket Apps which include health-related apps like Weight Tracker and Running Mate, and Sound Tuner for a range of ambient sounds; calendar; FM radio; music player; and weather. Unfortunately you can’t add new widgets to this screen on the LG Cookie Gig KM570 but you do benefit from the other two screens, for contacts and Livesquare. When you tap on a contact icon – you can have up to 8 displayed – you’ll see various options for sending messages and speed dialling. The Livesquare screen has all your recent communications and is animated in a fun way.

Specifications

The LG Cookie Gig KM570 is a phone crafted for mobile musical enjoyment. There are the features you’d expect – 3.5mm audio connector, speakers, FM radio with RDS, support for MP3 and MP4 files – as well as surprising additions on a budget phone. The inclusion of Dolby Mobile sound enhancement ensures your music sounds good, and the interface is logical. You can search and sort songs using playlists, artists, genre etc. And the control keys onscreen make listening effortless.

Transferring music and data to your Cookie Gig handset is quick and straightforward, thanks to the USB connectivity. And space should be no issue, either, as the internal memory can be boosted to up to 16GB using a microSD card.

Another advanced feature found on the LG Cookie Gig KM570 is its 5-megapixel camera with autofocus and video. You can create pretty decent images using your phone, although sadly there is no flash so you are restricted to good lighting conditions.

A phone wouldn’t be a phone these days without the addition of social networking apps, and the LG Cookie Gig KM570 is no exception. You can access Facebook, Twitter, Picasa, MySpace and Flickr via the pre-installed apps, as well as communicate using email and MMS.

Considerations

The Cookie Gig is a 3G phone but does not support Wi-Fi so accessing the internet may be slow or difficult at times, depending on the 3G connection.

Verdict

The LG Cookie Gig KM570 is not a music phone on a par with the Nokia X6 but it is a decent handset with a budget price and enjoyable features. If you want a straightforward, affordable mobile you can use for communication and listening to music, the Cookie Gig is worth a closer look.