Review: LG enV3
Camera
LG has upped the camera from 2 megapixels on the enV2 to 3 megapixels on the enV3. It also comes with a flash. The camera can be used with the phone either open or closed.
When closed, just unlock the phone and press the camera key. You'll see a small view of your subject. The enV3 shoots pictures fast and you can then save or erase them. From the external screen, you can also shoot video with the same basic controls.
The camera/video software is much more robust with the phone open. Using the large screen to compose pictures is great. The first screen you are greeted with is a basic viewfinder screen with a square in the middle. There is also a soft key to access the options. Once you've composed your shot and pressed the shutter button, the enV3's camera takes the picture nearly instantly.
The enV3's camera has some new features, including SmileShot, Panorama, Intelligent Shot and Dual Display. The first two are self explanatory. Intelligent Shot appears to be a better tool for the camera to get the right exposure and color balance. Why this isn't just built into the phone's normal shooting mode is beyond me. Dual Display activates both the internal and external displays when taking pictures.
What's really odd to me is the flash. It can be set to on or off. Default is off. Why the enV3 doesn't have an "auto" function is a puzzler.
Using the d-pad, you can adjust the brightness level, and well as zoom in or out. You can also use the zoom keys on the phone's left side.
Using the video camera application is almost identical. The only noticeable changes are fewer selections in the menu bar along the bottom.
Our biggest complaint, which was similar to that of the enV2 and its predecessors, is the placement of the camera lens itself. Honestly, your natural instinct to hold the phone means you'll place your right index finger directly on the lens. In other words, you're going to spend a lot of time cleaning the lens if you don't want cloudy images.
Gallery
The gallery application is unchanged from other phones that use the Verizon UI. It can be opened by jumping through the menu system or by hitting the camera button and then using the left soft key to load the gallery. The latter of these two options is much faster. The gallery is locked to a three-column view, and lets you see six different pictures at a time. When viewing the gallery, hitting the right soft key brings up the expected set of options for moving, renaming and otherwise interacting with your pictures.
Opening up each picture is as simple as hitting the center of the d-pad. Once open, the right soft key opens an editor tool and lets you do all sorts of things with the pictures, such as cropping, zooming, adding frames and so on.
A few new items in the editing feature include the ability to place stamps (silly graphics such as crowns, rabbit ears, etc.) on pictures. You can also place a frame around the picture, or choose my favorite, "Face Beautify". This one lets you enhance people's faces a bit. So if you're covered in zits it'll help make your face look a bit better.
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LG enV3 VX-9200
