Not every user will find it good to buy a mobile phone without many modern features and an impressive design. However, for the older generation and for people with disabilities, the large display and large buttons are most important, and only after that other functions are interesting.
For this category of users there is a “clamshell” LG KF300. This gadget will not impress others, but at the same time it has some useful features, as well as a thin and light body. In addition, it is very cheap, which is also appreciated by pensioners and other low-income groups of people.
Appearance
The case of LG KF300 is made of conservative black plastic with chrome trim on the front panel, and also has a compact external screen with a large clock. According to user reviews, the shiny front surface looks too retro, but the phone is pleasantly thin. Despite the plastic case, it looks durable LG KF300, the cable is very reliable and able to withstand heavy loads.
In order to make sure that this gadget is suitable for people with disabilities, you need to test it by wearing dark glasses, noise-canceling headphones and winter gloves. As practice shows, the phone easily passes this test - you just need to open the clamshell, as large buttons with clearly marked letters and numbers are immediately evident. In addition, in the second half of the clamshell, right below the 2.2-inch screen, there are a number of buttons marked with icons as hot keys for quick access to specific functions - camera control, alarm, calendar and photo gallery, as well as a custom key for your favorite functions.
Large and comfortable
As the owner of large buttons, the LG KF300 has a ton of features that make life easier for people with low vision. The default font size in the menu is huge and can be adjusted. In addition, each menu item has a keyboard shortcut on the keyboard - this is exactly what most users would like to see on many phones.
LG has focused on ease of use by implementing it in the design of this phone. This is a rather big folding phone: its dimensions are 98.8x49.5x16.2 mm when closed.
Unfortunately, there are several areas where LG's KF300 clamshell product is not easy to use. For example, the main menu screen contains icons with small text labels that appear copied from other LG phones: they do not change if you adjust the text size. Of course, I would like the enlarged accessible design to go through the entire user interface.
Control
With a clear marking of options and status messages, the LG KF300, the characteristics of which are described above, is very easy to use. Basic tasks, such as sending text, are extremely lightweight and can be completed very quickly. However, the order of entering punctuation marks is less clear than in some other phones. This can be a problem for older users who are prone to sending CAPS texts without punctuation.
You can also find that when you dial the numbers, the numbers are displayed in cursive text on a yellowish background that shows the musical stave. This theme itself is attractive, but it does not apply to anything offered on the phone, and therefore can look annoying.
In standby mode, shortcuts are controlled by the navigation key (text messages, contacts, music player, ringtone profiles), which are displayed graphically on the screen to help users. As usual, they can be changed or hidden by diving into the settings menu. The desktop appearance is typical for LG devices: the main menu looks like a grid of icons with a further submenu containing the listed numbered options for quick selection.
The keyboard buttons are convex and are located under the QVGA display with 262 thousand colors. Such a screen will serve as a good option for users who are not technically savvy, who need a detailed phone menu.
The device offers several rhythmic ringtones, and its large speakers mean that the call will always be clear and loud. There is also a built-in screen reader and voice commands (available on some other LG phones) that allow people with disabilities to successfully use the device. The shutter sound when shooting from the camera is also quite loud.
Camera
Loud sound when shooting a frame is a good addition, but not at all mandatory. Moreover, the 2-megapixel camera let us down by its characteristics. Almost all photos are blurry and illuminated in bright light and dark in dim light. The delay between pressing the capture button and the photo taken is about 1.5 seconds, so you need to have a free hand to take a good photo. According to user reviews, many would be happy to see Anti-Shake control in the device. However, the camera’s user interface is easy to use, and you can take many quick photos if you wish.
The LG KF300 also allows you to shoot video. It is worth noting that the colors in the created videos look somewhat blurry, and the KF300 cannot quickly respond to changes in lighting. Thus, only videos lasting several seconds can be successfully shot.
Although the camera’s interface makes it easy to send captured images via email or MMS, the video player is not so useful. Without a simple way to synchronize your phone with a desktop computer, this video is unlikely to be convenient to watch on a small screen.
Memory
As already noted, the lack of easy synchronization can be a problem when it comes to using a media player in the LG KF300. The phone has a place for a microSD-card, which allows you to supplement the insignificant 14MB of internal memory. So, with the help of a card reader you can download your favorite tunes, but for this you must have dexterous fingers to insert a card into a hard-to-reach slot under the battery.
Features and Functions
The phone also has an FM radio, which has a decent interface, but turns on rather slowly (when you need to start or turn it off).
The gadget does not have any kind of exclusivity among its features. Thus, the KF300 contains the usual classic mobile tools: an email client, a simple WAP browser, a voice recorder and typical organizer functions (calendar, memos, calculator, converter, world clock, alarm clock, stopwatch). There are also two very simple games - backgammon and chess.
Headset and battery life
If you are used to using headphones, the LG KF300 mobile phone has its own non-standard jack for them. Fortunately, LG developers included an adapter for the main standard headset, so there will be no connection problems.
If you plan to use the phone very actively, you will certainly appreciate the lack of the need for daily recharging. According to users, the KF300 can run up to 420 hours of standby time or provide up to 5.7 hours of talk time in ideal conditions.
Output
LG KF300 is a thin and easy to use "clamshell", which may well satisfy the needs of older users, people with disabilities, as well as lovers of simplicity. It also has useful features such as resizable text and hotkey settings.