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It was the big story of CES 2009, but only now has LG put the finishing touches to its first watch phone and put it on sale, if you know where to look. You can only buy the LG GD910 through one Orange shop in the U.K.--in Bond Street, London--at the moment, on pay as you go tariff 500 British pounds, although there will be a limited number available online later this month (register your interest here).

We had the chance to try one out briefly earlier Wednesday, and what struck us was that it's actually a pretty basic device. We're so used to seeing phones packed with features, apps, and a hundred ways to access your Twitter feed on the toilet, this felt like a letdown.

LG Watch Phone GD910 hands-on photos

LG is making a big deal of the fact this isn't just a phone, it's a 3G phone, and a superfast HSDPA one at that. But before you get carried away thinking that you'll be able to access the Internet, check your e-mails and so forth, be warned--the 3G is just for video calls. (Does anyone know anyone who actually makes these?) To be fair, there's no way you would want something like a browser on this thing, as the screen is just 36 millimeters (1.4 inches), but it still seemed weird to us.

There are just three buttons on the whole of the device, at the edge, which you use for bringing up contextual menus and the like. You use the touch screen for everything else.

Calling people, video or otherwise, is easy enough. If they're in your phone book already, you simply select their name. If not, typing numbers on the touch screen is much more straightforward than you might think--the soft keys on the touch screen have enough space between them so you can type speedily without errors.

Video and voice calls are all piped through the internal speaker, turning the watch into a normal speakerphone. You might feel rather foolish and cause much irritation around you, but you don't have to bring the watch up to your mouth to be heard, unless you're trying out your best Dick Tracy impression.

You'll feel even more of a fool if you use the Bluetooth headset LG provides, though--ignoring the fact that everyone using headsets should be made to sign a register for the good of society, it has a really long microphone arm, straight from the early naughties. Then again, with the headset, people around you won't be able to hear the other end of your conversation, so it's not all bad.

(Credit: Crave UK)

That LG Watch Phone--which has our mobile reviewer Flora in hot flushes--goes on sale in a week in the U.K. (it's not for sale yet in the U.S.). The GD910 is on Orange, and we can confirm it will only be available on a pay-as-you-go basis, for a whopping 500 pounds (about $825). That might be eye-watering, but it's half as much as we were expecting.

You'll need to haul ass to the Orange shop in London's Bond Street Station starting at 9 a.m. on Thursday, August 27, if you want one. Orange believes so many people will want to drop 500 squids on the gadget that it's limiting sales to one per customer.

But fear not, rich gadget posers. If you can't get to London, you'll be able to buy online from the Orange Web site starting in mid-September. Though once again there's a limited number available--Orange is being sensibly cautious over the unavoidable fact that it's fundamentally an enormous watch costing half a grand.

Check out our previous coverage for more info on the watch itself, and don't miss our hands-on video after the jump.

The LG GD910 Watch Phone is coming to Orange in Europe.

(Credit: Nicole Lee/CNET)

The LG GD910 Watch Phone won't be coming to the U.S. any time soon, but it is slated to come out on the Orange network in Europe before the year is over. We initially thought it would be priced about $1,500 (around 1,000 pounds or $1,144 at the time), but Orange just released the official pricing--it will be priced at $1,290 (899 euros) with a one- or two-year contract.

OK, so it's not that much cheaper, and the unlocked price is probably way more than that. Still, it's way cheaper than a Rolex, and at least this one makes video calls, right?

(Via Engadget Mobile)

This post was updated at 3:55 p.m. PT with comment from Orange.

LG's watch phone could carry a hefty price tag.

(Credit: Nicole Lee/CNET Networks)

LG pretty much owned the first day of CES last month when its chief technology officer popped up onstage and casually took a call via the LG watch phone on his wrist.

But those looking forward to owning the touch-screen, 3G-enabled timepiece might have second thoughts when they hear the price. A report from Mobile Today in the U.K. says that exclusive European carrier Orange will be charging 1,000 GBP, the equivalent of about $1,500, when the phone becomes available.

The only thing Orange has confirmed is that it will be the carrier. But company representatives have not yet responded to Tuesday's request for comment on the price. We'll update this story when or if they do.

In the meantime, check out this gallery of pics of the watch, courtesy of CNET Reviews.

Update: Orange says it has not yet released a price and characterized reports of the price as "misleading."

(Credit: Crave Asia)

There are several ways one can harness natural energy. In addition to the sun, wind, tides, and geothermal activities, the human body itself is increasingly being used to produce energy charge all sorts of electricity-hungry devices.

Music company Orange and GotWind, a firm specializing in renewable energy, have teamed up to create a device called the Dance Charge. Weighing 180 grams (about 6.3 ounces), you strap it around your arm. Dance Charge then uses the kinetic energy generated by your body in motion to juice up your phone.

It also uses a system of weights and magnets to produce electric current to top up the storage battery, which can later be used to charge your handset. A prototype of the device will be shown and tested at this year's Glastonbury Festival.

(Source: Crave Asia)

When, and how, will people get their hands on the iPhone 3G?

(Credit: Apple)

A few tidbits about the upcoming iPhone 3G launch have trickled out this week, though unfortunately, none of them are particularly illuminating, taken individually.

Perhaps the most interesting one--if only for its lack of details--is the memo distributed to Apple Retail employees this week in FAQ-style concerning the July 11 launch of the iPhone 3G.

Employees are being instructed to answer "I don't know" to any number of pertinent questions surrounding the launch, such as how the in-store activation process will work, any upgrade offers from the original iPhone, or any planned price cuts to the iPod Touch.

AppleInsider reported that Apple is planning meetings for July 6 with its retail staff, presumably to share these details, once the company has finalized its plans.

Last year, the actual time of the iPhone launch was subject to much speculation until Apple finally settled on its "Happy Hour with the iPhone" plan.

This year, it seems a late-afternoon or early-evening start would mean a long night for employees trying to process in-store activations, so a rumor that sales would begin at 8:00 a.m. circulated on the pages of The Boy Genius Report. That remains unconfirmed, but it makes some sense, if in-store activations take several minutes to process, as expected.

Another huge difference between last year's iPhone launch and this year's is the number of countries participating in the launch of the iPhone 3G. We got some sense of what the iPhone 3G is going to cost overseas, with Orange in France declaring Thursday that the iPhone 3G versions would respectively cost 149 euros and 199 euros, or $232 and $310.

The European carriers seem to be offering upgrade paths for original iPhone owners, something that AT&T has not mentioned in its prelaunch marketing.

One last tidbit comes out of Spain, where Telefonica has apparently received 300,000 preorders for the iPhone 3G.

Demand for the first-generation iPhone in Europe was sluggish, but the addition of the 3G networking chip might have changed the minds of cell phone buyers on the continent. If Spain's pent-up demand is any indication, Apple should do pretty well with iPhone 3G sales.

It's a debate that spawned well before the next-generation of gaming even began. Fast-forward to present day, and you'll find that jury still seems to be out on which console provides the better graphical experience.

While console fanboys would have you believing otherwise, the truth is that there really is no dramatic difference in the majority of multiplatform games on either the Xbox 360 or the PlayStation 3.

That said, CNET sister site Gamespot has re-examined the controversy in their third look at comparing the graphics on both consoles. Quite possibly the most in-depth comparison to date, Gamespot used games such as Grand Theft Auto IV, The Orange Box, and Rainbow Six Vegas 2 in their testing.

Now that you have all the evidence laid out neatly in front of you, what do you think?

French iPhone carrier Orange might have an upgrade plan in the works when Apple ships the next generation of the iPhone.

French iPhone owners are reportedly being presented with an upgrade path to the expected 3G version of the iPhone.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

Anyone with a pulse and even a passing interest in consumer electronics knows that the 3G iPhone is perhaps weeks away from making its debut, probably at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference on June 9. Those with longer memories will recall the outcry over Apple's decision to cut the price of the iPhone by $200 in September, forcing the company to issue $100 credits to iPhone early adopters to stem the criticism.

Perhaps this time around, Apple and its carrier partners are hoping to prevent similar bellyaching from current iPhone owners who might suddenly realize in late June that their iPhone isn't as cool as it used to be.

Ars Technica spotted a report from French Web site PC Inpact that Orange has been calling iPhone owners in France and offering them an upgrade path to the new model.

It would be somewhat surprising if Orange were choosing to publicly discuss a next-generation iPhone with its customers, but if true, it could shed light on how Apple plans to hit its iPhone targets for 2008. PC Inpact says Orange customers are being given two options: they can return their current iPhone and pay 50 euros for the new version, or they can keep their current version and buy a new one at a "heavily subsidized" price, presumably with a fresh contract attached.

If Apple and its partners can get even half of the estimated 5 million iPhone owners to upgrade to the new model, it will be much easier for the company to hit its 2008 goal of 10 million shipments. Sales are expected to increase based on the wider distribution of the iPhone in the coming weeks around the world, as well as those who were holding out for a faster model. Inducing as many current owners to upgrade as possible would provide a nice boost.

However, this offer might be an only-in-France type of deal, assuming that it's even true. European iPhone sales have not been as strong as U.S. sales, and Apple's partners might be trying additional demand-goosing methods that might not be available to stateside owners.

(Credit: Electronista)

While the hype over e-readers has focused on Amazon's "Kindle" and other e-book devices--or lack thereof--some of the digerati in France are turning the page to a different print medium.

The "Read&Go," being developed by French telecom Orange, is aimed specifically at newspapers with hourly wireless updates by 3G and Wi-Fi connections, according to Electronista. The 1GB device, which will also come with 30 preloaded books, is already undergoing two-month public testing periods. We hope someone works on a dual-screen version so we can scan all the comics at once.