Hello blogosphere,

My first post is going to detail what I think has got to be the sexiest mobile phone on the market (well, with a few tweaks for us Americans) and is not, dare i say, the iPhone. Nope, it’s not Apple’s huge mobile hit, but the European LG PRADA. The phone was released on the 22nd of March last year, and you may be thinking this post is a year too late, but stick with me and you’ll see where I’m going.

So, LG and PRADA got together and designed a cellphone, combining LG’s technological prowess with PRADA’s world famous mind for design, and the result was fabulous. At first glance, you may think that it’s just another “iPod-killer” but it was actually created before the iPhone. LG claims that Apple copied them, and for a while, whispers of a lawsuit circulated. Even more whispers have since been flying around about the phone’s release in the US.

All of that aside, let’s get to the phone itself. It features a 3-inch touch screen, 2 mega-pixel camera with a snazzy high quality lens, a microSD memory card slot and music and document support. It even has a PRADA logo on the front of the phone for all of us label whores. It doesn’t have quite the functionality that the iPhone has but it’s much more functional than the last pair of jeans you wore when compared to the carpenter jeans your dad wears.

Now why am I writing about this over a year after it was first released? Well, it was never released in the US, at least not officially. All you Tmobile and Cingular customers can go and buy an “unlocked” version of the phone and stick your SIM card into it (any other service that uses SIM cards can do the same), but those of us who are on Verizon or Sprint (or any “CDMA” service — aka, we don’t have SIM cards) have been out of luck. Well, Verizon is releasing a sort of compromise on the 4th of July, called the LG Dare. The LG Dare, is very similar to the PRADA, it just doesn’t sport the oh so stylish PRADA logo on it. The brand conscious in class are probably pretty disappointed but hey, it’s still a great phone.

If you’re looking to buy the PRADA, you can find it on Amazon.com for about $450. There hasn’t been a released price for the Dare, so here’s to hoping your contract is almost up. I for one will be taking a short break from the barbecues to go get my hands on this sleek piece of mobile devicery.

For pictures and specs about the LG Dare…..click to jump