CES: LG's Live TV Streaming Phone

LG is making a big splash with announcements of its dual-format HD player and displays of its enormous plasma TVs (102 inches), but let's not forget its new phone announcements. Television streaming to your phone is the next big thing, and one trendy phone expected be released the first quarter of 2007 is the LG VX9400. The company trumps the phone's ability to deliver television programming from up to eight channels, including MTV, CBS, MSNBC, and Fox, thanks to Verizon Wireless's V Cast Mobile TV.

I really liked the swing bar design that is both stylish and convenient for TV watching. When you flip the phone's upper half, the 2.2-inch color LCD flips horizontally so that you can comfortably watch your favorite shows. The CDMA VX9400 also features Bluetooth, an expandable SD memory slot, a 1.3-megapixel camera/camcorder with flash, a video player, an image editor, a retractable antenna for TV watching, and a music player that plays both MP3s and WMA music files. No price details are available yet, but look for it some time in March 2007. It's a cool phone, but will it catch on? Price details of the service and phone will most likely determine the outcome.