LG, Samsung go social with latest handsets

Both phones feature full-screen touch panels on their face, Wi-Fi and close links with social networking services.

The Samsung Monte is an extension of the company's S-series of phones and includes applications for Facebook and MySpace, and widgets for access to Twitter, Bebo and several instant messaging networks.

The front of the phone is dominated by a 3-inch display with full-screen touchpanel through which all the main user interaction takes place.

A GPS receiver hooks into Google Latitude, which allows you to share your position with friends on a map, and provides location data that is embedded with photos taken with the phone's 3.2-megapixel camera. Two applications, Exchange ActiveSync and Google Sync, are included to synchronize e-mail, contacts and other data with a PC.

LG's new handset, the GD880 Mini, connects to Facebook and Twitter and a social network feed function combines updates from different services in a single stream.