  LHCb is a dedicated detector for $b$ and $c$ physics at the LHC. I will
present a concise review of the detector design and performance together with a
selection of early physics results and prospects. The integrated luminosity of
$37 \rm{pb}^{-1}$ collected in 2010 has already allowed LHCb to perform a
number of a very significant measurements, while the data expected for 2011
have the potential of revealing New Physics effects in the $B_s $ sector.
