It's not simple getting a Verizon Wireless phone. I mean, there's some austere antagonism at the top end with the Motorola Droid RAZR and RAZR MAXX, Samsung Galaxy Nexus and HTC Rezound. On paper, the LG Spectrum should fit appropriate in with its 4.5" 720p IPS display, 1.5GHz bifold amount CPU and promised advancement to Android OS 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich by mid-2012. The phone has a foreground video babble camera, a rear 8 megapixel ballista that can abduction 1080p video, and actual acceptable multimedia performance. It has a abiding LTE 4G radio that hangs assimilate a arresting as able-bodied as the actual acceptable HTC M07 Phone Rezound. So what's not to like?
The LG Spectrum is the Verizon adaptation of the LG Nitro HD on AT&T, a phone we admired absolutely able-bodied added than its weak array life. The spectrum gets a case makeover with appearance plastics and a CDMA radio for articulation and 3G, but otherwise the internals are mostly the same. But the Spectrum lags breadth the Nitro confused forth decently, and that really gets in the way of adequate what should be a fast, top end Android smartphone. We've aswell begin it a bit beneath stable, and in the anniversary we've had it, it's spontaneously rebooted a few times (not a accepted accident with added recent Android phones). We get the activity there's a lot of affiance here, but LG needs to plan out the software kinks to accompany bigger achievement and stability.
The smartphone runs on a 1.5GHz bifold amount Snapdragon CPU like the HTC Rezound and several contempo AT&T LTE phones. Qualcomm's radio and CPU chipset affiliation are accomplished if it comes to LTE performance. We see none of the circumlocutory amid 3G and 4G in weaker LTE advantage areas that affliction us with the RAZR band and Galaxy Nexus. Now, if you're in a acceptable LTE advantage area, or against accept none at all and attenuate LTE on the phone, this won't amount to you. But if you are in bordering advantage areas, the Spectrum and Rezound are your best bet.
The affectation is lovely. It's an IPS console with acceptable accuracy and abundant added accustomed and authentic colors than Super AMOLED. You won't see Super AMOLED's hyper-vivid hues and amazing blacks, but will see affluence of aciculate detail, crisp colors and acceptable contrast. The 1280 x 720 console makes for a almost alpine but attenuated phone, and that agency it's easier to authority in a attenuated palm, but it will acceptable stick out the top of all but abysmal pockets. There are times if the display doesn't assume to acknowledge to a tap, but it's harder to adjudicator if it's a affectation affair or lag (I doubtable it's lag).
The phone has a top appearance artificial aback with a accomplished ablaze checkerboard arrangement that looks admirable until you handle it: it gets noxiously gummy. The 5 ounce phone feels beefy and looks like a appropriate superior piece, and we like the contrasting home button that's simple to see in the dark. The phone has 3 rather than the accepted 4 capacitive buttons because LG combines the agenda and seek buttons into one on the left, and that's accomplished by us. There's an advantage to about-face off capacitive button backlighting if the affectation is angry on, and we angry that advantage off anon because it's difficult to see the menu/search and aback buttons with no backlighting.
The micro USB anchorage is amid up top beneath a door: I acquisition the area annoying if aggravating to both allegation and allocution at the aforementioned time, and the aperture is fiddly. The headphone jack is up top, as is the ability button. The aggregate controls are on the appropriate and the microSD FZ-G5i agenda aperture is beneath the aback cover. Verizon includes a 16 gig agenda aback the phone has alone 4 gigs of centralized accumulator with about 1.45 gigs available. The rear aperture is simple to abolish and breeze on, and the 1830 mAh battery, LTE SIM agenda aperture and microSD agenda aperture are beneath the door. There's no chat whether the Spectrum has NFC.
Calling and Data
Voice superior is acceptable but not a part of the best Verizon Wireless phones (we accord the Droid RAZR, RAZR MAXX and Bionic a nod for their accomplished voice). Aggregate through the earpiece is acceptable and articulation on both ends is acutely apprehensible but not brittle or actual clear. The speakerphone isn't awfully loud for calls or multimedia. It doesn't advice that the apostle is amid on the aback appear the basal breadth one tends to anchor the phone.
The LG Spectrum has 3G EV-DO and 4G LTE on Verizon's network. Abstracts speeds are actual acceptable and the Spectrum matched Verizon's added top LTE phones. As noted, the phone absolutely manages to authority assimilate a anemic LTE arresting and on my board breadth the RAZR MAXX spends a lot of of its time on 3G the Spectrum stays on LTE.
Performance and Horsepower
In agreement of performance, this Android OS 2.3.5 Gingerbread phone gets average marks for a bifold amount on constructed benchmarks, and it avalanche abaft bigger assuming Android phones like the Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket active on the aforementioned CPU. We batten of UI lag, and we admiration how abundant of this has to do with LG's custom UI. The LG Nitro runs about the aforementioned UI and feels snappier however. If you haven't apparent LG's UI, do watch our video analysis to see it in action. It reminds us a bit of earlier versions of TouchWiz, and LG adds some nice touches like exclusive dividers for the app drawer (you can actualize groups for altered kinds of apps) and a admirable media quick-access widget.
Multimedia
LG makes acceptable cameras, and the Spectrum takes adorable shots with acceptable colors and reasonable acknowledgment admitting it's prone to some whiteout in top adverse alfresco settings. Indoors it does decidedly able-bodied with dim settings even with the beam off. The NO.4 Cameras can shoot 1080p video at 30 fps, and again, added than a bit of whiteout for brilliant day settings, it did a acceptable job.
The phone calmly handles video playback, be it alive YouTube and Netflix or locally stored MPEG4 agreeable up to 1080p resolution (even top contour plays well). The apostle won't win any awards but the phone has acceptable complete via Bluetooth and active stereo headphones. The top resolution IPS affectation absolutely shines for video playback and we begin watching movies thoroughly enjoyable. The Spectrum has WiFi for alive after bistro into your abstracts bucket, and it supports WiFi Direct. Bluetooth stereo speakers and headphones plan via the Bluetooth 3.0 radio.
Battery Life
Verizon LTE phones aren't Energizer bunnies if active on LTE. The two cellular radios for CDMA and LTE yield their toll, and today's fast CPUs and ample displays don't help. That said, the 1830 mAh Lithium Ion array fared decently compared to added Verizon LTE phones, and we managed 6.5 hours of allocution time (LG claims up to 8.3 hours of use time). There's an alternative 3040 mAh array accessible and a wireless charging aback that works with the wireless charging mat awash in Verizon Wireless stores.
Conclusion
There's a lot to like about the LG Spectrum. It has LTE with able 4G reception, a absolutely admirable 4.5" IPS 720p affectation and a fast Qualcomm S3 bifold amount CPU. It's promised an advancement to Android 4.0 and handles video playback like a champ. Not bad for $199 with contract. But we're put off by the casual stutters and lags, and the phone isn't as stable as we'd like. A firmware amend ability antidote these issues, but we're not abiding if the phone will get abundant tweaking afore OS 4.0 ICS comes out by mid-year.