T-Mobile scores an 'exclusive' version of the affordable LG Velvet 5G beaut
UPDATE: It appears that T-Mobile wrongly listed this special LG Velvet edition as packing a Dimensity 800 chipset on the "Un-carrier's" official website at first, correcting the error to ultimately confirm MediaTek's claim that the handset in fact comes with a new and improved Dimensity 1000C processor under its hood.
Based on a frugal 7nm manufacturing process, this could end up eclipsing Qualcomm's Snapdragon 765 silicon in pure speed, pairing four powerful Arm Cortex-A77 CPU cores with four energy-efficient Cortex-A55 cores. In addition to "advanced AI capabilities" (yawn), "fast connectivity" (duh), and "improved multimedia capabilities", the Dimensity 1000C SoC also supports dual display functionality, which means the T-Mobile-specific Velvet 5G variant could be bundled with LG's Dual Screen accessory... at some point.
There are no words on such a deal right now, but we'll be sure to let you know if and when Magenta adds the inevitable promotion to its website. Our original story follows below.
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Unsurprisingly, that made the eye-catching 6.8-inch mid-range giant much more appealing to both US carriers and audiences than most of LG's flagships from the last few years, and although it took a while, AT&T and Verizon managed to eventually pick up the Velvet at decidedly reasonable prices.
T-Mobile is now just about ready to follow its rivals' suit, announcing the impending availability of its very own "exclusive" version of the LG Velvet 5G. This looks pretty much identical on the outside to the two models you can buy from the nation's number one and three wireless service providers, but under the hood, there's something different.
Instead of Qualcomm's crazy popular Snapdragon 765 processor, T-Mo's LG Velvet employs "America's first 5G chipset from MediaTek." Specifically, we're talking about the octa-core Dimensity 800, which is an upper mid-end silicon primarily used in Asian markets by the likes of Huawei, ZTE, and Oppo.
It remains to be seen how this SoC will perform on the "Un-carrier's" rapidly expanding 5G network based on low and mid-band spectrum. In theory, MediaTek's processor should be able to match and possibly even exceed the raw power of the Snapdragon 765, but there's obviously a reason why the China-based semiconductor company hasn't gained much US traction so far.
Billed as the "best priced LG Velvet available anywhere", T-Mobile's Velvet is indeed cheaper than the AT&T and Verizon-locked variants but not by much. On the bright side, Magenta will allow both new and existing customers to take up to 50 percent off the handset's $588 list price starting September 10, when the device is actually scheduled to be released.
You can save up to $294 with an eligible trade-in, monthly installment agreement, and no other strings attached or a flat $294 via bill credits by activating a new voice line on a two-year device payment plan.
Coated in your choice of Aurora Gray or Pink White hues, the Magenta-exclusive LG Velvet 5G looks virtually unchanged apart from its MediaTek processor, featuring a familiar 6.8-inch OLED "FullVision" display, three rear-facing cameras, a large 4,000mAh battery, trendy screen-embedded fingerprint scanner, 128 gigs of internal storage space, 6 gigs of RAM, and a water-resistant construction made from a beautiful combination of metal and glass.
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