In the course of only a year, we've witnessed a monumental shift in the Android community as consumers now have a variety of handsets to choose from. Compared to the same time last year, the only options available back then were mostly mid to high-end range Android smartphones – with devices like the Motorola DROID and Samsung Moment taking most of the attention from their respective carriers. With the advent of the LG Optimus T for T-Mobile, it seemingly opens the door in branching out Android's mainstream reach to the masses here in the US – especially when it trots around with a $29.99 on-contract price from day one.
The package contains:
LG Optimus T
2GB microSD card
Stereo Headset
microUSB Cable
Wall charger
Start Guide
Design:
For something sporting an attractive price point, you can't knock the the design of the LG Optimus T since is follows accordingly like any other touchscreen device before it. In fact, we're more than surprised with the level of quality it exhibits – like the all around soft touch coating and faux-pas chrome bezel. Average in size (0.52” thick) and weight (4.55 oz), the handset doesn't scream the industrial designs of some big name handsets, but it's more akin to some of LG's line of feature phones – like the LG Sentio and Encore. Overall, we're content with its construction as it feels solid all around and better built than some other smart phones out there.
You can compare the LG Optimus T with many other phones using our Size Visualization Tool.
In following closely to its entry-level nature, the handset features a 3.2” HVGA (320 x 480 pixels) capacitive touchscreen with support for 262k colors. Even though the display feels a little on the plastic side, it is indeed capacitive technology and performs handsomely. Not only does it offer some decent viewing angles, but it does an agreeable job in displaying sharp tiny looking text and exudes some high contrast colors. Sure you'll still need to shield it away from the sun, but we're quite happy with the results when it's set to the highest brightness setting. As for responsiveness, you'll definitely need to break it in before you get that slick feel with the surface, but once it's there, it didn't have too many issues registering a touch.
Gone are the annoying accidental presses found with the capacitive buttons on other Android phones – that's because the Optimus T resorts to using physical ones instead. Ever so slightly elevated from the surface, it features the menu, home, back, and search buttons – all of which have that hard click feel to them.
Physical buttons
The left edge of the phone is completely clean of anything, but the right side houses the skinny volume rocker, which is rather difficult to make out when attempting to press. The same thing applies to the dedicated power button found on the top portion of the phone as it's just too tiny to distinguish from the surrounding area. Thankfully though, the smartphone manages to pack along a 3.5mm headset jack as well – something that could've been missing due to its price point. But when it comes to charging, the microUSB port is placed accordingly at the bottom edge of the phone which enables you to use the phone without any worries while giving it a good recharge.
Flipping over to the rear, the only thing found there aside from the “LG” and “with Google” branding is the 3.2-megapixel auto-focus camera – but probably to cut cost, it's lacking a flash or self-portrait mirror. There's a small notch towards the top middle of the phone which easily allows you to yank off the back cover. Once it's off, you'll have access to the SIM card slot, battery, and hot swappable microSD card slot.
LG Optimus T 360-degrees View:
Interface and Functionality:
We all know that something this low in price isn't going to pack along a lighting quick processor, but actually, we're more than impressed with the level of performance outputted by its 600 MHz chip. Combine that with the slightly modified stock Android 2.2 Froyo experience, the LG Optimus T is able to exhibit a decent degree of responsiveness while scrolling through its default 5 homescreens. Since LG added just some minor personalization to the Android experience, like some specific widgets, you'll have the option to extend it to 7 homescreens. Even after setting a live wallpaper, we're quite happy to see that it didn't stutter too much in operation.
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Just like other Android 2.2 smartphones, you can sync your address book with various social networking accounts – giving you pertinent information and status updates all in the same place. Obviously you can add as many contacts that the phone's memory can hold, and along with that, various pieces of information can be associated with each person.
Inputting text can prove to be somewhat of an inconvenience for speedy typers because there is some noticeable lag going on when using the stock Android keyboard. Of course you can slow down to solve the problem, but you can also switch to using the Swype keyboard as an alternative. Email setup is a breeze since it simplifies the setup experience by automatically setting up generic clients simply with an email address and password. Though, it will require additional information, like incoming and outgoing server addresses, if it is unable to do it by itself. And for instant messaging, Google Talk is obviously on board, but a quick stop at the Android Market can get you situated with other services.
Finally, LG didn't sprinkle the handset with its own social networking app, but thankfully, Twitter and Facebook are preloaded to get you ready in being in the know with your circle of friends. In addition to the myriad of common Android apps generally found with most handsets, the LG Optimus T also packs TeleNav GPS Navigator, DriveSmart, Diner Dash 2 Demo, PAC-MAN C.E. Demo, and ThinkFree Office.
Camera and Multimedia:
In a way, the smartphone's 3.2-megapixel cameraproduces the kinds of images you'd expect out of a cheap phone. By nomeans are the produced photos stunning, but instead, they exude a fairamount of sharpness in outdoor conditions. However, the feeling ofoptimism quickly dissipates as color reproduction is extremely soft andbland – giving the overall shot a tasteless look. Indoors though, theresults are no different as it's still able to shoot some sharp lookingimages that are muddied down with mundane and inaccurate colors. Evenwith the unbalanced photo quality, most people would quickly overlookit and would continue to use the handset as is.
Gallery
Generally we'd see some decent details captured with other handsets that shoot VGA videos,but in the case of the LG Optimus T, the case is not so since there isquite a level pixelization going on. Granted though it chugs along at aframe rate of 17 frames per second, which is better than most featurephones, it clearly falls behind the levels exhibited by othersmartphones. Honestly, its video capturing quality clearly falls backand can be left to simply shoot candid videos that you'll forget later.
LG Optimus T Sample Video:
Nothing too fancy with its stock Android music player,but it does function as it should. Routinely, it'll display things likethe album cover, track information, and on-screen controls, however,there are no equalizer settings present whatsoever. So that means we'releft to hear its single speaker emit some strained sounds when placedat the highest volume setting – which isn't at all loud when comparedto other devices.
After loading a movie trailerencoded in DivX 480 x 360 resolution, the handset, happily accepted itand played without much effort. We experienced some smooth lookingvisuals as it's able to move along at a decent rate without much fluff.On the other hand, we were also able to play a movie trailer encoded inH.264 640 x 272 resolution, but unlike the previous video, this one waslaced with laggy performance that made everything look choppy. Normallyit won't have any hardships in playing most videos, but of course,higher resolution ones will quickly show off its weakness.
LG andT-Mobile are surely generous since they came to terms in pre-loadingthe handset with a 2GB microSD card; especially when it has an internalmemory of 170MB. But if you happen to need something more than that,it'll happily accept cards up to 32GB in size.
Internet and Connectivity:
Boastingyour usual quad-band (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) GSM radio, you'll be ableto take this abroad without the fear of finding network compatibilitywith voice phone calls. However, this dual-band UMTS (1700/2100 MHz)device will get you 3G access on T-Mobile's AWS band – aside from that,you're stuck with EDGE speeds. When you're tired of using those slowerspeeds, you can always connect via its Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g for fasterspeeds. In addition, it packs Bluetooth 2.1 to enable you to connectvarious wireless devices to it.
Flaunting Android 2.2 Froyodoesn't always mean you'll be treated with the full web experience withFlash support – which is evident with the LG Optimus T. Granted thatpages load in a decent amount of time and are properly replicated likeyou see on a desktop, it exhibits some choppy scrolling and zooming viapinching gestures, which can be attributed to the 600 MHz processor.Needless to say that most people will overlook some of its shortcomingssince it's a full fledged mobile browser which will get by inaccomplishing the basics, but don't expect to see support for FlashPlayer 10.1 with this one.
Performance:
Even though the earpiece is lacking in the volume department, which can hinder correctly hearing conversations, voices on our end were luckily clear and free from any distortion. Flipping to the other side of the line, our callers did say the same thing about our voice – saying that we sound natural and without much noise. However, the lackluster power of the speakerphone quickly erases from memory of even attempting to use it for phone calls. Since it emits some weak tones, it makes it extremely difficult in comprehending words. All in all, we're pretty happy with the calling quality on the LG Optimus T.
Signal strength remained at a steady -77 dBm in the high coverage area we primarily used the phone, however, we did experience a few drop calls during our testing.
After completely charging the device, we managed to obtain a talk time of 6.75 hours before it completely expired. On a day to day use, we were able to achieve a single day of light usage with the handset, but for those who are constantly use their phone, you'll want to bring along a charger since it's an always connected device. The manufacturer has it rated for 5 hours of talk time.
Conclusion:
Enter the age of cheap Android phones as the LG Optimus T brings an entry-level offering to reality with the number four wireless carrier. Without a doubt, it finds itself in a fitting place with T-Mobile's budget nature, but when you consider the good performance achieved by the handset, it makes you even wonder what will happen with the feature phone category. Looking deep at its $30 on-contract price, it doesn't take a scientist to know that you're getting a lot of bang for your buck – and we're happy to say that it's more than what you expect. In the end, it would be hard to find most people ever again consider buying a feature phone since the LG Optimus T encompasses almost all the great aspects of Android without the premium price.
Software version of the reviewed unit: LG-P509-V10h
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