LG Spectrum
Phone Scoop Review
Jan 26, 2012 by Eric M. Zeman
LG's Spectrum covers all the modern smartphone basics and adds some great features, such as an HD display. See what LG got right -- and wrong -- in its latest smartphone for Verizon Wireless. read review ›
User Reviews
Average Ratings
Avoid at all costs! Even if its free
I had the Spectrum over four months, I figured after the update what ever problems that existed would be fixed, Boy I was wrong.
I will start with the Cons:
-The LG UI is too jumpy every time i would swipe to move a screen up or down it would jump all the way to the end.
- The Battery Life is Horrendous, I mean Android is a battery killer but LG made it even worse; for example, my Droid X could keep a charge a whole day before I absolutely had to recharge it in comparison the LG Spectrum is less than 8 hours.
- The Bloatware, LOL When I first bought the phone It had bloatware that wasn't even compatible with the phone on it I get that Verizon uses these companies to help subsidize the cost but A: Make sure the app works on the Phone First and B: don't make it so that we the end user cant remove them from the phone These bloat wares are like never ending commercials that you cant really turn off.
- The Over heating, My phone would turn off constantly due to over heating. I missed many an important call because of this.
Pros: It has a Great Picture, It Has a Fast processor
1.5 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S3 dual-core, and its great for people with really big hands.
All-in-All its not worth it go with another Android I switched to the Droid 4 So far so good with that.
LG Spectrum is a dual core beast of android.
This LG phone is very hi-end and it has been given superior hardware specs at dual core 1.5ghz processors plus 1gb ram alongside with incredible UI (user interface) from LG . All these makes the Spectrum a magnificent efficiently fast , intuitive machine that can make your life significantly more efficient and productive by helping your tasks getting accomplished faster . The size fits your hand with no problems and any pocket in jeans or shirts , plus its light weight make its mobility amazing. Forget about your PSP , camera, camcorder , or laptop . This phone does it all . I had it several weeks and still fast , don't overheat , buy a one piece gel case and will get you a better grip ,plus somehow it makes these phones look more beautiful.
Pro's:
1.- Dual core 1.5ghz ( fast).
2.- Ram 1gb (just like laptops : more ram ,more speed).
3.- Beatiful HD 720x1280 screen.
4.- Large screen at 4.5" , forget 3.5" and 4.0" (too small).
5.- Android Gingerbread finally stabled at 2.3.6 probably the best OS ever.
6.- LG user interface is full of widgets , you will custom this in the best way.
7.- Light weight .
8.- Camera at 8MP HD is just incredibly stunning .
9.- Removable battery and last several hours .
10.- Youtube in HD , Browser with full adobe flash.
Cons:
1.- Verizon has disabled Skype video calls over wifi ,but you can use Tango .
2.- Verizon Bloatware , but Gingerbread shuts them off if not in use .
3.- Your friends with Iphones and 4.0" lcd droids will get jelous when you pull the LG Spectrum .
Verizon right now is giving them almost away because of bad reviews by people that either had a defective unit or just can't use a productivity phone properly (should stick to flip phones with large numbers )
Started Well
Like all things that start well my experience with the Spectrum on the first day was joy. The speed, the colors the speed! This was my first 4G LTE phone and will not be my last, but somehow I wish I did not have to wait for a year to get rid of this device.
Pro's:
Great screen resolution. Very good camera, some of the best pictures I have taken with any phone!
Con's:
Hard to say if it is the Blot-ware that I will never use asking to be updated almost every other day or the built in spell checker that is included. Note to LG Product manager, i is a word that should be made to go to capital if used alone like the following: 'I' love the way my Motorola spell checker worked on my last and hopefully my next phone when it makes the i alone a capital I. i thought this phone was a 'Smartphone'? System hang ups are becoming an issue and the only remedy is to remove the battery and restart the phone. I have to do this 2 times a week now. I am sure that LG has to have a reason to group all my contact the way they are now, I am just not sure if it was makes any sense from my Motorola Droid X.
Overall: Not so good.
Great for a camera phone! Ok, my mistake is that I use this phone as a work phone also and sending emails to clients has become a chore, The Blot-ware I know they have to include to offset the cost of the phone, we all need to make margins, but LG, you have let me down my friends. Let me remove the Blot-ware, I will never use the NFL, Netflix and the other junk you loaded. At least give Me the option to not update!!! I know my issues with Gmail might be with the way I have set up the phone, but adding a POP3 email to this phone really is not a easy chore. I will not be able to overcome the issues that have been added to the Android OS, would I recommend this phone, no, will I buy another LG phone, not if you need something other then a good camera phone!
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Very nice, has a few minor flaws
This one just became my company phone, and my first LTE. Very impressed by the quickness and the screen. Could have a few improvements though.
PROS:
Large screen, very sharp, beautiful colors
Fast processor, apps run quickly and smoothly
Thin, not like the RAZR but pretty thin
CONS:
Charger port is on top, should be on side or bottom
Speaker is somewhat quiet, found myself holding the phone to my ear in order to hear the sound on a few sports or news video apps
Touchscreen works well but sometimes I have to really press on something to get a response; light touches aren't enough
Don't overlook this one
I've owned this phone since launch day. It's become my new fav, after coming from the rezound, gnex, razr, bionic, charge. It's easily got the best and biggest display and best (extended) battery. Here's my breakdown.
PROS:
-that large ,gorgeous display
-3 simple and easy to hit captive buttons
-power and volume buttons, while small, are easy to manipulate
-ability to add 3000 mah battery
-processor speed is as good as anything else on the market now
-voice calls are loud and clear
-camera takes above average pics and video
-price
CONS:
-UI is less then stellar, but easily fixed by adding 3rd party launcher (using go launcher ex, big improvement)
-charging port on top (should be on the bottom! COME ON!!)
-design is plain jane, lots of bezel around the screen. Nothing ground breaking here.
-doesn't play nice with all apps. Found out that with handsent sms if the other party doesn't have the call back number feature turned off it will send the msg twice.
-ships with gingerbread
All in all this device has a lot of nice features. In my opinion its right up there with the rezound and razr and blows away that POS gnex. Those looking to save some coin and get the biggest and best display will want this one. I haven't had one connection related issue (voice or data) like I had with the gnex and bionic.
WOW! great phone!
This device is absolutely amazing!!!! The screen is beautiful! With its true 720P HD IPS 4.5" display and 329 pixels per inch video content has never looked so clear and sharp! The user interface is really easy to use and has awesome features like the pinch gesture to make finding contacts, apps, or emails fast and easy. It has a really great feature called gestures where among other things i can scroll through my pictures by taping the side of my phone! 1.5 dual core processor, 8 mp HD camera, 1.3 front camera. I LOVE THIS PHONE!!! And its only $199!!!!!!!! GOOD JOB LG! THIS IS A MUST HAVE DEVICE!
Best Smartphone at Verizon
I don't own it, but spent about an hour examining it and doing back to back comparisons with the HTC Rezound and Samsung Galaxy Nexus.
First, this phone uses the same processor and graphics engine as the HTC Rezound. Most tests have that a slight amount faster than the Galaxy Nexus, not enough to notice.
This phone ships with Android 2.3, but instead of 4 buttons on the bottom, LG put 3 and the third menu button doesn't look like a menu button; it looks like the last applications button on Android 4.0 Galaxy Nexus. Therefore, the buttons are Anroid 4 ready and unlike the Galaxy Nexus which uses part of the screen to display the buttons, the Spectrum will have the whole screen available for viewing.
At 4.5" the Spectrum screen is noticeably bigger than the Rezound screen and slightly smaller than the Galaxy Nexus. Since the buttons are off the screen, for most purposes it is as tall as the Galaxy Nexus screen. But side by side it is sharper. Map details that are fuzzy on the Galaxy Nexus are sharp on the Spectrum. Net: this screen is better than the Galaxy Nexus.
The camera is more mixed. At 8Mpixel rear and 1.3Mpixel front the resolution is good. Images are good. However, ISO only goes to 400 and their are fewer adjustments than the Rezound. However, there are many more and finer adjustments than the Galaxy Nexus which relies on Android's minimal camera support. Imagine quality seemed to be good. Net: the camera seems better than the Galaxy Nexus but not as good as the Rezound.
The back of the chase is a carbon fiber simulation plastic that is as slippery as a Samsung Fascinate. Sort of like a bar of soap. However it is thinner and lighter than the Rezound. Although all three phones have a black chrome surround around the front edge of the phone, it is most tastefully done on the Spectrum. The Galaxy Nexus overall shape is nicer, the Spectrum is the most functional. The Rezound not quite as attractive or easy to handle.
