Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Android Phone Fans

Android Phone Fans

T-Mobile Crushes The Competition In West Coast Speed Test

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 06:54 PM PDT

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“My network is better than your network.” It’s an argument I’m sure you’ve heard before, whether online or in the real world. The funniest part about that argument, is everyone is right, no matter who is providing their service. Why? That’s because it’s all dependent on where you live. Sprint might be great in LA, but travel 1 hour west, and it has the slowest, most spotty data speeds next to dial-up. Sure you can look at your carriers network coverage map on their company site, but really — those are nothing compared to what you see in real life.

PC Mag knows this, and it’s one of the reasons why they decided to take a road trip with the 4 leading carriers in the US and post the results to see who came out on top. The itinerary took them from Las Vegas, NV; to Tucson AZ, San Diego, CA; Orange County, CA; and all the way up the coast finally landing in Cambria. The results? It may come as a surprise to many of you, but ‘old #4 — otherwise known as T-Mobile — came out on top with kicky fast download speeds on their HSPA+ network. It should be said that PC Mag still found T-Mobile’s coverage to be spotty, but in more the more rural/suburban areas, that’s when their 3G/4G network kicked into high-gear, delivering about double the download speeds of even AT&T. Wowzers.

This is, by no means, the end-all-be-all of network tests, just something to give you guys an idea of what you should expect should you ever think of joining team Magenta (in CA). I can tell you the results they posted from all 4 carriers was almost dead on my personal experiences on each in my hometown. How ’bout you?

[PCMag | TMoNews]

Nexus 7 vs. Microsoft Surface vs. New iPad

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 05:56 PM PDT

A few moments ago, Microsoft unveiled their entry into the tablet space with the introduction of Microsoft Surface. Of course, the question many of you are most likely wondering is how does Microsoft’s Surface stack up against the competition namely, Android tablets? Well, let’s take a quick look at what was announced.

It’s not often we see Microsoft enter into the hardware market, usually licensing their software to manufacturers for implementation into their wares, but this time they’re coming out swinging, introducing 2 tablets that will no doubt turn some heads. Each tablet focuses on the OS specific version of Windows it’s running. You have Microsoft Surface Windows RT for a traditional touch-based “tablet” experience — and you have Microsoft Surface for Windows 8 Pro which combines a tablet and full desktop OS into one (see the full specs).

Both tablets feature built-in kickstands and optional keyboard add-on that comes that acts as a “Smartcover” and comes in a variety of colors and feel. There’s a touch keyboard that is 3mm thin and features a multitouch trackpad. For those that prefer a more traditional feel , there’s even a cover keyboard with actual hardware keys.

While Microsoft wasn’t inclined to giveaway too much in terms of specs of their tablets, we do have a few details. Our friends at WinSource (it’s okay to have friends with a difference in opinion, even if when they’re wrong) threw together a nice chart showing off the biggest and baddest Google, Apple and now Microsoft have to offer, pitting them against each other in a battle royale spec sheet showdown. Take a look.

Okay, so maybe Microsoft managed to leave more to the imagination than we had hoped. You can find a few extra details (most dealing with dimensions) in the official comparison chart above. Now comes the real question. I’ve voiced my opinion on tablets in the past (not totally against ‘em, although not really for me) but I’m curious to see how you guys felt about Microsoft’s announcement. As it stands, will you be swiping your credit card to pick up a Microsoft Surface tablet? Do you need time for more specs to be revealed? Or are you team Android for life, and there’s no way you’d ever think about using another mobile OS?

Time for a quick poll… but after, don’t forget to head on over to the Microsoft Surface Forums to further discuss.

Take Our Poll

In the comments, tell us what you think Google needs to announce at Google IO to keep the rumored Nexus 7 Tablet ahead of, or at least neck-and-neck with, the competition.

Surface Forum | Surface Specs | Surface Pictures | Surface vs Prime vs iPad

[Microsoft | Via WinSource]

The first Amazing Spider-Man trailer revealed [video]

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 02:13 PM PDT

Gameloft recently revealed we’d be seeing the Amazing Spider-Man swinging its way to the Google Play Store in conjunction with the reboot of the movie series by Marvel, and now we’ve gotten our first look of it in motion.

A trailer for the game is now available for your lustful viewing. Most of the trailer has some nicely-drawn 2D slides showing us Peter Parker as Spider-Man, while the latter parts show us some great gameplay footage.

The game looks fun on video and the graphics shouldn’t disappoint, but we can’t pass judgment until it becomes available.

As for the story? Well, it’s been retold way too many times before so you probably have an idea of how things will go from start to finish. June 28th is the drop date for this thing, and you can grab movie tickets for the real deal just a few days later.

10 Burning Questions with Vlad from Minimax, developers of Tagy Cloud UI

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 01:21 PM PDT

We sat down with Vlad from Tagy, a new app that brings an interesting new idea for launchers and widgets to the Google Play Store. Tagy Cloud UI uses text instead of traditional buttons and icons to open apps.

It sizes the names of the apps based on how much you use them, not unlike the “popular tags” feature you’ll find on some blogs.

I’ve been using it for a few days, and while it’s not necessarily my cup of tea I do find it functional for those who’d want a widget like this.

From time traveling snail mail to the impact of ads on the user experience, Vlad takes us deeper into Tagy, what went behind its development, and what he believed Tagy would deliver to the Android software ecosystem. Take a look at this great read below.

Phandroid: How did you get started with Android Development?

Vlad: I’ve started my journey with Android mainly for two reasons. First, I wanted to take a look at mobile development, since it offers some new concepts and programming practices. Second, Java is a popular language for modeling and research, which is of my interest, so it came naturally as a language to learn next. Not to mention, the initial app idea, Tagy widgets, could only be implemented in Android, since iOS and Windows Phone don’t allow for widgets yet.

Phandroid: What phone do you personally use?

Vlad: An old Samsung Galaxy S. It’s good for testing, since it has a quite medium hardware compared to modern phones and should in theory reflect how smooth the app runs for most users. In practice this is not always the case, unfortunately, since some custom roms or running apps can affect the performance of even the fastest devices. Nevertheless, I believe that this phone shows a typical responsiveness the user will experience and I try to maximize it.

Phandroid: What was your biggest challenge in developing Tagy?

Vlad: Tagy is a widget and widgets in Android are quite limited in what they can do. There are lots of restrictions in API and you need to take a long path sometimes to achieve what you intended. Also, widgets creation is non-intuitive for many users, hence many "App not working" reviews even for the most popular widgets. So the problems here are mainly technical.

Phandroid: Why did you see the need for Tagy?

Vlad: It was a design-driven idea. One day I saw a text art sign at some place and it reminded me about how the text itself could be artistic. Words of different sizes and colors form multiple patterns, transforming when viewing the picture as a whole or as parts. All this brought me to an idea of a pure text interface. Text is universal, since it can convey the name of an app, contact, bookmark or settings item. And tag cloud visualization adds a usage statistics perspective to it, allowing text to change its size and color. At this time the limitation of a traditional 4×4 smartphone icon grid became apparent, since it requires more and more scrolling as the amount of data grows. Not the least reason for going with this idea was that there were no similar apps and it’s always interesting to make something new.

Phandroid: Monetization: in terms of driving revenue, can you tell us about your experience, your strategy, and the overall potential? (We know this is a touchy subject and confidential issue, but we appreciate any details you’re willing to share)

Vlad: First of all, I didn’t want to use ads, since I believe that user experience would seriously suffer in this case. I guess that free trial and paid unlocker should provide a combination of a low entry barrier for new users and a potential for monetization. However, since Tagy launched just a week ago, there’s no data yet to make any conclusions. I’ve seen some data presented by developers about how their apps are doing financially and they vary considerably, so it’s hard to make predictions and set goals in terms of revenue.

Phandroid: What do you want to see in future versions of Android?

Vlad: In the first place, I’d like to see some improvements in Google support service. It’s practically impossible to get support, even in some urgent cases like app removal from the market. One of the Tagy widgets – Tagy Google Services, which contains links for Google apps and services, a pretty common functionality, was removed a week ago and still I can’t get any info about how should I bring it back. Technologically, I think, Google is moving pretty fast and probably with a new version of Android it’s time to move to other device types, PCs especially (fragmentation issues aside).

Phandroid: Do you develop for other platforms and how does Android compare to those platforms?

Vlad: I have another app, which runs under Windows, which shares similar philosophy with Tagy. It’s also "the only game in town" app, XLnotes, which allows to turn Microsoft Excel into a notetaking application. Although comparing these two development worlds is difficult, Android offers a fresh and often an easy to work with environment compared to desktop applications. And centralized distribution through Google Play really helps.

Phandroid: If you could give one tip to fellow Android Developers, what would it be?

Vlad: Well, I’m a fellow Android dev myself, and all the good advices were probably already given, but I can point out Tagy as an example of market segmentation. Should a new app target every single user on the market in order to be successful? I hope no. Tagy is a love it or hate it app and there is already a decent group of people who textualized their home screens as well as people who would never agree to try it. This means finding and working with your loyal users to determine your apps look and feel and paths for improvement.

Phandroid: Tell us one thing that most people don’t know about you or your company.

Vlad: Not particularly about me, but about my company name in the market. I think that Minimax, an optimization and operations research term is a perfect metaphor for a text interface: minimum visual means, but maximum content capacity.

Phandroid: If you had to build an instant transportation portal to one place in the world, where would it be an

Vlad: 37.422°N 122.084°W If I can’t know what happened with my app by mail, should I teleport there and ask?

You can find Tagy on the Google Play Store for free here. You can unlock more features for $1.29 using this unlocker app, and there’s also a companion “settings” app for your perusal.

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Testers receive new RAZR/RAZR MAXX ICS builds

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 12:59 PM PDT

Testers who own the Motorola DROID RAZR and DROID RAZR MAXX have received new test builds, 6.16.211, of their Ice Cream Sandwich-laden update promised to be here by the end of Q2 2012.

Motorola’s initial promise has the deadline for a full-scale OTA rollout landing June 30th, and if this latest test proves to be stable enough for everyday use it looks like they’re mighty close to meeting that goal.

If you don’t remember, Verizon notified owners of the devices that the update would be on its way soon, though they didn’t given any details outside of a minor preparation tip for the absence of My Verizon on the new update.

With today’s news and knowledge of Motorola’s target date, it’s safe to say that many will be drenched in sweet, sweet ice cream soon enough. [via Droid-Life]

Super-thin Oppo Finder now available for pre-order at $393

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 11:44 AM PDT

The Oppo Finder, a phone that recently took the crown if the world’s slimmest smartphone (it seems there’s a new one every month), is now available for pre-sale.

For $393 or €313 (exchange rates from Chinese yen), you can get an Android phone that is just 6.65mm thin, but is no stranger to a powerful list of specs.

Inside is a 4.3 inch Super AMOLED Plus display,  1.5GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, an 8 megapixel camera with 1080p HD video recording, a 1.3 megapixel camera with 720p video recording and more.

Unfortunately, this bad boy is only going to be available in China, and we likely won’t see it much further outside of Asia. Pre-sales begin today and will go on until the end of the day June 24th. [Oppo via Unwired View]

HTC acknowledges WiFi problem in HTC One X, and has already fixed it in production

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 10:31 AM PDT

A connectivity issue in the HTC One X surfaced not too long ago. The problem saw a diminished WiFi signal if the device was held a certain way — yes, a bit like Applegate, except with WiFi instead of cellular radios.

HTC’s already identified the problem, and they’ve even made changes to the production process to ensure future devices don’t have this issue.

After investigating isolated reports of WiFi connectivity issues in the HTC One X, we have identified a fix that strengthens the area of the phone around the WiFi antennae connection points. While many customers have not experienced any problems with signal strength, we have taken immediate steps to implement a solution in our production process to prevent this issue from happening in the future. HTC is committed to making sure every customer has a great experience and we apologize for any inconvenience this issue may have caused while we conducted a thorough investigation.

HTC maintains the issue doesn’t affect many consumers, but we’re not sure that can be counted as brushing the issue under the rug.

For those who do experience the defect, a call to HTC’s customer support line would probably do well in getting one of those new, shiny production units. It’s better than being forced to use an ugly bumper on your phone for the rest of its existence.

A new Motorola QWERTY slider appears, could be headed to Sprint

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 09:23 AM PDT

When it comes to Android-running QWERTY sliders, Motorola does it just about better than anyone. They were, after all, the company responsible for the Motorola Droid, the phone that launched the Android craze almost single-handidly all the while rocking a full keypad. The future of such devices has been in question as manufacturers shift their attention towards larger screen sizes and thinner device profiles, but it looks like Motorola isn’t done just yet. A new QWERTYfied handset has surfaced with ties to Sprint.

With a 5-row keyboard that smacks of the Motorola DROID 4 and what appears to be a similarly sized display (seen here flashing Ice Cream Sandwich’s software navigation keys), it’s hard to say if this will be the next top-shelf device from Moto or simply a retooled D4 for a different CDMA network. There have been rumors of a new QWERTY device from Motorola codenamed Asanti, but those tied the device to AT&T’s network. Perhaps both carriers will see a similar phone, which is said to be based around the Droid 4 design and has been pegged with multiple model numbers, leaving open the possibility.

The QWERTY will always hold a special place in our hearts, mine in particular after rocking the old school Droid well past my two-year contract. Whether or not the form factor has a future with Android is another question. What do you all think?

[via AndroidCentralForums]

Galaxy Nexus sale priced at $149 online at Verizon

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 08:07 AM PDT

A far cry from its original price of $299 on contract, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus can now be had for half. As part of Verizon’s “Summer Sale,” the Galaxy Nexus is seeing its price further reduced from $199 to $149 after an automatic $50 online discount. While arguably better phones have come along since the GNex’s debut on Verizon’s 4G LTE network last December (and the Samsung Galaxy S III is on the horizon), if you are looking for a pure Ice Cream Sandwich experience it still ranks as a top choice.

In other news, DroidLife is reporting that some Best Buy stores have stopped taking stock of the Galaxy Nexus and may soon phase it out of their product lineup.

[Verizon via Droidlife]

Samsung Galaxy S III joins the CyanogenMod party, nightly builds now available

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 07:39 AM PDT

For as much praise as you can heap on the Galaxy S III, plenty of Android purists take issue with the customer user interface Samsung has been slowly evolving over the years. Luckily, Samsung is pretty open to the idea of letting people tinker with the devices operating system. Even luckier for those folks, CyanogenMod 9 nightly builds are now available.

CM9 delivers a near-stock Android 4.0 experience while providing a few finely-crafted tweaks to enhance usability, including a master audio equalizer and lockscreen gesture controls. The builds currently available for GS3 are far from the finished product, but they offer a nice look at where things are headed. While those new to modding their Android device may want to hold off, those without fear of buggy software or the potential to brick your device can head to the XDA link below for all the appropriate info.

[XDA via PocketNow, Engadget]

Design firm frog bringing ‘redefined Android experience’ to future Sharp handsets

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 07:03 AM PDT

Are you ready for yet another customized Android skin? Say hello to Feel UX, the product of a collaboration between design firm frog and Sharp. The new user interface is destined for future AQUOS handsets, which means we may never see it outside of Japan — a shame as usual, since several AQUOS phones would be desirable to many living outside the Land of the Rising Sun. Unique to the newly designed software is a retooled lockscreen that provides access to photos and widgets without the need to unlock the device, a “real-time weather display motion experience and animation,” and a new-look homescreen.


While it’s hard to say the entire experience is completely without inspiration from other current Android UIs floating around out there, it does look like a lot of work went into making Feel UX original and unique. Hopefully we’ll get some hands-on time with it in the future. For now check out the above video and below press release for more details.

frog Redefines Android Experience

The new Sharp AQUOS smartphones with Feel UX, designed by frog, will be available in Japan summer of 2012.

TOKYO, June 17, 2012 /PRNewswire-Asia/ — Leading design and innovation firm frog today announced that it has partnered with Sharp Corporation (Sharp) to create “Feel UX”, a new Android smartphone experience that is easy to use, highly personalized, and visually stunning. The collaboration brings together a global interdisciplinary team of strategists, designers, and engineers across both companies to design a distinctive and meaningful connected experience for the next generation of Sharp’s AQUOS smartphones.

According to global business analytics firm comScore, four out of five mobile phone users in Japan currently own a feature phone. However, in February 2012, the number of purchased smartphones surpassed the number of feature phones over the same period. This signals an ever-increasing importance for handset manufacturers to design and develop compelling and differentiated smartphone experiences for consumers.

“To capture the expanding market of smartphone users, we wanted the new Sharp AQUOS handsets to be a unique kind of Android experience, to look and feel different and standout from competitors,” said Paul Pugh, Vice President, Creative, Software Innovation at frog. “By simplifying the interaction model and reducing clutter through a more curated experience, it will be immediately apparent to customers how to use the phones and make them more personal. In addition, the design caters to current Android users by giving them new tools to organize and optimize their handsets, while personalizing the phone in ways not previously possible.”

The newly designed “Feel UX” for Sharp’s AQUOS smartphones will be available in Japan during the summer of 2012 and include the following features:

Personalized and innovative lock-screen experience, allowing users to browse photos and widgets without unlocking the devices
Real-time weather display motion experience and animation
Desirable, gender-neutral palette and visuals
Streamlined, curated home space to smoothly manage applications, widgets, and shortcuts

“frog was chosen as Sharp’s innovation partner because of the company’s unique combination of consumer insights, strategy, design, and software engineering capabilities,” said Itsuki Kouchi, Division Deputy General Manager, Global Product Development Center at Sharp. “Through our collaboration with frog, we have adopted an advanced approach to Android’s concept, features, and philosophy, creating a distinctive device that will ultimately increase the life of the product and enhance customer satisfaction.”

Picasa album tied to the ASUS Nexus 7 surfaces

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 05:58 AM PDT

There is pretty much no denying the existence of an ASUS-made tablet that will launch under Google’s Nexus banner sometime in the next couple months, but a new Picasa web album offers proof that the so-called Nexus 7 has been roaming the halls of Google’s Building 44. The pictures aren’t exactly masterpieces, showing views of what could be the ceiling in any typical office building, but it’s the info their EXIF data holds that is of value to us. Listed as the camera and model is the fabled ASUS Nexus 7.

The usual disclaimer applies here. EXIF data can be manipulated, etc. But in this case the photos can be traced back to a Google+ user going by the name of Somit Bh, and the location data puts the photos origin within Google’s Mountain View campus. From the looks of it, this Somit Bh is a Google employee through and through.

Most are expecting to see the Nexus 7 (I am guessing under a different name) make an appearance at Google I/O at the end of the month, and most reports go on to say it will launch concurrently with the announcement or sometime in July. One main goal has been to keep the cost of the slate down. Most rumors say it will sell for an easy $200 or less.

[Picasa via The Verge]

Samsung to offer enterprise-friendly Galaxy S III at major US carriers

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 05:32 AM PDT

Samsung is launching a new brand dubbed SAFE, and they are doing it with one of the most anticipated smartphone launches of the summer. SAFE, which stands for Samsung Approved for Enterprise, is “a comprehensive approach to making Android devices secure and manageable.” In other words, Samsung is pre-loading SAFE devices with a suite of enterprise tools including Microsoft Exchance ActiveSync, support for VPN and Mobile Device Management, and onboard AES-256 bit encryption.

The first handset to earn the branding will be the Galaxy S III, and the SAFE version will be available from all US carriers supporting the devices starting in July. Samsung’s hope is that devices falling under the banner will help company’s to cut down on the fragmentation often associated with Android and create less headaches for the IT professionals in charge of keeping enterprise networks running smoothly.

To encourage users to move to the Galaxy S III or  other future SAFE devices, Samsung is offering a trade-up program dubbed SAFE2Switch. More details on the program and the SAFE Galaxy S III can be found in the news release below.

Samsung Makes Android SAFE™ for Enterprises, Offers Trade-In Program to Upgrade to the Galaxy S III

Samsung is the First to Launch a Quality Assured, Enterprise-Compliant Android Smartphone

DALLAS -- June 18, 2012 -- With the AndroidTM operating system projected to be the No. 1 platform for enterprise smartphones by 2013[1], Samsung Telecommunications America, LLC (Samsung Mobile) is simplifying enterprise adoption with the introduction of SAFE (Samsung Approved for Enterprise) and the first SAFE-branded smartphone in the United States, the Galaxy S® III, which will be available at AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless and US Cellular by July. To aid prosumers and corporations in accessing the most innovative smartphone on the market, Samsung is also introducing SAFE2SWITCH, a trade-up program that offers competitive pricing for qualifying smartphones for both individuals and enterprise customers.

SAFE - Optimized for the Enterprise
SAFE provides a comprehensive approach to making Android devices secure and manageable by systematically meeting the rapidly evolving needs of IT and the growing number of businesses allowing employees to "bring your own device" (BYOD) to work. Samsung created SAFE as a way to defragment the Android OS across multiple versions from Gingerbread to Ice Cream Sandwich at U.S. carriers. Out of the box, the SAFE-branded Galaxy S III supports a full suite of enterprise-ready features and capabilities with support for 338 IT Policies.[2] This includes on-device AES-256 bit encryption, enhanced support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync and support for industry-leading Virtual Private Network (VPN) and Mobile Device Management (MDM) solutions.

Over the last 12 months, Samsung has surpassed its next nearest handset and smartphone competitors to become No. 1 globally[3] and now has its sights set on the enterprise. Working closely with enterprise customers and industry-leading solutions providers, Samsung developed a thorough quality assurance program. This program begins with MDM and VPN solutions providers using Samsung’s software development kit to deeply integrate their solution on the SAFE device. Once the development effort is completed, Samsung and the solution provider then thoroughly test and verify the device’s support for the MDM and/or VPN software. This collaboration, coupled with the testing process, creates solutions that are optimized for SAFE devices and enterprise use including adoption within regulated industries such as healthcare, financial services and government.

"It’s now safe to say that the ‘Next Big Thing in Enterprise’ is here with the near-term availability of SAFE-branded Galaxy S III devices at five U.S. carriers," said Tim Wagner, Vice President and General Manager of Enterprise Sales at Samsung Mobile. "The highly desirable, SAFE-branded and QA-tested Galaxy S III smartphone systematically defragments Android to provide a consistent level of IT compliance for individuals who demand the very best in both their personal and professional lives."

Galaxy S III - Powerful, Collaborative, Secure
The Galaxy S III offers secure features and capabilities that may be used in a wide range of business situations to improve efficiency and productivity.

  • AllShare Play – Group Cast: Securely share PowerPoint presentations and PDFs with business partners also using Galaxy S III devices
  • Share Shot: Quickly and easily compile and share photos with colleagues and contacts
  • S Beam One Touch Sharing (NFC and Wi-Fi Direct): Quickly exchange contact and meeting information or company documents by simply tapping phones together. S Beam can also be controlled via an MDM solution.
  • Intelligent Display and Motion: Focus on the job at hand with intuitive features like Direct Call and Smart Stay
  • HD Super AMOLEDTM Display: Review detailed plans or blueprints with brilliant 4.8" HD Super AMOLED display on second-generation rugged Corning® Gorilla® Glass
  • Samsung TecTiles: NFC programmable tags and mobile application transform how businesses, both large and small, engage their customers

SAFE2SWITCH Prosumer / Enterprise Trade-In Program
With the launch of the SAFE-branded Galaxy S III, Samsung is announcing the availability of a trade-up program called SAFE2SWITCH which simplifies the transition to Samsung SAFE devices from Samsung or other manufacturers’ smartphones. Both prosumers and corporate customers alike can take advantage of this program which offers very competitive trade-in values in real-time from their existing smartphone or Internet-connected device. For more details, visit www.samsungsafe2switch.com.

LG Optimus L5 launching worldwide this month

Posted: 18 Jun 2012 05:10 AM PDT

LG’s Optimus L5, a member of the style-focused L Series debuted at Mobile World Congress in February, which included the similar but more powerful Optimus L7 pictured above, will be making its global debut this month. Things will kick off in Europe, where the mid-range Android 4.0 smartphone will first launch in the UK, Germany, and France. LG will follow the European launch with Russia, the Middle East, and Asia before finally bringing the handset to Central and South America.

The Optimus L5 measure in at 9.5mm and sports some pretty nice specs for a phone of its class, including dual SIM support and NFC. Other specs include an 800MHz CPU, 4.0-inch display, and 5MP camera with LED flash. For a quick refresher, check out our hands-on from MWC.

STYLISH LG OPTIMUS L5 MAKES GLOBAL DEBUT
Elegant and Thin, Newest LG Smartphone is Slimmest in Class

SEOUL, June 17, 2012 - The LG Optimus L5, one of LG’s stylish, high fashion L-Series smartphones, will make its global debut in key European markets this month. The device will be available in the U.K., Germany and France, followed by markets in CIS, Middle East and Asia before crossing the ocean over to Central America and South America.

True to L-Style’s elegant design philosophy, the LG Optimus L5 is a seamless merger of style and technology. Dressed in a sensuously slim body measuring only 9.5mm, the smartphone comes packed with intuitive and intelligent features such as dual SIM capabilities (in Asia, CIS, Middle East, Central and South America only) and NFC "Tag & Play" (in Europe and North America) for mobile commerce and peer-to-peer sharing.

Running on the Google’s latest Ice Cream Sandwich Android operating system, the LG Optimus L5 offers the best-in-class 4.0-inch display for a roomy and error-free mobile experience. The new user interface also lets you get more done with fewer finger taps. The Optimus L5 boasts LG’s new User Experience (UX) with QuickMemoTM which allows users the ability to instantly jot memos or notes from any screen without having to open a separate application.

"The LG Optimus L5 is a very balanced smartphone that offers a great combination of design, display, performance, battery life and price that many will find very attractive," said Dr. Jong-seok Park, President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company. "This device, along with other products in our L-Series portfolio, will especially appeal to fashion forward users everywhere."

Key Specifications:

  • Chipset: MSM7225A (Cortex A5 800MHz)
  • Memory: (up to) 4GB Internal Storage / Micro SD support (up to 32GB)
  • Display: 4.0-inch HVGA
  • Camera: Rear 5.0 MP AF with LED Flash
  • OS: Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
  • Battery: 1,500mAh
  • Size: 118.3 x 66.5 x 9.5 (mm)

 
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