Android phones are a dime a dozen it seems. Hardware specs don’t mean much anymore as everyone and their mother uses virtually the same few platforms, allotment of RAM, and screen size. Sadly, as much as we hate to admit it, software apps/skins are what differentiates the multitude of Android devices. However, there are some exceptions to that rule. One such exception: the LG Spectrum. Hop past the break for Gadgetsteria’s official hands on and initial impressions…
The shining glory of the LG spectrum is that big, beautiful display. The 4.5″ “True HD IPS” (1280 x 720) window to the world is gorgeous — more so than even the mighty Galaxy Nexus. The lack of PenTile tech means that each pixel isn’t some sudo-shared crap.
Hardware aside, LG implemented one feature that is software based. But it’s not part of a “skin”. The LG Spectrum can be navigated and controlled with gestures and motion controls. For example, opening up the photo gallery, users can advance forward and backward by simply tapping the phone’s left or right sides. (This can be down in portrait and landscape.) For a better example, see the video below. But what impressed even more is how the Spectrum will automatically pause playing video when flipped upside down or how a live phone call can be muted when tapping on the phone’s side. Truth be told, there are several awesome gesture/physical controls built into the Spectrum.
One small but highly important thing we also noticed was that the Spectrum lacked the typical “Android lag” present on just about every Android device we’ve tested thus far. (Yes, even the Nexus, too, exhibits lag more often than it should.) While we’ll never actually condone the use of customer carrier/manufacturer skins, we must say, LG at least did a decent job with their skin. Now if only they could make it look a little less Playskool-ish + included Android 4.0.
After spending a few minutes with the Spectrum we can proudly say that we like it enough to make it a daily driver. Such a statement doesn’t happen often and we don’t take it lightly. But really. The Spectrum is pretty awesome.
