LG Optimus G (Sprint)

I really wanted to love the LG Optimus G (available starting November 11 for $199.99). Everything about it, from the quad-core processor to the 13-megapixel camera to the sleek design, pretty much screams Editors' Choice. But this is an unfortunate example in which the whole is not greater than the sum of its parts. On the plus side, the Optimus G's quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor turned in the fastest benchmarks scores we've ever seen on an Android phone. But the 13-megapixel camera doesn't live up to its lofty resolution rating, the phone has a tendency to run hot, and the lack of a microSD slot limits your storage options. If you want the ultimate in pure processing power, it's worth your attention, but if you want the best smartphone on Sprint, I'm afraid this isn't quite it.

Design, Call Quality, and Network
LG created the gorgeous Prada phone, so it's no surprise that the Optimus G is quite a looker. Made of high-quality plastic with glass on the front and back panels, the phone has a vaguely incandescent pattern on the back that looks different depending on the angle you view it from. The rest of the phone is black, with a thin silver ring that separates the front from the back. The look is chic and glamorous, but simple and understated. Next to the Apple iPhone 5, this is probably the nicest-looking phone out there. And at 5.19 by 2.71 by 0.33 inches and 5.11 ounces, it's a reasonable size given its large 4.7-inch display.

That 4.7-inch HD IPS Plus LCD is another high point. It features 1280-by-720-pixel resolution, which works out to a crisp 312 pixels per inch. And unlike the Samsung Galaxy S III, this phone doesn't use a PenTile pixel layout, so it looks even sharper. That big screen is great for watching video, playing games, and taking photos. It also means you get a great big keyboard for typing; I actually had to stretch my entire thumb across the screen in order to hit every letter. It's a little big and unwieldy, but so are all phones with a screen this size.

One big problem: I did most of my testing with the screen brightness set to maximum. I noticed it dip considerably after about 10 or 15 minutes of benchmarking. When I checked on it in the phone's Settings, I saw the brightness level had dropped down to 66%. I tried to turn it back up, and got the message, "Unable to brighten more due to high temperature. Try again later." I encountered this issue on multiple occasions. Especially when using processor-intensive applications like games, the top half of the phone becomes increasingly warm. LG claims it has not encountered this issue, but two test units as well as our AT&T model of the phone did the same thing.

There are three function keys beneath the display that light up when the screen is on. Otherwise the front of the phone is completely black. There's a 3.5mm headphone jack on the top, a power button on the right, a volume rocker on the left, and a charging port on the bottom.

It's also eco-friendly. The phone is ULE Platinum Certified, which is the highest level of environmental performance recognized by ULE and Sprint. The phone's casing is made from 50 percent recycled plastic, and the charger has a no-load consumption rating of .03W, which exceeds the EC Code of Conduct on energy efficiency. It doesn't hit all the criteria for our GreenTech Approved seal, though.

The Optimus G supports Sprint's brand new 4G LTE network as well as its much slower 3G network. In this year's?Fastest Mobile Networks?tests we found Sprint's 3G network to be the slowest of the nationwide carriers. We recently got a chance to test Sprint's 4G LTE network in New York City and found it to be a vast improvement. Unfortunately, it's only available in about two dozen cities right now, so chances are you'll be stuck with significantly slower speeds until it comes to your town.

Sprint LTE is limited in New York City, where we tested the Optimus G, so all of our tests were conducted over 3G. Reception was fine, and call quality was good overall. At top volume, voices have a tendency to crackle in the phone's earpiece, but at average volumes they sound good, with just a faint echo. Calls made sound clear and natural, with very good background noise cancellation. The speakerphone sounds harsh, but is loud enough to use outdoors. The phone paired easily with my?Jawbone Era?Bluetooth headset. LG's Voice Command app felt finicky at first, but it just requires that you enunciate everything very well. Still, it's no Siri, or even Samsung S-Voice for that matter.

The Optimus G uses Bluetooth 4.0, which allows various smart watches and fitness devices to communicate with the phone. It also supports 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi on the 2.4 and 5GHz bands.?The nonremovable 2100mAh battery was good for an impressive 12 hours and 43 minutes of 3G talk time.

Android and Apps
The Optimus G is the first U.S. phone powered by Qualcomm's 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro APQ8064 processor. Samsung's upcoming Galaxy Note II will be packing a 1.6GHz quad-core Exynos 4412, but performance there remains to be seen. As it stands, this is the fastest Android phone we've tested. According to our benchmarks, performance can sometimes be almost double that of phones like the Galaxy S III. It's actually closer to results we've seen?on top Android tablets, especially for gaming. Internet performance is solid, on par with the Editors' Choice Galaxy S III.?

The Optimus G ships with Android 4.0.4 "Ice Cream Sandwich," which LG pledges to update to Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" within the coming months. Although Ice Cream Sandwich lacks Google's Project Butter, which smoothes out the entire Android experience, the quad-core processor still makes everything feel fast.

LG has modified Android quite a bit, though not as much as HTC and Samsung have done with their top smartphones. You get seven home screens that come preloaded with apps, folders, and widgets. There's a moderate amount of bloatware, though refreshingly, much of it can be deleted.

(Next page: Camera, Multimedia and Conclusions)

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