LG’s first Android device – the Optimus One, was quite a seller. Now the company has several Android devices in its kitty, starting from the Optimus Me to Optimus 3D.
In this list, Optimus Pro C660 comes as a budget phone with a difference, and the difference lies in the fact that the phone sports a physical QWERTY keypad below the 2.8 inch capacitive touchscreen.
Normally Android phones with Qwerty keypad come in slider form factor or with smaller 2.6 inch screen. In terms of appearance, it resembles Motorola Fire which has almost identical form factor. So similar are these two that we decided to carry a comparison which will be up shortly.
Getting back to the device, it is based more or less on the very popular Galaxy One, which is still one of the best budget Android phones in the market despite being more than a year old.
Form factor
LG Optimus Pro c660 has a bar design with a 2.8 inch screen and a Qwerty keypad below. The design is not exciting with black plastic all around, but it is practical with well laid out keypad with useful shortcuts for mail and calendar. The power button at the top is accompanied by a 3.5 mm jack, volume rocker on the left and a USB port on the right side.
At the back lies a 3.0 Megapixel camera sans the flash and speaker grill that breaks the monotony of the black plastic cover. The edges of the phone are rounded making the phone easy to hold. Though typing with one hand is possible its better to use both the hands.
Specs and performance
LG Optimus Pro c660 boasts the latest Android 2.3 version and an 800 MHz processor. The screen is of 2.8 inch with QVGA, 240 x 320 pixels Resolution which is not particularly high but for a budget phone works well. The capacitive touch responds well to commands and is aided by a physical keypad interaction.
The 3.0 megapixel fixed focus camera don’t have flash support, hence it is good only for bright condition shooting. There is no front camera either. One of the omissions that you won’t find in basic phones is the Proximity Sensor which switches off the touchscreen when you put the phone to your ear. However, intelligent tweaking ensures that the phone manages without this sensor — it switches off the screen seconds after you take a call and can be brought back to life by touching any key, not the best thing to do but works well.
On pure performance front, the device feels less well when compared to the Optimus One, which despite being old is better and smoother. However, the difference is minor and not a deal breaker.
All the other normal features of the Android phone like 3G, WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS are all present and works well on all those front. The smaller 2.6 inch screen, compared to the average screen size of 3.2 plus, is nothing to worry as the keypad is separate and does not occupy screen space while typing, this means the screen feels larger than it is compered to touch only phones.
The battery of the phone is of 1540mAH unit which gives it better than average backup and talktime compared to other Android phones – more than one and half day with medium usage.
The supplied earphone is of decent quality and music listening is pleasurable. The speaker of the phone is also good for such a budget phone.
Google’s suit with email exchange, maps, push mail etc means that it serves well for a business phone for those looking for a budget option.
Verdict
The phone is not a replacement for a BlackBerry which has certain snob value attached to it. However, apart from that there is plenty in the phone that will challenge the budget BlackBerry phones in their own territory.
The few things that goes against this phone is the fact that it doesn’t have the design flair that executives look for in their phone and also it could have done well with slightly more powerful Processor but then the budget at which it is available won’t have been possible. We will reserve our verdict till we review the Motorola Fire, but it sure is a good buy whatever the case may be the result of the comparison.