Sunday, June 5, 2011

LG Optimus Me P350: Cheap Android from LG


Network
3G 900 / 2100         850 / 1900
2G (GSM) 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
Features
Operating System Android v2.2 (Froyo)
Processor 600Mhz
Formfactor Bar
Dimensions (mm) 108 x 53 x 12.5
Audio Jack 3.5 mm
Video Streaming
Messaging SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Email, IM
Browser HTML
Radio Stereo FM radio with RDS
Games Yes + downloadable
Colors Black, silver, blue, red, pink
GPS Yes, with A-GPS support
Display
Screen 2.8 inches
Type TFT capacitive touchscreen
Resolution 240 x 320 pixels, 256K colors
Features - Accelerometer sensor for UI auto-rotate

- Proximity sensor for auto turn-off
Memory
Phonebook Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
Call Records Practically unlimited
Internal 140 MB
Card Slot microSD
Maximum Supported (via Card Slot) up to 32GB
Included 2 GB
Camera
Primary 3.15 MP, 2048x1536 pixels, autofocus
Secondary No
Features Geo-tagging
Video VGA@24fps
Data
GPRS Yes
EDGE Yes
3G HSDPA 3.6 Mbps
WLAN Wi-Fi Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, Wi-Fi hotspot
Bluetooth v2.1 with A2DP, EDR
Infrared Port No
USB microUSB v2.0
Java
Via Java MIDP emulator - Social networking integration

- Google Search, Maps, Gmail

- Digital compass

- YouTube, Google Talk

- MP4/H.264/H.263/WMV player

- MP3/WAV/WMA/eAAC+ player

- Document viewer

- Organizer

- Voice memo

- Predictive text input
Battery
Standard battery Li-Ion 1250 mAh
Standby Time Up to 510 h
Talktime Up to 7 h
Price (Approx) Rs.12,000/- or $267




The teen-oriented LG Optimus Me P350 Android handset looks pretty cool, shaped like a bar of soap, and having five colored battery covers to choose from in pink, gray, black, blue and red. The specs are rather low-end, but the phone is not pretending to be anything but a budget Android 2.2 solution, and even throws in a 2GB memory card for good measure.







The first thing that comes to mind when you grab the smallish LG Optimus Me P350 is that the designers haven't put much effort to slim it or lighten it - it is actually pretty heavy for such a tiny handset. Not that 4.59oz (130g) are heavy, but for a phone of this size, carrying a 2.8” LCD display with 240x320 pixels of resolution, it is quite the heft, considering phones with 4”+ screens now weigh less than that. On the other hand the weight makes it feel solid when held.

The screen itself is one of the most basic capacitive displays you can find these days, and, as such, doesn't shine in the brightness or readability departments, especially when staring at text while browsing or reading emails, due to the lowly 240x320 resolution. Underneath the display are four capacitive Android navigation buttons, which are not the most responsive we've tried. A welcome element is the ellipse-shaped elongated key below them, which serves as send/end and power/lock keys when pressed in both ends. Always good to have a physical button when you end or answer a call, makes the action feel complete.

The battery cover comes in a variety of youthful colors, as we mentioned, and the two ends are elevated, making for a “valley” in the middle, which firms the grip while talking. The back hosts the 3MP camera, which doesn't sport an adjacent LED flash.

At the curved top we find the standard audio jack, on the right is the easy to feel and press volume rocker, and the left is reserved for the microUSB port with a protective cap.

All in all, a pleasant, unassuming design in a phone that is easy to hold despite its small size, and feels solid thanks to its weight. Adding comfortable physical keys to answer or end a call, which provide a good tactile feedback, is certainly an advantage, too.