The LG Optimus GT540 is LG's latest shot at an Android smartphone, and the company's second to hit the UK. The last Android offering – the inTouch Max GW620 – came with a slide-out keyboard, but this time the keyboard has gone.
Aimed at the middle range market, the Optimus GT540 comes in at about £150 on PAYG and we found it free on contract for as low as £15 a month.
Can it do enough to show Android off to the best of its powers, do the platform proud and please its intended market at such a low price?
In terms of look and feel, the LG Optimus GT540 punches above its weight. The curvature of the top and bottom edges, and the faux brushed-metal finish look rather good.
We like the waved panel where the Call, End/Power and Home buttons sit, too, as it's noticeably different from the norm.
When it comes to internal specs, it is worth pointing out that the LG Optimus GT540 runs Android 1.6. That makes it very out of date in terms of the Android OS, and cuts out a whole swathe of potential goodies for users – although the core of Android is here, of course.
The LG Optimus GT540 is fairly small for the hand, weighing in at 109 x 54.4 x 12.9mm, and it shouldn't be a challenge to reach all the way across the 3.2-inch screen one-handed.
The screen is clear and bright, but sadly it's resistive, and far from being the best of its type to come our way. We didn't have to press too hard to make a connection (although it is annoying having to remember to over-press, although we guess that will become second nature eventually).
The same can be said for the two touch buttons under the screen – the Android back and menu buttons are touch sensitive, and can be a little inaccurate at times.
LG has kindly added a 3.5mm headset slot in the top edge of the phone, where it sits surprisingly comfortably in the curvature of the chassis, and the bottom edge is clear of any ports or connectors.
On the sides you'll find the usual array of buttons in the shape of a volume rocker on the left and a camera button on the right. The micro USB connector is also on the right.
One oddity is that the right side also contains the Android search button. Tap this to get context sensitive searching options. We can sense that its positioning might irritate some users, but we didn't find it a problem at all.
Your comments (7) Click to add a new comment
emilyg9247
February 9th 2011
7. i bought this phone for my birthday back in august i had no problems untill 2months ago, it started freezing all the time espeshily when texting i reset the phone and did all the updates and its still the same...x
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blueoyster
November 10th 2010
6. Very impressed overall after a week as intuitive to operate and calls/contacts/apps all work well.
Only problems are Bluetooth connectivity - it only recognised 1 out of 3 headsets, didn't identify bluetooth headphones and recognised bluetooth satnav but didn't let you enter code to pair with it.
LG PCSuite IV that I downloaded is a pain to install and then the phone won't connect with my PC anyway.
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maxgreece
September 7th 2010
5. Well I have owned this phone for about 2 months now and for the last 6 weeks it has been my only connection to the outside world.
Its been wonderful and reliable. The built in browser is no great shakes but I installed Opera and that is streaks ahead.
I find it quicker and easier to use the phone to access pages I regularly visit on the phone than on the computer.
The touch screen was very tricky for me at first as it is the first such unit I have owned but over time I have gotten used to it and now I very rarely make mistakes. Typing is a bit problematic but in wide screen mode the keyboard is great if you have fingernails.
The camera was something I never really considered but in actual fact I have taken a few macro shots with it and it was remarkable - way beyond expectation.
Obviously I have nothing really to compare this phone to. My last phone was 5 years old. This one appears to be well built enough and has installed every app I have fancied from the marketplace without issue. I was told to try out "Raging Thunder" to test out its performance and did so successfully.
Speed has not been an issue although a few apps take their time to load. Once running, however, they are flawless.
As I understand it there appears to be a good chance an operating system upgrade is on its way (to V2,1 I think). I'd guess this will address some of the concerns raised by others, above.
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lg.optimus123
September 3rd 2010
4. i bought this phone and i have no problem with anything.... brilliant buy!!!
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dom.l
August 31st 2010
3. how many times arethey going to list this review , ive seen it on this website at least 3 times before , but yes this is also a very good phone , the only reason i got rid of it was because i needed a blackberry for work and didnt want to have multiple numbers
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tillymint
August 31st 2010
2. I strongly disagree. I bought this phone recently and I think it's great, I certainly haven't found the Android to be slow. It's got a great range of features, loads of apps which are quick to download. The only thing that is a slight draw back is the resistance f the screen to some touches, but this is a minor issue and certainly does not detract from the overall performance. I don't think you should assume that "people who buy this phone won't know any better", an arrogant outlook if ever I heard one. There are many many positive reviews on the internet for this phone, maybe not everybody is quite so snobby about the technology they need in their phones
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awjr
August 23rd 2010
1. To be honest, the real issue with these phones is that there is no point to them.
It's the same problem with the early days of HD, where HD Ready was a way of hiding the fact a screen could not display 1080p.
If a phone is unable to run Android 2.2 then there is no point in releasing the phone. It's a joke, and a bad one at that. People that buy this phone won't know any better and may complain how slow Android is or how unresponsive the phone seems to be.
Phone manufacturers need to deliver a budget 2.2 capable phone. Even if the hardware surrounding the chip is poor, the fact the cpu is fast will make all the difference.
The problem, to a certain extent is the lack of cpu's. Snapdragon need to start delivering a premium 1.3ghz/dual core chip and migrate the 1ghz chip into the 'cheaper' range.
It puts manufacturers in a difficult spot. They need people to buy their flagship phone, but if they put a 2.2 capable chip into their cheaper phones, then they would lose sales from their flagship models.
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