The budget smartphone market is always getting something new or the other and hence, the competition in this space is also most cutthroat. Global as well as local mobile makers are constantly churning out new, more stylish and highly capable models at very affordable prices. In keeping with the competition, South Korean tech giant, LG has launched the new K7 LTE as a budget offering in the company’s ‘K’ series of smartphone models.
LG is generally known for trying with innovative and off-beat design language on the flagship models. However, this time around the company has really surprised everyone by offering striking styling in a budget smartphone model for the first time.
The new LG K7 is actually the smaller sibling of the LG K10 which also comes with an attractive price tag. The new K7 comes with a subtle, elegant and premium design language, despite its budget segment. However, it does not come with full metal body and its back panel is built with usual plastic which has been made to look attractive. The device’s display is also slightly curved at the edges which make it look further premium and attractive which is also easy to hold.
While LG launched the K7 LTE in April this year priced around $150.00, now it can be available at an even lesser price. The new handset from the house of LG impresses with its superb aesthetic appeal and its 4G connectivity support, while specs-wise it is not so impressive.
If you are considering buying the LG K7 LTE, then here’s a detailed look at it:
1. Design & Built
The LG K7 LTE has an alluring design which is its primary draw point. It features a 5 inch 2.5 D ARC glass display. It gets its front camera module and the proximity sensor placed above the screen. The device lacks an ambient sensor and so the display doesn’t get an auto brightness feature.
The back panel of the LG K7 LTE is made of plastic but has a great finish and a rugged texture along with a nice curved design, which makes it easy and good to hold. The smartphone’s dimensions are 143.6 mm x 72.5 mm x 8.9mm and it is weighed at 141gm. Thus, the device is not only stylish but also very sleek and light, which adds to its visual appeal and also facilitates easy one hand operation.
2. Display
The new LG K7 comes with a 5 inch FWVGA In-Cell screen which is clearly its weak point. The display has a screen resolution of only 854×480 pixels, which is much lower than the usual 720p resolution that the latest devices come braced with. Thus, the display visibility is not good outdoors under bright sunlight.
Otherwise, the display looks nice with good color reproduction, nice details, and good viewing angles, but the visual quality really fades outdoors.
3. Hardware & Performance
The LG K7 gets powered by a Quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 processor that ticks at 1.1 GHz of speed. The chipset gets the support of 1.5 GB of RAM along with Adreno 304 GPU to handle graphics. The RAM might seem unimpressive, but the smartphone offers good, smooth performance and in a short span of multitasking also did not reveal any lags during its test run. Thus, it offers satisfactory performance on the whole. However, if you are an avid gamer, this device is not for you as it has serious trouble running heavy games.
The handset comes with 8 GB on onboard storage, but it does come with a MicroSD card slot to offer the expansion flexibility of up to 32 GB.
4. Software & Connectivity
The LG K7 runs on Android 5.1 Lollipop with the company’s UX UI skin on top. Whether the device will get updated to the latest Android Marshmallow or not is not known as yet.
The device allows shortcuts to be launched directly from the lock screen and these can also be customized from settings. This smartphone is also free of bloatware.
The smartphone supports Dual SIM cards and offers all standard modern connectivity options such as 4G LTE bands, 3G, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS.
5. Camera
The K7 offers standard a 5 MP rear camera and a 5 MP front facing camera which is again pretty less than what its competitors offer. However, the camera quality is not bad at all. The rear 5 MP camera comes with autofocus and offers pretty impressive and detailed shots outdoor pictures, although colors are not so bright. The camera’s low light photo shooting abilities are not good, which is not surprising and it also lacks HDR. Using the LED flash brings good relief though and also offers details.
The 5 MP front facing snapper offers good quality selfies and should take care of basic selfie shooting requirements. The camera can shoot 30fps, 720p resolution videos as well.
6. Battery
The new LG K7 draws its juice from a 2125 mAh battery which offers pretty good all day backup on a single charge. The device comes with a battery saver mode which will offer you longer battery life by reducing the display brightness.
Final Words
The new LG K7 LTE is certainly a looker at an attractive price point. It also offers decent features and functionality although not impressive specs for its asking price. More details about the LG K7’s full specs can be found on 91mobiles. You can also check out the K7’s market rivals and compare them side by side by visiting 91mobiles.com.
In short, while the LG K7 is a pretty good buy at an attractive price, people who are specs conscious might not want to go its way. The device’s primary downside is its mere 480-pixel display which is completely unreasonable on LG’s part. The phone’s 5 MP rear camera and low storage also go against it.
However, for those who swear by looks more than anything else, the LG K7 is certainly a good pick. Good built quality, easy handling, decent battery life and decent smooth performance also come in the package to make it buy-worthy.
LG K7 - Review Breakdown
Display
Design
Hardware
Software
Camera
Battery
Pricing
Nice!
For those who swear by looks more than anything else, the LG K7 is certainly a good pick. Good built quality, easy handling, decent battery life and decent smooth performance to make it buy-worthy.
