There are a limited number of device manufacturer’s which try to go one step ahead and come up feature additions to make their handset’s stand out from the crowd. LG Optimus 3D P725 is a great example reflecting what I wanted to convey.
Optimus 3D sports a 4.3″ inch capacitative touch LCD screen, 8 GB internal storage, 1 GB RAM, 5 MP camera, Android 2.3.6 (Gingerbread), Dual core 1 Ghz cortex-A9 processor and 1500 mAh battery power. And not to forget 3D abilities to device which gives it an edge over the competitors. Now that you are aware of it’s specifications, lets get started with LG Optimus 3D P725 review.
Design
Optimus 3D measures 126.8 x 67.4 x 9.6 mm and weighs 148 gm. The dimensions aren’t something to talk about but what’s noticeable is it’s weight. The moment you pick up the device, it feels like you are holding some sort of paper weight. It is heavy and the difference is even more visible when you have used Galaxy S II before. This being said using the phone for a day or two gets you acquainted with the weight and you’ll hardly notice the added grams!
In terms of appearance, Optimus 3D has 4 touch buttons below the screen, no physical button. This gives it a “uncluttered” front screen. Plus it’s always better to have lesser moving parts. Minimum chances of them going bad 😉 On the back side, it comes with a matte finish with LG branding in aluminium inserts. Being a 3D stereoscopic device, it comes with 2 camera lenses, one for 2D image/video taking and the other one for 3D capturing with LED flash being placed in between theses 2 camera lenses.
On the sidelines, Optimus 3D scores. Totally! Why? The chrome lining on parameters complimented with beautifully designed matte finish buttons. Not to forget, the button are eye catching. They look elegant and functional. Nicely implemented by Optimus 3D design team! When I say functional, I referred to the USB/Charging slot in particular. Reason being the USB/Charging slot is left uncovered in majority of devices however LG has placed a slider cover on top of it. This serves 2 purposes, keeps the area clean and adds to the style of Optimus 3D.
Display
Usually I limit myself to discussing only screen size and pixel density but this being a 3D device, I feel there’s more to screen viewing than just it’s display size. Optimus 3D comes with 4.3″ inch screen size measuring 480 x 800 pixels and pixel density of ~217 ppi. Corning Gorilla Glass is present as well. All the industry standard specs, nothing special. What makes it stand out is it’s 3D capable LCD screen.
The screen renders 3D images/videos using parallax barrier technology allowing glasses free 3D viewing facility. In non-geeky terms, it means you won’t be needing 3D glasses to view 3D content. All so can be done with naked eye! This being said, there’s a small effort it requires, you need to adjust the viewing angle to experience 3D without which you’ll be straining your eyes.
Get the correct angle and you’ll certainly enjoy 3D image/video viewing. I must say I was truly amazed after watching 3D videos (LG has tie up with Youtube for delivering 3D content). And to get a feel of what I am trying to say just view the 3D video captured using the phone. It’s a review of an iPad cover I recently tried.
Performance
General Phone Performance
LG Optimus 3D comes with 8 GB internal storage and 1 GB RAM. On storage front, there’s plenty of memory space available for usage for an average user and there’s SD card option too for extending storage upto 32 GB. No issues here.
Camera is on mediocre side with 5 MP rear camera and 1.3 MP front VGA camera. However, with the presence of 1080p 2D video shooting and 720p 3D shooting, 5 MP isn’t a deal breaker at all.
In operating system fore, optimus 3D comes with Android 2.3.6 (Gingerbread) with planned upgrade to Android 4.0 viz. Ice Cream Sandwich. The ICS update is good news but unfortunately LG is way too slow when it comes to pushing updates to it’s devices. Unless you intend to try out CyanogenMod or other custom ROM, ICS is a distant dream for Optimus 3D users. Moreover Jelly Bean has made it’s mark in android community so the expectations will be of receiving Jelly Bean update as well. Which again will witness a long long wait before getting pushed onto Optimus 3D (I doubt LG will do so at all).
Anyhow, as of now Gingerbread is what Optimus 3D comes with. Talking about it’s performance, I’d say the experience was average. Despite of having dual core processor and 1 GB RAM, I noticed lag while scrolling twitter feed, facebook timeline and heavy web pages. And all this when I had bare minimum apps installed and running on the phone. The hardware present is brilliant, no qualms there so it’s the customized Gingerbread which is causing the lags.
In battery department, Optimus 3D comes with 1500 mAh power. Not bountiful of battery capacity but it does the job.
3D Performance
Talk about 3D experience and all I have to say is you are in for surprise! It was delight viewing 3D videos, images. You can actually feel the 3D effect without needing to wear glasses of any sort. The phone offer decent image quality with good colour and brightness levels. As a 3D phone, LG Optimus 3D scores in all departments. Brightness, Color, Sharpness, Viewing Angle (ease). Plus it also comes with a special ability to convert 2D images/videos to 3D. Though the converted videos don’t really count in as true 3D but it does add an extra zing the your 2D videos…!!!
Final Verdict
LG Optimus 3D is a deal you can go in for provided you are okay with LG’s delayed device updates and poorly optimized UI. The phone offers a lot more than it’s competitors do, 3D being the biggest addition. And if you love to capture 3D videos then look no further, buy this device and start shooting! It is available for Rs. 28500 approx in Indian markets.
