gdgt

LG has really sapped the Optimus/Nitro of what little aesthetic charm it had, resulting in a dull, cheap-feeling slab of a phone...it's quite reasonably priced at $199, but for that kind of money you can also become the proud owner of the RAZR or Rezound, both of which are far more arresting.

LTE speeds, dual-core processing power, and the phone's terrific HD display add up to an excellent smartphone...Plus, that 8-megapixel camera takes some nice outdoor shots, and the $199.99 price tag means it's well-subsidized for a superphone.

The LG Spectrum offers everything you'd expect on a top-notch Verizon Wireless cell phone, including 4G LTE data speeds, a true high-definition display, and a powerful camera and 1080p camcorder.

With a big and bold HD screen and zippy 4G LTE speeds, the LG Spectrum packs impressive hardware, but short battery life and a heavy-handed Android skin dampen our enthusiasm...Overall, the LG Spectrum looks great when you're playing content--and streams it fast--but that's not quite enough.

The phone looks cheap, and performs like it’s cheap, and no one deserves to live through two years of frustration like this. I give it a die. Die. Die. Die. Die. Die. Die.

It’s relatively sleek, light, and has a fabulous camera, all this aside from the fact that if you live in an LTE area, it’s very, very fast data-wise. The decision you must make now is whether you want to sacrifice ICS as found on the Galaxy Nexus in exchange for the nicer camera on this device.

From a consumer standpoint, the LG Spectrum is a pretty nice device, hitting all the bullet points. The specs are high-end, the cameras are good. It'll be getting an update to Android 4.0. And LG's user interface provides a great starting point for building your own homescreens. Or it'll be entirely...

The Spectrum is "good enough" for the average consumer and that's what is really going to count at the end of the day. It's powerful, it's cheaper than your average LTE phone, and it's on Verizon.

It is truly an average device, overpriced in its current configuration. Perhaps a price drop and ICS will serve to uplift the device to a more usable state. But for now, there are plenty of other, more stable devices in the same price range on Verizon.