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LG Rumor Green Review - At a Glance

LG Rumor Green
Published on 4/15/2008
By: Noah Kravitz, Senior Editor, Consumer Products and Services
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Editor Rating: 4.5
4 
3 
At a Glance:
LG Rumor blackWhat’s Good: Compact, rugged design with full QWERTY keyboard; Easy to use; Auto-rotating display; Good SMS, IM, and Email integration

What’s Not Good: Limited functionality beyond voice calling and messaging; No Power Vision access makes for slow Web browsing; Reports of laggy software and keyboard issues (I encountered none); Weak camera

Bottom Line: Rumor is a basic candy bar phone with a focus on messaging, and in this regard it really shone in my tests.  I found the handset easy and fun to use so long as I kept to its strengths: Messaging and more messaging with voice calling and limited Web  and media functionality thrown in.  Rumor’s comfy QWERTY board, rugged design and soft-grip finish, and auto-rotating display make it a solid choice for cell phone users who value texting as much (or more) as voice calling.

Specs:
Make/Model: LG Rumor
Network: CDMA
Data: EV-DO (1x RTT)
Carrier: Sprint (Locked)
Size: 109 x 51 x 17.8 mm
Weight: 117 g
Form Factor: Candy bar with Horizontal Slide-Out QWERTY Board
Display: 2” Color LCD, 176 x 220 resolution, 262,000 Colors
Memory:  16 MB built-in, microSD card slot
Notable Features: A-GPS with location based services; 1.3MP camera; Email and IM clients; Auto-Rotating Display

 

Ashley Weber
Tuesday, June 17, 2008i have a question too..can i get this phone on a pre-paid plan for alltel? i also would like to know if i can just buy the phone and then get phone cards and use it..or do i have to get a plan right away..
quita bryant
Thursday, June 05, 2008I hav3 a question.....kan I us3 it pr3paid?

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Video: Unlocked #3: LG Rumor, Billshrink.com, mystery FedEx package

Unlocked #3: LG Rumor, Billshrink.com, mystery FedEx package
On the eve of Noah, Courtney, and camera man Doug heading for CTIA in Las Vegas, Noah filmed episode 3 of his new unlocked review series. This video highlights the happenings at Motorola this wee, the new Billshrink.com website, and what did the FedEx man just deliver for Noah to review next!

Video: Video review: LG Rumor with Sprint

Video review: LG Rumor with Sprint
Looking for a great messaging phone to use on the Sprint network? Well, Noah has found one in the LG Rumor. The bar style device come equipped with a slide out QWERTY keyboard that when opened, automatically switches the phone to messaging mode. Other key features include a 1.3 megapixel camera with 2x zoom, media player, and expandable memory card slot.

LG Rumor White in-depth review - Introduction

IntroductionA growing number of consumers use their “cell phones” more for messaging than for actual voice calls.  Texting, IMing, and Emailing from handsets has become more and more popular amongst privacy-minded teenagers, business folk, and people like me who sometimes just don’t like talking on the phone.  As such, when shopping for a new handset many people now try out the keypad before holding it up to their ear - messaging-related ergonomics and software are just as...

LG Rumor White in-depth review - Design & Features

Design & FeaturesRumor is, on first glance, a somewhat chubby candy bar phone with a standard dialing pad, D-Pad, display layout on the front and a camera on the back.  My review sample is finished in all-black with chromed silver plastic trim, and the soft touch paint used throughout made the handset really easy to hold onto.  Sprint also offers Rumor in white and green color schemes. What sets Rumor apart from your basic bar phone - and justifies its somewhat chunky...

LG Rumor White in-depth review - Usability & Performance

Usability & PerformanceI tested Rumor on Sprint’s CDMA network in the San Francisco Bay Area with generally quite good results.  Signal strength and voice quality were very good in most cases, and callers were able to hear me loud and clear with only very occasional minor static.  The integrated speakerphone was okay in a pinch but not great, and the handset worked well with mono and stereo 2.5mm headsets (not included).  I also wired some higher quality 3.5mm headphones...

LG Rumor White in-depth review - Conclusion

ConclusionAll in all I really like Rumor.  It’s designed to do two things well — make phone calls and send messages — and it succeeds on both counts.  While power users want their handsets to do everything including high-speed Web browsing and advanced multimedia playback, Rumor isn’t for power users.  Like it’s cousin, the Alltel Scoop, Rumor is meant for budget-minded folks who text as much as they talk, if not more.  As such it packs a very usable full QWERTY keypad...

Unlocked #3: LG Rumor, Billshrink.com, mystery FedEx package

Unlocked #3: LG Rumor, Billshrink.com, mystery FedEx package
On the eve of Noah, Courtney, and camera man Doug heading for CTIA in Las Vegas, Noah filmed episode 3 of his new unlocked review series.  This video highlights the happenings at Motorola this wee, the new Billshrink.com website, and what did the FedEx man just deliver for Noah to review next!   On Thursday Noah reported on Motorola's intentions for splitting their mobile phone division away from the rest of the company into a seperate division.  With the...

Video review: LG Rumor with Sprint

Video review: LG Rumor with Sprint
Looking for a great messaging phone to use on the Sprint network?  Well, Noah has found one in the LG Rumor.  The bar style device come equipped with a slide out QWERTY keyboard that when opened, automatically switches the phone to messaging mode.  Other key features include a 1.3 megapixel camera with 2x zoom, media player, and expandable memory card slot.    

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