Are curved screens the future of smartphones? Americans will have their say about the strange new species of mobile device when the LG G Flex arrives on our shores Jan. 31 on Sprint.
The G Flex is one of the first smartphones to use flexible OLED display technology to brandish a curved screen, which LG says is more natural to hold up to one's face. So far, the only other phone like this is the Samsung Galaxy Round, which features a screen that curves horizontally instead of vertically. Although the G Flex isn't technically bendable, the phone can withstand being "flattened" if pushed between two surfaces.
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Preorders for the phone start today. The Sprint version of the G Flex will also feature Sprint Spark, an "enhanced" LTE connection with data rates reportedly as fast as 60 megabits per second (Mbps). The price tag will be $299.99 with a two-year contract.
The phone will start shipping to customers on Jan. 31 and will be on store shelves by Feb. 7. Anyone who preorders the phone online will receive the Quickwindow Folio Case, which sells for $59.99 separately, for free.
The LG G Flex features a 6-inch curved OLED screen with 1,280 x 720 resolution, powered by a 2.26GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processor with 2GB of RAM. The rear camera has 13-megapixel resolution and the front is 2.1 megapixels. It ships with Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean software, and also has a scratch-resistant resin on its back.
The benefits of a curved screen are debatable, although display experts say the curve cuts down on unwanted reflections, which can be beneficial when watching videos, reading or browsing photos.
Although Sprint killed its One Up early-upgrade program, it's launching another called Easy Pay, which lets customers buy the G Flex for a down payment of $149.99 along with 23 monthly installments of $20.84 and a "final" payment of $20.68.
At CES, LG said the G Flex would not only be coming to Sprint, but also to T-Mobile and AT&T. No word on release dates from those carriers as yet.
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