LG W10 Alpha smartphone review with key features

LG W10 Alpha is a novelty from the South Korean brand with rather modest specifications. Initially, the presentation of the new line was supposed to take place at MWC 2024 in Barcelona, ​​but due to the cancellation of the event, the W10 Alpha was presented on the official website of the company.

Sales are scheduled to start in India. Information about this is posted on the official website of the manufacturer. As for expanding the geography of sales - there is no information about this.

Overview of the main characteristics

Information taken from the official site. When compiling the review, we used data posted on English-language Internet resources and reviews from real users.

Design

Minimalistic - plastic black body, rounded corners. On the back is the camera, LED flash and brand logo. No fingerprint sensors or additional options.
On the right side there is a power on / off button and a volume control button. On the right is a memory card slot. It is comfortable to hold in hands thanks to the curved back panel.
Perhaps due to the discreet design, the device does not look cheap.

Display

Standard, with narrow bezels and a waterdrop-shaped "notch" at the top for the front camera. By the way, many users were confused by the differences in the image of a smartphone on different Internet resources. So, on the official site there is an image on which the phone has a narrow "chin", in other photos, merged into the network, the lower part of the frame is rather wide.

The diagonal is 5.71 inches, the resolution is 720 x 1512 (HD +), which is not bad. There should be no problems with image quality and clarity. You will definitely be able to see the picture on the screen even in bright sun.

Glass is tempered, scratch-resistant. As for the case, although the plastic is hard, it is still better to buy a protective case right away.

Interface

Simple and straightforward. In terms of functionality, it is not much different from version 9. The shell is the same Pixel Launcher, shortcuts with pre-installed applications on the screen, widgets. The only difference is that the Google search bar has moved down - convenient, no need to drag.Plus, a menu has been added, in which frequently used applications are partially displayed.

It is easy to operate applications, make calls or write messages, even with one hand.

Battery

The battery capacity is 3450 mAh, not much. The device will withstand up to 29 hours without recharging when listening to music, while watching videos - 5 hours, and even less with active play.

In comparison, Xiaomi's Redmi 8A has a 5000mAh battery at the same cost, plus fast charging. In general, Chinese manufacturers are ahead of LG in many ways, offering customers functional and smart gadgets with high performance at an affordable price.

Performance

Here everything is not so rosy. The manufacturer obviously saved on the "stuffing". You can safely watch the video, there will be no problems with surfing the network. But playing energy-intensive games, most likely, will not work. And there can be problems with switching between applications.

Photo and video

The smartphone is equipped with 2 cameras of 8 megapixels each. The main one is on the back, the selfie camera is on the front of the display. The manufacturer promises that the innovative AI camera technology automatically adjusts to the lighting and selects the optimal shooting mode. Plus visual search (Google lens), autofocus and flash function.

Selfies and panoramic shots can really work out well with good lighting. Photos taken in night mode are blurry and grainy. On the plus side, there are built-in filters that will help you correct selfies True, there are only two of them.

As for the video, the shooting quality is acceptable thanks to the OIS function. But again, only during the day and only with good lighting.

Safety

Since there is no fingerprint recognition sensor, it remains to either type a graphic code on the display or use the Al Facial Unlock function. LG's official website states that identification is performed at 128 points, and the process takes no more than 0.3 seconds. So there will be no problems with unlocking, moreover, the probability that someone other than the owner will use the phone is practically zero.

OS

Here it is completely incomprehensible. The manufacturer claims to have used "the latest Android 9.0" for the W10 Alpha. Not a word about the possibility of updating to the latest version 10.

By the way, it was the use of an outdated OS that caused a flurry of criticism from users after the official presentation of the device, along with a low-power chipset and a small battery capacity.

Additional functions

Everything here is standard for a budget smartphone - built-in radio, proximity sensor, accelerometer, GPS.
The proximity sensor "dims" the screen when the user is talking on the phone, to avoid accidentally pressing buttons on the display. Plus, when the screen is dark, the power saving mode is activated.
The accelerometer is responsible for rotating the image when the device is tilted (for example, when watching a video in full screen mode).
GPS - determines the user's location anywhere in the world.

Memory

3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage plus microSDXC expansion up to 128GB. There is a separate card slot - you don't have to sacrifice one SIM card.

The characteristics are not very impressive. Indeed, to quickly run multiple applications at the same time, you need RAM with at least 4 GB. Otherwise, you won't be able to play games that require quick response. There are also possible "freezes" when switching between applications.
In general, according to experts, for fast operation of any device, a maximum of 5 GB of RAM is sufficient. Otherwise, the battery life will be reduced.

Important: the above data is posted on the official LG website. When ordering through the online store, it is better to clarify the information on the main characteristics with the manager, since the indicators may differ.

Communication

This is a phone with 2 SIM cards and VoLTE support (a high-speed IP channel is used to connect with a subscriber when making a call). This is much faster, since the device does not waste time switching, the connection takes a couple of seconds.
Another plus of VoLTE is the ability to make calls, view pages on social networks and other applications. And all this is at the same time.

Interesting: smartphones with VoLTE function are not afraid of interruptions in communication associated with congestion on the telephone line.

Sound

Also pretty mediocre. The volume is enough to hear the call. But to appreciate the musical compositions is unlikely to succeed.

Equipment

Strange as it may seem, there is no such information either on the company's website or on other Internet resources. But since the LG W10 Alpha is positioned as a super-budget smartphone, it will most likely only ship with a charger, without headphones.

Where can I buy

In Russia, sales have not yet opened, although information about the new product with detailed characteristics has already been posted in online stores.

Reviews

An interesting situation turned out with the reviews. For example, users from India rated the new product at 4 points out of a possible 5. And buyers from Europe and America, based only on the description of the characteristics of the smartphone, gave the device a solid two, noting the discrepancy between functionality and cost.

Advantages and disadvantages

LG W10 Alpha is a budget smartphone that should compete with inexpensive Chinese devices. But whether it will succeed, given the rather modest characteristics, is unknown.

• stylish laconic design;
• large display and bright display;
• anti-scratch glass;
• built-in VoLTE;
• good color rendering.

• low productivity;
• Unisoc SC9863A chipset (same on alcatel 1s);
• operating system Android 9.0 Pie;
• small battery capacity - with active use, one charge will last a maximum of a day;
• very modest camera performance - for selfies in good lighting it will do, otherwise the pictures will not be of the best quality.

As a result, the announced starting price is 140 dollars, which is a little more than 10,000 when converted into rubles. Agree, it turns out not very budgetary. In addition, for the same money, you can buy Chinese devices with a larger battery capacity and the latest pre-installed version of Android.