LG Rumor 2
What would you do in a situation wherein you need a cell phone with all the essential features, but just don't have enough funds to buy a high-end model? Well, the situation certainly appears problematic, but we think we have the right solution. We would recommend that you go for the LG Rumor 2. Not only is the Rumor 2 affordable, but it is also fully-loaded with most of the essential features that you will find in today's smart phones. The Rumor 2 cuts out the frills, something that makes it a lot cheaper in comparison.
The Rumor 2 has a candy-bar shaped, rounded design with glossy keys that add to its style quotient. The front panel sports a 2-inch display screen that offers a resolution of 320x240 and is amazingly bright and clear. You will find the screen's clarity highly useful when you are going through your emails and when you are browsing the web. A small, yet roomy keyboard is tucked away behind the screen and you can access the same by pushing the screen to the left. On the sides, you will find the camera button, volume controls and a 2.5 mm headphone jack. There is also the media card slot on the side that worked perfectly fine when we tested the same with a 16 GB micro SD card.
The USP of Rumor 2 is that it has been designed to deliver top performance in key areas such as text messaging, e-mail messaging and Instant Messaging. The main purpose is to empower you with most of the essential online communication tools while still keeping the costs down. Smart phones offer a lot more features in comparison to the ones described above, but if you use an unbiased approach, you will notice that most of the add-ons that smart phones provide are only rarely used. So, if you are not willing to pay for things that you don't really need, then Rumor 2 is your answer.
When we tested Rumor 2 for voice quality, we noticed that it had a few small issues such as the slightly hollow sounding voice on the earpiece and the speakerphone. The microphone too appears to attract a fair bit of background noise. Paring with Bluetooth headsets, however, went on quite smoothly without any major glitches. The sound quality on both Bluetooth headsets and the wired headset can be considered exceptionally good, especially for a cell phone that's available for just around $49 when bought with a cell phone plan. Talk time in actual tests was about 7 hours, which is certainly a plus for the Rumor 2.
In our tests, we found the Rumor 2 lacking in essential multimedia features. That was expected since the cell phone was never designed for entertainment purposes. However, you don't have to worry if you only have limited personal entertainment needs since Rumor 2 does have a music player. The music player has a slick user interface, but it only plays MP3 audio files. The main camera onboard the Rumor 2 offers 1.3 megapixels, but supports only still images and not video shoots.
As you can see, the Rumor 2 is cut out for its job and does not believe in making tall claims. We would give it a 3-star rating on a scale of 1 to 5. You can have if you use your cell phone as a productivity multiplier rather than a style accessory.