AT&T-branded LG Arena surfaces; hands-on recap
updated 12:30 pm EST, Fri January 1, 2010
LG Arena GT950 would support AT&T 3G
Several months after it first showed at the FCC, a variant of the LG Arena with AT&T-friendly 3G has appeared in photos as of late Thursday. Known as the GT950, it appears to be fundamentally identical to the international version (the KM900) with the exception of the 850MHz HSPA-based 3G as well as conspicuous AT&T branding. The 3-inch 800x480 touchscreen, 5-megapixel camera, GPS and Wi-Fi should remain intact.
No clues have surfaced as to the release date or other information; AT&T and LG representatives speaking to LG Central claim not to be aware of the new phone.
The Arena promises to be one of AT&T's better non-smartphone devices based on our hands-on experience at CTIA. Although its app platform is limited, the S-Class 3D interface is above most conventional phone controls and is helped by a touchscreen that's both sharp and responsive. Our only concern so far is price, as its still fairly high-end features risk putting it up against full smartphones in price, such as the BlackBerry Bold 9700 or one or more iPhone variants.
