We review the LG G3 Beat

You know the drill – a company makes a successful flagship device, a few months later they make a smaller, slower, “mini” version of it to sell to the mid-range. It’s gotten so bad that companies are now avoiding calling new mid-range smartphones mini or lite since the general populace has caught on. This brings us to the LG G3 Beat, which is for all intents and purposes, a downgraded LG G3. It has the same styling as the bigger, more successful G3 and even has its laser autofocus, but as you’ll see in the review, it’s nowhere near the caliber of its bigger brother.

LG G3 Beat specs

• 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 quad-core processor
• 1GB of RAM
• 5-inch HD IPS display, 1280 x 720 resolution
• 8GB of storage, expandable via microSD
• 8-megapixel rear camera with laser autofocus
• 1.3-megapixel front camera
• Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, NFC
• 3G
• Dual-SIM
• 2540mAh removable battery
• Android 4.4.2 KitKat
• 137.7 x 69.6 x 10.3mm

Design patterned after the G3, but with slight compromises

The G3 Beat possesses the same design language that endeared the G3 to our hearts last year – same innovative rear key setup, same curved back and same attempt at making the Beat seem like a smaller device than it really is via a smaller bezel. But since the G3 Beat is a mid-range phone at heart, some compromises had to be made – the back of the phone, while treated to roughly the same faux metal finish as the G3, won’t be fooling anyone that it’s metal. The G3 Beat feels flimsier than the rock solid G3, and bezels aren’t as thin. The G3 Beat is also a bit thicker compared to the G3.

Of course compromises to the overall design of the G3 Beat is to be expected – you aren’t exactly paying G3 levels here – and while the plastic feels flimsier and isn’t as nice as the one on its bigger brother, it’s still rather solid, with the same apparent excellent build quality that’s present on LG’s other devices.

The display has also taken a hit, and is now only 5-inches and only sports a HD resolution panel compared to the 5.5-inch, 1440 x 2560 resolution one on the bigger G3. While the display has been downgraded, it’s still rather pleasant to look at, bright and has good viewing angles overall. We did find the omission of the ambient light sensor odd, as even mid-range local devices has that feature.

A different beast inside compared to its bigger brother

While the exterior of the G3 Beat at least had some semblance to the G3, there’s nothing of the sort once you go under the hood. The G3 Beat uses a rather pedestrian Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor which is a big change over the monstrous Snapdragon 801 CPU on the G3. As far as memory goes, it’s the same story as the G3 Beat has to make do with just 1GB of memory. It’s not the fastest device around that’s for sure, but it’s still pretty decent hardware-wise, and is able to run most apps without any problems. Of course, this particular smartphone isn’t a gaming machine (not by a long shot) but it’s still capable of running most Android games on their default settings.

Making its return is LG’s rather flat UI. We rather liked what LG did with the UI on the bigger G3, and we’re happy that the company did the same for the smaller G3 Beat.

Laser autofocus makes a return

While the camera resolution of the G3 Beat is nowhere near as high as the G3, LG has managed to include the laser autofocus system that was used in the G3 in the G3 Beat. This meant that the camera never struggled with focusing on subjects even in dim light, something that’s usually an issue with other phones that don’t use the system. Photos taken with the G3 Beat are generally okay, but we did see a loss of detail in some photos taken in low light.

Loads of battery life

One thing that’s good about the Snapdragon 400 processor powering the G3 Beat is that it’s not a power hog. On a full charge, the 2450mAh battery managed to keep things going for more than a day, probably around a day and a half use before needing to be charged. If you’re tired of making repeated trips to the charger, then the G3 Beat may just be for you.

Verdict: doesn’t offer a lot of things that its predecessor can’t give

Oddly enough, the biggest competitor of the G3 Beat is one of LG’s own products – the G2. The G2 can be had at almost the same price point of the G3 Beat nowadays, and offers a better spec sheet for the money compared to the G3 Beat. Its Php 13,990 SRP is hard to recommend, especially when you can get something much better, for much cheaper (remember, this thing doesn’t have LTE). Buy it if you absolutely need to feel the G3 experience. If not, give this one a pass.