Verizon Launches Pantech Breakout 4G LTE

Verizon has launched its latest 4G LTE phone, the Pantech Breakout. It’s a mid-range phone, and so far Verizon’s lowest cost smartphone that supports LTE. The device runs on a 1GHz processor, with 512MB of RAM, and features a 4 inches WVGA display. Under the hood, it runs Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread, along with some Pantech modifications. This is Pantech’s second Android phone in the US.

At $99, it’s much cheaper than the alternatives from Verizon, like the Droid Bionic. Yet, it’s a solid device, with a well made exterior, featuring a rounded rugged design and all the typical hardware features you would expect from a modern smartphone. It has a front VGA camera for video conferencing, and a back 5MP camera, although it is missing a flash. As far as connectivity, it supports the highest speed LTE network from Verizon, along with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. The bottom of the device has the four typical Android buttons, and the sides feature a dedicated volume control, camera button, and voice search function. It also uses a Micro-USB cable to connect the phone.

On the software side, it’s everything you would expect from an Android phone. The performance is quick and snappy, although CPU intensive apps might slow down due to the lack of a dual-core CPU. Pantech added their own skin on top of Android, which is the norm from many companies now, and the Breakout comes with some pre-installed software from Verizon. The screen is customized with custom widgets for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and data toggles, and the menu is filled with VCAST apps.

As far as performance goes, this smartphone is fast. You can get speeds up to 10Mbps up and 1.5Mbps down, the kind of performance you couldn’t get before from such an inexpensive phone. The battery seems fairly good as well, which may be due to the slightly smaller screen and single-core CPU. Compared with its bigger cousins, the Breakout will typically be just as good or even better when it comes to battery performance. As for the camera, it’s pretty typical of a 5MP phone-based camera, although the lack of a flash means poor night time shots.

Overall, there’s no questions that this device falls below some of the higher end Verizon devices. But at this price point, it’s probably your best bet right now, especially if you want an LTE phone. It’s clear this phone is aimed at mid-range users, people who want speed and function, but can forgo the latest technology to get a low price device. The quality is excellent, and the feature set is great for this price. The Pantech Breakout will cost you $99 on a two-year contract, and is available now.