Design, Features, Quality Call
LG sticks to its tried-and-true formula for inoffensive, uninspiring smartphone design the L90 is indistinguishable from the magnificent 3 on Verizon. In fact, both share very similar physical size (5.18 by 2.6 by 0.38 inches and 4.44 ounces), - varying only fractions of an inch. It is a perfect size for one-handed use, especially in the surprisingly narrow bezels. Back features the same "self-healing" layer first donned the LG G Flex $ 396.00 on T-Mobile. This minimize the lighter scratches, but deeper gashes remained in my testing. Volume and Power buttons are on the left and right sides, respectively, while LG adds a useful, customizable button on the left.
The 4.7-inch, 960-by-540-pixel LCD is not particularly sharp (234ppi), but the wide viewing angle and stable maximum light help L90 stand above similar priced competitors to skimp on quality the display. The Alcatel One Touch Mustang 2 $ 126.00 T-Mobile feature the same resolution display, but it is not nearly as bright or colorful. Below the display is a physical Home button flanked by capacitive Back and Menu buttons, the latter of which is as anachronistic and not necessarily with newer versions of Android.
L90 supports quad-band GSM and UMTS (850/1700/1900 / 2100MHz) network, but no 4G LTE support. That's not quite as damage to T-Mobile as Sprint or Verizon would be thanks to the ever-fast HSPA + 42 connectivity, but it is still a significant shortfall. T-Mobile is committed to building out its LTE network and any improvement will be lost in L90 owners. Call quality is pretty average in my testing, nor disappointing especially wonderful. Earpiece becomes strong, but can sound harsh and sometimes distorts the top volume. Shipping via mic is clear and easy to understand with loud noise cancellation. L90 also supports Wi-Fi calling and HD Voice feature of T-Mobile.
Rounding out the options the 802.11b / g / n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, and NFC. Unfortunately, Wi-Fi is stuck with the slower, more crowded 2.4GHz band and I found reception to be below average in my testing, the L90 had problems connecting to our corporate network from the same place a HTC one (M8) $ 636.00 at T-Mobile had no issues connecting from.
Performance and Android
Using the same quad-core, 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor 400 such magnificent 3 and countless other entry-level Android phones, there are no surprises when it comes to performance that L90. It is a popular setup for a reason-performance is reliable and appropriate fleet, especially considering the price. There are more than enough power for most of the major use cases, but push the L90 with many simultaneous tasks that can trip up.
Rears older LG Optimus UI of its head, here running on Android 4.4.2. It eschews the flat, more modern look to see LG G3 $ 449.76 on T-Mobile and generally just feeling visually overwrought and dated by today's standards. Useful features such as custom KnockOn (double tap to wake up) and QSlide multitasking welcome additions, such as customizable physical key that can program to launch any app L90, even from sleep. There is also an easy mode to pair down the interface with larger icons and easy access to the main features.
8GB of internal storage, 3.71GB is available out of the box. That may not seem like much, but you'll find regular phones in this price range is to raise with only 1.5GB available. There is also a microSD card slot under the removable back, which worked fine in our 64GB card.
With a battery rundown test, to stream video to YouTube over HSPA + with the screen brightness set to max, the L90 lasted 5 hours, 47 minutes. The Kyocera Hydro Life, shortage LTE, take 4 hours, 38 minutes in the same test.