Want a smartphone that can do a lot of things at an affordable price? This LG K8X review might have the answer you’re looking for.
LG K8X smartphone was released in July 2020. This entry-level handheld features a 5.7-inch screen, a dual-camera, and not to forget, an affordable price.
Nowadays it’s easy to get a nice feature-packed phone at a fraction of the cost. LG K8x is among the choices worth considering. To separate itself from the rest, it packs several highlights features potential buyers would love.
Our initial LG K8X (LM K300UM) review found that the display should be the phone’s main attraction. Being an HD+ screen with a FullVision design, it can give a decent multimedia experience when streaming and watching movies.
Further, this phone also has a capable processor with 2GB RAM. More details are available below. Read the complete assessment on the phone’s display, design, performance, and more.
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Key Specs
LG K8X specifications:
- Weight: 146g
- Dimensions: 147.8 x 71.1 x 8.6mm
- OS: Android 10
- Screen size: 5.7-inch
- Resolution: 1520 x 720
- CPU: 2GHz Octa-core, MediaTek Helio P22
- RAM: 2GB
- Storage: 32GB
- Battery: 3,000mAh, Non-removable
- Rear camera: 13MP + 5MP
- Front camera: 5MP
Design
LG K8X is a medium-size smartphone with a length of 147.8mm and a width is 71.1mm. Thickness is relatively low at 8.6mm. Further, this phone is also quite lightweight for a smartphone with an almost 6-inch display. At 146g, it’s easy to carry around inside your pocket.
This device looks like a typical 2020 phone, with rounded edges, a notch design, and an almost infinite screen. The frame is in pitch black, and the back cover is in grey. We found the grey color to disguise marks and smudges better than a glossy black. The glossy back is rather slippery, though.
Made from plastic on the back and front, the choice of material contributes to the lightness of the phone. The phone has a nice build-quality and looks like it can withstand even reckless usage.
The Unlock key lies to the right. On the opposite side, lies the Volume key and the Assistant key. You can see the dual-camera on the back with the fingerprint sensor. Overall, the design is nothing special on this phone, but in a good way.
We like the LG K8X’s design for its simplicity. The phone is comfortable to hold too, so there’s one more plus point for the design. Although it doesn’t attempt to be flashy or eye-catching, it still looks clean-looking and modern. It’s a device one would be proud to carry.
Read also: LG K8X (LM-K300UM) User Manual
Display
LG K8X boasts a 5.7-inch FullVision screen. The FullVision may just be marketing jargon from the manufacturer, but it means minimal bezels and we welcome that. In the case of this phone, the FullVision spirit applies on all four sides of the display, except the bottom chin. The bezel is thicker here.
Such a thin framing grants a more immersive viewing experience when you use the phone as an entertainment center. Watching movies and gaming were distraction-free. Even the notch doesn’t feel like it’s getting in the way. All thanks to a curved notch design that’s in our opinion, is more subtle than what we saw in other phones.
The quality of the display is HD+. With a resolution of 1520 x 720, the pixel density on this phone is 295ppi. Better phones with Full HD screens measure at more than 300. So in this case, LG K8x’s screen is actually average.
Since it’s a phone from the budget category, we guessed LG K8x had to cut corners here. But don’t fret, an HD+ screen looks just fine and sharp. It displays colors with good accuracy and there’s a little problem with the brightness as well. Rough edges are barely noticeable to naked eyes.
All in all, LG L8X has a perfect size for an entry-level phone. Quality can be better, but it doesn’t give a particular frustration when using the display. At this price point, the HD+ screen feels like a fair compromise.
Camera
LG K8X comes with a dual-camera consisting of a 13MP main lens and a 5MP secondary lens. You can also spot an LED flash alongside those lenses. As for the front camera, a 5MP lens occupies the little notch we reviewed earlier on the display.
The main camera features a narrow aperture size of F1.8. It supposedly makes the camera perform well during lowlight. This particular lens also comes with a PDAF sensor, which allows accurate shots of moving objects. A solid setup for the main camera on a budget phone.
Furthermore, the second lens adds more capabilities to the overall camera setup. Zoomed pictures look better, and the wide-angle lens adds clarity too. Moreover, you can pack more objects into one shot with a wide-angle camera.
For an entry-level phone, the picture quality doesn’t disappoint. Photos are social-media worthy. You can proudly show them off to the internet without having to do much post-processing on the photos. Some things can appear a bit off, like white balance or exposure. But as long as you have an optimal lighting condition, you can produce beautiful pictures with not much difficulty.
The front camera, at 5MP, performs below our expectations. We wish the resolution could be higher here. The good thing about the front camera is the portrait mode. You can have a software-generated blur in the background to create interesting selfies.
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Storage
We deem the 32GB built-in storage space on this phone as somewhat expected. Today, this capacity has become a minimum amount for a phone to work well. You can install plenty of apps without running out of space too soon. Although, when it comes to multimedia files, it’s better to rely on external storage.
We’re a bit disappointed to find out the maximum allowed capacity for an SD card. You can only add up to 32GB on the phone’s card slot. This number is too inadequate for a smartphone. It’s quite common to store large files on a phone today, especially if a user likes taking a lot of photos. 32GB will be too small to fulfill today’s need for ample storage space.
Performance
LG K8X runs on a 2GHz Octa-core MediaTek Helio P22 CPU with 2GB RAM. On the software side, we got Android 10. At a glance, LG largely sticks to standard specifications for the CPU. Nothing flashy here.
Performance is generally just so so. It’s nothing negative for an entry-level phone. Launching apps will take a split second instead of blazing speed on high-end devices. Most of the time, consumers won’t notice the difference unless they are very experienced with a wide range of performance levels.
The selling point of this phone is as an entertainment-focused device. So, that’s what we focus on in this LG K8X review. Our examination resulted in a generally pleasant experience when watching videos, listening to music, and playing games. However, there are several imperfections to be expected.
High-res videos typically lag on a low-cost CPU. That can happen too with LG K8X, occasionally. With 3D mobile games, the phone struggles to maintain smooth and lag-less performance in higher setting options. Consumers are advised to not go overboard with their phone usage here.
The Android 10 on LG K8X comes with a custom skin called LG UX. A beautiful-looking UI design, it should not hinder performance much. Thankfully, custom apps are fewer than in more expensive LG phones. Less bloatware equals happy customers.
LG K8X comes with a fingerprint reader to protect your phone to the next level. It works fast when unlocking while the setup only needs a one-time set up in the beginning.
It’s worth mentioning some other features this phone has. There are an accelerometer, Ambient light sensor, and Proximity sensor to help the phone run its tasks optimally. Additionally, LG K8X also comes with hearing aid compatibility.
Connectivity
It’s not surprising to find out LG K8X still supports 4G LTE. A 5G support is not yet expected on a budget phone as of today. Nonetheless, 4G LTE will do just fine for most customers. Besides, LG K8x also provides HD voice. We don’t see a potential fallback that can result in a poor call experience with this phone.
For the internet, LTE can provide users with up to 300/100 Mbit/s data speed. There’s nothing we didn’t like when it comes to the browsing experience. Everything was quick and loaded at lightning speed.
Other network features are customary, such as Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi, and Hotspot. The type of USB port used here is the older MicroUSB, which is a bummer. Lastly, We found the GPS is also pretty standard in terms of performance and positioning.
Battery
To power its operations, LG K8X relies on a 3,000mAh battery non-removable battery. This capacity offers all-day battery life that’s capable of handling your daily phone activities. At a glance, it looks attractive. This battery allows 11 hours of talk time and can get up to 22 days on standby.
This phone handles entertainment use pretty well too. You can play music non-stop for three days before recharging the phone. Video streaming takes 15 hours before the battery drops. It’s a multimedia phone and LG manages to efficiently design the battery to meet that purpose.
Is LG K8X a good phone?
LG K8X sounds like a good idea for smartphone beginners. It has an ergonomic design, a pleasant display to look at, and decent performance. Moreover, its price tag at $24.99 is also budget-friendly. The dual-camera is another attractive feature this phone offers.
But if you are a more experienced user, it’s better to spend more for better specs. The storage space on this phone is low, even the capacity allowed for an SD card. You may want to have a better display with Full HD resolution. In that case, LG K8X is a pass.
To summarize the LG K8X review, this phone has its own target consumer. For those entry-level crowds, it’s a perfect device to own. But beyond that, there are more options available, even within the LG brand itself.
LG K8X Pros
- Decent specs all around
- Fingerprint sensor
- Dual camera
- Long-lasting battery
LG K8X Cons
- Small storage option
- No USB Type-C