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LG Risio 4 Review: Cheap Phone with Dual-Camera

If you are looking for an ultra cheap Android phone, look no further than this LG Risio 4 review. Here, learn its specs along with the pros and cons.

LG Risio 4 Review

LG Risio 4 smartphone was released in July 2020. This phone is designed for budget-conscious buyers who’d like a smartphone experience with the lowest price possible. Keeping everything simple, LG Risio 4 tries to meet this demand.

This device features a sizable 5.7-inch display, an Octa-core processor, and a dual-camera. At a glance, LG Risio seems too good to be true, especially the dual-camera part. It’s admittedly one of the strong points of this phone.

However, if you dig more, there are some compromises to be made. Buying a budget phone, you need to be ready with plenty of less-than-perfect specifications. It applies to LG Risio 4 as well.

In this LG Risio 4 review, learn the complete characteristics of this phone. Both its pros and cons are covered. Therefore, you’ll know what you’re stepping into when you buy the phone.

Key Specs

LG Risio 4 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 Quad-core, MediaTek Helio P22
  • RAM: 2GB
  • Storage: 16GB
  • Battery: 3,000mAh, Non-removable
  • Rear camera: 13MP + 5MP
  • Front camera: 3MP

Design

LG Risio 4

If we can put it in one word, cute is what comes into mind when seeing LG Risio 4. This phone has a dimension of 147.8 x 71.1 x 8.6mm. Having an average size, it is also very lightweight at 146g. The low weight becomes understandable when you realize this phone is only made from polycarbonate plastic.

Sporting a teardrop notch design, the front part of the phone consists largely of the screen with a screen-to-body ratio of 77.13%. The edges are not totally invisible, despite how LG claims it is a FullVision display. When compared to other phones nowadays, it’s actually quite thick.

The edges come in a glass frame with pitch-black color that looks premium. Sadly, this premium feeling stops once you flip the phone to its back. When assessing the back cover, we were reminded again that LG Risio 4 is a budget device.

The back cover has a plain design that’s not memorable at all. It has a blue grayish color that would remind you of cheap aluminum utensils. Here, you can see the dual camera, the Cricket logo, and the LG logo. After a while, you might notice something is missing. Yes, there’s no fingerprint reader on this phone.

Lastly, when it comes to building quality, we also rate LG Risio 4 as average. Obviously, there’s no such thing as a waterproof coating or similar extras here. The overall build was sturdy for everyday use. For a budget phone, that’s all it needs.

Read also: LG Risio 4 (LM K300AM4 / LM K300CMR) User Manual

Display

LG Risio 4 Display

LG Risio 4 comes with a 5.7-inch LCD display. With a resolution of 1520 x 720, you’ll get an HD+ screen with an aspect ratio of 19:9.

This phone opted for a medium-sized display to please as many customers as possible. It’s not too big hence making it difficult to hold the phone. At the same time, it’s not too small that you can’t enjoy watching a movie on your phone.

The display of LG Risio 4 is not the most pleasant you’d get in the market. At this price, though, an HD+ seems like a fair offer from LG. With it, at least buyers get a decent viewing experience. The black edges make it feel like watching on a full screen. The aspect ratio also works well for widescreen movies.

At the same time, there are some flaws that need to be ignored. You will feel that the screen is not too detailed when displaying colors. It makes icons, images, and videos less punchy than they should be. The screen is not super bright as it is in better screens, which becomes a nuisance when using the phone on a sunny day.

LG Risio 4 display is for those who don’t mind the drawbacks above. It may be not easy to accept for a buyer who is accustomed to 1080p screens and above. However, when considering the price, an HD+ screen is not something to complain about.

Camera

LG Risio 4 Camera

The dual-camera configuration on LG Risio 4 consists of a 13MP main camera and a 5MP wide-angle lens. This area is where LG lets users be a bit spoiled with better specs. The dual-camera here is one of the selling points of this phone.

Especially the wide-angle lens. It allows users to take 120° field of view photos which is an excellent choice for landscape, nature, or large group photos. Meanwhile, the main lens is strapped with Phase Detection Auto Focus (PDAF) technology. With PDAF, you can get an action shot on an object that’s moving while you are capturing them. The lens is able to set autofocus quickly and capture a photo.

The overall picture quality is passable. Admittedly, it won’t beat better cameras with a better lens. Color reproductions can be a hit or a miss depending on the light situation. There are some problems with dynamic range and exposure too, with some colors, coming out too bright or too washed out. In a low light situation, the LED comes to the rescue and works well for portrait photos.

The front camera is only 3MP, though. Apparently, LG Risio 4 had to cut corners again here. It’s not good news for selfie addicts. This resolution is way below average for a smartphone.

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Storage

LG Risio 4 Left Side

LG Risio 4 doesn’t pack a lot of storage on its system, only 16MP. Even then, what’s available for use is much lower at 7.42GB. LG Risio 4 is a phone where you will need to refrain from installing many apps. This is because apps can’t be installed on SD cards.

For storing files, thankfully users can rely on expandable storage. You can add an SD card into the available slot and increase the overall storage space. When taking pictures with the camera, it’s recommended to automatically save them to external storage.

Performance

LG Risio 4 Right Side

To handle its computing tasks, LG Risio 4 relies on a 2GHz MediaTek Helio P22 processor with 2GB of RAM. This chipset is a usual name among budget phones. It delivers low-end performance but enough for meeting day-to-day processing demands.

In general, LG Risio 4 is up to the job as long as basic tasks are concerned. It delivers fluid navigation when launching apps and switching screens. If you are keen on speed, you may notice milliseconds of delays in between activities. However, for most people, it won’t be noticeable.

Prospective buyers need to know that LG Risio 4 comes with a lot of performance restrictions. When things demand more processing power, the small RAM of this phone begins to show its limit. Opening too many apps can be a nightmare on LG Risio 4. Not to mention, there will be a lot of 3D games you will have to miss.

It’s recommended to stick with essential activities when using LG Risio 4. Do light browsing, chatting apps, and a bit of social media. You can try editing videos and the phone may be able to handle it. However, expect to be patients when lags begin to occur.

The phone itself runs Android 10 on the software side. Being manufactured by LG, you can expect the Android version to come with several accompanying custom apps. LG seems to tone it down with this model. Regardless, the LG UX itself already stole a significant amount of storage space. It also weighs the performance.

LG Risio 4 comes with a dedicated Google Assistant button. Again, many LG phones have this physical button. In this LG Risio 4 review, we deem it to be one of the good things to be found on this product.

On the other hand, LG Risio 4 lacks another important feature. You won’t be able to secure your phone using the fingerprint lock here. Apparently, at this price, LG decided to opt it out. It’s quite a bummer to not have a fingerprint reader.

Connectivity

LG Risio 4 gives a complete set of network features starting from 4G LTE to GPS. When it comes to connectivity, LG doesn’t cut corners. Everything is included to ensure users stay updated with friends and family.

The phone supports 4G and other older bands. It uses a Nano SIM type. There’s an option for making high-quality calls using HD voice or VoLTE. The download speed when browsing the internet is pretty quick. Any lag that happens is mostly because of the low performance than the 4G itself. When available, you can also switch to Wi-Fi. LG also equips the phone with A-GPS.

We like that the Bluetooth on this phone is the latest version. Typically, a budget phone uses the older version, Bluetooth 4. With this new version, you’ll be able to connect with a device located more than 10 meters from your phone.

For wired connection, LG Risio 4 relies on a micro USB port. Micro USB is not the latest technology for ports. However, opting to MicroUSB is an understandable decision for this particular phone. Lastly, on this phone, you can also still find FM radio.

Battery

This phone relies on a 3,000mAh non-removable for its source of energy. This capacity is enough for one full day of operations, at least up until the evening. The phone boasts 11 hours of talk time on 4G. A 3,000mAh capacity is not much actually, but for a low-spec device, it will get the job done.

Just do not expect it to be ultra long-lasting like a 5,000mAh battery and above. With more screen time, battery life also greatly decreases. Meanwhile, charging is done through the MicroUSB port. There’s no fast charging capability on LG Risio 4.

Is the LG Risio 4 a good phone?

To conclude this LG Risio 4 review, we have several final thoughts about this phone. This product suits first-time smartphone owners the best. Especially if you don’t want to pay a lot in the beginning. At $49 for a price, it sounds like a good deal.

You’ll get a nice 5.7-inch display and good everyday performance. As a bonus, there’s a dual-camera to play around with when taking photos. There are so many limitations on this phone, but as far as basic needs are concerned, there’s nothing lacking with LG Risio 4.

On the other hand, if you are the type of user who likes more capabilities in your phone, LG Risio 4 is not the right one. Pay a little bit more for a device offering specs this phone is missing, such as a fingerprint reader and a bigger battery.

LG Risio 4 Pros

  • Dual-camera
  • Cheap price
  • Sizable screen

LG Risio 4 Cons

  • No fingerprint reader
  • Low performance
  • Overall budget-level specs