LAS VEGAS – The Samsung Galaxy Nexus won't be the only LTE phone Sprint launches soon. I got a few minutes at CES with the brand-new LG Viper, a version of MetroPCS's LG Connect 4G refitted for Sprint's upcoming LTE network. It's a more compact phone than the Galaxy Nexus, but still very powerful.
I admit it: I'm no big fan of the Galaxy Nexus. I feel like its 4.65-inch screen is too big, and I was turned off by the poor voice quality on the Verizon version. Yes, the Galaxy Nexus is going to be Sprint's flagship LTE phone; it's running Android 4.0 and has the undeniable geek cred of Google's anointed Nexus line. But the hardware on the denser, slightly thicker, smaller Viper, with its 4-inch 800-by-480 screen and brushed-metal back, appeals to me.
Other specs are the same as MetroPCS's LG Connect 4G: a super-bright NOVA LCD screen that's unusually viewable outdoors, a 1.2Ghz dual-core processor, and a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera along with a front-facing camera of unspecified megapixelage. There's the usual Bluetooth and GPS, as well, along with both LTE and CDMA 3G – but no WiMax.
My source didn't give me any release date or price for the Viper, except to say that it will be less expensive than the Galaxy Nexus.
Sprint's LTE network will launch in the middle of this year, the company says. It's interesting that the two phones the carrier is expected to announce, the Galaxy Nexus and the Viper, are both existing models from other carriers; when they launch midyear, they'll look a few months old.
Staggered releases on different carriers are par for the course in the U.S. cell phone market, of course, but I also suspect Sprint is holding back at least one surprising exclusive for its actual LTE launch, which is months off. Today's announcements are about building 4G LTE momentum for Sprint, as Clearwire's WiMax network—which Sprint used to swear by—appears to be stalled.