US LG Optimus G Pro hands-on

The LG Optimus G Pro made its way officially to the United States, so we managed to spend some quality time with the Yankee version of the Korean flagship. The smartphone is exclusively offered by AT&T for $199.99 with a two-year commitment.

As far as specs go, the US LG Optimus G Pro is practically identical with the Korean version which we extensively reviewed, save for the omission of FM radio. Highlights include a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 SoC, 5.5” 1080p IPS display, 13MP camera, as well as every trick from the playbook of today’s crop of Android flagships. Read on to find out what’s different about the US model.

Unlike the latest HTC and Samsung flagships which ship in their original manufacturers’ retail boxes, the LG Optimus G Pro comes in an AT&T branded, orange/white colored package. Inside it, there’s nothing but a charger and a USB cable.

The retail package is hardly inspiring

While we didn’t expect the LG Optimus G Pro for AT&T to come with a retail package as rich as the one of the Korean version, we reckon that a bundled headset would have at least been a welcome sight. After all, both the HTC One and the Samsung Galaxy S4 offered by the carrier have one bundled in their retail box.

The AT&T LG Optimus G Pro is offered solely in black color scheme. Unsurprisingly, the overall fit and finish is the same as the one found in the Korean version. The black version however, sports a different pattern on its back. We find the one which the white Optimus G Pro sports slightly more characterful.

LG Optimus G Pro for AT&T live photos

Thankfully, AT&T has kept its own branding to a minimum on the LG Optimus G Pro. Save for a nice-looking globe on the back, there’s nothing else on the device.

Software-wise, the LG Optimus G Pro for AT&T ships with Android 4.1.2 out of the box – in line with what the Korean version has to offer. LG’s host of added software tricks is unsurprisingly on board too.

While there certainly is a good deal of AT&T bloatware preloaded on the LG Optimus G Pro, users can completely disable the carrier apps they do not wish to use. The process makes them disappear from the launcher altogether which is nothing short from great news.

There’s a good deal of AT&T bloatware on board

Overall, the LG Optimus G Pro for AT&T is among the most capable devices currently available on the US market. The LG flagship offers all the features an Android junkie could possibly ask for, with the added benefit of a large display. Anyone in the United States, looking for a top shelf Android smartphone with a display larger than 5” in size should have the LG Optimus G Pro on their shortlist of candidates, with the Samsung Galaxy Note II being the other most notable option. You can see how the two fare against each other in our comparison over here.