Verizon Wireless and Pantech together have launched a new budget friendly smartphone called Pantech Marauder. It has been exclusively designed for America’s largest and fastest 4G network i.e. the Verizon 4G LTE network. Pantech has beautifully incorporated both virtual as well as slide-out QWERTY keyboard in this new smartphone, to make an ideal choice for messaging enthusiasts. The best and the most exciting thing about the Maraude smartphone is its affordable price tag. Even though the full retail price of the phone is $329.99, it is currently available for just $50 (excluding $50 mail-in rebate) with a new 2-year contract. New customers who wish to buy the smartphone are required to subscribe a Verizon Share Everything plan.
One of the most interesting features of the Pantech Marauder smartphone is the ability to choose between two modes namely ‘Starter Mode’ and ‘Standard Mode’. The ‘Starter Mode’ is for helping the first time users of a smartphone to learn how to use a smartphone. The mode consists of 4 easy-to-learn home screens that features preset widgets and user-friendly lock screen which greatly simplifies the smartphone experience for the users. Plus, there is a quick dialer icon that enables the users to make their phone calls easily, right from the home screen.
On the other hand, the ‘Standard Mode’ is for those people who are not new to the smartphone world. It provides up to 7 fully customizable home screens along with a customizable lock screen to enhance the smartphone experience even more. Moreover, by means of this mode, the users can get quick access to frequently used apps. Above all, the users can easily switch between the two modes without fearing of losing any type of information as all settings are maintained while you switch between different modes. The smartphone runs very smoothly in both the modes, thanks to the latest Android Ice Cream Sandwich Operating System.
The Pantech Marauder measures 3.8 x 2.57 x 0.46 inches in dimension and weighs just 6.1 oz. Consequently, the handset is very comfortable to hold and carry. The device flaunts a 3.8-inch WVGA touch screen with 480 x 800 pixels of resolution. Beneath the display, there exists 4 touch sensitive buttons (Home, Back, Recent Apps, and Settings). Under the hood, the device has a 1.2 GHz dual-core processor and 1GB RAM for power. The QWERTY keyboard consists of five rows of virtually flat keys with number keys placed at the top.
The smartphone is equipped with a 5 MP rear camera along with features like auto-focus and 720p video recording capability. Plus, there is a secondary VGA front facing camera for video conferencing. The users can also easily share the captured photos and videos with their friends and family members using the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network. The smartphone can even work as a hotspot and share its connection with ten different Wi-Fi-enabled devices. It offers 4GB of internal memory and this can be expanded up to 32 GB with the help of a microSD card. Moreover, it supports almost all Google Mobile services such as Google Search, Google+, Google Maps, Gmail, YouTube, and the Google Play Store.
The Marauder handset is powered by a 1680mAh battery which helps this budget friendly smartphone in delivering up to 490 minutes of talk time and around 533 hours of standby time. Other useful supported features include Bluetooth 4.0, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, 3.5mm headset jack, Hearing Aid Compatibility, Document Viewer, audio & video player, Messenger, Instagram, Facebook, Angry Birds, and lots more. In short, the Pantech Marauder is a great choice for people who are looking for a budget friendly smartphone with a QWERTY keyboard that too on a Verizon Wireless Network. Wanna buy the Pantech Marauder handset? Then click here.
Pantech Marauder Unboxing video from youtube: