Mar 30, 2011 08:12 GMT  ·  By

Korean handset manufacturer LG continues to spread its entry-level Android smartphones around the world.

After the Optimus One became one of the most popular handsets, it seems that LG found the proper replacement, the Optimus Me. The phone has just been confirmed by LG Mobile Australia and is preparing to hit the stores in April for $229 outright.

The Optimus Me was silently introduced in late January via Facebook and is about to become the third Android smartphone targeting the budget segment of the Australian market.

By making everything simple and easy to use, the Optimus Me is the perfect entry level device for these consumers, while also offering the latest Google Mobile Service features to keep the more tech-inclined users happy,” said Nathan Dunn, general manager of LG mobile Australia.

Until the Optimus Me becomes available next month, Australian customers can choose Telstra's Smart-Touch Android or Huawei's IDEOS U8150 Android smartphones, both for under $100.

LG Optimus Me P350 is powered by the same 600 MHz CPU and runs on the Android 2.2 Froyo platform. Chances for a later Android 2.3 Gingerbread upgrade look pretty slim.

The low-end smartphone comes with a 2.8-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen with 262K colors support and 320 x 480 pixels resolution, which is slightly smaller than Optimus One 3.2-inch touch screen. It features an accelerometer sensor for UI auto-rotate and proximity sensor for auto turn-off.

The HSDPA-enabled phone supports the latest Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n connectivity standard and packs a 3-megapixel camera with autofocus, geo-tagging and video recording capabilities (VGA@24fps).

Optimus Me is powered by a standard 1280 mAh Li-Ion battery which is rated by the manufacturer for up to 450 hours of stand-by time or up to 5 hours of talk time.

To make it more interesting, the manufacturer is offering the Optimus Me in five color schemes: Natural Silver, Micro Titan, Aqua Blue, Powder Pink and Glamour Red.