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Cricket Wireless customers will now be able to choose from two more smartphones, the LG Spree and the Samsung Galaxy S7, as the no-contract, prepaid carrier expands its handset offerings.
The $89.99 LG Spree will be available from Cricket Wireless, which is a unit of AT&T, starting March 11, while the Samsung Galaxy S7 will be sold starting March 18. The devices will be available online from the company or through its stores.
The LG Spree features a 4.5-inch FWVGA (854-by-480) display, a 1.1GHz quad-core Qualcomm MSM8909 processor, 1GB of memory, 8GB of onboard storage and up to 32GB of expandable storage via a microSD card, and a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera with auto-focus, LED flash, HD video and Burst Shot 4 capabilities. Also included is a 2MP front-facing camera with Gesture Shot hand gesture controls and a Selfie Light for well-lit selfies.
The Spree is a 4G LTE smartphone that also includes WiFi and Bluetooth 4.1 connectivity, as well as Wi-Fi Direct, which enables easy content sharing with other devices. Its 1,940mAh rechargeable battery provides estimated talk time of up to 13 hours and standby time up to about 234 hours. The Spree, which runs Android 5.1 Lollipop, is 5.19 inches long, 2.63 inches wide and 0.35 inches thick, and weighs 4.23 ounces.
The handset also includes LG’s QuickMemo feature, which allows users to add comments and drawings to saved images, screen captures, photos and more to share with family and friends in personalized memos.
Cricket Wireless customers who buy a Spree before March 24 are also eligible to get $20 off on an optional LG Tone Pro (HBS-760) Bluetooth wireless headset.
Starting March 18, Cricket customers will be able to buy a 32GB Samsung Galaxy S7 smartphone for $649.99. The S7 is one of Samsung’s flagship phones and includes a Dual Pixel camera sensor that provides improved low-light images, as well as faster focusing and other improvements.
The Galaxy S7 also is water-resistant, regaining a feature that was last seen in the company’s Galaxy S5 smartphones. The handset can be immersed in up to 5 feet of water for up to 30 minutes. Also returning to the Galaxy S7 is a microSD card slot, allowing users to expand their device storage by another 200GB. The handset is available from Cricket Wireless in Black Onyx color.
The Galaxy S7 also features a Qualcomm quad-core 2.15GHz/1.6GHz processor, 4GB of LPDDR4 memory, a 12MP dual-pixel rear camera and a 5MP front-facing camera. The phone has a 5.1-inch quad-HD Super AMOLED display.
“Cricket customers are not just value seekers,” Janna Ducich, Cricket vice president and chief marketing officer, said in a statement. “Many are power users wanting premium devices and service, without the costs associated with mobile contracts. This is just one of the reasons Cricket is one of the fastest growing prepaid wireless companies in the U.S.”
Cricket customers who buy their Galaxy S7 smartphone between March 18th and April 1 are eligible to receive a free Samsung Gear VR virtual reality headset, which is powered by Oculus. Also included is a six-game bundle, all worth an estimated $150. The limited-time promotion is available while supplies last through a Samsung promotion.
Cricket prepaid phone plans include its Basic mobile plan for $40 (including 2.5GB of data), a Smart plan for $50 (including 5GB of data) and a Pro plan for $60 (including 10GB of data). Each of those plans is $5 less per month if customers use Cricket’s automatic Auto Pay payment service. The plans also include unlimited talk and text. Data use over the monthly limits will result in reduced access speeds of a maximum 128K bps for the rest of the monthly plan cycle.