The LG Optimus F6 is a contract-free bargain (pictures)

Available from T-Mobile and reasonably priced at $289.99, the "http://reviews.cnet.com/smartphones/lg-optimus-f6-t/4505-6452_7-35826209.html">LG Optimus F6 sports a swift dual-core processor, a bright 4.5-inch screen (with a 960x540-pixel resolution) and a 5-megapixel camera.

The 2,460mAh battery (which has a reported talk time of 8 hours) sits underneath a door adorned with a tile pattern. The design is subtle, and you can only make it out clearly when the handset is somewhere well lit.

The Optimus F6 measures 5.03 inches tall, 2.59 inches wide, and 0.40 inch thick. At 4.44 ounces, it's also fairly lightweight, and you can easily throw it in a small bag or your back jeans pocket.

On the left edge sits a volume rocker and a shortcut key to launch QuickMemo (more on that later). Up top is a 3.5mm headphone jack and on the right is a sleep/power button. Finally, the bottom edge houses a Micro-USB port for charging.

QuickMemo lets you jot down quick notes or sketches directly over images onscreen. Other LG UI features include VuTalk, which enables users to make annotations on documents and photos on their device while sharing it in real time with another VuTalk-enabled handset through either a network or Wi-Fi connection.

The device runs on a zippy 1.2GHz dual-core processor from Qualcomm. While playing the graphics-intensive game Riptide GP, I experienced no stalling or unexpected force quitting with the app.

In addition to a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera, the F6 sports a 5-megapixel camera as well. It can record up to 1080p HD video and features a "Portrait+" function (previously known as Beauty Shot) that lets you adjust the brightness and blurriness of an image.