LG has launched a variant of their Optimus One smartphone on just about every carrier around in the past months, and now they can add another operator to that list. Cricket has begun selling the LG Optimus C, their model of LG's Android-powered Optimus One, for only $129.99 with a $20 online discount and $50 mail-in rebate. Of course, as with all Cricket devices, you won't need to sign any kind of contract with the Optimus C, though you will need to sign up for a $55 unlimited everything plan to use it. The Optimus C sports a 600MHz core, 3.2-inch HVGA display, a 3.2 megapixel camera, and Android 2.2.

Cricket's not stopping there, though, as the carrier has revealed that they plan to beef up their Android lineup even more in the near future. First up is the Samsung Indulge, which is pretty much the same as the MetroPCS version that Sydney reviewed last month save for one big difference: Cricket's model won't pack LTE. Expect the Indulge to arrive sometime in Q2 for under $350. Cricket's also planning to release a follow-up to the Huawei Ascend, unsurprisingly titled the Ascend 2. The Ascend 2 will feature a lot of the same specs as the first version, including the HVGA display, although its camera will get bumped to 5 megapixels, up from the original's 3.2 MP shooter. Cricket has said that the Ascend 2 will also be arriving in Q2 with a price tag below $150.

Obviously none of these devices are going to be a good fit for the user that demands bleeding edge hardware, but they'll be great for folks looking for a low-cost smartphone and should introduce a lot of new users to Android. Plus, it just seems kind of crazy (in a good way, of course) that we're seeing new Android smartphones launching for only $130 without a contract. Think we'll be seeing some Androids introduced at a sub-$100 no contract price point any time soon?

Via Engadget, Cricket