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LG G3 launched, boasts 5.5-inch QHD display and laser AF camera

by Mark Tyson on 28 May 2014, 09:26

Tags: LG Electronics (066570.KS), PC

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South Korean technology giant LG has officially announced its new flagship smartphone, the LG G3, at a global launch event held in London last night.

The much anticipated device features a 5.5-inch True HD-IPS+ LCD display with a QHD 2560x1440p resolution, beating rival Samsung to the highest resolution screen on a smartphone. With high hopes to at least momentarily steal the spotlight from Samsung's latest flagship, the Galaxy S5, the LG G3 has a pixel density of 534ppi and will use a quad-core 2.46GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor and the Adreno 330 GPU accompanied by 2GB of RAM. The LG G3 also has 16GB of built-in storage, support for a microSD up to 128GB, 4G/LTE connectivity and runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat.

Another headline grabbing feature of the LG G3 is its 13MP rear camera, which is enhanced by the Laser Auto Focus function. This laser assisted autofocus is said to be able to focus in 0.276 of a second, a speed faster than signals from a human's brain take to reach the hand, reports the BBC. Next to the camera is also a dual-LED flash and the front-facing 2.1MP camera also gets some attention as it sports bigger pixels and a brighter lens.

The 1W speaker at the back of the device is similar to the one found in the LG G Pro 2, but a boost amp mode has been added to turn things up a notch. Weighing only 149g, the LG G3 has a compact body measuring to 146.3 x 74.6 x 8.9mm. It is also constructed with a user swappable 3000mAh battery.

Software wise, the LG G3 is packed with some exciting new features, which include a selfie trigger that allows users to take photos by making a hand gesture. Smart Notice is a new service that quietly collects information it believes may help the user throughout the day, such as weather and location-based reminders, and uninstalls apps which haven't been used for a while. It also activates a Wi-Fi switch when you arrive home or at the office, for instance. LG's KnockCode and Knock On features are also present.

The LG G3 will launch in South Korea today, and is said to become available in Europe in June. UK availability is scheduled for 1st July. Buyers will be able to choose from the following colours; Metallic Black, Silk White or Shine Gold. Pricing information is yet to be detailed but will probably be similar to its flagship rivals.

HEXUS Forums :: 12 Comments

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Posted by Tabbykatze - Wed 28 May 2014 09:49
Actually…looks quite good. I doubt it's going to be below the £600 mark though.
Posted by AETAaAS - Wed 28 May 2014 10:29
Definitely like the shift to user swapable batteries. When I'm away for a while or travelling, swapping batteries is much faster and more convenient than using a powerbank.
Posted by Jowsey - Wed 28 May 2014 10:29
I will never complain when technology advances but I'm seriously not seeing the benefit of that screen over a 1080p one. It's a bit of an e-peen spec. I have a HTC One M7 with a 1080p 4.7 inch screen and it's immaculate, there is no pixelation at any point I can see, text is so sharp I honestly don't believe I would be able to notice the difference.

The laser autofocus sounds like a great feature, I hope it's as useful in real life applications as it sounds and it's not just a buzzword feature. And it's always nice to see a big battery included.

But for the time being I'm more than happy with my HTC One.
Posted by lumireleon - Wed 28 May 2014 10:59
wow! best phone for 2014
Posted by crossy - Wed 28 May 2014 10:59
The much anticipated device features a 5.5-inch True HD-IPS+ LCD display with a QHD 2560x1440p resolution, beating rival Samsung to the highest resolution screen on a smartphone
So the PR department will be happy - big deal. I'd be more interested to know how that super duper hi rez screen performs in bright sunlight. Plus 5.5“ is too close to ”phablet" territory for my liking.
Software wise, the LG G3 is packed with some exciting new features, which include a selfie trigger that allows users to take photos by making a hand gesture.
Ooo, some NSFW things spring to mind …
Smart Notice is a new service that quietly collects information it believes may help the user throughout the day, such as weather and location-based reminders, and uninstalls apps which haven't been used for a while. It also activates a Wi-Fi switch when you arrive home or at the office, for instance.
Can Smart Notice be configured to preference or is it all or nothing? I like the auto Wifi switch idea, but aren't very happy with the idea of - for example - an app that you use only on holiday suddenly disappearing without so much as a “can I delete this”. Then there's the small mater of what it's doing with the information collected… is that being used for user profiling by LG?

I'd also be interested to find out how Smart Notice co-exists with Google Now. That's one of the objections I have to Samsung's gear - that their (Samsung's) features actually get in the way of stuff like Google Now, so you end up with a horribly unpredictable mess.

The rest looks good - replaceable/large battery, upgradeable storage, decent cpu and memory spec, latest OS release, appealing design (the S5 isn't). Only fly in the ointment (other than price, although I guess this'll be priced around the same as the S5) being whether OS upgrades will be available for more than 12 months and will they be pushed out quickly.

EDIT: just realised what the design reminds me of - Samsung Galaxy S3 front with a HTC One m8 back. No problem with that - curves are good. :)

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