LG launches G3, aims to solidify top 3
By Yoon Sung-won
LG Electronics launched a new strategic smartphone, the “G3,” Tuesday, which features the latest LG Group technologies.
Keen interest is now on whether the company can cement the top-3 seat it recently captured for the first time in the smartphone market with the new device.
According to data from the U.S.-based market researcher Strategy Analytics, LG Electronics holds third place in the global smartphone market in terms of turnover after Samsung Electronics and Apple, and ahead of Japan’s Sony.
“As customers expect more from new smartphones, we realized that we needed to develop advanced technology to provide a simplified user experience. So we reflected that idea in our latest smartphone, the G3,” Park Jong-seok, CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company said during a press conference at the company’s headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul.
One of the biggest strengths of LG’s latest strategic handset lies in its display systems, sourced from sister companies LG Display and LG Chem.
The G3 has a 5.5-inch “quad” high-definition (QHD) IPS display panel developed by LG Display, which is capable of producing clearer images with 538 pixels per inch (ppi), four times the resolution of existing full-HD AMOLED displays.
To sustain the high power consumption of the QHD display, the G3 is equipped with a 3,000mAh removable battery produced by LG Chem, as well as system optimization functions to maximize battery efficiency. With the optimization turned on, G3 automatically controls frame rate and processor output.
The assumption that the human eye can distinguish resolutions only up to 300 ppi has turned out to be wrong, and customers’ needs for displays producing better images have continued to grow, said LG Electronics in explaining why the company decided to put the QHD display on its latest product.
Another upgrade that stands out is the G3’s camera capability.
Its optical image stabilizer (OIS) function has been improved from its predecessor, the G2, with a laser that allows users to rapidly perform auto focus, making it easier for the 13-million-pixel camera module to capture images in darker environments.
The G3 adopted Qualcomm’s 2.6 gigahertz quad-core Snapdragon 801 mobile application processor, as well as a near field communication (NFC) function. It weighs 149 grams and is 8.9 millimeters thick. It is available in five colors — black, white, gold, purple and red.
The G3’s factory price was set 899,800 won ($880).
Now that the early heat of Samsung’s latest Galaxy S5 has abated in the two months since its release, and Apple’s next iPhone is expected to come later this year at the earliest, the newly released LG smartphone is likely to be successful in the market.
During the conference, Park pledged to sell more than 10 million G3s worldwide.
“The timing of G3’s release is even better since the business suspension on the three local mobile carriers has just been lifted,” Shinhan Investment analyst John Soh told The Korea Times. “The G3 is believed to be a well-made handset, not to mention its hardware specifications are better than any others currently on the market. Its sales will surpass that of the G2, to say the least,”
LG introduced the G3 worldwide at events held in six cities — London, New York, San Francisco, Singapore, Istanbul and Seoul.