LG has been slowly and steadily expanding its Android smartphone lineup and the latest offering in the Indian market is the mid-range Optimus Sol (E730), which we tried it out to see if its worth the asking price.

Design:

The first thing to notice when you pick up Optimus Sol is how slim it is. The phone’s width is just 9.8mm and the fact that it has a compact design, makes it easy to hold in one hand. The front is occupied with a huge 3.8-inch display along with earpiece and a camera on the top and touch-sensitive menu, home and back buttons at the bottom. The lock/power key is placed on the top of phone along with the microUSB port and 3.5mm audio jack, volume buttons on the left and loudspeaker and main 5MP camera unit at the back.

One gripe on the design front is the choice of a glossy back. The glossy plastic makes it highly susceptible to scratches.

Display:

Optimus Sol comes with a 3.8-inch Ultra AMOLED display supporting WVGA (800×480) display. LG says their choice of AMOLED panel is better than the regular AMOLED panels and we tend to agree. The colors look vibrant with deep blacks and great viewing angle, even in direct sunlight.

Performance:

The phone runs on Android 2.3 (Gingerbread OS) and just like every other manufacturer, LG too, has their own user interface overlaid on the stock UI. We wouldn’t say the UI as revolutionary but is definitely smooth and simpler to use. Users can add up to 7 home screens, add widgets and features an improved app drawer with a revamped notification bar that comes with few shortcuts. The browser has also got a revamped tabbed browsing interface.

LG also pre-loads the phone with some of their own apps like RemoteCall assistance, LG Smart World app store, SmartShare to share and stream content via DLNA etc.

The phone boasts a 1GHz processor and 512MB of RAM which seems more than adequate for most operations.

LG’s promised release of Android 4.0 later this year will also help the phone to further improve the performance.

Multimedia:

Optimus Sol features a 5MP rear-facing camera that takes decent pictures. However, the camera fared badly in low light situation as there is no flash. Users can shoot images in various shooting modes or adjust various other settings. As for the video, it is able to record videos in up to 720p HD resolution.

Multimedia playback is fairly satisfactory with the default video player capable of playing 720p mp4, DivX files without any conversion. Optimus Sol supports MP3, wav, AAC and WMA formats on the audio front that produces a good quality playback on the loudspeaker and headset.

Battery:
Optimus Sol sports a 1500mAh battery and with a moderate usage of calls, music and video, we managed to get about a day’s usage, which is decent going by today’s smartphone standards.

Conclusion:
LG has some work to do when it comes to high-end offerings but in case of Optimus Sol, it sits nicely in the mid-range segment. Priced at Rs. 17,000, the phone is Rs. 1,000 cheaper than its closest competitor – Sony Xperia neo V and the fact that it is bound to get an Android 4.0, makes the LG device more lucrative.

Rating:
Pros: Sleek, Good Performance, Price
Cons: No camera flash

As expected, LG has confirmed the launch of Google TV for the United States. Expected in late May, the Google OS-equipped televisions will come sizes of 47-inch and 55-inch and will cost $1,700 and $2,300 respectively.

LG’s TV runs Google OS 2.0 that brings in improved user interface along with search capabilities, Google Play support, web browser and voice recognition, gesture commands via Magic Remote control. On the hardware front, the LG offering uses an in-house developed dual-core L9 chipset with a quad-core GPU.

LG Google TV also supports Cinema 3D playback, which uses FPR 3D technology.

Almost all Android manufacturers have some kind of user interface customization that allows them to differentiate it from the competition and LG today, has announced the Optimus UI 3.0 that promises to enhance the user experience of Ice Cream Sandwich-based phones.

The first recipients of the new user interface will be Optimus LTE II and Optimus 4X HD and will bring in features like Quick Memo, ability to unlock the phone by dragging anywhere on the screen, improved app navigation, new Pattern Unlock that will unlock directly to an app (for instance, camera), voice-activated camera shutter, best photo, icon customizer and an improved Download category.

LG last weekend revealed its 2012 range of Smart TVs for the Indian market. The new LED TVs ranging in various sizes will make its way to the retail stores from this month with the flagship LM9500 series expected in June.

All the TVs support full HD 3D functionality while the top-tier TVs pack some interesting features like Intel Wireless Display (WiDi) support, MHL, Wi-Fi ready, video upscaling, web browser, smart apps support, DLNA and 3 Mode Magic Motion Remote Control support.

As for the 3D prowess, LG 3D TVs use FPR technology that promises to give superior quality than active 3D tech and more importantly supports lightweight and affordable 3D glasses. The TVs also support 2D to 3D conversion with depth control and Dual Play that makes two-player gaming possible without the conventional split screen technique. For Dual Play to work, users need to wear special Dual Play glasses that show content specific to Player 1 or Player 2.

Check out the pricing and availability of all the upcoming LG Smart TVs below.

LG has confirmed that its first quad-core device will be available in Europe from next month with countries like Germany, Sweden, UK, Italy, Poland being the first recipients. The Tegra 3-toting Optimus 4X HD is the first from LG that will pit against its arch rival’s Galaxy S III and HTC’s One X.

Optimus 4X HD boasts some meaty features like 4.7-inches True HD IPS display (1280×720), Android 4.0 OS, 8MP camera, DLNA, Wi-Fi and 2150mAh battery.

LG will expand the availability to Asia, CIS and Latin American regions as well.

LG’s 3D-enabled Google TVs are expected later this month in the United States, says an LG TV executive. Ro Seogho, LG TV unit’s executive VP said the new LG Google TV will be available for purchase in the third week of May, which will be a week after the commencement of production in their Mexican factory.

With Google OS in tow, users will be able to surf internet, visit social networks, use apps etc. on the television set.

LG has tried to make the Google TV UI simpler, which works in conjunction with their Magic Remote QWERTY and uses Film Patterned Retarder (FPR) technology to display 3D images and support CINEMA 3D glasses.

[Via Reuters]

LG Electronics announced the availability of L7 from its Optimus L-series range of phones. Powered by Android 4.0 (ICS), the L7 sports a 4.3inch display. The phone is just 8.7mm thick and is targeted at fashion conscious audience. Besides, this the phone also supports NFC and DLNA.

The phone will be available in Europe and Asia markets. The pricing is yet to be revealed.

source: Engadget, LG Korea

UPDATE: LG has released an official statement to Pocket-Lint. The company has come down strongly on Korea Herald saying they’re showing their “speculative side again.” None of it is true and will focus on Android because “that’s where the demand is.”

Seems like trouble in Windows Phone land. An LG Electronics official confirmed to Korea Herald that the company is not planning to launch Windows Phone devices in the future because of the low demand of the Microsoft OS globally.

“The total unit of Windows Phone sold in the global market is not a meaningful figure,” said the LG spokesperson.

Interestingly, LG is planning to focus more on Android devices since the Google OS is the only operating system that has managed to stand against the force of Apple’s iOS.

[Via WP Central]

LG’s second generation 3D smartphone – Optimus 3D Max is now rolling out in parts of Europe. First announced at the Mobile World Congress earlier this year, the second-generation 3D smartphone from LG is powerful, slimmer and lighter than the original Optimus 3D.

The 9.6mm thin phone enables a glasses-free 3D experience on its 4.3-inch WVGA display, features a 3D converter as well as 3D video editor to edit videos on the fly.

As for the other features, it comes with a 1.2GHz dual-core OMAP4430 processor, Android 2.3 OS, 8GB internal storage, dual 5MP cameras, front-facing VGA camera, video-out via MHL, 21Mbps support, NFC support, microSD card slot and 1520mAh battery.

Competition is always good for consumers and it seems the war between two Korean giants will give us something to choose from. LG is apparently gearing up to combat Samsung’s upcoming behemoth – Galaxy S III. Codenamed as D1L, the phone will take on the Samsung offering with some decent specs like 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor, 4.7-inch 720p HD display, LTE and of course Ice Cream Sandwich OS.

As for the release, LG is planning to release it around the same time frame of Galaxy S III, which is in May.

[DDaily via The Verge]