When we placed LG’s Optimus L7 into the palm of our reviewer, they found the handset to be stylish, with a cracking display, excellent battery life and a (then) up-to-date version of Android. Sadly, the party ended after that — with sluggish internals that can’t cope with the company’s UI tweaks, weak touchscreen and a lackluster camera. But we’re fairly sure our review didn’t dissuade all of you from buying one of these, so to those people we ask the following: what, if you were Mr. and Mrs. LG, would you have done differently?
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, LG
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SmartReview.com attended the Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2013) and saw the new top of the line LG TVs. This includes the new Cinema Screen 1080p line of Smart TVs. All of these models now have a dual core processor to make the Smart TV features work faster and more smoothly. LG also introduced a line of Google TVs. Also introduced were LG’s line of OLED TVs to be introduced this year. And finally, showcasing the beautiful 4K Ultra Definition TVs with 4x the resolution of a regular 1080p HDTV. For more information on HDTVs: www.smartreview.com Video Rating: 0 / 5
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LG’s Galaxy Note clone forthcoming flagship, the 5.5 inch Optimus G Pro, has been confirmed for the U.S. market. Writing in a release on its website (translated from Korean by Google Translate), LG said the device will be released in international markets including North America and Japan in the second quarter of this year. Pricing has not been confirmed.
Phones that are large enough to act as small tablets — hence the phone+tablet ‘phablet’ portmanteau — were popularised by Samsung’s original Galaxy Note — and now its successor, the Note II. Back in November Samsung announced it had pushed past five million channel sales of the Note II in around two months since the device went on sale. Analyst iSuppli is predicting phones with screens of more than five inches will more than double their share of the smartphone market this year, with 60.4 million units forecast to ship in 2013 as big phones carve out a larger niche for themselves.
On paper, the LG Optimus G Pro is a specs-busting affair — packing in a full 1920 x 1080 HD display, with screen resolution equating to 400ppi. Under the hood the 4G phablet is powered by a quad-core 1.7GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 processor, which LG claims offers improved performance — including lower power consumption — than Qualcomm’s S4 chip. It runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, skinned with an updated version of LG’s UI.
On the back there’s a 13 megapixel camera, while the front facing lens is 2.1 megapixels. The removable battery is a whopping 3,140mAh. There’s also NFC on board. Device thickness is 9.4mm.
The forthcoming phablet will make its debut in LG’s domestic market later this month, and will doubtless also be on show at the Mobile World Congress tradeshow next week — so stay tuned for hands-on.
We saw all the 2013 HDTVs debut last month at CES and the first few new models are starting to reach shelves. One of the more interesting sets arriving is LG’s 55-inch OLED HDTV, the first of its kind at this large size. Shipments are starting Monday for the 11 million won ($ 10k~) television, and according to a press release, LG has notched about 100 pre-orders so far in its home country. For comparison, LG announced it sold 300 of its 84-inch, $ 20k Ultra HDTV in Korea as of last month. LG also mentioned it plans to sell as many as 15 percent more HDTVs in 2013 than it did in 2012, as it continues to push its Smart and 3D features. We’re still waiting for Samsung to release its own OLED HDTVs, while this one is still slated to ship in the US in March for $ 11,999.
Filed under: Displays, Home Entertainment, HD
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The latest company to release its quarterly and year-end earnings report is LG, and the good news is that unlike last year’s losses, it has managed to eke out a net profit of $ 80.75 million. Revenues overall were down six percent from last year, but its operating profit moved way up to $ 1.01 billion from $ 342.06 million for 2011. Its TV division also reported record sales and a full year profit of over $ 480 million, while its cellphone division’s revenue for Q4 was the highest of the year as it shipped 8.6 million smartphones. There’s a few more numbers in the press release after the break, we’re still digging through them so check back in a moment for more updates.
Show full PR textLG ANNOUNCES FOURTH-QUARTER AND FULL-YEAR 2012 FINANCIAL RESULTS All Business Units Report Improved 2012 Operating Income from Previous Year
SEOUL, Jan. 30, 2013 – LG Electronics Inc. (LG) today announced consolidated revenues of KRW 50.96 trillion (USD 45.22 billion) and a net profit of KRW 91 billion (USD 80.75 million) for full-year 2012. Despite a 6 percent revenue decrease from 2011, operating profits increased significantly in 2012 to KRW 1.14 trillion (USD 1.01 billion) from KRW 379 billion (USD 342.06 million) in full-year 2011.
Fourth quarter 2012 consolidated revenues were KRW 13.50 trillion (USD 12.37 billion) with an operating profit of KRW 107 billion (USD 98.08 million). Unaudited consolidated financial results for the fourth quarter ending Dec. 31, 2012 showed a net loss of KRW 468 billion (USD 428.96 million) which reflects a fine related to alleged cathode-ray tube pricing issues imposed by the European Commission in December.
The LG Home Entertainment Company reported record sales of flat-panel TVs with 9.3 million units in the fourth quarter resulting in a 17.4 percent revenue increase quarter-on-quarter to KRW 6.44 trillion (USD 5.91 billion) and full-year operating profit of KRW 542 billion (USD 480.92 million). Revenues from 3D and Smart TVs increased with higher unit sales in the United States, Europe and CIS countries. Although the Home Entertainment Company had the strongest quarter of the year in terms of revenue, profitability declined somewhat due to lower average selling prices and increased competition. LG will continue to aggressively market 3D and Smart TVs and plans to expand its share of the premium TV segment in 2013 with Ultra HD TVs and OLED TVs.
The LG Mobile Communications Company reported a 7 percent unit increase quarter-on-quarter in mobile handset shipments to 15.4 million with more than half of the units coming from smartphones. Smartphone shipments grew 23 percent compared to the previous quarter, increasing to 8.6 million devices from the 7 million in the third quarter. Fourth quarter revenues were the highest of the year, growing 15 percent to KRW 2.81 trillion (USD 2.58 billion) quarter-on-quarter. Sales of premium LTE smartphones such as Optimus G and Vu:2 increased in the fourth quarter, as did the L-series and Google Nexus 4. With more European and emerging markets introducing LTE services this year, LG plans to increase smartphone revenues and market share by launching follow-up devices to Optimus G and the L-series as well as the new F-series.
The LG Home Appliance Company posted almost flat revenues year-on-year, with sales of KRW 2.94 trillion (USD 2.7 billion) in the fourth quarter as strong sales in the U.S. and CIS countries were largely offset by sluggish demand in Europe, the Middle East and Latin America. Profitability was affected by unfavorable foreign exchange rates and increased marketing investments, even though average selling prices for home appliance products rose in the fourth quarter. The company plans to improve its revenue and profitability in 2013 with more competitive products, advanced technologies and a stronger focus on profitable regions.
The LG Air Conditioning & Energy Solutions Company reported sales of KRW 683 billion (USD 626 million) in the fourth quarter, essentially unchanged year-on-year. An operating loss of KRW 11 billion (USD 10.08 million) in the quarter showed improvement from the same period last year due to operational efficiencies. For full-year 2012, the company recorded revenues of KRW 4.35 trillion (USD 3.86 billion) and operating profit of KRW 156 billion (USD 138.42 million). The priority in 2013 will be to introduce more energy-efficient and localized products to bolster revenue growth.
2013 Business Direction For 2012, LG Electronics is targeting a revenue goal of KRW 53.5 trillion with plans to spend KRW 2.5 trillion in capital expenditures.
2012 4Q Exchange Rates Explained Starting from the fourth quarter of 2012, the Company has modified its disclosure of operating profit or loss in accordance with the newly issued Amendments to Korea-International Financial Reporting Standards (K-IFRS) 1001 “Presentation of Financial Statements.” Due to this change, the Company has also reclassified comparative financial data in accordance with the new disclosure requirement. Amounts in Korean won (KRW) are converted into U.S. dollars (USD) at the average rate of the three month period in each corresponding quarter: KRW 1,091 per USD (2012 4Q) and KRW 1,146 per USD (2011 4Q). Average rate of the twelve-month period in 2012 was KRW 1,127 per USD.
Earnings Conference and Conference Call LG Electronics will hold a Korean-language earnings news conference on Jan. 30, 2013 at 16:30 Korea Standard Time at the LG Twin Tower Auditorium (B1 East Tower, 20 Yeouido-dong, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, Korea). An English language conference call will follow on Jan. 31, 2013 at 10:00 Korea Standard Time (01:00 GMT/UTC). Participants are instructed to call +82 31 810 3069 and enter the passcode 9084#. The corresponding presentation file will be available for download at the LG Electronics website (www.lg.com/global/ir/reports/earning-release.jsp) at 13:00 on Jan. 30, 2013. Please visit http://pin.teletogether.com/eng/ and pre-register with the passcode provided. For those unable to participate, an audio recording of the news conference will be available for a period of 30 days after the conclusion of the call. To access the recording, dial +82 31 931 3100 and enter the passcode 142680# when prompted.
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Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment, HD, Mobile, LG
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Google’s Nexus 4 smartphones have been selling like hotcakes, despite one big criticism being that the device does not support super fast wireless broadband on LTE networks. But a video has emerged that apparently refutes that fact: you can turn on LTE on the device, by way of a simple shortcode that you enter on the dial pad.
According to a video posted on YouTube by the Canadian blog Tekgadg (and embedded below), a user can type in *#*#4636#*#* as a phone number, which then brings up a menu of the phone’s settings. There, you can switch the phone from its default WCDMA preferred mode to one that supports LTE. If the network that you are on offers LTE in the supported LTE band, it then comes up on the device.
This further speed test posted by user a1jatt on the XDA Developers forum appears to demonstrate his LTE-enabled Nexus 4 picking up speeds of up to 21Mbps on the Telus LTE network.
As Android Authority points out, the LTE, as demonstrated in the video, seems only to work on two LTE-enabled bands, 1700MHz and 2100MHz. These happen to be the frequencies used by carriers in Tekgadg’s home market of Canada: Rogers Wireless, Telus and Bell Canada.
That, and the fact that you need to work a little hack to get LTE working, are two possible set-backs. Some believe that this kind of a hack shouldn’t count as proper LTE support.
But for those looking for a workaround, or for thinking about what might be on the roadmap ahead, it’s a tweak of hope. We’re still trying to figure out if (a) this is really accurate and (b) whether the LTE will work on other frequencies.
We have reached out to Google about this, and a spokesperson has referred us to LG. So we are now reaching out to LG for comment and will update this post as we learn more.
For now, here is a list from Wikipedia of all LTE networks worldwide and what bands they work on — you can see that there are others markets where the 1700/2100 bands are used at the moment, including Japan, and some of the U.S. operators, including AT&T. And, as a commenter below reminds us, T-Mobile’s future LTE network in the U.S. will also run on 1700MHz.
(h/t Steve)
Considering the sheer volume of leaks and information floating around right now, it’s becoming more and more clear that the so-called LG Nexus 4 is the real deal. In case you didn’t already have enough to ponder though, the folks behind the infamous @evleaks Twitter account have gotten their hands on yet another photo of the unreleased device and a few new particulars about its size and weight.
But first, the photo. In fairness, it’s far from the best Nexus 4 image I’ve seen out there — that distinction goes to the rather artsy photoset shot (see below) by TechOnliner.ru — but it matches up nicely with earlier leaks. Speaking of matching up, the device’s purported spec sheet (quad-core 1.5GHz APQ8064 chipset, 8-megapixel rear camera, 2GB of RAM, and a 4.7-inch display running at 1280×768) is pretty much a direct translation of the components found in LG’s flagship Optimus G smartphone, again keeping with people’s prevailing notions about the device.
As has been pointed out more than a few times since the first Nexus 4 photos leaked, the device bears a striking resemblance to Samsung’s older Galaxy Nexus. Should @evleaks’ info hold true though, LG’s device will be just a hair heftier than its Nexus predecessor: it weighs in at 139g and sports a 9.1mm waistline.
Naturally, neither LG or Google are willing to confirm the device’s existence just yet (hopefully someone in the process goofs the way printer RR Donnelly did the other day), but that could all change very shortly. Google has already sent out invitations to an Android event on October 29 that joyfully declares “the playground is open” — coupled with earlier reports that the next Nexus device (or devices; playgrounds can be pretty boring if you’re by yourself) would be unveiled before the end of October, it seems like Google is gearing up to steal Microsoft’s thunder with some hardware announcements of its own.
AT&T and Sprint have already laid claim to LG’s flagship Optimus G handset, but what of the rest of the Big 4 national carriers? Verizon has been keeping awfully quiet on the subject — maybe because it’s still trying to push LG’s curious Intuition phablet — and for now it seems T-Mobile is making do with another, less illustrious Korean handset.
The carrier has just announced that it will launch the LG Optimus L9, but like nearly every other phone announcement made in the past few weeks, there’s nary a hint at pricing to be found. Even its release date is shrouded in secrecy — all T-Mobile will say is that it’s set to launch “later this fall”.
Even though T-Mobile and LG are clearly keeping key details hush-hush at this point, they couldn’t completely keep the news under wraps.
Here’s the skinny on the Ice Cream Sandwich-powered L9: it packs a 4.5-inch, Gorilla Glass 2-coated display running at 960×540, and a dual-core 1GHz processor of unknown make. Meanwhile, a 5-megapixel camera can be found on the 9.1mm-thick device’s rear end, while the device’s 2,150mAh battery should keep things ticking along for quite some time. Alright, fine, it’s not the most exciting spec sheet you’re going to see over these next few months, and the L9 announcement may highlight an even bigger issue for T-Mobile — what’s going to be their big holiday seller?
For a while there it seemed like the natural heavy-hitter would be HTC’s One X+, which appeared on a T-Mobile document under a pseudonym. As it turns out though, the One X+ is an AT&T exclusive, and the perhaps the only top-tier device that the magenta-clad carrier is expected to carry (the Galaxy Note II) is slated to launch on most other carriers as well.
There’s been no shortage of LG Nexus phone rumors these past few days, but it seems the time for speculation may have come to an abrupt end. CNET has confirmed with sources close to the matter that Google’s next Nexus smartphone will indeed be based on LG’s new Optimus G handset, and is slated to be officially revealed at the end of this month.
Roger Cheng’s report follows another sizable LG leak from earlier this morning — MoDaCo’s Paul O’Brien reported that the yet-to-be-named LG Nexus device sports an IPS display running at 1280×768, a quad-core Snapdragon S4 processor, 2GB of RAM, support for wireless charging, and an 8-megapixel camera (no 13MP sensor to be found, unfortunately).
The new Nexus’ spec sheet isn’t just a straight carry-over of the Optimus G’s, though. If O’Brien’s intel is to be believed, then users will be stuck with a downright scant 8GB or 16GB of internal memory to work with, and with nary an expandable memory card slot in sight. He notes that the storage situation may well change over time, but this will still come as a bummer to those looking to pocket a few seasons of The West Wing. To top it all off, the device will also reportedly sport a sealed battery — a first for the Nexus smartphone line.
Of course, assuming this information is all reliable, there’s still one big question in play here: will the LG Nexus phone be alone? After all, Google’s M.O. these past few years was to collaborate with a hardware partner on a single reference smartphone. The prevailing rumor at this point is that LG’s Nexus device will be only one of many that will soon find their way to the Google Play Store’s Devices section. There’s some evidence that Samsung (who has worked with Google on Nexus hardware twice now) is busy putting together a follow-up to its venerable Galaxy Nexus, and former hardware partner HTC may be working on a 5-inch Nexus-branded device of its own.
Regardless of what their rivals may do, the news could mean big things for LG. To put it mildly, the company hasn’t had the sort of runaway success in the smartphone market that Samsung or even HTC has had. While a Nexus-branded collaboration with Google isn’t guaranteed to be one, it stands a decent shot at being one of the company’s stronger competitors. Marketing tactics like an aggressive off-contract price point could help strengthen that possibility, and it wouldn’t be a shock to see details like that (plus a whole host of others) over the next few weeks.
