Home > Communication > Android > LG Reveals Another Cracker Smartphone, But Will It Sell

LG Reveals Another Cracker Smartphone, But Will It Sell

LG Electronics is currently talking to carriers and retailers about their new G7 ThinkQ which was released overnight at a media event in New York the only problem is tyhat despite LG mobiles being among the best there is out there carriers in Australia have been reluctant to range the LG product.

The new model has a brighter display and a “boombox” that literally pumps out 24bit audio from the device.

Despite reviewers around the world “raving” about the prior model LG has struggled to get traction in the Australian market for their mobile offerings which are seen as being superior to several other models out there including offerings from Oppo, Huewei and Nokia.

The G7 ThinkQ’s 6.1in (15.5cm) screen features a notch reminiscent of the iPhone X’s.

But owners can alter the surrounding graphics to help hide the “dead space”.

Key differences from prior models are that the power button on the rear of LG smartphones has been replaced, it’s out altogether.

Instead the G7’s power button now sits the right side of the device.

The original power button is now a fingerprint reader.

The horizontal dual-camera layout that’s been in place since the G5 has also been flipped 180-degrees to a vertical setup.

The notch that sits on the top of the G7’s face is optional.

What you can do to hide the notch is paint the screen area around the notch black to create the illusion of a proper bezel.

The fake bezel looks surprisingly natural on the G7, despite it using an IPS LCD panel instead of an OLED, which is better at producing deep blacks.

LG also gives an option to embrace the bezel by filling it with different colours including a gradient scheme.

LG are known for their display screens, OLED included.

The G7 has an IPS LCD display which at maximum brightness delivers around 650 nits, which is brighter than most phones out there.

There is also an option to bump brightness up even further to 1,000 nits.

The phone can only do so for three minutes at a time before going back to default brightness.

There is also a dedicated Google Assistant button on the left side of the device below the volume rockers.

It’s remarkably similar to the Samsung’s Bixby button, but mapped to a voice assistant that’s actually useful.

LG says it worked with Google to implement the button, so there are additional features the Google Assistant can do, such as device-specific commands, and users can hold the button and keep speaking into it as if it’s a walky-talky.

As for the camera it’s remarkably similar to the V30S which housed two 16-megapixel shooters.

The big difference is in the software.

Where LG has always excelled is in their audio output. They were one of the first to deliver 24bit audio in a smartphone.

The new handset has the same Quad DAC (digital to analogue converters) found in the V30, and the phone is the first in the industry to support DTS:X 3D surround sound through wired headphones.

LG has also improved the speaker of the G7 significantly for those who don’t like using headphones.

Dubbed “boombox speakers” by LG’s marketing department, the single bottom-firing speaker grill can now pump out sound at up to 40 decibels, which is quite a bit louder than other phones.

LG says it used the inner space of the G7’s body to act as a resonance chamber, allowing sound to be amplified. In my testing, the sound did indeed get noticeably louder than other handsets, but I found the audio to be slightly distorted at max volume. I think I’d still prefer to use headphones or a Bluetooth speaker.

All the other specs are what one would expect from a 2018 flagship Android: Snapdragon 845, 4 or 6GB of RAM, and a 3,000 mAh battery

The issue now is getting an LG device into consumers hands in Australia.

LG used to be one of the three top selling Android phone makers but has seen its position drop in recent years.

In particular, an attempt to release a model that split apart to add new hardware backfired two years ago, tempering the company’s ambition to be unconventional.

“LG remains pretty competitive in the mid-range, but at the premium end its smartphone strategy completely let it down,” said Ben Stanton from technology consultancy Canalys.

“The modular G5 was a flop. And then when the G6 launched in 2017, it had a premium price but an out-of-date processor.

“Mobile networks have been dropping LG’s phones from their ranges as a consequence. And that’s a problem – especially in Australia where most handsets are sold by the operators.”



You may also like
Motorola Unveils New Budget Phones
Global PC And Smartphone Revenue Expected To Plunge in 2024
TCL To Launch New Affordable Smartphone
TCL Unveils First NxtPaper Phones, 4G & 5G Versions
Samsung Overtakes Apple In Struggling Smartphone Market