LG unveils first LTE quad-core smartphone, the Optimus G

[Jos]

Things are getting pretty heated in the smartphone market as we move into the final months of the year, with battles over patent infringement still being fiercely fought and several major announcements expected over the next few weeks. LG is looking to garner some attention for itself too, announcing what is said to be the world's first 4G LTE smartphone with a Snapdragon quad-core processor.

Dubbed the Optimus G, LG’s flagship handset comes with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and a 4.7-inch HD IPS+ display sporting a 1,280x768 resolution. Besides promising sharp and clean images, the latter also uses the firm’s newly developed Touch Hybrid Display technology, which employs a unibody design that eliminates the gap between the glass and the LCD panel, ultimately reducing its thickness by 30%.

Overall the device is 8.45mm thick and weighs in at 5.11 ounces -- by comparison, the Apple iPhone 4S is 9.3mm thick and weighs 4.94oz while the Samsung Galaxy S3 is 8.6mm thick and weighs 4.69oz.

The Snapdragon S4 Pro APQ8064 is clocked at 1.5GHz and features Asynchronous Symmetric Multiprocessing (aSMP), which enables each core to power up and down independently to optimize performance and improve better battery life. Also included is the newest generation Adreno 320 GPU, which is said to be over three times faster than the Adreno 225 found in previous Snapdragon processors.

Other specs include Wi-Fi, DLNA, NFC, A-GPS, Bluetooth 4.0, 13MP rear camera, 1.3MP front-facing camera, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of internal memory, and a 2,100 battery with extended lifespan.

At least on paper the LG Optimus G certainly looks like a beast but we’ll have to wait and see if it can live up to its potential -- LG smartphones haven’t been particularly well received in the US. LG plans to release the Optimus G in Korea in September with a global release expected for this fall.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/49947-lg-unveils-first-lte-quad-core-smartphone-the-optimus-g.html

 

[Guest]

Watch it LG Apple can Troll you...this is a rectangular rounded on the corners phone.....and its not owned by nature anymore BEWARE!!!

 

[KG363]

This is gorgeous. If I were in the market for an android phone I think this would be a no brainer for me.

 

[TomSEA]

I'm not a smart phone owner, so pretty ignorant about the devices and their OS's. BUT...I'm wondering if a quad-core is even useful in a smart phone? Will the apps and OS take advantage of it?

 

[spydercanopus]

I like where the ear piece is located. I hold the phone at a 45' angle most of the time, half trying to keep my neural network from frying, half for comfort. It also allows the screen to fill more of the face, which it appears has been done here.

 

[Neojt]

Dont know about Quan core but I can tell you my Galaxy S3 is nice and fast!! wips Iphone 4s too

BTW the non american S3 is also Quad core but not LTE we in canada have the dual core version

 

[KG363]

From what I've read, Android phones take advantage of Quads the least, which I find funny because it is always a step ahead in regards to processing power. The OS isn't as optimized, but they are making strides in that. WP8 should be interesting because it was developed from the ground up for multi-core processors.

 

[Guest]

Uh-oh.. rectangular with round edges.. another Apple's prey!! careful LG you've been warned

 

[lawfer]

I'm not a smart phone owner, so pretty ignorant about the devices and their OS's. BUT...I'm wondering if a quad-core is even useful in a smart phone? Will the apps and OS take advantage of it?

No. And what'd you be surprised to know is that Android takes less potential advantage of multi-cores than WP8 or iOS do which is, ironically, detrimental when it comes to benchmarks.

I say ironically because the very reason high-end Android phones are even seeked, is for the potential increase in performance. Performance that outside of raw numbers (numbers that, again, could be more if the OS was properly optimized) are mostly never even known by the self proclaimed smartphone enthusiasts.

So that inevitably leaves us with people choosing the "fastest" of the fastest, simply <I>because</I>. Which is, again, ironic, as these very people often name call Apple fans "iSheep".

So to answer your question no, not yet, but people don't care.

 

[TomSEA]

Thanks, lawfer. So essentially - at least for now - bragging about 4 cores is basically nothing more than a sales pitch.

 

[spydercanopus]

There may be some use for a quad-core ARM smartphone. Like if you were to find a way to get Win8 RT installed on it. Could be a portable powerhouse.

 

[lawfer]

Thanks, lawfer. So essentially - at least for now - bragging about 4 cores is basically nothing more than a sales pitch.

Indeed.

There may be some use for a quad-core ARM smartphone. Like if you were to find a way to get Win8 RT installed on it. Could be a portable powerhouse.

Windows Phone 8 is WinRT. Technically. It can support up to 64 cores.

 

[Lurker101]

What it can support and what it can make use of are two different things.

 

[lawfer]

What it can support and what it can make use of are two different things.

Except you don't seem to know the scaled down version of Windows NT 6.2 (ARM) that powers Windows RT supports only up to 64 cores, while the regular kernel found in Windows 8/Server 2012 supports up to 256.

The reason why I said "technically" was because WP8 doesn't share all of the WinRT APIs found in Windows 8 and/or because it adds a few of its own.

 

[dennis777]

It is already given LG phones are good, their software support is another story...
hmmm round corner and its a rectangle.... apple will sue LG definitely

 

[Neojt]

It is already given LG phones are good, their software support is another story...
hmmm round corner and its a rectangle.... apple will sue LG definitely

Naw there no botton on it in the middle there safe

 

[Jon Mansel]

No. And what'd you be surprised to know is that Android takes less potential advantage of multi-cores than WP8 or iOS do which is, ironically, detrimental when it comes to benchmarks.

Can you quote your source for this, because Android is built on top of Linux. Which has been optimized to work on multi-core processors long before they became available on smartphones. In fact quad-core and android is a natural fit.

Here is an article explaining some other benefits
http://android-zone.com/benefits-of-a-quad-core-smartphone/

 

[lawfer]

Can you quote your source for this, because Android is built on top of Linux. Which has been optimized to work on multi-core processors long before they became available on smartphones. In fact quad-core and android is a natural fit.

Here is an article explaining some other benefits
http://android-zone.com/benefits-of-a-quad-core-smartphone/

You are using android-zone as your source? That's like me using a press release from Apple to prove how revolutionary their phone is.

Besides your source only vaguely goes over the benefits of multi-cores, not how Android wasn't optimized for them. If you look close their logic is quad-cores here being a new shiny motor, but what they don't realize is Android's suspension is not optimized to handle the horsepower.

Essentially, w[FONT=Helvetica]ith Android you do run multiple threads at the same time, but end up using CPU cycles in the background and can make the entire system less responsive and more unstable while it deals with the simultaneous commands. It's really not whether Android can't support multiple cores, obviously, but how efficient it is at managing them.[/FONT]

Kernels like the Windows NT 6.2 (for ARM) were optimized--not simply made to "support"--for, theoretically, up to 64 cores. Not many, if any, ARM-based operating systems have that kind of support, not even iOS or Android. And it's funny too, because both Android and iOS are Unix-based; Apple has a closed ecosystem while Android is "open-source" (it really isn't), and yet the latter is the least optimized of the two.

As for my source, here it is: http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2182710/intel-claims-android-ready-multi-core-processors

 

[Jon Mansel]

Can you quote your source for this, because Android is built on top of Linux. Which has been optimized to work on multi-core processors long before they became available on smartphones. In fact quad-core and android is a natural fit.

Here is an article explaining some other benefits
http://android-zone.com/benefits-of-a-quad-core-smartphone/

You are using android-zone as your source? That's like me using a press release from Apple to prove how revolutionary their phone is.

As for my source, here it is: http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2182710/intel-claims-android-ready-multi-core-processors

(Sorry not sure what happened to my previous post. Ignore it) [Moderator's note: previous messed up post deleted]

lawfer, the source you quoted is an Intel engineer justifying why they are releasing a single core cpu when everyone else has gone multi-core, and then blaming the OS. So effectively another press release. It does not mention Windows or iOS either.

If windows is so wel optimised for multi-cores, why are they only releasing dual-cores.

Also, they are enough real-life benchmarks showing that some applications running on quad-cores, do run faster. So the user experience is improved. Which is why Android manufacturers will continue to bring out quad-core Androids.

 

[lawfer]

Can you quote your source for this, because Android is built on top of Linux. Which has been optimized to work on multi-core processors long before they became available on smartphones. In fact quad-core and android is a natural fit.

Here is an article explaining some other benefits
http://android-zone.com/benefits-of-a-quad-core-smartphone/

You are using android-zone as your source? That's like me using a press release from Apple to prove how revolutionary their phone is.

As for my source, here it is: http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2182710/intel-claims-android-ready-multi-core-processors

(Sorry not sure what happened to my previous post. Ignore it) [Moderator's note: previous messed up post deleted]

lawfer, the source you quoted is an Intel engineer justifying why they are releasing a single core cpu when everyone else has gone multi-core, and then blaming the OS. So effectively another press release. It does not mention Windows or iOS either.

If windows is so wel optimised for multi-cores, why are they only releasing dual-cores.

Also, they are enough real-life benchmarks showing that some applications running on quad-cores, do run faster. So the user experience is improved. Which is why Android manufacturers will continue to bring out quad-core Androids.

Sorry for the late response.

You know what a press release is, right? Please find the actual definition of it, then compare it with what you just wrote.

And why should my source mention other OSes? The source is talking about an Intel engineer who conducted multiple tests on multi-cores prototypes, and found out that Android's thread scheduler wasn't taking proper advantage of the processing power.

Android uses Linux 2.6 for its low level management of resources. Linux 2.6 happens to use multi-level feedback queues as its scheduling algorithm. This favors I/O bound processes and short CPU burst processes (ideal for phones for responsiveness/interaction). This does however means that CPU intensive processes and low priority processes risk getting starved. This is tricky, as the scheduler needs to properly manage the processing power of the SoC to the respective running process; in Android, there are four:

1.Active Process
2.Visible Process
3.Started Service Process
4.Background Process
5.Empty Process

All that's being said by Intel is, that due to the lack of proper management of power to these processes, Android's multi-core performance is actually hindered, whether it is processes force-closing due to lack of resources or less than great battery life due to poor process managing.

Due to Linux, Android can indeed support multi-cores, but Android has had certain modifications for ARM that don't include all the intricacies of a full-fledged Linux kernel. And this includes the thread scheduler.

As for your Windows comment, what kind of processor are you currently running? Hell, don't answer that. Let me ask you, what kind of processor do you think gaming computers use? Dual-core? Quad? Octo? Well, Windows supports that and beyond, up to 256 cores. Windows NT for ARM doesn't support as many; "only" up to 64 cores.

Guess what OS will power WP8? A modified version of Windows NT. Technically the same OS you're running on your desktop. So yes, for developers, it's kind of a big deal even if consumers like you can't see it. Did you know WP8 will also support DirectX?

And why am I talking about WP8, you ask? Because it's underlying kernel has been around for more than 2 decades and it has been optimized for multi-cores from the beginning, unlike Android. (Android uses the Linux kernel, albeit a heavily modified one, please keep that in mind.)

And who said quad-core phones run slower than dual-core ones? All I said Android is not taking advantage of the <I>potential</I> power. This is fact, sorry. It's also the same reason why the new LG quad-core that's coming out will still lag when compared to, say, the dual-core iPhone 4S. It's not about support, it's simply about optimization.