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.