It wasn’t exactly a surprise since specs and details surrounding LG’s new flagship smartphone have been leaking for months, but the company finally unveiled its new G3 handset on Tuesday. We took an early look at the phone in our hands-on LG G3 preview, and we found that LG’s new flagship phone outshines its predecessor in just about every way.
LG certainly has an uphill climb if it hopes to compete with top rival Samsung, but thanks to cutting-edge technology and a few innovative features, there are also several areas where the G3 doesn’t just top the G2, it outshines Samsung’s market-leading Galaxy S5 as well.
Here are the top 5 LG G3 features that make Samsung’s Galaxy S5 look old and obsolete.
5.5-inch QHD Display
Samsung has been the best in the business for years when it comes to mobile displays but as was the case in the TV market, LG has quickly caught up. Now, Samsung’s South Korean rival has beaten it to the punch and announced the world’s first widely available smartphone with a quad HD display.
LG has managed to pack ridiculous 2,560 x 1,440-pixel resolution into a screen that measures 5.5 inches diagonally, and the result is a remarkable pixel density of 538 pixels per inch.
Samsung will reportedly follow LG’s lead and launch a quad HD smartphone of its own in the coming months but until then, LG clearly has the edge where pixel count is concerned.
Laser Auto Focus
LG’s G3 sports a unique camera feature that is the first of its kind on a smartphone.
The phone’s camera is among the quickest in the business when it comes to capturing moments and a big part of the reason for the G3’s speed is LG’s new laser auto focus system, which “can shoot stunningly sharp images in a fraction of the time required by conventional phone cameras.”
In layman’s terms, the system works by shooting an invisible laser beam at the subject of a photo and using it to measure the distance between the camera’s optics and the subject. This lets the phone know exactly where it should focus, to the millimeter, and eliminates blurry photos.
Knock Gestures
The LG G3 is huge. All flagship Android phones are huge these days. Thanks to some nifty work with the phones’ sensors though, unique gesture support makes some huge phones more manageable than others.
Last year’s G2 featured some knock gestures that made using the phone much easier. For example, a double tap on the phone’s display would wake it from sleep or put it to sleep while awake, eliminating the need to reach around for the power button.
The G3 takes things a step further with new knock support, including a nifty feature called “Knock On” that lets users unlock their phones by creating a specific pattern of knocks. Of note, the G2 also has this feature now in some regions thanks to a software update.
Some quick advice, though: Don’t use “Shave and a Haircut” as your Knock On pattern.
QuickCircle
A new trend among Android smartphone vendors is to find unique new ways to display information through a flip cover. The coolest implementation we had seen to date was HTC’s Dot View case on the One (M8), but it looks like LG just pulled ahead with QuickCircle.
LG’s QuickCircle case includes a flip cover that is automatically detected by the phone. When the cover is closed, the G3 displays a circular UI through a space on the cover that shows important information and gives the users access to calling, text messaging, music and the phone’s camera.
Smart Keyboard
There are dozens of nifty alternatives to Android’s stock keyboard, but none offer all of the unique features found in LG’s new Smart Keyboard on the G3.
“Adaptive technology learns as you type for faster input with less mistakes,” LG said in a press release. “Smart Keyboard reduces input errors by up to 75 percent by tracking and analyzing typing habits and intuitively “knowing” what word the user intended to type. The height of the keyboard can also be adjusted to better fit the user’s hands and position of the thumbs. Individual keys can also be customized with frequently used symbols for even faster input.”
The G3’s Smart Keyboard can also grow and shrink according to the user’s preference, and there are several other customization options to help improve the typing experience.
For more on the LG G3, check out this video that shows you every cool new feature on the LG G3 in just 2 minutes.
