LG Optimus G Pro arrives in Asia
After launching the smartphone in its home market, on Thursday, South Korean manufacturer LG announces that the Optimus G Pro, the company's Android flagship, will finally be available in remaining Asian markets starting next month.
"Asian customers are leading many of today’s technology trends and we’re confident Optimus G Pro will find a large following in this region", says LG' Jong-seok Park. The handset, labeled indirectly as a phablet by the company, will be launched in Hong Kong first, followed by other local markets like Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, India, Indonesia, Philippine, Vietnam and Malaysia throughout June.
LG takes the wraps off Nexus 4 White
The rumors were true! On Tuesday, South Korean manufacturer LG revealed the new Nexus 4 White. The smartphone features the same hardware specifications as its black sibling, which was announced in late-October, and runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.
"Nexus 4 set the standard for Android 4.2 Jelly Bean smartphones", says LG's Jong-seok Park. "Nexus 4 White delivers the same Google experience to consumers in a stylish and attractive color option". The handset follows its predecessor, the Samsung-made Galaxy Nexus, in also sporting a white color trim.
Windows Phone battles BlackBerry for a distant third-place
Ouch! The latest report from market research company Gartner crushes Microsoft's dreams of Windows Phone breaking away from the smartphone operating system bottom pack. In Q1 2013, with a low market share of just 2.9 percent, Windows Phone battled with BlackBerry for the consolation spot of third most popular platform (and lost), far away from either Android or iOS. The green droid is still the dominant leader, followed from afar by Apple's OS.
"There are two clear leaders in the OS market and Android’s dominance in the OS market is unshakable", says Gartner's Anshul Gupta. "With new OSs coming to market such as Tizen, Firefox and Jolla we expect some market share to be eroded but not enough to question Android’s volume leadership". What he doesn't says is that the future is bleak for both Windows Phone and BlackBerry, which have to showcase their strength to survive the future string of contenders. Let's take a look at the numbers.
LG Optimus G Pro comes to AT&T
US mobile operator AT&T has officially announced that starting tomorrow, May 3, the Optimus G Pro is available for pre-order from its online store. The smartphone, which was unveiled in mid-February, will go on sale a week after, from May 10, exclusively from AT&T.
The price of the Optimus G Pro falls in line with that of its fierce competition. On a two-year contract LG's Android smartphone flagship runs for $199.99, on par with Apple's iPhone 5, BlackBerry's Z10, HTC's One and Samsung's Galaxy S4. By contrast, the similarly-sized Galaxy Note II is available for $299.99 on a two-year contract.
LG unveils the Optimus GK with a 5-inch 1080p display and Android 4.1
On Monday, South Korean manufacturer LG announced a new Android flagship smartphone called the Optimus GK. The handset shares its underpinnings with the previously-introduced Optimus G Pro that is designed for the Japanese market.
The Optimus GK comes with a 5-inch IPS display with a resolution of 1080 by 1920 and a 440 ppi (pixels per inch) density, similar to other devices like the Sony Xperia Z. There is a 1.7 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 processor inside, backed by 2GB of RAM and a large 3,100 mAh battery. So far, so good, but what about the rest of the specs?
As iPhone market share peaks, there's one direction to go
You will reads lots of dribble today about Samsung first quarter phone gains compared to Apple. Most will ignore something fundamental to the numbers: What they represent. IDC and Strategy Analytics separately put out data, for shipments, which mean handsets going to carriers, dealers and other sellers. That's very different from sales to businesses and consumers, Gartner's measure and the more accurate one (that data isn't ready yet).
For few quarters is the difference between shipments and sales likely to be so pronounced, actually even more so in Q2. Apple comes off its second full quarter of iPhone 5 sales and global distribution, and so shipments into the channel, nearly complete. Meanwhile, Samsung ramps up for Galaxy S4's launch, while achieving full global availability for the S III. Second quarter is the more likely bloodbath for Apple, but actual sales will foreshadow much. Still, shipments hint something now, and iPhone faces serious challenges.
Smartphones take the world stage, as BlackBerry and Nokia shipments collapse
In February, I predicted that smartphone sales would surpass feature phones within a couple quarters. Looks like I am likely wrong, as shipments already have, according to IDC. Last month the analyst firm predicted such circumstance this year, which by Q1 is sooner than anyone anticipated.
Meanwhile, something more shocking occurred turn first quarter -- my, God, when will the milestones stop? Chinese manufacturers Huawei and ZTE pushed BlackBerry and Nokia out of the top five. Right Nokia -- the company that invented the smartphone and had, until last year, a 14 year-run as global handset leader. The worldwide phone market undergoes dramatic changes, and they're far from over.
LG's Optimus G Pro lands in Japan at NTT DOCOMO
On Thursday, LG announced that the Optimus G Pro, the company's Android flagship smartphone, is now available at Japanese carrier NTT DOCOMO. In mid-January, NTT DOCOMO was the first to reveal the handset, a number of important specifications and its release date -- April 2013.
Unlike its international sibling which sports a 5.5-inch panel, the NTT DOCOMO variant of the Optimus G Pro comes with a smaller 5.0-inch IPS display. The resolution is the same -- 1080 by 1920 but the density is higher -- 440 ppi (pixels per inch). NTT DOCOMO originally revealed that the Optimus G Pro will ship with a 1.7 GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, but today LG said that in fact the newer and faster, still Qualcomm-made, 1.7GHz quad-core Snapdragn 600 processor is used instead.
Apple holds on to U.S. Smartphone subscriber lead
In the highly saturated U.S. smartphone market, Apple's dominance grew, while iPhone nipped upwards towards Android, for the three months ended in January, according to comScore. The analyst firm, unlike most of its competitors, measures actual subscriber share rather than number of units shipped. Like Gartner's counting actual sales, comScore gives a clearer view of real-world dynamics.
During iPhone 5's first full three months of sales, Apple's share reached 37.8 percent -- up from 36.3 percent in December and 34.3 percent in October. By comparison, second-place Samsung nudged up to 21.4 percent share, from 21 percent sequentially and 19.5 percent for the same three months. HTC, Motorola and LG followed, with respective shares of 9.7 percent, 8.6 percent and 7 percent. All three lost share from December, with LG up ever-so slightly from October. Motorola's loses strongly suggest that at Verizon, carrier with the highly-visible Droid line of smartphones, subscribers shift allegiance to other brands. Good thing Moto has a new evangelist.
LG, wake up! The Optimus G arrives too late in Europe
There's a great saying that applies to new products -- get it while it's hot. Or shall I say, give it while it's hot. LG, sadly, is not familiar with either expression as the South Korean manufacturer has only now finally released the Optimus G on European soil. That's a whopping six months (well, nearly) after the smartphone's unveiling in late August, last year.
LG is its own worst enemy right now. The main problem with the late Optimus G release, apart from the obvious waning of initial interest, is the smartphone's bigger brother -- the Optimus G Pro -- and the plethora of new devices that were released after the Optimus G, with better specs and time advantage on their side. And we haven't yet reached MWC (Mobile World Congress) frenzy yet, where manufacturers are known to release or announce even more products.
LG expands Optimus smartphone lineup with the new F5 and F7
On Thursday, South Korean mobile device manufacturer LG unveiled the new Optimus F series, comprised of two smartphones, the Optimus F5 and the Optimus F7, that will debut at MWC (Mobile World Congress) in Barcelona, next week.
The Optimus F series slots under the Optimus G lineup, the latter of which includes the Optimus G and Optimus G Pro Android flagship smartphones, sporting smaller displays and less powerful processors. Both the Optimus F7 and the Optimus F5 ship with Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean out-of-the-box and 4G LTE cellular connectivity. But what separates the two?
LG finally details the 'second and different' Optimus G Pro
Unveiling a smartphone without specs is like announcing a movie without releasing a trailer and only showing the poster to get everyone excited. That's exactly what LG did, little less than a week ago, with the 'second and different' Optimus G Pro. It got us confused, and worked up, and took the South Korean manufacturer until Monday to finally give in and spill the beans.
Last week LG revealed very little about the Optimus G Pro, only focusing on two major areas -- the display and the processor. The former is known to feature a "2.5D" effect, similar to the faux-3D virtual geometric model used in games, for instance. The panel is a 5.5-inch unit backed by a resolution of 1920 by 1080. LG gave even less away when it came to the processor, only mentioning that it is of quad-core origin. But let's stop looking at the poster and watch the trailer instead.
LG unveils a second and different Optimus G Pro
If you're confused, you are not alone. On Wednesday, LG unveiled a new smartphone dubbed Optimus G Pro, three weeks after Japanese carrier NTT DOCOMO announced a new LG-made smartphone dubbed Optimus G Pro. The twist -- they are not one and the same.
The confusion stems from the fact that the first Optimus G Pro features a 5-inch display while the second model comes with a 5.5-inch display, basically placing the two in different market segments. In terms of panel dimensions, the former is quite similar to the newest batches of Android flagships such as the Sony Xperia Z while with the latter LG takes the fight to Samsung's Galaxy Note II. LG should really make up its mind and pick different names for its handsets.
NTT DOCOMO spills the beans on the LG Optimus G Pro
On Tuesday, Japanese carrier NTT DOCOMO took the wraps off its new smartphone and tablet lineup, arriving in the Spring. From the significant number of new devices that will be launched starting from January 25, one stands out from the rest -- the new LG Optimus G Pro smartphone.
NTT DOCOMO's decision to unveil the Optimus G Pro shows unfortunate timing, seeing as on the same day LG revealed plans to introduce its current flagship handset, the Optimus G, into more than 50 new markets, starting with Singapore at the end of January.
It's easier to win the lottery than buy Google Nexus 4
The Nexus 4 was anything but a secret long before Google officially raised the curtain on October 29, last year. Impressive specs, affordable price, the promise of timely upgrades, all were compelling arguments as to why I must buy one when sales start. However, Google didn't care about my enthusiasm and had other plans in mind, offering the smartphone only to a limited number of markets. Lucky me, I'm not invited to join the party. So what can I do?
Like any passionate, but patient, enthusiast my first thought was to buy one from the German Play Store, the closest one to my location and with the lowest prices as well, instead of moving to another country or shelling out more than $500 or $600 on eBay. So I asked a colleague of mine to help me out. I would pay for the Nexus 4 and he would send it my way after receiving the package. Easier said than done, obviously, as I shortly found out that Google only accepts credit cards issued in Germany. That was Plan A, by the way. OK, but now what?
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