Installing ios 7 on iphone 4. Installing new programs on an iPhone with an outdated version of iOS

I can call myself so old that I remember when LG was very mediocre in terms of smartphones, and now everything is just rosy and promising. And this did not happen in an instant, it was preceded by many successful models. The fact is that even a manufacturer that makes very mediocre devices from time to time gets something sensible. But more often than not, that's where it ends. LG, on the other hand, began to grow, I think, with the Nexus 4 model. At that moment, many were skeptical about the change in the manufacturer of the reference line of smartphones to Android, but it turned out very well and it is still incredibly stylish.

After him there were, a successful line L and others. In general, the strategy was chosen correctly and today, after the start of sales of the new flagship smartphone G3, in some countries it sells better than the strongest of this market. And all because LG does not try to balance on the edge, releasing seemingly flagships, but not trying to do something unusual. LG wanted and made both the G2 and G3 unique in many ways. In this case, we got a 2K display (QHD), and LG released a smartphone with it first among A-brands. Who needs it is the second question. Also, the focusing system has changed significantly, the new product is not just software improvements, but an IR sensor that focuses almost instantly. Also, the G3 is one of only three smartphones on the market that can be purchased with 3GB of RAM.

Design and ergonomics

I'll start with the body. He, as in the second generation, plastic. I don’t know why, but the manufacturer emphasizes that plastic here imitates metal. Several layers are applied on top of ordinary plastic, including the last one - ribbed. But, in fact, this is exactly plastic, and we see all kinds of imitations all the time, so I didn’t quite understand why to focus on such a trifle. The only thing is that it was this plastic texture that made many argue whether the smartphone would be metal after its first photos appeared on the Internet.

The case is now disassembled, although, if you try, you can disassemble the G2. However, despite this, the assembly, it seems to me, has become even better. My G2 was monolithic and there were no complaints about it at all, however, many complained about squeaks and backlashes. This is not the case with G3. I twisted the smartphone, squeezed it and tested it for stiffness, and I can’t say anything bad. Unlike Sony's monolithic Z2, the G3 doesn't flex under the same force. I am also glad that the plastic is not as glossy as in its predecessor and does not collect fingerprints as much. It is much more pleasant to hold it in your hands.

LG is perhaps the only one to continue the trend of reducing the bezels around the display. This year SGS5 and HTC One M8 picked up, which some did not like. In G3, the display area occupies 72% of the front side, which is a lot. There are practically no frames on the sides and it catches the eye. As before, this result was achieved by moving the volume control keys and the display lock from the sides to the back.

Behind, as in the G2, there is a volume key, inside which is a display lock button with an LED. Pressing the bottom one launches the camera from the locked state, the top one launches QuickMemo. I am glad that there is an opportunity to reconfigure this key. Also on the back is a 13 MP main camera, flash and an IR sensor for fast focusing. At the bottom of the back cover there is a slot for the speaker, which sounds very average compared to competitors. Especially when compared with the Sony Xperia Z2 and HTC One first and second generations.

Under the back cover there is a battery, a slot for a memory card and a SIM card. By the way, a Qi-standard wireless charging module is built into the back cover of the G3, and the smartphone is very thin at 8.8 mm.

By the way, yes, in the new generation, unlike the G2, you can replace the battery on the go, add memory if the built-in one is not enough and replace the cover if it is scratched. Practical.

On the front side there is a 5.5″ display, a speaker, a 2.1 MP front camera and the manufacturer's logo at the bottom.

On the top there is an infrared port and a microphone for noise reduction, on the bottom there are connectors for a headset and a MicroUSB cable.

I was pleased with almost everything in the case: the design is attractive, the assembly is of high quality, the infrared port for controlling equipment has not disappeared, and now you can insert a memory card. Unfortunately, the G3 didn't get moisture protection like the SGS5 and Z2, which would be very handy.

Display

Compared to the G2, the display has grown from 5.2″ to 5.46″. In addition, the resolution has also increased - up to QHD (2560x1440). With such a diagonal and resolution, the pixel density is an incredible 538 ppi. And now, attention, the question: “Why?” It's not that I'm old-fashioned or afraid of change, but I don't see any reason to make a resolution higher than Full HD on such a diagonal. For tablets, it is more than understandable, but in a smartphone, it seems to me, this is only an increase in price and an increase in energy consumption. At the LG presentation, they showed how pixels become distinguishable when a specific area of ​​​​the screen is enlarged, but the human eye is not able to zoom in on the image, and when viewing the image from the closest possible distance, pixels are not visible even at a density of 440 dpi. Well, lano, the main thing is that LG made such a display first among A-brands.

But for me, the main thing was different, how the display behaves at different angles. And, fortunately, it did not take over the problems of the G2 and Nexus 5 - the blacks became much more saturated, and the viewing angles were almost maximum. Excluding AMOLED matrices, which a priori have them, only HTC One is better. That is, in all respects that are clearly visible to the eye and affect the user experience, the G3 display has become qualitatively better. Speaking about the brightness, it is not the highest among competitors, but it is enough to use the device even on a sunny day - the information is distinguishable. But the unpleasant moment is the excessive software sharpness of the text, which is expressed in light contours around the fonts, it did not bother me to read from the display, but it seems that something is wrong with the matrix. It's good that this effect is observed only in the text, perhaps it will be removed.

Camera

The matrix has not changed significantly, the resolution remains the same - 13 MP, and the size - 1/3.06". Both the front and rear cameras are made by Sony. The luminosity of both is far from the best in the class - 2.4. And now about the good. To begin with, the optical stabilization module has been improved and called OIS +. Now the image stabilizes 20% better. I wouldn't say it's noticeable by eye. But what is immediately noticeable is improved focusing. The claimed focusing time is comparable to some other smartphones on the market at 0.267 seconds. However, here this indicator is as close as possible to reality, because focusing is done using an IR sensor located near the camera.

When you are in camera mode, you will see how the focus points on various objects are triggered. It seems like it happens instantly. And to take a picture, you just need to touch the screen. But it is not so much the speed of focusing that is important, but its accuracy - the focus never misses.

The quality of the resulting pictures is very decent. I can’t say which is the best, but it’s almost on the same level with SGS5. And in low light, the G3 performs even better, both in terms of image quality and focus.

Photo examples

Video is recorded in the maximum resolution of 4K (3840x2160 pixels) with a frame rate of 30 per second. It is possible to record SloMo videos in HD resolution at 120 frames per second. Unfortunately, one gets the impression that the last mode does not work quite correctly, because the real resolution is lower, although 1280x720 pixels are displayed in the properties. Hope they fix it.

Video examples

In general, I was pleased with the camera. The only thing that will not please power users is that all kinds of manual settings have been reduced in the camera interface, now everything is as simple as possible. Just like the iPhone. Almost.

Specifications and Software

If in G2 everything was in order in terms of hardware, and the software often failed, then everything was corrected in the new product. We slightly upgraded the hardware and greatly finished all the software. Many expected that the processor in the novelty would be new - Snapdragon 805, however, it is installed here, although also fresh, but the 801st c 330 Adreno. Why is it bad? Like nothing. In theory, it seemed that the processor would be strained in heavy games like MC4, because the display resolution is huge, but this did not happen. The interface also works quickly, in general, there were no questions. The only thing is heating, it was not shared anywhere. The smartphone still often does not allow you to raise the brightness of the display to the maximum due to overheating.

Outwardly, it is not so noticeable, but the smartphone knows better. RAM - 2 GB if the smartphone has 16 GB of storage, and 3 GB if it has 32. There is a slot for a Micro SD memory card.

Battery capacity - 3000 mAh. The autonomy in the smartphone is good, in general terms, but in fact, there is no smartphone with good autonomy on the market. Or almost none, I have not seen such. The last few days I have been walking a lot and planning a route in Google Maps, no device, even including the iPad, lives a day. However, if you use it as a phone: call, write messages and mail, sometimes re-read social networks, take several photos / videos a day, and so on, it will last the whole day and by the evening there will be another 30 percent of the charge.

• Dimensions: 146.3 x 74.6 x 8.95 mm.
• Weight: 150 g.
• Operating system: Android 4.4.2 KitKat.
• Processor: Quad-core, Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 (MSM8974), 2.5 GHz
• Graphics: Adreno 330.
• Display: IPS, 5.5″, 2560 × 1440 pixels, 538 ppi
• Memory: 16/32 GB flash, microSD card slot
• RAM: 2/3 GB.
• Camera: main - 13 MP, video recording up to 4k, 30 fps, front - 2.1 MP.
• Wireless technologies: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0.
• Interface connectors: 3.5 mm headphone jack, Micro USB.
• Battery: Li-Pol battery 3000 mAh.

As I said, the software has been improved. Almost the most fresh version Android OS - 4.4.2, on top of which is LG's proprietary interface, which has become flatter. Its design has become much more pleasant, it is clear that at least the designer worked on it. Everything is sustained in the same style, there are no menus or standard applications that are clearly knocked out of the design. Moreover, there are certain concepts followed in all preinstalled applications. For example, they all have different color themes, this is done so that, after a while, the user is visually guided in which application he is in. Branded chips have been preserved, such as Knock Code, LG Backup, security assistant and more. But there are also new solutions. For example, the keyboard has smart predictions and is designed so that you don't have to lift your thumbs from the input field. You can also change the height of the keyboard block. There are several new services, like Smart Notice, which will notify you of any events, like Google Now, there is LG Health, Smart Tips, which gives smart tips when using and more. There is only one downside to this - jamming still happens. For example, in the dialer application, sometimes with simple scrolling, and so on.

The LG G3 is on paper the most interesting Android flagship of 2014. Here you have a screen with a resolution of QuadHD (2560x1440 pixels), and the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor, and a camera with an active autofocus system that has not yet been seen (at least in smartphones). In addition, LG has managed to pack these outstanding features into an attractive shell with thin bezels around the screen. It would seem - before us is another king of the hill. But is it really so?

Main specifications of LG G3

When looking at the specifications of the LG G3 (as well as other Android flagships of 2013), I personally get the feeling that the market is stagnating. At least, I personally don’t see any major improvements: the replacement of the Snapdragon 800 processor with the 801 (which differs from its predecessor only in the maximum clock speed) is clearly not one of those. Increasing the screen resolution is, of course, a heart-warming event, but in practice, again, hardly anyone will notice the difference with FullHD. Although the fact that the company decided to use an active autofocus module in the camera speaks in favor of LG - such solutions have never been seen in phones before.

Some surprise, however, is the fact that the version with 16 GB of internal memory (the one that will be available in Ukraine at a recommended price of 8000 hryvnia) is equipped with 2 GB of RAM, but the 32 GB version will come with 3 GB of RAM . What caused such discrimination is not clear.

Appearance and design

LG G3 looks, in my opinion, quite original. This effect is achieved due to the very thin side frames of the screen, the "forehead" and "chin" above and below the screen are also very small. I think that I will not be mistaken if I say that in terms of the ratio of screen area to the area of ​​​​the front panel, the G3 ranks first among smartphones available today.

The back cover of the device is plastic. A transparent varnish is applied to the inner layer with a “metal-like” texture. It looks good, fingerprints are almost invisible, but there are fears that the varnish will be scratched.

In a large male hand LG G3 lies comfortably. Personally, I didn’t like the slippery back cover, otherwise the grip is on the level. There are no buttons on the side faces, which means that it is also impossible to accidentally press them.

All buttons - namely, the volume and power / lock keys - are located on the back. This solution was first used in the G3 predecessor - LG G2 smartphone. On the G3, the keys are textured to make them easier to find on the rear panel by touch. I confess that I personally am not used to such an arrangement of buttons, but many of my friends say that it is more convenient than the keys on the side faces.

At the top end of the LG G3 there is nothing but an infrared transmitter and one of the two microphones. Below is a second microphone, a micro-USB connector and a headphone output.

Personally, I was interested in comparing the LG G3 with samsung galaxy S5. In my opinion, the LG flagship looks definitely more interesting: with equal dimensions, it has a noticeably larger screen, better technical characteristics and a more pleasant appearance. Although from a tactile point of view, I like the SGS5 rear panel material (matte plastic) more.

By the way, under the lid, the LG G3 and Galaxy S5 reveal an amazing similarity. I'm talking about the placement of contacts for wireless charging, speaker, battery... Even the SIM and memory card slots are placed in the same way - butt on top of each other!

Screen

The LG G3 was the first smartphone with a QuadHD (2560x1440 pixels) screen resolution to reach our editors, so we approached the examination of the screen quality with particular predilection. The 5.5-inch matrix is ​​made using IPS technology (LG itself calls it “True HD-IPS”) and is protected by Gorilla Glass 3.

Immediately I confess honestly - I did not notice much difference between QuadHD and FullHD. If you look closely at the screen at close range, you can see that on the LG G3 (pixel density 534 ppi), the picture looks smoother than on the Galaxy S5 (432 ppi) or Nexus 5 (445 ppi), but if you do not crawl on the display with your nose, then you can't see anything. Moreover, even when shooting the screen at zoom, the difference is not striking, although you can see that the SGS5 display (AMOLED with PenTile) has less clarity than the IPS screens in the LG G3 and Nexus 5.

Left to right: LG G3, Samsung Galaxy S5, LG Nexus 5

But what really catches the eye is the incomprehensible effect of sharpening, which for some reason is applied to the text displayed on the screen. As a result, on any background other than white, the letters have thin white borders. This is very noticeable and makes it almost impossible to comfortably read text on the LG G3 screen.

The phone records videos quite well, and optical image stabilization helps to smooth out hand shake. True, our copy of the smartphone (pre-production) had some problems with sound recording.

Video shooting examples:

Smartphone LG G3 - review

But there is no WOW effect here: if the average user is not told that two smartphones have different resolutions above, he will not notice this. Moreover, here we are talking about "Android", which scales the image approximately the same at different resolutions, so only by the clarity of the output of the letters you can understand that the resolutions are still different. When displaying large photos, yes, the difference is already more noticeable. It is also noticeable when outputting 4K videos. But even then, if you know what to pay attention to. As a result, I am ready to confirm the idea that experts expressed even before the smartphone entered the market: QUAD HD resolution is not necessary at all, and many people simply won’t notice much difference compared to FullHD when using it. And then why release such displays, which also eat the battery, like an inspector at a funeral? However, let's talk about the battery. Well, here, by the way, compliments to the Android system: no matter how manufacturers pervert with display resolutions, the system normally scales everything at the steepest resolution values. Smartphone operation During the initial setup of the device, the smartphone prompts you to immediately set the so-called Knock Code - this is a set of touches on predefined parts of the screen to unlock. Something like a digital password, but based on touches to certain zones (four). You set the number of touches yourself. They can be from three to eight.

Also, G3 immediately offers to choose a color and a set of on-screen buttons. (What I really, really like about LG.) And here you can put up to five on-screen buttons, where notifications, quick notes, mini-applications and dual windows are also available for turning on.

Well, here is the main display with widgets, folders and icons.

Here one of the innovations is smart notifications (Smart Notice).

These smart notifications are configurable. They can relate to new contacts, various reminders, and so on. The thing, in my opinion, is not very necessary and is unlikely to be in demand.

A special desktop (disabled) with an LG Health widget (fixing user activity) and smart tips, where in fact there are just three videos about using new features.

Second desktop.

By the way, if you do not turn on the "looping" of desktops, then when you try to scroll to the left, the last desktop image is slightly stretched, like a rubber one. It looks very funny.

Notification area.

The set and order of quick settings icons is, of course, editable.

Applications installed on the system.

List of recently run tasks.

When you click on the "Double window" button, you can select two applications that will simultaneously be on the screen.

Here, for example, the browser and maps.

Customization of desktops and home screen.

Blocking window.

Desktop themes can be customized: both the design and icons change there. For example, the Paradise theme.

And here is another very popular topic.

It is also possible to add another key with an arbitrary character to the right of the space - I added a comma there, which I really missed.

Also on the lower keys, with a long press, you can select a character from the character part.

Here you can also enter words by sliding on the desired keys - this mode is called Path Input. Additional dictionaries are available for word substitution for each of the languages. The keyboard can also be divided into two parts under the control of the thumbs and grouped on the left or right side of the screen for typing with one hand. In general, an excellent keyboard, I really liked it. phone application Favorite contacts.

Incoming call.

Conversation with a subscriber.

The phone application works well: the sound is loud, clear, subscribers heard me without problems. The noise reduction system when talking in a noisy environment really helps to better distinguish my voice - we tested it. Contacts, like some other system applications, can be turned into a mini-application using a special icon - the so-called QSlide. These are windowed applications that can be moved around the screen, resized, and so on.

Message menu. As you can see, very interesting possibilities are available here.

Scheduling a message to send is very useful.

Spam blocking.

Messages, like phone calls, can come in the form of small pop-up windows (this is configurable).

Menu for working with images.

Create a collage.

Image editing.

Sorted by albums.

Playback.

The equalizer works well, but it affects the sound level - it becomes quieter.

Custom equalizer setting.

From exotic - you can adjust the tone and speed.

Listening menu.

Now about the sound quality. The manufacturer claims that it uses a speaker with a power of one watt, provided by a built-in amplifier. The sound is really louder than the LG G2, while quite high quality and clear. The speaker (only one) is located on the back cover, and when the phone is, for example, on the table, the sound is muffled a little. The range is lousy, everything is very flat, and even with the help of an equalizer normal sound not achieve. I listened in good headphones (Monster Diesel). Fine, four. Good bass, there is volume, but rather poor highs. However, here the equalizer just helped to improve the sound. Video The videos here are played up to 4K, and, interestingly, even with software decoding, the 4K video is played without jerks. Well, the quality is appropriate, excellent.

I tuned it to my TV - it seemed to work.

But he doesn’t make much impression: he doesn’t understand media players, projectors, and so on, so true universality cannot be achieved here. Notes Note service: text, pictures and so on.

By the way, it works well.

Quiet mode is a very useful feature.

Types of screen lock. From the exotic - face control and the already considered Knock Code.

From the lock screen, you can quickly navigate to a note or to the camera.

Calling a double window on the "Return" button.

Smart phone cleaning.

Backup settings: it is especially convenient here that the system can save both the desktop view and application data.

Basic settings in the form of icons.

shooting modes.

Well, now we look at examples of photos. (All photos are clickable.) Very dark corridor. ISO 350 (noise is already showing through), shutter speed 1/12. A little knocked down by BB, but there was no movement.
It's also a dark corner. Everything is good here.


Very natural colors and excellent quality.

Back at home with natural light.





This is with HDR.
This is without HDR.









Text clarity.
Evening with HDR.

Very cloudy and evening. The conditions are difficult, and the quality, in my opinion, is simply excellent.


Even later.
Quite night. At night, of course, on such a matrix - it floats and makes noise, but nevertheless you can live. For a smartphone - generally good, as I think. By the way, there is a built-in noise reduction - its work can be seen in the photo below. The noise reduction, of course, "soaps" the picture.

An example of shooting video in 4K. When viewing, set the maximum quality and pay attention to detail. I think she's just amazing. I will say right away, in my opinion - this is the best camera I have ever seen in smartphones. (Excluding Nokia Lumia 1020, which, for a number of reasons, stands apart.) There are two focusing systems here - laser (active) and traditional contrast. Laser focusing works as follows: a sensor placed next to the camera sends a lot of laser beams that are reflected and returned back, after which the system, based on this data, produces precise focusing. It really works very quickly, and the camera is pointed very accurately. In addition, if the result of focusing on several points did not suit you, you can simply poke your finger at desired point, after which the appropriate focus will be made and the picture will be taken. So the first moment is fast and accurate focusing. 80, blurring of the frame may already appear) - there is no blurring there. And here you can already take one frame of each plot (in LG Flex I did 3-5 of them, and there was a wild percentage of marriage), without fear that there will be a marriage. Of the hundreds of photos taken during the test series, I did not have any marriage at all. And there the shooting was also under very poor lighting conditions. The third point is the work of HDR. For most modern smartphones, how does HDR (high dynamic range) work? The smartphone takes three shots with different exposures, then "glues" them together. It takes time - usually about three seconds. Here you set the shooting in HDR - and it does not differ in speed from normal shooting. But at the same time, you really get a frame in HDR, where shadows are well developed in contrasting lighting. In general, I really, really liked this camera. I won’t lie, the Galaxy S5 also has an excellent camera (and it can do HDR in the same mode), but here the camera is still cooler - primarily with faster focusing. Time battery life With battery life, some problems were expected here. The LG G2 had an excellent battery life - the best among almost all flagships. In LG G3, the battery has remained almost the same, and the display resolution has increased markedly. And the fool understands that such a display from a battery of the same capacity will live less. LG, however, assured that new algorithms were applied here with energy consumption, so it would live at least as long, and among the reviews of the first users, the battery life was criticized by everyone. That's what happened to me. Internet. Wireless communications are turned on, the brightness level is set to a comfortable 70%, the page is reloaded in the browser every half minute. 7 hours 30 minutes. It sucks, the LG G2 has almost 11 hours. Video. Wireless communications are turned off, the brightness level is set to a comfortable 80%, in the player with hardware decoding, the TV resolution series is spinning in a cycle. 8 hours 30 minutes. The LG G2 has 15 hours and 30 minutes. In general, compared to the previous model, the performance is a little shitty, almost half as much. However, the smartphone survived until the evening even with active use. Two day he, of course, will not live in any way (in active mode), but one lives normally. Moreover, I carried the Samsung Galaxy S5 and LG G3 with me for two days, and used them alternately - that is, I gave them approximately the same load. So, in the evening they had a very similar charge level. So the conclusion is as follows: unlike the LG G2, the smartphone does not set any records, but the batteries are enough even for such a screen for one active working day, there is no tragedy here. Well, let me remind you that there is a removable battery, so nothing prevents you from buying a spare and carrying it with you - just in case a fireman. Performance Some reviewers wrote that the system could not cope with this display - they say, lags were noticeable when scrolling through desktops and windows with applications. I didn’t notice anything like that - everything works smoothly and quickly. According to the tests, AnTuTu gave out 29,666 - it gave out 26,716 for my LG G2. And then you also have to manage to work with such a resolution.

Purely by eye - there are no problems with performance here, everything works quickly and smartly. Accessories For this smartphone, you can purchase the LG WCD-100 wireless charger. I already ordered it, but it has not arrived yet.

Just like the LG G2, this smartphone comes with a tricky color-matching QuickCircle case that closed in a round window can show special applications.

I bought such a cover for LG G2 - it just rolls around in a drawer, I don't like covers. Observations at work and conclusions I, as I said, do not yet have a particularly great experience with this smartphone. The only thing I noticed during testing is that under a noticeable load, the back cover in the camera area heats up, but not at all to very annoying values. So, warmed up. Now my conclusions regarding this device. I can say that I liked the smartphone very much. I liked the look, excellent image quality, excellent text clarity (however, I can’t say that there were any complaints about this in the LG G2), very good software with a lot of flexible settings, and the best camera I have ever seen on android smartphones. But one of the unconditional pluses - a very high-quality and clear display - is also a minus, because with such a display on a 3000 mAh battery, of course, a smartphone lives noticeably less than the LG G2. I still think that developers should release this smartphone in the FullHD version. Yes, then it would not differ so much from the LG G2 (although there would still be a lot of differences), but it would be a very balanced device. In this case, it seems that the QUAD HD resolution was made more for marketing reasons. Although, I repeat, yes, it does, the difference can be seen. But only if you know what to look for and look very closely. Nevertheless, I am not disappointed with the smartphone at all, now I will use it as the main phone and see what else, maybe it will come out. Sorry that, contrary to usual, I was in a hurry to write review, but I really wanted to study it right away. And once I studied it, I need a review, the cat Bublik told me sternly.

The next-generation Korean smartphone has seriously matured, acquired new features, packed into a new design and got rid of childhood illnesses, which, in principle, did not really exist. And here for the first time there is no looking back at other market players. Obviously, LG realized that Samsung should borrow in Lately there is nothing special and decided to create their own self-sufficient design from their point of view and their own branded shell. The latter, by the way, turned out to be very pleasant and comfortable.

G2 at the start of sales could be purchased for 24,990 rubles. It was a very competitive offer at the time. From the updated version of the smartphone, no one expected the same price, although, I will not hide, there was still a faint hope before the announcement. The device entered the market with a price tag of 29,990 rubles and had already managed to drop several thousand by the time this review was published. The main competitors are still holding the price bar. I mean, of course, and .

However, a smartphone from LG in official retail is now sold for 26,990 rubles.

It is clear that every manufacturer, like that sandpiper from the swamp, considers their device to be the best, and the Koreans are actively trying to push us to choose their product. I propose to take everything apart on the shelves using the example of my operating experience for two months and decide whether the game is worth the candle.

Equipment

The smartphone kit is not rich in delivery. In the box, in addition to the device itself, you can find a power supply, a microUSB cable and branded booklets.

There is no, even the worst headset in the package, alas. Such is the economy.

Appearance and ergonomics

On the example of G3, it is clear that LG puts on design and materials - these are important components of a modern smartphone. How else? Compared to its predecessor, significant work has been done on the appearance of the device. True, they did not forget about the economy either. From the front, the device is not much different from other devices. There is already an established block design concept here. The frames around the display have remained minimal, they have become a little wider than in their predecessor. Not critical.

Under the display there is a blank plate with a company logo. There are no touch buttons here, they are transferred to the display. I keep saying it's inconvenient. First, the virtual keys eat away at the working space of the display. Not a crime, but still. Secondly, there are no system control buttons in the Camera application. Instead, only one single "Back" key is available. Because of this, you cannot instantly exit the program to the desktop. First you have to return to the application that was open before launching the camera, and then click on the image of the "House".

But the virtual control panel can be customized.

Above the screen is an elongated grid of the voice speaker, to the left of which are: a proximity sensor, an ambient light sensor, a front camera and an LED indicator are already closer to the opposite corner.

The light sensor behaves interestingly in the sun. When exposed to direct sunlight, the smartphone screen remains unreadable for about 3 seconds, after which the corresponding sensor is activated and the backlight is brought to the maximum level. Only at the highest brightness of the display, the information on it becomes readable.

There are beveled edges on the top and bottom of the front side, and a barely noticeable plastic rim is located around the perimeter of the entire front side. The latter is made specifically to protect the glass from contact with the surface when the smartphone is face down.

The back of the case looks much more interesting. Under certain angles and under appropriate lighting, the surface of the battery cover is indistinguishable from metal with a special treatment. The bottom line is that a special metallized coating is used.

Of course, there is no special chill inherent in metal, but the surface is pleasant and, moreover, it looks good. So far, only two colors are available for sale: black and white silk. And very soon, models with other colors will hit the market: purple, red burgundy and, of course, gold.

By the way, the back cover is now removable. A removable battery is located under the cover, which provides access to the SIM card. Accordingly, there is no hot swap. The memory card is located above the SIM card slot, so it can be easily removed without turning off the device.

LG is not going to abandon the control buttons located on the back cover. On the contrary, here their design has been improved. The volume keys have a concave shape, while the screen power button, on the contrary, protrudes above the surface of the smartphone. Quite a bit, but not as it was in the previous flagship of the company.

The entire navbar has shrunk, although the usability of the buttons has increased. Taking screenshots (volume down button + power button) has become much more convenient thanks to this. By the way, the protruding plastic transition from the camera's eye to the buttons is always the first to come into contact with the surface, which is why it scratches noticeably and looks completely obscene.

Above the smartphone control unit is the rear camera eye, covered with sapphire crystal. To the left of the camera there is a dark window, which hides the laser responsible for focusing. When you launch the camera application, you can notice its reddish flicker. On the other side of the photomodule there is a dual LED flash. In theory, it should provide normal skin color in photos taken in the dark. A terrible greenish tint of the face should not be.

There is also a hole in the back of the main speaker. Not a very correct location in terms of the distribution of the sound stream, but in practice I did not notice any deterioration in sound.

From the sides, the smartphone is devoid of any elements. A single silver frame is noticeable, which borders the device around the entire perimeter.

Is that on the right side there is a recess for opening the back cover. Due to this, it is easily removed. In the same Samsung Galaxy S5, it is very difficult to detach the battery cover. Shoot it the way you want. Not so in G3.

In the middle of the bottom edge there is a microUSB port, to the left of which there is a microphone hole and a 3.5 mm audio jack.

On top there is a hole for another microphone and an infrared port eye for controlling household and other appliances.

The dimensions of the device are best compared with the main competitors of the G3 in the following table:

The Korean smartphone seemed a bit wide to me. From the comparison above, it is clearly seen that it is indeed the widest device among the current flagships. In my opinion, in this regard, HTC One has the most comfortable dimensions. Nevertheless, our editor Irina Shubina, on the contrary, liked the device to the fullest.

Otherwise, the smartphone also turned out rather big. If the G2 had a relatively compact size and gave the impression of a kind of small and nimble device, then the G3 became noticeably larger. It is sometimes difficult to control the device with one hand. This is especially true for typing or turning off the Camera application, when reaching the back key is really difficult.

To this end, the smartphone is pre-installed with the possibility of detailed control settings for one hand for both left-handers and right-handers.

First, you can customize the location of the system control buttons at the bottom of the screen.

Secondly, it is possible to move the keyboard, dialer to the left or to the right side of the device.

Thirdly, you can place a special virtual button anywhere on the screen, by clicking on which a pre-added list of applications is activated. Activation of special sensory zones and so on is provided. Feel the scope!

All these additional settings slightly improve the situation with ergonomics. A pleasant nod from the manufacturer towards the consumer.

Smartphone display

The screen is covered with protective glass Gorilla Glass 3, which provides protection against scratches and good resistance to fingerprints. However, scratches and grease marks still appear on the glass surface over time. Considering this, it is better to use some kind of protective film and try to be careful in using the device. There is another alternative - the QuickCircle case, which we will return to later.

The display has a diagonal of 5.5 inches with an actual resolution of 2560 by 1440 pixels. Let me take a digression. 2009 Apple released an updated line desktop computers iMac just with the same resolution. At that time, of course, they were not pioneers, but monitors with the same resolution cost about two-thirds of the price of a computer from an apple corporation. Now, of course, the situation has changed. The year is 2014, and smartphones have already caught up with advanced desktop screens in terms of their characteristics.

The pixel density value is 534 dpi. Of course, this is a record figure, but in practice, 90 percent of people will not be able to distinguish the FullHD display from the QHD installed in the G3. The purest water race for numbers and nothing more.

I am glad that LG strives not only for quantity, but also does not forget about quality. The smartphone uses a matrix built using IPS + technology, which provides very good color richness and contrast. There are no bright acid colors typical of Samsung smartphones. Shades are close to natural.

I think the display installed in the LG G3 can safely be considered one of the best on the market.

Viewing angles are maximum. There are no shortcomings in this parameter.

Performance and Specifications

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 2.5 GHz processor (4 cores)
• video chip Adreno 330
• 16 or 32 GB memory (eMMC ROM) + microSD card slot (up to 128GB)
• RAM in 2 or 3 GB (DDR3 RAM)
• 5.5" display with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels, based on an IPS + matrix (Quad HD, 538 ppi)
• 13 megapixel main camera (OIS + optical stabilization and laser autofocus)
• front camera 2.1 MP
• removable (and this is a victory, friends!) 3,000 mAh battery
• sensors: accelerometer, light sensor, proximity sensor
• OS Android 4.4.2 KitKat
• dimensions: 146.3 x 74.6 x 8.9 mm and weight 149 g

Networks and interfaces:

• 4G (LTE), 3G (HSDPA), 2G (GSM)
• WiFi (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac),
• Bluetooth 4.0
• NFC, SlimPort, MHL
• A-GPS / Glonass,
• USB 2.0, OTG

In our market, a version is available with 16 GB of memory allocated for data storage and 2 GB used as RAM. It's a little disappointing that domestic consumers are not as highly valued as consumers in other markets. Those who wish to purchase the maximum version can search for sellers of gray goods on the network. The main mass (at least 95% of all users) will be satisfied with the younger version.

Yes, the device has up-to-date technical specifications, easily copes with content of any weight and resolution (we are talking about 4K video), flies in all menus and opens applications with lightning speed, but there is still one caveat.

As expected, I set up a bare smartphone from scratch for all my tasks and needs. I installed a lot of the software I needed, activated about a dozen different accounts, etc. The longer I used the device, accumulated content on it, the harder the G3 became to work. The interface began to twitch, the desktop with all the widgets and icons began to load for about 4-5 seconds after each pressing the Home button. The camera recorded pictures for as long as five seconds and, therefore, during this period of time the device did not react to anything. To draw a parallel, the G3 reminded me of a PC with Windows XP installed on it. The more programs installed, the longer it took to load and the more the system performance dropped.

The situation was cured by a complete reset and setting up the device again. Google backup got everything back installed applications in place, the rest had to be adjusted manually. After a short recovery procedure, the G3 again looked like a modern flagship, and not like a noname-Chinese for 1500+ rubles.

I find it difficult to answer what was the matter. Now the device works as it should. It is my duty to tell you everything as it is and to warn you even about the unlikely, but still possible option development of events.

At the end of the section, I provide screenshots of synthetic tests of the smartphone.

LG G3 camera

For this feature G3 can fall in love at first sight. In short, the photos are of very good quality, the video detail leaves no questions, and the camera interface is not overloaded with useless settings and shooting modes. There are disadvantages, but the pros still outweigh.

Let's figure it out. The rear camera is a 13MP f/2.4 aperture module, which is equipped with a laser focusing system and improved (compared to G2) optical image stabilization (OIS+). The first function migrated to the smartphone from professional cameras and allows the device to quickly focus on objects, mainly in poor lighting conditions. The beam estimates the distance from the camera's eye to the object being photographed. LG claims that the focusing speed is 0.27 seconds. There was no way to check this. We believe in the word.

Optical stabilization does not need to be specially activated from the menu, since the system works always and everywhere. To be honest, it’s strange for me to see such a slider in the settings of smartphones from other companies. Of course, as a user, I want to always have excellent, not blurry pictures. Why should I go into the settings and turn off this feature in this case? Let it be enabled by default!

By the way, the photo application interface is devoid of many popular (from manufacturers) settings and shooting modes. Everything is done very ascetically and as accessible as possible. There is no such horror that can be observed in the settings for the camera in the Samsung Galaxy S5. LG left only the most necessary parameters and relied on the study of the automatic mode, which copes well with most shooting scenarios. No night portrait, cloudy landscape or sport mode here.

There are some things that are not so obvious. How does this happen in smartphones from other companies? In the parameters there is a lever that activates the ability to focus and release the camera shutter with a single tap on the screen. In G3, you will not find such a setting anywhere in the menu. To take a photo with one tap on the display, you need to hide all elements of the camera interface.

Otherwise, photos are taken by pressing the corresponding virtual button.

The output photos have a maximum resolution of 4160×3120 pixels (4:3).

I suggest that you familiarize yourself with examples of smartphone photographs in the most various conditions shooting.

The front camera (2.1 MP) takes pictures at a resolution of 1920 × 1080 pixels. The front sensor writes video in a similar resolution. There are two main features that I want to talk about. Firstly, the shutter release while photographing a loved one(s) is carried out using the palm of your hand. Everything happens as follows: an open palm must be entered into the camera's field of view, wait until the sensor recognizes the palm (turquoise frames for capturing the hand appear) and then clench the brush into a fist. You will have 3 seconds to build the correct mine and try not to fill up the horizon. The setting works with a bang, misses happen only in difficult lighting conditions.

The second is taking selfies in the dark. To do this, in the settings you need to activate the skin color backlight. Most of the screen becomes soft pink, and the backlight is brought to the maximum by the smartphone. Thus, the screen plays the role of a flash sufficient for shooting in poor lighting conditions. The chip is aimed primarily at creating portraits in almost complete darkness. You should not expect miracles, but the effect is still there.

We will touch on the nuances of photographing on the G3 in a separate article. In the same place, we will analyze in detail the various modes of the smartphone’s camera, delve into the available settings and, in general, look at beautiful photos. The review will appear on the site as soon as possible.

Video can be recorded in normal resolution (1920×1080 pixels) or in UHD format (3840×2160). It's certainly not 4K, but very close. The frame rate varies from 30 to 120 fps.

Separately, it is worth adding that I liked the focusing speed during video recording and the recording quality of the audio stream. Everything can be evaluated independently by the following examples:

Sound

The built-in speaker has a power of 1 watt and an additional amplifier. This is exactly what is stated in the official specifications. Yes, the device is really loud. There is even a slight vibration on the back cover. However, all this does not affect the sound quality. Still, the once super-popular Motorola E398 has been surpassed by few so far.

The quality of playback through headphones is at the usual level for any modern smartphone. Now for this parameter, almost all modern devices is in the same row. It does not matter what kind of device is used as a player. Many smartphones and tablets have already learned to produce a more or less similar sound picture. There are no shortcomings in this regard in LG G3.

Of the additional enhancements, I liked the Pure surround setting the most. It makes the sound more interesting, but this is only in my subjective opinion. Otherwise, there are standard audio presets, including a seven-band equalizer.

As for the rest of the features, everything is very standard here. There is support for playlists, broadcasting the audio stream to other devices, perhaps that's all. This time, LG does not place any emphasis on sound quality with the help of various third-party forces. I mean the Vienna Boys' Choir, whose voices and compositions were used to promote G2.

The maximum volume is equal to 80% of the top value in the same iPhone.

Battery

The device has a removable battery with a capacity of 3000 mAh. Obviously, LG took into account the opinion of those users who are still not satisfied with the non-removable battery for some reason. I don’t know what you can look at under the lid, but the manufacturer was not too lazy to meet this very small layer of consumers. In itself, this move says a lot about the corporation. Maybe the reason for such a step lies in something else, but let's hope for the best.

Fully charging the battery takes about two hours. The entire battery capacity can easily be used up in one day. It is enough to make several five-minute calls a day, spend a couple of hours on the Internet via Wi-Fi, use navigation for two hours, take a couple of dozen photos using the built-in camera. With this mode, already at ten o'clock in the evening the device will have about 20% of the battery charge. During the night, the smartphone loses about 10% more capacity. Is this the norm? For a smartphone with a display of five and a half inches and a monstrous resolution, this, in my opinion, is at least not bad. The manufacturer, for its part, assures that the metal in the cathode of the battery is replaced by graphite, which in the dry residue should give good results in the battery's energy capacity. This is how it looks in theory.

In practice, we have comparable autonomy G3 relative to its competitors.

Of course, there is a power saving mode. You can activate it from the settings. In this case, the smartphone disables auto-sync, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, vibration on touch, LED indicator, and more. Nothing special.

By the way, during the long testing of the G3, I noticed one feature that relates to battery life. After a full charge and reaching 100%, the battery, of course, begins to discharge. However, the charge drops to 99% only after 5-10 minutes of active use of the device. In the future, the energy consumption is displayed correctly and each percentage is spent in equal periods of time with the same intensive use. It reminded me of the times when Nokia reigned almost undividedly. The charge, measured at that time in sticks, began to melt quite actively when the battery reached a real 50 percent capacity. Up to this point, all the full 5-6 divisions were usually on. The hero of our review has about the same thing, but, of course, not on such a scale. Frankly speaking, I haven't seen such behavior in a long time.

Software Features

We're done with the hardware, let's move on to the software. In this regard, LG has done a great job.

Firstly, the proprietary shell has been completely redesigned. From subscriber icons to sliders in the built-in player. The interface has acquired a fashionable now flat design, but the shadows from the objects still remain. It's funny that the Koreans moved to a simplistic design earlier than Google did with its annoyed Android L.

The colors have changed to softer ones, pastel shades. The only thing that is not entirely clear to me is why some icons (Internet browser, contacts) became round, while the rest (messages, camera) remained square. It is clear that purely Google applications cannot be redone, but their own programs could be adjusted to the general concept.

Knock code- a great feature, thanks to which the smartphone screen can be unlocked by double tapping on its surface.

The setting works well, but misses still happen quite often.

Several times the device completely refused to respond to double touches, until I activated the screen with the power button. In the previous flagship of the company (G2), the chip was debugged much better. I used both smartphones for quite a long time, so I have something to compare.

Smart Tips- these are special tips, thanks to which the user can visually get acquainted with the main features of the new device, of course, if he has not read our review. Hints annoyingly make their way to the main screen and over time become rather annoying. After viewing them, they do not disappear anywhere and remain hanging on the desktop, located to the left of the main screen. Their main purpose is to refer to training texts and videos on how to interact with the device. No more.

LG is actively promoting new system smart notifications Smart Notice, thanks to which the device independently decides, depending on the time of day, location or behavior of the owner, what can be offered or advised to its owner. For all the time of use, G3 notified me about activity in the LG Health application, offered to add an unknown number to contacts, and once indicated that I needed to take an umbrella from home, as precipitation was expected. Everything is quite predictable and understandable. How did we all live without these notifications before?

Now it is very fashionable among manufacturers to develop their own not even applications, but entire software nodes for processing user activity and presenting them in a digestible form. In G3, such a center is called . Here information is collected about the distance traveled, calories burned depending on the exercises, and so on.

Of course, it is possible to present information in the form of graphs for various periods of time.

Step counting is extremely accurate. For a hundred real steps that I counted out loud, there are about 2-3 mistakes on the part of the Korean miracle. This is very good result, which developers of pedometers from Play Store. Bracelets don't count. Where to store the smartphone, in a bag or in a pocket, it does not matter.

Among other things, the health utility can build tracking on the city map. During movement recording, all other information about the user's activity is collected and it depends on the type of training. The resulting data, of course, can be shared in all possible ways. One can only hope that your friends from the contact list will be interested in seeing your achievements.

I really like the ability to select before pasting what I had previously copied.

LG has provided a special clipboard, where in addition to the already copied text, also photos and other files are stored. When pasting, you can select either the last copied text, or refer to the memory buffer. In my opinion, very handy thing, which is lacking in general for all modern mobile devices.

Miracle Keyboard

In all press releases, the South Korean company emphasized the unique keyboard in its 2014 flagship. Its main features are adaptability to the input method and features of a particular user, it is possible to change the size of the keys and change the height of the keyboard block, as well as several other customization options.

I did not notice any special learning ability that later helps when entering text. Maybe it's because I mostly use the swype method (Path input) to enter text. In the options menu, you can set the degree of autocorrection from moderate to active. My nerves are dear to me, so I decided to stop at a moderate option.

Special thanks to the manufacturer for the ability to change the height of the block of virtual buttons and for the line with numbers.

On the same iPhone, you experience significant inconvenience when you need to enter an alphanumeric password and constantly switch the keyboard to the mode for entering letters and signs. It's all right here!

In the keyboard settings, you can add several frequently used punctuation marks. I understand that a fairly impressive mass of people categorically do not recognize the comma, but I still got used to inserting other punctuation marks in addition to the period in sentences. Of course, it will not work to shove all the punctuation into the area of ​​​​virtual buttons, but adding a comma to the dot is easy! Again, thanks to LG.

Among other things, you can choose a keyboard theme (black or white). Perhaps that's all. Some convenient chips have appeared, but it feels like there is still room for work. In a good way.

Appendix messages has detailed settings for receiving and storing correspondence, but now it has lost the ability to be customized by the user. In the same G2, it was possible to change the background in the correspondence, as well as choose alternative clouds for dialogues.

It is an application that can be accessed both from the menu and by long pressing the volume increase button. Here you can draw by hand, make typing notes, insert images and more.

- this special application from the manufacturer for automatic cleaning of various debris in the system. It replaces a lot of third-party "task managers" quite well.

LG continues to support the feature guest mode. If necessary, you can set up, so to speak, an additional account, which anyone can enter when unlocking the smartphone with a specially prepared guest key. A curious person will see only those applications that the owner of the smartphone has previously allowed to be shown in the mode settings.

Now G3 is equipped with a two-window mode of viewing programs. Everything is simple here. Holding down the Back key activates a menu from which you can drag a predefined program to the top or bottom of the screen. Landscape orientation is fully supported. We have already seen this in Samsung smartphones, now other Koreans have pulled themselves up.

As it should be, LG's smartphone is pre-installed with a proprietary application designed to control various consumer electronics. The interface is user-friendly, initial setup is quick and painless. Pressing the virtual buttons are accompanied by distinct sound signals.

As before, the company took care of adding its own file manager. It is made in a simple design, has the most necessary functions for working with files, and presents files in a convenient and visual form by category (images, music, etc.) or by their storage locations.

Captured photographs can be easily edited in the built-in image processor. The editor is saturated with a variety of settings, has a lot of different ready-made filters in stock (not Instagram cheat) and in general does everything quickly and very efficiently. For many, this feature will be a good help as a refinement of the shots taken without the use of third-party unfortunate applications or a stationary PC. He took it off, tightened the colors, put it on the network, collected a bunch of likes - well done!

At the end of the section on software features, I want to give examples of screenshots of other applications of the system: calendar, calculator, alarm clock, etc.

Accessories

Together with the flagship, LG decided to throw additional gadgets specialized for the smartphone into the market. The cover case and wireless charging are the main accessories that can diversify the already boring interaction with the G3.

Case QuickCircle

The window became round, a metal edging appeared, and along with the new shell, the device interface was also updated, which is activated when the cover is closed. The surface of the plastic case, as well as the body of the smartphone, plays like a metal, but differs in more pronounced transverse stripes.

There are many colors to choose from: black, white, pink, light turquoise and, of course, gold. In addition, QuickCircle is available with or without wireless charging support (installed instead of the back cover of the device).

All icons accessible through the case window have now become round to match the overall concept of the shell and accessory. In standby mode, a widget with a clock and weather is installed. In the settings, you can choose from nine pre-installed watch themes.

As before, there was access to the audio player, messages, and the telephone part of the device. In addition, when the cover is closed, you can shoot photos through a special round viewfinder. In mass retail, an accessory that is friendly with wireless charging can be purchased for 1,990 rubles, and conventional model will cost 1,790 rubles.

Wireless charger

It's so special plastic stand which folds easily for portability. The color is exclusively white, but in theory there is also a black variation of the device. According to rumors, only a 2 Amp adapter ensures the normal operation of the accessory. Unfortunately, in practice, it was not possible to check how the G3 interacts with the device, since at the moment it is very difficult to find this accessory.

Outcome

The appearance of the G3 was awaited with special hopes by both fans of the company and people who had once tried the previous Korean flagship. After for long years uncertainties LG still found themselves and released a very worthy smartphone at a more than competitive price of 24,990 rubles. I mean G2. The current flagship competes with devices from other manufacturers almost head-on. However, the price of 26,990 rubles can play in favor of a smartphone from LG.

Yes, there are certain reservations here that cannot be considered shortcomings in the full sense. You need to get used to the dimensions of the device, but it is possible that the smartphone will fit perfectly in your hand. You have to try on your own. There are software-level orges, but perhaps they should not be taken seriously. Personally, the only thing missing in the G3 is moisture protection.

It is clear that the second major Korean player in this market is catching up with Samsung. It is simply impossible not to compare these two manufacturers. However, if things continue like this, LG will definitely do well. At least I really hope so, as a company that can create such devices deserves it.

Is the LG G3 the best flagship of 2014?

Ideal, as you know, does not exist. So the G3 is still afraid of liquids and dust. Otherwise, taking into account the significantly lower cost compared to competitors, a smartphone from LG can be safely recommended for purchase. Then it will be your best choice for this year.

This is a beautiful and powerful, but quite expensive smartphone. Many users simply do not need extra "bells and whistles". Especially for them, LG introduced a smaller version of the flagship - LG G3s. The smartphone received a similar design, a slightly smaller screen, trimmed specifications and twice as much low price. Whether those who decided to save money will not lose, Vesti.Hitek found out.

The version with the letter "s" differs from the flagship LG G3 in many ways. In fact, these are two completely different phones, in which, apart from a similar design, there is practically nothing in common. According to the characteristics of G3s, this is a fairly typical "average". Technologically, it has in common with the flagship except for the high-speed laser autofocus in the camera. But first things first.

Specifications

• Screen: TFT IPS, 5-inch. Resolution - HD (1280 × 720), pixel density - 294 per inch
• Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 400, 4-core, 1.2 GHz
• Graphics accelerator: Adreno 305
• Operating system: Android 4.4
• RAM: 1 gigabyte
• Built-in memory: 8 gigabytes (3.5 gigabytes available to the user)
• Memory card support: microSD (up to 32 gigabytes)
• Internet: Wi-Fi ((b/g/n), 2G, 3G
• SIM: 2 cards supported (microSIM)
• Wireless interfaces: NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, infrared
• Navigation: A-GPS, GLONASS
• Cameras: main - 8 megapixels (LED flash, laser autofocus), front - 1.3 megapixels
• Battery: 2540 mAh
• Dimensions: 69.6 × 137.75 × 10.3
• Weight: 134 grams

Appearance

The device is an elongated plastic monoblock. The front side is completely hidden under glass. The side bezels of the display are relatively small, but quite a lot of space remains unused on the top and especially on the bottom. Above the screen we see an elongated earpiece and an LED - an indicator of charge and missed events. Next to it is a proximity sensor and a front camera. Under the display is a silver stripe with the LG logo.

The smartphone is quite thick and feels a little clumsy, however, this is concealed by a comfortable curved shape corps. There are no connectors on the side ends.

On the top end we see only a microphone hole, on the bottom there is another microphone, a microUSB input and a 3.5 mm headphone jack.

The back cover is rounded. We got a version made of dark gray plastic for review (but there is also a white one). The plastic is textured with horizontal stripes - this deepens the color, giving the lid a metallic look. A small speaker is found in the lower left corner of the back of the smartphone. In the middle of the body is a modest LG logo. The most interesting begins above - in its best traditions, the company placed the lock key and volume buttons on the back cover. They are large, with a large power reserve. Right above the buttons we see a round camera module. To the right of it is an LED flash, to the left is an infrared port.

Prying on a small notch on the right side, you can remove the back cover of the LG G3s. It is not so easy to do this, but it is for the best - it obviously will not loosen up and will not fly off. Under the cover we see a large 2540 mAh removable battery, slots for two microSIM cards and a slot for microSD.

In general, the device looks very attractive and even flagship, despite the use of plastic. LG has done a great job of making the phone look classy and has not regretted giving the "middle" design of the older model.

Ergonomics

In terms of ergonomics, the device is ambiguous. LG G3s is quite light, but its dimensions are impressive. In height, the smartphone is extended by almost 14 centimeters - this is clearly not suitable for miniature female fingers. At the same time, the phone is noticeably thick. The author of the review has rather long fingers and outstretched palms, but the ends of the smartphone in his hand were still a little cramped.

The back cover material, although it looks very nice, feels inexpensive to the touch. The plastic is rough, does not slip out of the hands, but makes the palm sweat and seems to be scratched quite easily (the device that came to us for testing is no longer new, there were several small scratches). Lacks a smartphone and solidity. The removable back cover makes the phone creak when bent and pressed.

On the other hand, the implementation of the control keys is very successful, although unusual. The unlock button is always exactly under the finger when you want to press it - you don’t have to reach anywhere, grope, and so on. It is large, with a good power reserve, does not play and clicks pleasantly. The same applies to the volume buttons.

In general, from my point of view, the device came out not the most convenient. At the same time, once you get used to it, you can use the G3s fully, without thinking too much about the slight imbalance. But for people with short palms and tiny fingers, the device is probably not worth recommending.

Screen

LG G3 s received a large 5-inch display of very good quality. The screen of the device boasts rich colors and good contrast. Viewing angles are average, with a very strong tilt, the picture is noticeably distorted, but in standard work scenarios this is not noticeable. The aspect ratio is 16:9.

HD resolution on a 5-inch display allows you to see individual pixels if you really want to. Still, ppi of 294 is not too high by modern standards. However, this will only interfere with sophisticated aesthetes - the picture still looks great if you do not move the display close to your eyes. Given not the most powerful hardware, FullHD-resolution could make the smartphone "slow-witted".

The screen brightness is average - in the rooms it will be enough in any case, however, under direct sunlight the display fades noticeably. Color reproduction is very accurate, no noticeable deviations in the RGB range could be noticed. The illumination of the IPS-matrix is ​​uniform.

Apparently, the screen is made using One Glass Solution technology - that is, without air gap. The picture is literally right under the fingers - it's nice. It was not possible to find information about which protective glass is used. It is unlikely that this is Gorilla Glass (usually manufacturers proudly write about it themselves). For obvious reasons, we did not carry out crash tests of phones, so we cannot judge the strength of the display.

I did not like the oleophobic coating. Apparently, it is present (this is noticeable by the fact that the dirt from the screen is easily washed off). However, LG seems to have saved a little on it. The device still gets smudged with fingerprints quite easily, which makes it look a bit sleazy.

Mulchitach supports up to five simultaneous clicks. In principle, this is quite enough. Of course, flagships usually support ten touches, but in reality, users almost never have such a need. I did not really like that the screen has too high sensitivity - a lot of random triggering.

Interface

The device runs on fresh Android 4.4.2, on top of which LG's own firmware is installed (pretty nice and modern looking). It is almost identical to the firmware in the flagship G3.

The smartphone interface works generally smoothly. Light lags happen, but quite rarely. The firmware is convenient and very nice - light, with rounded icons and beautiful fonts.

In principle, LG did not mock Android too much. limited to redesigning. In addition to the Android on-screen keys, a button has been added to quickly change the active SIM. Buttons can be swapped and removed as desired. The settings interface has been simplified - the icons have become large, and menu items have been systematized across four screens (unfortunately, it is not always obvious what to look for on which one).

In the sound settings, you can set your own ringtones, SMS tones and vibration modes for each SIM. You can set up many different ways to unlock the screen (face recognition, digital code, Knock Code, and so on). There is a SmartCleaning function that allows you to quickly clean your phone of unnecessary software junk.

The manufacturer preinstalled quite a lot of different software on the smartphone. In addition to the usual set of Google programs, we find here the ThinkFree Office office suite, the LG SmartWorld service with different themes and other goodness of dubious usefulness, the RemoteCall Service program for remote connection to a smartphone.

The QuickRemote program allows you to use the infrared port of your smartphone as a universal remote control for all home appliances. Really very convenient. Pre-installed a convenient and very simple note service QuickMemo+, Box cloud service client, nice client for listening to the radio, calculator, simple service for creating tasks, phone update center "over the air", convenient file manager, a beautiful application "weather" and other little things. There are many nice "chips" in the firmware - for example, to "wake up" the phone, it is not necessary to press the button, you can simply tap the display twice quickly.

Device in operation

The phone runs pretty smoothly, but there are occasional stutters. Applications do not open quite instantly, as on flagships, but with a delay - not to say that it is very big, but noticeable.

The browser works smoothly, light lags can only be on heavy pages with a lot of multimedia content. The phone without brakes plays HD-video in streaming mode.

According to the test results in benchmarks, the G3s showed quite standard results for a mid-range smartphone. According to the results of the Antutu benchmark, the smartphone scored 17,225 points, being weaker even than the Nexus 4 released in 2012. In the Chrome browser performance test, the result was slightly higher than the Samsung Galaxy S3 (also a 2012 model). Perhaps the results of synthetic tests will slightly improve subsequent versions of the firmware (in our test, the device was, apparently, not the final one), but you should not expect a cardinal increase in performance.

In the Epic Cited graphics benchmark, the average fps was set at 58.1 - thus, the smartphone does an excellent job with not too heavy 3D graphics. In the 3DMark Ice Storm test, the device scored 5647 points.

The Minion Rush 3D runner ran smoothly and without brakes. The 3D zombie shooter Dead Trigger worked fine overall, but stuttered in tight spots (like explosions).

Asphalt 8's 3D racing worked quite well, although it was also not without some hiccups. During a long game, the back cover of the device heats up significantly, but within acceptable limits, this should not cause discomfort. All 2D games worked great.

Summing up, we can say that the device is clearly not a gaming device, but for unpretentious gamers who just want to drive a little timekillers during a trip to the subway, it is quite suitable.

The main speaker is loud, but not to say that it sounds clean. You won't miss a call, but listening to music is no longer very pleasant.

Camera

LG G3s shoots quite well for a "state employee". The 8-megapixel module allows you to get decent pictures in good light. Like many phones in the middle segment, the G3s starts to noticeably fail in low light, but with some tricks, more or less suitable pictures can be taken in artificial light. Of course, there is a lot more noise, but the phone still focuses well and is not completely "blind".

Laser autofocus works quickly and this is good news. The LED flash is bright. And even though it is not too much of a help when shooting, it will work well as a flashlight - that's for sure.

In general, for the "average" camera is quite and quite good. The interface of the camera app is quite user-friendly and not overloaded with useless features.

Front "peephole" is also not bad. Perfect for video calls and selfies. The image in the viewfinder slows down a little, but the pictures are bright and (by the standards of the front cameras) quite detailed. There is a built-in skin smoothing mode that allows you to apply a "virtual foundation" on your face.

calls. Wireless interfaces

Wi-Fi also does not fall off, the Internet works quickly and without problems. used latest version Bluetooth 4.0, which allows you to connect various wearable electronics to your phone - smart bracelets, watches, and so on. The phone paired with the Jawbone bracelet without any problems.

The NFC module also works as it should - the device easily reads metro tickets and other tags. High-speed LTE Internet is not supported, but at least 3G works stably. There were no problems with navigation either - the phone quickly and practically without errors determines its location.

Offline work

The manufacturer equipped the smartphone with a 2540 mAh battery. With a relatively low processor power and the absence of a FullHD display, this is quite enough to provide a day of battery life. Of course, when recording video, downloading movies via 3G or playing productive 3D games, the phone can be discharged in just a few hours, but this is a problem with most modern devices. Half an hour of watching HD YouTube videos drained the device by 15 percent. Half an hour of playing Asphalt 8 cost about the same.

A fully discharged device charges from the mains in approximately three hours. If you use the power saving mode, the phone can work without problems for two days.

Of course, there are phones on the market with much better autonomy, but most users will not experience discomfort. If you are not a gamer or a photographer, you can safely leave the house without a recharging cord.

conclusions

Before us is a rather ordinary representative of mid-range smartphones, which LG is trying to promote due to the big name and appearance of its older brother. The design of the novelty is pleasant and even flagship - it will not be a shame to get it in front of friends. But the filling is far from the flagship one. Worth G3s on Russian market an average of 11,500 rubles (according to Yandex.Market), which is not enough for such characteristics.

On the one hand, for that kind of money you can take a "Chinese" with a much faster processor, and perhaps even a FullHD screen. On the other hand, LG is a brand of the first echelon, which is responsible for the build quality and provides the services of its service centers. This will make you feel more secure. What is more important is up to the users to decide.

Let's summarize:

pros

• Laser autofocus
• Good battery life
• Good quality display
• Availability of infrared port
• Nice firmware

Minuses

• Low performance
• Questionable ergonomics
• High price for such characteristics