The LG G3

[TechGod]

Thanks! It was about time to leave the SGS3 and upgrade! The difference is like night and day (obviously).



Yeah, I like the G2 so much that I can't stop thinking about the G3...

I'll keep thinking about it for the next few days and see what I do...

*There is a voice in Sensamic's mind that says "Get the G3 get the G3, GET THE G3!"

*Sensamanic is confused*

*the voice in Sensamic's mind only gets stronger

*Three days later he relents to the pressure and purchases the G3, he finds true love and lives happily ever after"

THE END!

 

[Sensamic]

*There is a voice in Sensamic's mind that says "Get the G3 get the G3, GET THE G3!"

*Sensamanic is confused*

*the voice in Sensamic's mind only gets stronger

*Three days later he relents to the pressure and purchases the G3, he finds true love and lives happily ever after"

THE END!

It will happen. It's only a matter of time

Having that sexy design, better build quality, bigger screen and microSD is very, very tempting.

Today was kind of a "Black Friday" sale here. There were big discounts on electronics and I went to check if there were any good deals on phones to replace my aging SGS3.

Best offer I found was the G2 for 321€, and it was actually the last G2 on the store!!

I always wanted to try the G2 so I figured I'll give it a shot. 321€ sounded like a great reason to give it a shot and now I like the phone so much but... It's 16GB only :banghead::banghead:

I usually need 32GB at least, therefore the G3 with it's microSD slot is tempting me that much... The G2 32GB isn't available here any longer, and before it was available as a carrier exclusive only.

So... My options are keep the beautiful G2 with it's 16GB or go for the G3. I have two weeks to decide...

Bets are on...

EDIT: My god......... 27 minutes with the screen on after completely charging the phone and brightness at 74% and I'm still at 100% battery!!!!

Witchcraft!!!

 

[Stingray454]

I got the G3 a few days ago too. I was chosing between M8 and G3, but opted for the G3. The metal design of the M8 is extremely nice, but the G3's "fake metal" along with its curved back makes it both good looking and nice to hold. Also, the M8 bezel was quite off-putting. The (almost non-existant) bezels on the G3 together with the screen - 0.5" more in basically the same form factor - makes it a winner imo. I came from a 4.7", so I was afraid it would feel too big, but it sure didn't. Form factor is great, you get used to it very quick and it doesn't feel large or cumbersome.

I love Sense on the HTC, but honestly, LG's software isn't bad. Maybe a tad less responsive, but not annoyingly so. It feels snappy, menus / settings / built-in apps work well and look good. I actually swapped launcher (to Nova), and it felt faster than the standard launcher. Not sure if that's the case, but overall I'm happy with the speed.

The camera is fantastic, one of the better mobile cameras out there, and definitely better than the HTC. The camera app isn't all that great perhaps, but the quality of the shots are. Big pro for the LG here.

Battery life is good. Maybe not great (5-6 hours screentime, and good standby), but it's up there with most 2014 phones. No complaints. What IS good on the other hand is the wireless charging and exchangeable battery. Great to have. Also, the back is easy to take off, which means you can change it if it gets scratched, or get a new color and pop it on in seconds without needing a case.

The only downside so far has been that my shortcut buttons (quick start camera and such) tend to activate when I have the phone in my pocket. After turning that feature off it has worked much better, but I kind of miss the shortcuts. Also, it's nice that you can place widgets on the lockscreen, but why on earth only one widget per page? If you add, say, a 2x1 widget, and then another 2x1 widget, they get a separate page each that you have to swipe between to see. Not a great solution. Also, the NFC-icon stays on constantly in the notification bar when NFC is on. Somewhat annoying.

Anyway, the annoyances are very minor stuff. Overall it's a great looking device with awesome screen and camera. Couldn't be happier, and now when I had it for a few days I played more with an M8, and now I'm positive I made the right decision. Can't recommend the phone enough.

 

[Dr McKay]

Ah yes the 5 column screen. Makes my 4 column widgets look out of place. I might give Nova a go.

 

[Fireblade]

Ah yes the 5 column screen. Makes my 4 column widgets look out of place. I might give Nova a go.

Isn't it possible to resize the widget?
Anyways, Nova launcher is the way to go.

 

[MRU]

Ah yes the 5 column screen. Makes my 4 column widgets look out of place. I might give Nova a go.

Yeah, does LG's skin not allow them to be resized ? It does look out of place.

 

[scott craft]

On the G2 widgets are resizeable, seems like the G3 would have kept that feature.

 

[aldo82]

Guys. For those of you with a G3 how are u finding the signal strenght? It seems to be running about 10dBm down on my nexus 5 and will loose reception in the middle of the building where the nexus didn't. Disappointing. Spoke to the shop and he will change it for me but are they all the same?

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By the way some widgets are resizable some aren't. The Google play music one for example can't be changed

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I got the G3 a few days ago too. I was chosing between M8 and G3, but opted for the G3. The metal design of the M8 is extremely nice, but the G3's "fake metal" along with its curved back makes it both good looking and nice to hold. Also, the M8 bezel was quite off-putting. The (almost non-existant) bezels on the G3 together with the screen - 0.5" more in basically the same form factor - makes it a winner imo. I came from a 4.7", so I was afraid it would feel too big, but it sure didn't. Form factor is great, you get used to it very quick and it doesn't feel large or cumbersome.

I love Sense on the HTC, but honestly, LG's software isn't bad. Maybe a tad less responsive, but not annoyingly so. It feels snappy, menus / settings / built-in apps work well and look good. I actually swapped launcher (to Nova), and it felt faster than the standard launcher. Not sure if that's the case, but overall I'm happy with the speed.

The camera is fantastic, one of the better mobile cameras out there, and definitely better than the HTC. The camera app isn't all that great perhaps, but the quality of the shots are. Big pro for the LG here.

Battery life is good. Maybe not great (5-6 hours screentime, and good standby), but it's up there with most 2014 phones. No complaints. What IS good on the other hand is the wireless charging and exchangeable battery. Great to have. Also, the back is easy to take off, which means you can change it if it gets scratched, or get a new color and pop it on in seconds without needing a case.

The only downside so far has been that my shortcut buttons (quick start camera and such) tend to activate when I have the phone in my pocket. After turning that feature off it has worked much better, but I kind of miss the shortcuts. Also, it's nice that you can place widgets on the lockscreen, but why on earth only one widget per page? If you add, say, a 2x1 widget, and then another 2x1 widget, they get a separate page each that you have to swipe between to see. Not a great solution. Also, the NFC-icon stays on constantly in the notification bar when NFC is on. Somewhat annoying.

Anyway, the annoyances are very minor stuff. Overall it's a great looking device with awesome screen and camera. Couldn't be happier, and now when I had it for a few days I played more with an M8, and now I'm positive I made the right decision. Can't recommend the phone enough.

On switching to nova can u still access LG health? It doesn't seem to have an app shortcut. I quite like the pedometer so would like to keep using it but the LG launcher is a bit laggy for me

 

[Stingray454]

Guys. For those of you with a G3 how are u finding the signal strenght? It seems to be running about 10dBm down on my nexus 5 and will loose reception in the middle of the building where the nexus didn't. Disappointing. Spoke to the shop and he will change it for me but are they all the same?

I haven't had any issue with signal strength. Actually, I find that both 3g/4g signal and wifi is much better than my old phone with the LG. Not that I can say anything about how many dBm it has vs other 2014 flagships, but I do enjoy the better WiFi coverage in my house. Granted, my old phone was 2 years old, so I'm not too surprised it's better.

On switching to nova can u still access LG health? It doesn't seem to have an app shortcut. I quite like the pedometer so would like to keep using it but the LG launcher is a bit laggy for me

Actually, no. I haven't found a way yet, which is quite annoying. The LG Health app looks nice, and I'm baffled it's not accessible as a stand-alone app. However I have other apps covering the functionality missing from LG Health, so I found the move to Nova to be worth it even though I can't use it anymore. And I agree, Nova feels faster than the default launcher.

 

[jamezr]

It will happen. It's only a matter of time

Having that sexy design, better build quality, bigger screen and microSD is very, very tempting.

Today was kind of a "Black Friday" sale here. There were big discounts on electronics and I went to check if there were any good deals on phones to replace my aging SGS3.

Best offer I found was the G2 for 321€, and it was actually the last G2 on the store!!

I always wanted to try the G2 so I figured I'll give it a shot. 321€ sounded like a great reason to give it a shot and now I like the phone so much but... It's 16GB only :banghead::banghead:

I usually need 32GB at least, therefore the G3 with it's microSD slot is tempting me that much... The G2 32GB isn't available here any longer, and before it was available as a carrier exclusive only.

So... My options are keep the beautiful G2 with it's 16GB or go for the G3. I have two weeks to decide...

Bets are on...

EDIT: My god......... 27 minutes with the screen on after completely charging the phone and brightness at 74% and I'm still at 100% battery!!!!

Witchcraft!!!

The G2 is a beast of a phone!

 

[aldo82]

Thanks for the update. My signal hasn't gone above 2 bars all day so I'm taking it back tomorrow for an exchange. I'm also really disappointed with how slow the phone is. It lags and is slower at most tasks than the nexus 5. Has anyone else noticed this? Really not sure at this time whether to try and swap to a different phone when I take it in such as the one m8. I do like the G3 but am a little shocked at the poor performance. I hope I just have a lemon

 

[Sensamic]

Thanks for the update. My signal hasn't gone above 2 bars all day so I'm taking it back tomorrow for an exchange. I'm also really disappointed with how slow the phone is. It lags and is slower at most tasks than the nexus 5. Has anyone else noticed this? Really not sure at this time whether to try and swap to a different phone when I take it in such as the one m8. I do like the G3 but am a little shocked at the poor performance. I hope I just have a lemon

Performance can improve with future updates, specially with L being 100% ART now and all.

I wouldn't judge the phone if it lags now, because it has just been out. Give it one or two software updates at least. If it still lags after then LG did a poor job with their skin.

What about the overheating? Are you having any issues with that or no? This is my main concern with the G3.

 

[Dr McKay]

I just switched my phone to ART. It got very hot upgrading all 200 apps and I was able to get this message.

 

[BlueGoldAce]

I just switched my phone to ART. It got very hot upgrading all 200 apps and I was able to get this message.

Let it cool down? Should be fine....

 

[jamezr]

I just switched my phone to ART. It got very hot upgrading all 200 apps and I was able to get this message.

I had seen that in other users feedback on other forums. It is a nice control for the new screen. It might bother some folks. But for me I don't usually run my screen that bright. But some people might.....

Did it take long for it to cool back down?

 

[Dr McKay]

I had seen that in other users feedback on other forums. It is a nice control for the new screen. It might bother some folks. But for me I don't usually run my screen that bright. But some people might.....

Did it take long for it to cool back down?

I'm not sure. I left it on the Window and forgot about it. I usually have mine on auto 100% brightness. 70-80% auto is mostly fine for me except in the bright summer Sun.

 

[Vegastouch]

Have mine on Auto which puts it at less than 50%. If im watching a video on Youtube or whatever, using MX player, i can just swipe the screen up to make it brighter if i want to.

 

[Sensamic]

I just switched my phone to ART. It got very hot upgrading all 200 apps and I was able to get this message.

When this happened, at what brightness you had the phone? 100% auto?

And how long were you using the phone since turning the screen on until you got the message?

Also, to what brightness level did it went down? 80%?

Was it too hot to the point you couldn't keep it in your hand?

On my G2 I haven't seen this issue yet, and I've been like 30 minutes playing with it with brightness at 100% manual. Haven't played any games yet though.

 

[bean dip]

Can't decide between this phone and the Nokia Icon. Perhaps I will have to flip a coin.

 

[Dr McKay]

When this happened, at what brightness you had the phone? 100% auto?

And how long were you using the phone since turning the screen on until you got the message?

Also, to what brightness level did it went down? 80%?

Was it too hot to the point you couldn't keep it in your hand?

On my G2 I haven't seen this issue yet, and I've been like 30 minutes playing with it with brightness at 100% manual. Haven't played any games yet though.

It was on 100% auto. After I switched to ART it restarted, was on the "Upgrading apps" screen for about half an hour. It was uncomfortably hot to hold at the top of the phone.

 

[Stingray454]

When I first got the phone and turned it on, it immediately started downloading all my purchased apps from Play Store. When downloading / installing, the phone got quite hot I noticed. Since then, I swapped launcher to Nova (that seems smoother) and swapped to ART. Updating all my apps (250+) took a while, but the phone didn't get very hot at all doing that. Since then, I haven't been able to get it to run hot. I ran a couple of benchmarks in a row (quadrant, antutu and whatever they are called), watched 10 minutes of streaming video, played with the camera for 10 minutes and so on. I didn't use a thermometer, but it was about skin-warm at its hottest. No complaints about the heat here.

 

[Dr McKay]

Now those negatives are out of the way. I'd say overall this phone is definitely worth it. The thing that sticks out to me is my God this thing feels so damn good in the hand. The curve of the phone is so comfy to hold. The plastic feels so nice to touch too.

I actually enjoy the LG UI, haven't switched to a launcher yet. Still using the LG keyboard despite the occasional sluggish behaviour.

The camera is fantastic. The OIS let's me take crisp photos. I must have slightly shaky hands because many of my photos on my note 3 were slightly blurry. Especially when you zoomed in.

 

[jamezr]

When I first got the phone and turned it on, it immediately started downloading all my purchased apps from Play Store. When downloading / installing, the phone got quite hot I noticed. Since then, I swapped launcher to Nova (that seems smoother) and swapped to ART. Updating all my apps (250+) took a while, but the phone didn't get very hot at all doing that. Since then, I haven't been able to get it to run hot. I ran a couple of benchmarks in a row (quadrant, antutu and whatever they are called), watched 10 minutes of streaming video, played with the camera for 10 minutes and so on. I didn't use a thermometer, but it was about skin-warm at its hottest. No complaints about the heat here.

Thanks Stingray454......Its funny i have read lots of reviews on the XDA forums from people that have the phone. There seems to be a big mix around how hot the phone gets. Most say it does not get hot at all when playing games, videos and general use. Then others say the opposite and say its gets extremely hot when playing games or watching videos.

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Now those negatives are out of the way. I'd say overall this phone is definitely worth it. The thing that sticks out to me is my God this thing feels so damn good in the hand. The curve of the phone is so comfy to hold. The plastic feels so nice to touch too.

I actually enjoy the LG UI, haven't switched to a launcher yet. Still using the LG keyboard despite the occasional sluggish behaviour.

The camera is fantastic. The OIS let's me take crisp photos. I must have slightly shaky hands because many of my photos on my note 3 were slightly blurry. Especially when you zoomed in.

Thanks Dr McKay.......got any side by side pictures from the N3 and G3?

 

[Stingray454]

Just had to share this.. I made a test with my G3 - chaged it full and thought I'd use it as I always do, and see how long the battery lasted.

My usage is quite light. I check facebook / twitter / mail one to a few times per hour, reply to some messages, take a few photos per day that I upload somewhere, make a couple of calls, maybe 10-15 minutes of surfing per day, and so on. I seem to average a little more than an hour of screen on-time per day. Some days I use it more, during this test I ran a couple of benchmarks, tried if it got warm after 10-15 minutes of streaming video with 100% brightness or 100% brightness with the camera on, and such. Normally I have about 60% brightness and WiFi on indoors and 90:ish brightness and 4G data outdoors.

Anyway, I took this screenshot this morning:

(Note: The "estimated time remaining" might be a bit skewed since it was early and I had about 8 hrs of sleep where it wasn't used before that. Had to charge it after this screenshot since I'll be out all day and expecting some important calls, so didn't want to risk the phone dying).

I'm really impressed. The G3 seems to draw very little juice with the screen off, last night I lost 4-5% during 8 hours sleep. Couldn't be happier with the battery life.

 

[Dr McKay]

Here's my battery use so far today. Not terrible. I'm sure I could squeeze in at least another hour of screen on time and a bit further.