LG unveils curved 'self healing' smartphone

Published October 28, 2013 11:00pm

Korean smartphone maker LG this week took the wraps off what it called the world's first "real" curved smartphone, which it said will have a so-called self-healing feature.

LG said the "G Flex" will sport a vertically curved six-inch 720p screen and a back cover that will repair minor scratches, tech site Engadget reported Monday Manila time.

"Among the several new technologies, the LG G Flex is the first smartphone to apply a 'Self Healing' coating on the back cover. The elastic coating has the ability to recover from the daily wear-and-tear scratches and nicks that un-cased smartphones are likely to receive, keeping the G Flex looking newer longer," it quoted an LG release as saying.

It added the G Flex is "curved to follow the contour of the face," and is the "first device to offer such a design in the smartphone market."

LG said the new phone will be available in Korea starting November, though availability in additional markets will be announced later.

Consumer-centric UX

Dr. Jong-seok Park, president and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company, said the G Flex boasts a "distinctive design, innovative hardware and consumer-centric UX (user experience)."

LG said the vertically curved design of the G Flex reduces the distance between one's mouth to the microphone when the device is held against the ear.

It said the phone also has a curvature arc that is "optimized for the average face, to deliver improved voice and sound quality."

"The curved form increases the sound level by 3dB compared to typical flat smartphones. The curved design also offers a more reassuring grip and fits more comfortably in one's back pocket," it added.

'IMAX-like experience'

For entertainment, the curved screen in landscape mode offers an IMAX-like experience, it added.

Also, it noted the six-inch display is the world's largest Plastic OLED (POLED) display developed and mass produced specifically for smartphones.

Powering the phone is the world's first curved battery using the "Stack & Folding" technology.

"Despite its thin form, the LG G Flex battery has a capacity of 3,500mAh, enough power for more than a full day of use," it said.

Other new UX features include:

QTheater, gives quick access to photos, videos and YouTube from the lock screen.
Dual Window divides the wide 6-inch screen into two separate windows for more effective multitasking.
Swing Lockscreen alters the image on the lockscreen depending on how the G Flex is held.
Face Detection Indicator displays the LED on the Rear Key in green to confirm face detection and focus.
Camera Timer flashes the Rear Key LED to indicate that the countdown has begun.
Urgent Call Alert flashes the LED on the Rear Key in red when several consecutive calls from the same person go unanswered.

Engadget added the phone will have a Snapdragon 800 processor and 2GB of RAM, with a 13-megapixel camera above the two rear control buttons.

"In comparison to Samsung's Galaxy Round, the screen on the G Flex arcs from top to bottom, not side-to-side, which at least makes a little more sense to us, hopefully fitting in better to the curvature of the users' face," it said.

The phone will also run on Google's Android Jelly Bean, and will support LTE-A, LTE, HSPA+ and GSM. It will support as well Bluetooth 4.0, USB 3.0, and WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac and Near Field Communication. — TJD, GMA News

Tags: lg, smartphone