The LG G3 Review
by Joshua Ho & Anand Lal Shimpi on July 4, 2014 5:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- LG
- Mobile
- Laptops
- G3
WiFi
These days, most OEMs seem to be using either Qualcomm's WCN3680 or Broadcom's BCM4354, depending upon whether the OEM wants to use a 1x1 or 2x2 antenna configuration. Surprisingly, LG bucks this trend by using Broadcom's BCM4339, a combo WiFi/BT/FM chip that we first saw in smartphones such as the Note 3 and Nexus 5. The WiFi antenna in this case seems to be along the top edge of the phone. It seems that LG has done some work to improve performance on this platform, as we see near parity with the One (M8)'s WCN3680 setup when the Nexus 5 and Note 3 were noticeably worse in performance. I suspect that LG selected this part with the specific goal of maintaining commonality and driving down cost by increasing volume. In this case, there doesn't seem to be any real disadvantage, especially because going to 2x2 hasn't quite doubled transfer speeds in practice.
GNSS
While GNSS quality was once a significant issue in the age of the Galaxy S and HTC Desire, today things couldn't be further from the truth. Almost every smartphone uses the MDM9x25 IP block in one way or another, and this means that GPSOne Gen8B is included as well for GLONASS, GPS, and Beidou support. Overall, accuracy is strong and the time to first lock is extremely fast, even without assistance data. On a cloudy day in San Jose it took around 30 seconds to do a true cold lock without assistance data.
Cellular
For the most part, there's not much new here as this cellular architecture is shared by the One (M8) and Galaxy S5. Namely, the G3 has an MDM9x25 modem, a WTR1625L and WFR1620 transceiver for carrier aggregation, and an Avago power amplifier for the antenna. I didn't notice much in the way of issues with cellular reception or anything else on the G3, although it seems that the SKT variant we were sampled doesn't read AT&T USSD codes correctly. This should be resolved by buying the correct regional variant. The photo below shows general antenna placement for the variants that I've seen, but banding will differ.
Rear Speaker
Unfortunately, I don't yet have the necessary equipment to test speakerphone volume on devices, but subjectively LG has put a solid speaker into the G3. It's still rear-facing, but both volume and quality are good enough to be comparable to the M8. Curiously, rather than an NXP speaker protection IC, LG has gone for a Cirrus Logic solution that identifies itself as the CS35L32. Based upon a quick search on the internet, this appears to be an obsolete part, with not much else in the way of available information.
Misc
While I'm unable to test the wireless charging functionality, I've found that the LG G3 uses IDT's IDTP9025A Qi receiver with support of the Qi 1.1 spec, which improves sensitivity to foreign objects that could heat up the phone. The NXP PN547 NFC chip in the G3 also supports host card emulation, so Google Wallet tap and pay transactions should work without issue. There's also a Maxim MAX17048 fuel gauge in the phone, which means that no battery calibration routine is required, with automatic self-correction of errors in battery charge level. It's also a bit interesting to see that a TI BQ24296 charger chip is used instead of a Qualcomm solution, which means that the Quick Charge protocol isn't supported. It seems that signalling is done via BC 1.2. The G3 uses Qualcomm's Fluence noise cancellation technology for phone calls.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
174 Comments
View All Comments
blabby - Sunday, July 6, 2014 - link
I saw a movie where some characters had shiny buttons instead of eyes. This review reminded me of that movie.On a positive note, maybe the line to get this phone will be shorter! That's good because I want it ASAP!
plonk420 - Sunday, July 6, 2014 - link
is it just me or does the SGS4 and 5 oversharpen? that good ole ring around hard lines...snark9a - Sunday, July 6, 2014 - link
If I root it to make it useable and give the better user experience (i'm a designer, after all) will I sacrifice a battery life? I guess I could carry another battery with me an charge it up.soldier45 - Sunday, July 6, 2014 - link
Will wait to see what the Note 4 brings in September over this phone.austinsguitar - Sunday, July 6, 2014 - link
oh man that camera though.... bestxmen77 - Monday, July 7, 2014 - link
phonearena.com/reviews/Camera-comparison-LG-G3-vs-Samsung-Galaxy-S5-Galaxy-Note-3-iPhone-5s-LG-G2-Sony-Xperia-Z2-HTC-One-M8_id3728eprice.com.tw/mobile/talk/124/4899661/1/rv/sony-xperia-z2-review/
eprice.com.tw/mobile/talk/124/4899662/1/rv/sony-xperia-z2-review/
4pda.ru/forum/index.php?showtopic=515584&st=860#entry30435226
blog.gsmarena.com/weekend-poll-samsung-galaxy-s5-vs-sony-xperia-z2/
phonearena.com/news/Samsung-Galaxy-S5-tops-our-blind-camera-comparison-for-the-third-time-in-a-row-LG-G3-close-second_id57178
polls-polarb-com.a.ssl.fastly.net/000/186/650/186650-1-large-d063293267b7ddb6.jpg
pp.vk.me/c618826/v618826401/95e9/7bw7hDlOdSg.jpg
pp.vk.me/c618826/v618826401/95e2/NMeVKQWoFs0.jpg
pp.vk.me/c614824/v614824401/15efd/3awlVBQMNfo.jpg
pp.vk.me/c614824/v614824401/15ef4/hCockYiBow4.jpg
pp.vk.me/c619218/v619218401/ad50/vZosnbAwfNo.jpg
pp.vk.me/c619218/v619218401/ad49/TX4mRgFNq3I.jpg
phonearena.com/reviews/LG-G3-vs-Samsung-Galaxy-S5_id3724/page/3
forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2662379&page=65
forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2662379&page=62
xmen77 - Monday, July 7, 2014 - link
good only low light shotscnet.com/news/lg-g3s-laser-equipped-camera-put-to-the-test/
aryonoco - Sunday, July 6, 2014 - link
Thank you for another excellent review. Your display, battery and camera tests are again without a doubt the best in this industry.Just a couple of off topic points:
1) It would be great if you also reviewed the Sony Xperia Z2. Along G3, the SGS5 and the M8, it is arguably the other 2014 Android flagship. And I would love to have your take on its camera. I understand that Sony has a negligible presence in the US market, but you guys have significant number of readers from other countries where the Z2 is readily available and popular (Australia and the UK for example). Also a good number of your US readers are the kind of tech savvy people who buy their phones outright and so the review would be of use to them as well. I'm sure Sony would love to send you a sample if you asked.
2) While I don't want to take anything away from the stellar job that Josh Ho is doing, I do miss Brian Klug. I understand that you are not at liberty to shed any light on his sudden disappearance, but I just wanted to raise it here.
ZeDestructor - Sunday, July 6, 2014 - link
As Anand has said before: They review what get's sent in. Nothing more, nothing less due to budgetary concerns.If you really want a Z2 review, you could always try and organise loaning out yours (something like order off amazon, ship to AT, then have it shipped along to you after the review is done) or something similar... I'd give it a try if I lived in the US, but I don't, I live in Australia, and the shipping costs make me sad.
Klug4Pres - Friday, July 11, 2014 - link
I don't think it is that simple, actually.They review things that the manufacturers want them to review, as evidenced by them being supplied with the review item.
They do not say they will review anything that their readers are prepared to lend them.