LG getting an undeserved bad rap.

[Casualballer]

LG started rolling out Android 10 on America in January. Even on T-mobile, which took extraordinarily long to release the update even after the other carriers had been out for weeks already was taken care of in the middle of February.
It seems that everyday now I see a article about OnePlus phones only getting A10 now. Same for the Samsung Note 9 and many other phones and companies who's reputations in the tech media are significantly better than LG. I'm not saying that all of a sudden LG is leading the pack in updates, but since they promised to get better with updates, they actually have.
And yet, whenever u read something about Samsung, it talks glowingly about how Samsung has made massive improvements to their updates etc and whenever I read something about LG, it inevitably slams them for being very behind on updates.
How much longer do they need to improve before people finally start giving them the credit they actually deserve?

 

[RapidTurtle]

I have the S9 plus, and my wife has the LG G8. She got the update about a week before I did. Just my two cents, but I prefer the G8 over the Galaxy phone. To much junk software on Samsung phones in my opinion. I like that LG is much more like a stock android phone, with some pretty cool features baked in.

 

[DamianP]

I agree. G8 is a great phone. I use an iPhone pro max as my daily but still enjoy using the G8 as my secondary.

 

[Morty2264]

You bring up some very good points, OP. I have always loved LG - ever since I had the LG G3. It's very unfortunate that they have a lackluster reputation in the smartphone world. They do make very good phones and I would have gotten a G8 had the camera performed a bit better.

But, that being said, I think a lot of this boils down to the individual biases of reviewers. Authors of articles and reviewers who praise Samsung for one thing but blacklist LG for doing the same as Samsung - those are biases and, in my opinion, have nothing to do with the phones themselves and rather has everything to do with those who are reviewing them.

LG makes quality products and also has an arsenal of extra financing coming in because of their other product lines. I imagine that LG will be the underdog that's interesting in the Smartphone Games. As soon as they put out a phone with a stellar camera, I will consider going back.

Now, I'm not saying that LG has bad cameras - not at all. My husband has the LG G7 ThinQ and some of his pictures are phenomenal. I think we've been spoiled with the Pixels and Huaweis and Samsungs - but most smartphones out there will take decent photos.

In any case, I am always eagerly anticipating LG product releases and am happy to hear that their updates are coming quicker and more consistently!

 

[Mike Dee]

LG started rolling out Android 10 on America in January. Even on T-mobile, which took extraordinarily long to release the update even after the other carriers had been out for weeks already was taken care of in the middle of February.
It seems that everyday now I see a article about OnePlus phones only getting A10 now. Same for the Samsung Note 9 and many other phones and companies who's reputations in the tech media are significantly better than LG. I'm not saying that all of a sudden LG is leading the pack in updates, but since they promised to get better with updates, they actually have.
And yet, whenever u read something about Samsung, it talks glowingly about how Samsung has made massive improvements to their updates etc and whenever I read something about LG, it inevitably slams them for being very behind on updates.
How much longer do they need to improve before people finally start giving them the credit they actually deserve?

I think the big concern when people discuss timely updates is how fast an OEM provide security patches and not so much OS updates on prior models. I'm not minimizing the value of the latter, just presenting what I witness in the discussions.

 

[snowmutt]

I literally just upgraded to the G8 from my beloved V20. The first thing that happened? I got about 6 updates all in a row and the phone never missed a bit. LG will need a couple years to earn a good reputation. It is unfair, but a good rep is way harder to get back than a bad rep is to earn. I think LG is doing things right, but the road will take more than a few users like us bragging on it and a few tech sites to catch on for LG to get their due.

Baby steps. They have had good devices for years, and now they are supporting them. The good will come.

 

[Mike Dee]

I literally just upgraded to the G8 from my beloved V20. The first thing that happened? I got about 6 updates all in a row and the phone never missed a bit. LG will need a couple years to earn a good reputation. It is unfair, but a good rep is way harder to get back than a bad rep is to earn. I think LG is doing things right, but the road will take more than a few users like us bragging on it and a few tech sites to catch on for LG to get their due.

Baby steps. They have had good devices for years, and now they are supporting them. The good will come.

They need more than users on a tech site bragging about their product. They are their own worst enemy when it comes to marketing.

 

[Casualballer]

They need more than users on a tech site bragging about their product. They are their own worst enemy when it comes to marketing.

This sounds interesting. Please clarify. I know the pricing is ridiculous both in how high it usually starts at and how quickly it depreciates. Other then that is there anything specific you have in mind?

 

[Mooncatt]

This sounds interesting. Please clarify. I know the pricing is ridiculous both in how high it usually starts at and how quickly it depreciates. Other then that is there anything specific you have in mind?

Have you seen a single tv commercial for an LG phone? I haven't, at least not in the U.S. I see plenty of Samsung and Apple commercials. LG's marketing is pretty much non-existent. What marketing they did have doesn't really play to their strengths either. Look at the V60, the impression they put off is they are cheaper than Samsung's S-line with no real highlights. Looking at most reviewers, they compare it in this light as well. "It's not as good as Samsung, but it's a great price."

People wanting a flagship phone want performance, not price. All the reviewers play into this by dinging them on things like the 1080p60 display in the V60. Stupid high resolution screens on a phone are not noticeable, just waste the battery, and increases costs. LG should've marketed it in this light. A 90Hz panel would've been nice, but again they need to emphasize the need for 60Hz due to having the second display and the goal of battery performance. Many reviewers have said the display still looks great. One reviewer said the phone lasted him two days on a single charge, and that's a big deal for a flagship.

And then there's the V60's active stylus support. LG is not mentioning this at all, yet this makes it a direct competitor of the Samsung Notes. It does suck that you'd have to buy the stylus separate, but you're still getting Note level performance for hundreds less. When you factor in the other positives of the phone, I would consider it better than the Note, regardless of price. Yet it's still crickets from LG's marketing.

 

[RapidTurtle]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUcYQh1QUDA

 

[Elky64]

I think the big concern when people discuss timely updates is how fast an OEM provide security patches and not so much OS updates on prior models. I'm not minimizing the value of the latter, just presenting what I witness in the discussions.

I bought the "lonely child" G8X ThinQ w/DualScreen at launch in the beginning of Nov. Purchased for a great price in terms of CAD dollars and think it's an awesome device and way more than I need, or will use.

The problem is one single update in 5+ months (Jan's security patch) leaves me to wonder if we should have taken a hop rather than a stop on this device

The response I got from LG after contacting them was "thank you for sending us a message. Security updates are not released on a monthly basis. These are typically created upon request from service providers. Often times these updates may be several months apart. Kind regards."... First I heard it's a service providers request and really find it funny my carrier then, according to LG's mentality, has chosen to request updates for a lot lesser and older devices.

So yeah antics like these are a sure way to keep the "bad rap" alive and well LOL.

 

[Rich215]

I am having wifi drop out issues with my G7....wondering about the G8 for wifi quality?

Also, have not purchased a used phone in awhile now....swappa looks weird and diff. Is it the same it used to be? Should I not trust items sold there now?

 

[blackhawkhot]

If I was to migrate from Samsung LG is one I would closely look over because of their past HD audio support.

From experience I know security updates aren't an issue for me. Been running outdated OS's for over a decade on both MS and Android (roughly 5) and never had to do a hd wipe due to malware.
Watch all downloads like a hawk, email especially.
Scan periodically for trojan loaders; Malwarebytes and Stubborn Trojan Killer do a good job at this.

 

[dookie.]

Been a fan since my G4, and it even had the boot loop issue (which LG fixed, out of warranty, free, in a matter of days). Absolutely loved my V30, maybe more than the current G8.

Nova user, so I can't speak to their UI...but the hardware is excellent.

 

[Elky64]

Been a fan since my G4, and it even had the boot loop issue (which LG fixed, out of warranty, free, in a matter of days). Absolutely loved my V30, maybe more than the current G8.

Nova user, so I can't speak to their UI...but the hardware is excellent.

G4 was my first LG keeping it for two plus years. Never an issue nor did it succumb to boot looping. A really great experience overall thinking of it often lol. Now have the G8X ThinQ w/DualScreen finding it to be a wolf in sheep's clothing.

Only time I've used a launcher (Nova) was back in our GS7/Edge days. That lasted for several months then I decided, no matter what device, we'd just run em stock. To this day "device hopping" betwee OEMs and their respective launchers/skin hasn't presented a single issue in adapting... I'm a chronic switcher so every couple weeks or so our daily driver will change.

 

[Morty2264]

Been a fan since my G4, and it even had the boot loop issue (which LG fixed, out of warranty, free, in a matter of days). Absolutely loved my V30, maybe more than the current G8.

Nova user, so I can't speak to their UI...but the hardware is excellent.

LG does have pretty good and timely customer service. I had an issue with my LG G3 and I remember them responding to me quite promptly.