Review: Updated: LG G3
Update September 16, 2014: If you're looking for a phone with a large display, and it doesn't matter what platform you're on, the iPhone 6 Plus was announced last week and will become available September 19, 2014.
How does it stack up to the LG G3? Well, since we're primarily concerned with size here, we're looking at two 5.5-inch displays. But all displays are not created to be equal, and this is where the LG G3 really shines. It has an insane 2560 x 1440 resolution, while the iPhone 6 Plus has a paltry 1920 x 1080 display by comparison. It's not terrible, but not razor sharp as the G3.
Also, the LG G3 has more megapixels in terms of its camera. Both cameras have image stabilization, but the iPhone 6 Plus has phase detection autofocus, which could potentially be better than the LG G3's laser AF system. We're waiting for the iPhone 6 Plus to become available to put this to the test.
Pricing is a huge consideration, too. You can have the LG G3 on contract for just $199, whereas the iPhone 6 Plus starts at $299 for 16GB and has no memory expansion. The LG G3 will support microSD cards up to 128GB.
Stay tuned for more as the iPhone 6 comes out and we compare it head-to-head with the LG G3.
With the LG G3, we're seeing a brand release a phone ahead of time in order to grab a foothold in an industry that could be spiralling away from its grasp.
It's an odd thing to say considering we're talking about a manufacturer that launched one of the critically acclaimed phones of 2013, with the LG G2 impressing far more than most expected.
But that was months ago, and LG has realised that with Samsung, Sony and HTC all bringing out far superior models it can't wait until later in the year to catch up, so it's tried to race to the front of the pack with a previously-unseen step forward in screen technology.
If you need more evidence that this is a phone that LG has accelerated to launch, check out the changes it's made: removable battery, microSD slot, metallic frame and new, mature interface; in short, everything that was wrong with last year's model in the eyes of many.
So with that in mind, is the LG G3 the perfect smartphone?
There are a number of key features that LG is touting as new and improved this year with the G3, but none sticks out as prominently as the QHD screen. Some might think that this is four times the pixel count of an HD screen, and you'd be right to a degree.
But only if you're talking about 720p screens – if you're comparing the G3 to something like the Galaxy S5, that packs in two million pixels to the G3's 3.6 million. It's a lot sharper, sure, but anyone thinking it's going to be mindblowing will be disappointed.
The big question here with the screen is: why do it? The official reason LG told me was it had done some research and had realised that Steve Jobs was wrong.
While it agreed he was right there was a limit to what the human eye can see in terms of sharpness, LG reckons that the way sight works means the Retina display isn't the top end. That's obvious anyway; the display on the Samsung Galaxy S5 or HTC One M8 is significantly sharper than that on the iPhone 5S, so there is more headroom.
But apparently there's another level still to attack, and that's just what it's done with the QHD screen. Where Samsung's offering 440ppi sharpness, the G3 has 538ppi, which is equivalent to high end glossy art books, which LG used as the benchmark of sharpness to aim at.
Dr RamChan Woo, head of smartphone planning for LG, told me that the idea was you need pixels to fill in the space between lines, to make something that sorts out the 'dead space', which is why it went for the upper limit to make everything look premium.
Now, here's the quandary: the screen is brilliant, no question. Internet browsing, looking at pictures, watching high-end video, is all awesome. But that's the exact same feeling I had with the G2, which also had a simply stunning screen.
It feels like the QHD screen is great to look at because LG knows how to make an amazing display, rather that offering a next level of sharpness that blows me away. I didn't feel that I was looking at something superior to the G2 in terms of screen quality, and with the larger heft and hit on battery life, I believe LG has gone too early with the technology just to make an impact.
Or possibly its not even early. Perhaps we just don't need QHD screens in our phones. The display isn't without problems either: tilt it left or right and the brightness drops off sharply, which makes sense when you consider how many pixels are packed in there.
It's unfair to criticise the QHD screen on the G3 – there's no doubt all high end smartphones will be using this technology in a year or so. But as a headline spec, it doesn't seem to add a huge amount to the G3, which is a shame as I was hoping to be looking at the next generation of picture quality on a phone.
When it came to listing the criticisms of the LG G2, the biggest problem was the interface. It was so cluttered that if you had the remote activated and received a message you had to scroll down to see it.
Compare that to the HTC One M8, and you've got nothing but the missive to check. On top of that, the G2 went for a really garish and cartoony look too, meaning it was hard to evangelise on a phone that was otherwise brilliant.
The new interface on the LG G3 is a big improvement. Gone is the skeumorphism in favour of a new flat tile look. The icons are redesigned. The different applications have their own colour scheme for easy recognition and the colour palette is more muted than before.
It's a much more fluid system that shows LG has grown up, taking the problems of before and making it into a more intuitive way of navigating through the handset.
LG has definitely taken touches from HTC, Samsung and Apple with the new interface. The home screen features a separate section for the pedometer and tips videos (where Samsung's pointless magazine option is on the Galaxy S5), the colours are very similar to HTC's on the M8 and the flatter design owes more than a tip of the hat to Apple.
The interface is still a little cluttered, but overall it's a tick for LG updating something that sorely needed a new look.
As mentioned the other big problem with the G2 was the fact it had a really glossy plastic shell. The phone was well packaged, but still didn't offer the same premium quality as the HTC One, iPhone or Sony Xperia Z1.
So with the LG G3, the South Korean brand has gone for the best of both worlds. It's created a 'metallic skin' that supposedly looks and feels premium, but offers the lower weight and added connectivity benefits of polycarbonate.
It might look similar, but the feel in the hand is very different
The problem is, LG hasn't really managed this lofty goal. The G3 certainly looks the business, bringing a more iconic look of brushed metal and some cool colours (black, silver and gold) to make it stand out on the shelves, which makes sense given it's mostly screen otherwise.
But the second you pick it up, the plastic nature jars with the look of the phone, which is a disappointment. It actually feels cheaper than the G2 thanks to using a removable back, which lowers the tightness of the packaging and makes it feel more hollow.
The upside of this is you've got a removable battery and microSD slot, both of which are a big win for a certain section of the customer base. That said, there are better ways of doing this, as you can easily have a slot for a microSD card without needing to remove the back.
The battery and back cover are both removable
And I know a few people disagree, but a unibody phone feels better in the hand and a portable battery pack is much more useful than being able to swap in a new battery - it's easier to charge, for one, and 98% of users will never swap the battery in and out anyway, so why bother when an integrated unit can offer more capacity and better design?
So again, LG has stepped forward with the G3 – but it's still not quite got all the pieces together when it comes to design.
The 13MP camera on the LG G3 is also another big talking point, both in terms of the new look to the interface and the additional technology on board.
I'll start with the latter point: the laser auto focus, which is designed to make it the fastest-focusing smartphone on the market. It seems to be true at times, but I'm not sure shaving another 100 milliseconds off makes that much of a difference when boot-up speed is more important..
It's possibly a bit unfair to say that the extra speed isn't warranted – if the system worked perfectly, chances are you'd take 10-20 more high quality pictures that capture the moment compared to the competition, but without being able to fully test the system it's hard to comment.
The laser works by sending out a conical infra-red signal (using technology nabbed from a robo-vacuum cleaner from LG's home appliances division) and absorbs information from the surroundings to create an instant and clear picture for the camera to use.
This means it doesn't have to look for contrast shifts like before, and offers a sharper image.
The interface is really scaled back too: it's nothing more than a back button, a menu icon and the viewfinder. Tap the screen and it focuses and takes the picture, designed to be simple and effective.
It also doesn't let you focus to check the shot composition before taking the photo, which would be nice – but then again, tap that menu icon and you get all you need in terms of shutter, options and video recording.
The G3 is all about simplification, and this kind of technology really works. It's a little too scaled back for the camera, but it's the right idea.
The front 2.1MP camera is now cringingly called the 'selfie' camera – it seems that dreaded word is here to stay, at least for a few years. The lens is a wider angle, so you can get more friends into the photo (or more actors at the Oscars) and features clever gesture recognition to take the photo.
Hold your hand out, make a fist and it'll start the G3 self-portrait timer. It's a clever system and it works, which is great for those moments when you can't use both hands and don't want to tap the screen.
Another cool feature is the ability to have a front-facing flash, although it's not an LED light. Instead, part of the screen goes white, which illuminates faces and takes better pictures. LG has even white balanced this screen to correct skin tone imperfections – and it really gives some nice front facing snaps.
Review: Moto G (2014)
The 2014 version of the Moto G has an imposing task ahead of it. To live up to expectations it needs to better one of the most popular smartphones ever made, not to mention the best-selling phone Motorola has ever produced. I am, of course, talking about the 2013 Moto G.
This new version offers a larger 5-inch screen and an improved camera, aiming to clean up some of the few criticisms many had about that budget supremo.
Sure enough, the 2014 Moto G's camera is a whole lot better, and having a 5-inch screen instead of a 4.5-inch visage is great in many situations. It is not a flat-out better phone in every respect though. Its larger frame isn't as palm-friendly, it's not quite as good-looking and battery stamina is worse than the old model.
Bigger and better, or a little uncomfortable in the hand?
However, it's not enough to make the new Moto G anything less than one of the top bargains of the year.
The new Moto G is available SIM-free for around £145 (US$270, about AU$267), which is similar to or slightly less than the 16GB and 4G versions of the smaller, older version, which usually go for around £160 (about US$260, AU$295).
It seems a shame Motorola isn't catering for the 4G buyer right off the bat: at present the new Moto G is 3G only.
The new Moto G design is very similar to the older model, but borrows a few new design traits from the more recent Moto E. You can't miss the primary change of little metal bars above and below the screen.
They're not there for the look and, let's be honest, they don't really look all that great. But they do mark where the front stereo speakers live. The last Moto G used a single mono speaker on the back.
The metal bars mark the position of the front speakers
I do find this a real downgrade in looks, as much of the immediate design purity has been lost by sticking these not-exactly-subtle metal bits on the front. Otherwise, the looks of the new and old Moto Gs are pretty familiar.
The back is a curved piece of matte-finish plastic, which meets a glossy screen surround. Its contours are nice and smooth, and there's a little indent on the back where the Motorola logo lives.
It's not just looks that have taken a hit in the new model, though. The 2014 Moto G is also not quite as easy to handle, because of its sheer size.
In a 4.5-inch screen phone you really don't have to pay too much attention to how slim a phone is – there's plenty of leeway to play with before size becomes an issue. However, now that it's bigger the fairly chunky Moto G is a bit more of a handful than, for example, the much slimmer Samsung Galaxy S5.
The Moto G 2014 is 0.6mm thicker than the 2013 model
For a closer look, the 2014 Moto G is 70.7mm wide and 11mm thick. The thickness in particular is quite hefty for a phone of this size.
Yes, that's 0.6mm thinner than the old model, but as it's also just under 5mm wider, using it will feel a bit clumsier for most hands. It shouldn't be a deal-breaker, but means you need to think about whether to go for the larger-screen version or not while the older version is still on shelves.
Here you can see the Moto G 2014 is much bigger compared to the Moto E and Moto G 2013
Motorola has finessed the design in parts this year, though. For example, the plastic screen surround stuck out a bit more in the 2013 version, and as such attracts obvious dings and scratches after a few months' use.
In the 2014 version the plastic edges stick out far less, for a smoother finish that's actually a bit more like the old, refined Moto X.
The 2014 Moto G comes in white and black shades, with additional backs available should you want a jazzier look. Having seen both, I recommend avoiding the white one. It looks cheaper, more toy-like, than the black one.
Also it makes the front camera and ambient light sensor (which are black, therefore more-or-less invisible in the black model) far too apparent.
The black option looks better than the white
Both models feel well-made, though. While largely plastic, there's no obvious flex because the battery cover sits right on the actual frame underneath, and the entire top layer of the screen and surrounding area is covered with Gorilla Glass 3.
In the last year or so we've seen this slip down from being something to brag about to something used in absolutely masses of phones of all prices. But that doesn't mean it's not still great.
It means that unless you get your phone near sand or hard grit, scratches and wear are more likely to appear on the back of the phone than on the screen, where they really matter. It's also good to see that the little bits on the Moto G that look like metal are indeed metal, rather than metal-effect plastic.
The speaker bars, the volume/power buttons on the side and the little ring surrounding the headphone jack are all made of the harder element. I'm hoping this means we can expect this to be a hard-wearing phone in the long-term. Although only the next six months or so of use will tell.
The buttons are metal, not plastic
Like the 2013 Moto G, the new model also has a sealed-in battery. By keeping the power contacts away, the battery is much less likely to get fried should the phone get a little wet.
It is not waterproof, though. Given the limitations of waterproof phones – they still can't really be used underwater – and that at this price you'd almost certainly have to deal with a load of rubber flaps, I'm glad Motorola didn't try to rope it in.
You will find a new feature under the hood, though. The UK version of the new Moto G has dual SIM slots, both microSIM-size. We don't often get dual-SIM phones in the UK, but it is a handy feature if you want a mobile to double as a work phone, or if you live a secret second life on the weekends.
(Pro tip: if the latter is the case, you might want to think about a second phone.)
The Motorola Moto G also has a microSD memory card slot, which will be very welcome to those sad about the lower internal capacity.
The very first Moto G didn't have one, although the newer 4G edition does. This lets Motorola get away with packing-in just 8GB of internal storage, however while this small amount may be enough for people who only use a few apps and don't use their phone to store music, others may find constant snapping and an accidental download of a larger app will see the internal storage sucked up in no time.
As such, the expandable memory slot is a must to make this a decent phone.
As well as having some negative effects on the size of the phone, upping the screen size in the Motorola Moto G also has some negative effects on image quality.
To explain: both the 4.5-inch and 5-inch versions of the Moto G have 720p resolution screens, meaning you get far fewer pixels per inch in the larger model. The original Moto G offers 326ppi, the 5-inch version 294ppi. Do you notice the difference of those 32ppi? Unfortunately you do.
I find the new model to have a slightly softer screen, and when you get your eyeball close to the screen, you can see the individual pixels much more clearly. When the Moto G first came out, I was gobsmacked at the display quality you got for the price. It was a case of "where's the compromise?" when budget phones universally had a clear issue of low quality in their displays.
The drop in ppi is noticeable
The new Motorola Moto G screen doesn't seem quite as flawless, but once you get over the fact you can see the pixels, the extra size outweighs the sacrifice in a lot of different applications.
For watching videos or playing games the extra 0.5 inches of screen space makes a big difference. Games in particular feel a lot more immersive. The screen is still fairly sharp, just not perfectly clear.
Aside from the sharpness issue, display quality is pretty similar between the two generations of phone and that's fantastic for the price.
The Moto G uses an IPS-type display, a variant of LCD designed to offer much better off-angle viewing than traditional LCD screens. There's a bit of brightness loss at an angle, but it's several light years ahead of the screen experience you get from something like the Nokia Lumia 630, which has a TN-type screen panel.
The bigger screen means a slight drop in quality
For a closer look at whether the screen quality has changed in other areas, I put the new phone next to an original Moto G. There were a few little differences. Colour saturation was slightly lower in the new model, and the white balance was a fair bit cooler – with whites looking slightly bluer than the original G's slightly warm/orange-tinged ones. The older phone looks marginally nicer.
However, things like this can differ between batches, especially as popular phones often use panels from more than one manufacturer.
The screen is protected by Gorilla Glass 3
In a darkened room, you can tell that the Moto G has only a mid-range display (although still IPS, a better screen tech than bog-standard LCD) rather than a high-end one.
Black levels are not close to something like the Sony Xperia Z3, and when examined in these conditions blacks do take on a slightly blue tinge (the original Moto G's were more grey than blue). However, the only quality limitation most people are going to notice in normal use is the resolution.
Outdoors visibility in the new Moto G is reasonably good, especially for an entry-level phone. However, I did notice that the old models seem to use a more advanced/effective anti-reflective coating than the new one.
This may be one of the ways Motorola has managed to pack a better camera and much larger screen into the new version without really adding much to the price.
Review: Nokia Lumia 530
There's no mistaking Nokia's aim with the Lumia 530: the budget phone designed to clean up in the entry level market, just as its predecessor did.
The Nokia Lumia 520 was the top selling Windows Phone handset ever. The 530 brings a few improvements to bear, but retains the brightly coloured plastic body, solitary 5MP camera, and diminutive 4-inch screen.
But here's the issue already with the new model: it's not different enough from the 520 to justify an upgrade.
There's a slight boost to the screen resolution, now 854 x 480 pixels, and a newer 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 processor, but Nokia really has feature phone holdouts and budget shoppers looking to switch from Android in its sights here, and as such needs to be hitting this market harder.
Pricing is even more aggressive this time round though, as you won't have to pay more than £90 (around $150, AU$160) for a SIM-free Lumia 530. In fact, in the UK, O2 is offering it for £80 and Carphone Warehouse has it for just £70 on PAYG (Pay As You Go).
This is a seriously cheap smartphone
One step down from the impressive Lumia 630, the Lumia 530 is going up against competitors like the Moto E, Sony Xperia E1, and Samsung Galaxy Fame.
Making decent quality phones at knock-down prices has always been one of Nokia's strengths. Can you buy a better smartphone than the Lumia 530 for this kind of money? Let's find out.
You get what you pay for, so does cheaper mean poor quality?
All of the phones in this price bracket seem to be rounded and chubby and the Lumia 530 is no exception. It's also a paid up member of the funky colour club, with bright green or orange options. Thankfully these are buoyed by black and white choices for more conservative customers.
The Lumia 530 is pretty average for a budget phone in terms of size, weighing in at 129g and measuring 119.7 x 62.3 x 11.7mm.
Like most Nokia phones you can get the Lumia 530 in a range of fun colours
The plastic back panel is smooth and comfortable to hold, though it offers little in the way of grip. There's a small opening for the speaker near the bottom, a Nokia logo in the middle, and the camera lens near the top.
Small and comfortable to hold in one hand
The left spine of the Lumia 530 is naked. Up top there's a standard 3.5mm headphone jack while the bottom edge is home to the micro USB port. The right spine has the volume rocker with the power button below it... all in all, the Lumia 530 is very easy to use one-handed.
Button are kept to one side of the handset
You'll have to prise the back panel off to access the SIM and microSD card slots that are tucked under the removable battery, but at least it's good to see both on offer.
Four inches is starting to look distinctly small in the display department. Although there's a jump in resolution compared to the 520, the 854 x 480 pixel resolution gives the 530's display a fairly disappointing pixel density of 245ppi.
Even Apple has moved away from smaller phones
If you've had any experience with higher end phones then you're going to notice the limited brightness, poor contrast, and generally washed out look, although to be fair it's about average for a budget phone. It doesn't match the Moto E, but it's slightly better than the Xperia E1, on paper at least.
Review: Updated: LG G3
Update September 16, 2014: If you're looking for a phone with a large display, and it doesn't matter what platform you're on, the iPhone 6 Plus was announced last week and will become available September 19, 2014.
How does it stack up to the LG G3? Well, since we're primarily concerned with size here, we're looking at two 5.5-inch displays. But all displays are not created to be equal, and this is where the LG G3 really shines. It has an insane 2560 x 1440 resolution, while the iPhone 6 Plus has a paltry 1920 x 1080 display by comparison. It's not terrible, but not razor sharp as the G3.
Also, the LG G3 has more megapixels in terms of its camera. Both cameras have image stabilization, but the iPhone 6 Plus has phase detection autofocus, which could potentially be better than the LG G3's laser AF system. We're waiting for the iPhone 6 Plus to become available to put this to the test.
Pricing is a huge consideration, too. You can have the LG G3 on contract for just $199, whereas the iPhone 6 Plus starts at $299 for 16GB and has no memory expansion. The LG G3 will support microSD cards up to 128GB.
Stay tuned for more as the iPhone 6 comes out and we compare it head-to-head with the LG G3.
With the LG G3, we're seeing a brand release a phone ahead of time in order to grab a foothold in an industry that could be spiralling away from its grasp.
It's an odd thing to say considering we're talking about a manufacturer that launched one of the critically acclaimed phones of 2013, with the LG G2 impressing far more than most expected.
But that was months ago, and LG has realised that with Samsung, Sony and HTC all bringing out far superior models it can't wait until later in the year to catch up, so it's tried to race to the front of the pack with a previously-unseen step forward in screen technology.
If you need more evidence that this is a phone that LG has accelerated to launch, check out the changes it's made: removable battery, microSD slot, metallic frame and new, mature interface; in short, everything that was wrong with last year's model in the eyes of many.
So with that in mind, is the LG G3 the perfect smartphone?
There are a number of key features that LG is touting as new and improved this year with the G3, but none sticks out as prominently as the QHD screen. Some might think that this is four times the pixel count of an HD screen, and you'd be right to a degree.
But only if you're talking about 720p screens – if you're comparing the G3 to something like the Galaxy S5, that packs in two million pixels to the G3's 3.6 million. It's a lot sharper, sure, but anyone thinking it's going to be mindblowing will be disappointed.
The big question here with the screen is: why do it? The official reason LG told me was it had done some research and had realised that Steve Jobs was wrong.
While it agreed he was right there was a limit to what the human eye can see in terms of sharpness, LG reckons that the way sight works means the Retina display isn't the top end. That's obvious anyway; the display on the Samsung Galaxy S5 or HTC One M8 is significantly sharper than that on the iPhone 5S, so there is more headroom.
But apparently there's another level still to attack, and that's just what it's done with the QHD screen. Where Samsung's offering 440ppi sharpness, the G3 has 538ppi, which is equivalent to high end glossy art books, which LG used as the benchmark of sharpness to aim at.
Dr RamChan Woo, head of smartphone planning for LG, told me that the idea was you need pixels to fill in the space between lines, to make something that sorts out the 'dead space', which is why it went for the upper limit to make everything look premium.
Now, here's the quandary: the screen is brilliant, no question. Internet browsing, looking at pictures, watching high-end video, is all awesome. But that's the exact same feeling I had with the G2, which also had a simply stunning screen.
It feels like the QHD screen is great to look at because LG knows how to make an amazing display, rather that offering a next level of sharpness that blows me away. I didn't feel that I was looking at something superior to the G2 in terms of screen quality, and with the larger heft and hit on battery life, I believe LG has gone too early with the technology just to make an impact.
Or possibly its not even early. Perhaps we just don't need QHD screens in our phones. The display isn't without problems either: tilt it left or right and the brightness drops off sharply, which makes sense when you consider how many pixels are packed in there.
It's unfair to criticise the QHD screen on the G3 – there's no doubt all high end smartphones will be using this technology in a year or so. But as a headline spec, it doesn't seem to add a huge amount to the G3, which is a shame as I was hoping to be looking at the next generation of picture quality on a phone.
When it came to listing the criticisms of the LG G2, the biggest problem was the interface. It was so cluttered that if you had the remote activated and received a message you had to scroll down to see it.
Compare that to the HTC One M8, and you've got nothing but the missive to check. On top of that, the G2 went for a really garish and cartoony look too, meaning it was hard to evangelise on a phone that was otherwise brilliant.
The new interface on the LG G3 is a big improvement. Gone is the skeumorphism in favour of a new flat tile look. The icons are redesigned. The different applications have their own colour scheme for easy recognition and the colour palette is more muted than before.
It's a much more fluid system that shows LG has grown up, taking the problems of before and making it into a more intuitive way of navigating through the handset.
LG has definitely taken touches from HTC, Samsung and Apple with the new interface. The home screen features a separate section for the pedometer and tips videos (where Samsung's pointless magazine option is on the Galaxy S5), the colours are very similar to HTC's on the M8 and the flatter design owes more than a tip of the hat to Apple.
The interface is still a little cluttered, but overall it's a tick for LG updating something that sorely needed a new look.
As mentioned the other big problem with the G2 was the fact it had a really glossy plastic shell. The phone was well packaged, but still didn't offer the same premium quality as the HTC One, iPhone or Sony Xperia Z1.
So with the LG G3, the South Korean brand has gone for the best of both worlds. It's created a 'metallic skin' that supposedly looks and feels premium, but offers the lower weight and added connectivity benefits of polycarbonate.
It might look similar, but the feel in the hand is very different
The problem is, LG hasn't really managed this lofty goal. The G3 certainly looks the business, bringing a more iconic look of brushed metal and some cool colours (black, silver and gold) to make it stand out on the shelves, which makes sense given it's mostly screen otherwise.
But the second you pick it up, the plastic nature jars with the look of the phone, which is a disappointment. It actually feels cheaper than the G2 thanks to using a removable back, which lowers the tightness of the packaging and makes it feel more hollow.
The upside of this is you've got a removable battery and microSD slot, both of which are a big win for a certain section of the customer base. That said, there are better ways of doing this, as you can easily have a slot for a microSD card without needing to remove the back.
The battery and back cover are both removable
And I know a few people disagree, but a unibody phone feels better in the hand and a portable battery pack is much more useful than being able to swap in a new battery - it's easier to charge, for one, and 98% of users will never swap the battery in and out anyway, so why bother when an integrated unit can offer more capacity and better design?
So again, LG has stepped forward with the G3 – but it's still not quite got all the pieces together when it comes to design.
The 13MP camera on the LG G3 is also another big talking point, both in terms of the new look to the interface and the additional technology on board.
I'll start with the latter point: the laser auto focus, which is designed to make it the fastest-focusing smartphone on the market. It seems to be true at times, but I'm not sure shaving another 100 milliseconds off makes that much of a difference when boot-up speed is more important..
It's possibly a bit unfair to say that the extra speed isn't warranted – if the system worked perfectly, chances are you'd take 10-20 more high quality pictures that capture the moment compared to the competition, but without being able to fully test the system it's hard to comment.
The laser works by sending out a conical infra-red signal (using technology nabbed from a robo-vacuum cleaner from LG's home appliances division) and absorbs information from the surroundings to create an instant and clear picture for the camera to use.
This means it doesn't have to look for contrast shifts like before, and offers a sharper image.
The interface is really scaled back too: it's nothing more than a back button, a menu icon and the viewfinder. Tap the screen and it focuses and takes the picture, designed to be simple and effective.
It also doesn't let you focus to check the shot composition before taking the photo, which would be nice – but then again, tap that menu icon and you get all you need in terms of shutter, options and video recording.
The G3 is all about simplification, and this kind of technology really works. It's a little too scaled back for the camera, but it's the right idea.
The front 2.1MP camera is now cringingly called the 'selfie' camera – it seems that dreaded word is here to stay, at least for a few years. The lens is a wider angle, so you can get more friends into the photo (or more actors at the Oscars) and features clever gesture recognition to take the photo.
Hold your hand out, make a fist and it'll start the G3 self-portrait timer. It's a clever system and it works, which is great for those moments when you can't use both hands and don't want to tap the screen.
Another cool feature is the ability to have a front-facing flash, although it's not an LED light. Instead, part of the screen goes white, which illuminates faces and takes better pictures. LG has even white balanced this screen to correct skin tone imperfections – and it really gives some nice front facing snaps.
Review: iPhone 6 Plus
A 5.5-inch iPhone. It's something which will send a shudder down the spines of a collective of die-hard Apple fans, a handset some thought we'd never see from the Cupertino-based outfit.
Yet here I am, staring down the barrel of the biggest iPhone in history - the iPhone 6 Plus.
It arrived alongside the iPhone 6 - Apple's new flagship smartphone - which measures 4.7 inches, making it more welcoming to a wider array of palms than the supersized iPhone 6 Plus.
Many of you, especially those of an Android persuasion, may be wondering what all the fuss is about. After all the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 turned up with a 5.5-inch display over two years ago.
Take a moment to glance at the history of the iPhone though, and you'll see why the iPhone 6 Plus is such a big deal.
Previously Apple has only dealt in two screen sizes - a 3.5-inch display graced the first five generations of iPhone, and just three have had the pleasure of a larger 4-inch display.
5.5 inches then is a huge leap forward for Apple, moving its iPhone range into the uncharted waters of the phablet market currently dominated by Samsung and other Android devices.
Apple is looking to reach a previously untapped audience of smartphone users - those who demand a large screen, with 'productivity' the main buzzword being thrown around. A key market for the iPhone 6 Plus is Asia, where general consensus seems to be bigger = better when it comes to smartphone screens.
In terms of specs and design there isn't a huge amount of difference between the iPhone 6 Plus and the iPhone 6 - apart from the obvious size.
The iPhone 6 Plus does boast a couple of unique features however. It's the first iPhone to pack a full HD display, plus its bigger body means it houses a larger battery than its 4.7-inch brother.
Both sport A8 64-bit processors, 1GB of RAM, M8 motion coprocessors and 8MP rear facing cameras - but the snapper on the iPhone 6 Plus benefits from OIS (optical image stabilisation) while the iPhone 6 makes do with EIS (electronic image stabilisation).
As with all Apple products the iPhone 6 Plus doesn't come cheap, and you may want to brace yourself because it's one of the most expensive handsets around.
SIM-free the 16GB iPhone 6 Plus carries a lofty price tag of $749, £619, AU$999 - and that's just the start.
Apple has ditched the 32GB variant for both the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, with the next storage level coming in at 64GB, and for the 5.5-inch iPhone that equals $849, £699, AU$1129.
The good news for storage fans is that Apple has finally introduced a 128GB model - which may quieten those whining about the lack of a microSD slot - but it will cost you a small fortune. $949, £789, AU$1249 to be exact.
That makes the iPhone 6 Plus comfortably more expensive than rival phablets including the LG G3, OnePlus One, Nokia Lumia 1520 and I suspect the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 when it goes on sale too, if not on a par.
It's big, it's expensive and it's likely to play second fiddle to the iPhone 6 - so is the iPhone 6 Plus worth considering? Read on to find out.
Hands-on review: IFA 2014: LG G3 Stylus
The LG G3 Stylus aims to bring the style of the flagship LG G3 to a more affordable price point, while also getting the addition of a stylus.
LG has promised that the G3 Stylus will carry an affordable price tag, but it's still unclear what it means by that as we wait to hear official word on how much it will cost.
It's safe to say though that this 5.5-inch handset won't be challenging the might of the Samsung Galaxy Note 4, as its set to slide into the busy middle market.
The stunning QHD display from the G3 has been lost on the G3 Stylus, and you'll have to settle for the less impressive qHD IPS 5.5-inch screen - that's a lowly resolution of 960 x 540.
While that may sound awful on paper, in reality I found the G3 Stylus was still very readable, and it's perfectly acceptable for a lower tier device.
Pick up the LG G3 Stylus and it's immediately obvious that this isn't a flagship phone. It may sport the same design curves as the G3, but it's slightly chunkier and the plastic feels cheap.
The curved back does help the G3 Stylus sit comfortably in the hand and the textured rear provides a good level of grip. It will be too big for some, but LG has done a good job of keep the bezels surrounding the 5.5-inch screen relatively slender.
The only physical keys are plonked on the rear, with a centralised power/lock button in the middle of volume up and down.
These buttons has been shaped in a way which makes it easy to find them without having to flip the phone round to see what you're doing.
The ability to wake and sleep the G3 Stylus with a double tap of the screen means you'll very rarely use these buttons, so even if you don't like their placement it shouldn't be an issue.
The stylus slides into the body of the phone in the top left hand corner, but be careful as this is a slender little thing. It feels pretty fragile and I can see it getting bent or broken easily if you're not careful.
Anyone hoping for a S Pen like offering from LG will be sorely disappointed, as the basic pointing device doesn't have any additional features.
Its tip isn't as pointed as Samsung's offering, meaning accuracy isn't as good and writing notes on the G3 Stylus takes a steady hand and some patience.
I found the response of the stylus on the screen was good, and I didn't need to press too hard for it to register.
Power also takes a hit with the LG G3 Stylus rocking a 1.3GHz quad-core processor and 1GB of RAM, while internal storage is just 8GB.
That power is responsible for powering Android 4.4.2 KitKat, which has been coated in LG's new, and rather attractive, user interface which debuted on its big brother earlier this year.
It's a clean, fresh implementation and I was able to browse around the phone with relative ease, although there is a second or so delay when it comes to opening apps - a sign that the G3 Stylus isn't packing a flagship punch.
With LG's user interface you get a range of the firm's own features and apps. Knock Code is present, allowing you to tap a pattern to unlock the phone rather than typing in a pin or password.
It worked pretty well for me, but it's no where near as convenient as the fingerprint scanner on the iPhone 5S and Huawei Ascend Mate 7.
Meanwhile Dual Window - as you may be able to guess - allows you to have two applications running side by side on the G3 Stylus.
The large 5.5-inch display makes this a workable option, although only select apps are capable of performing this little trick.
It's something fun to show off to other people, but I can't see myself actively using the function day to day all that often.
Moving onto the cameras and the LG G3 Stylus sports a 13MP rear facing camera, while round the front you get an average 1.3MP lens.
I took some shots of the LG booth at IFA 2014, and the G3 Stylus did reasonably well in the variably lit arena with a good level of detail in the shots.
Is there space (and demand) in the market for a cheaper looking and feeling LG G3 with a questionable stylus? In short, not really.
To be fair it looks like the G3 Stylus will be targeted at specific markets such a Asia and Latin America, and it may never make an official appearance in the likes of the US, UK and Australia.
The screen is surprisingly good considering the resolution, performance is acceptable and there's a decent camera on the rear which may help the G3 Stylus keep its head above water.
Review: In Depth: Amazon Fire Phone
Jumping into a highly competitive space, like the smartphone market, is risky. But if there's a company out there that could do it with a chance of success, it's Amazon. Its new Fire Phone is the company's first stab at it, and we're going to find out how well it fares against the competition.
In order to have any measure of success, Amazon has to differentiate its smartphone from everyone else, namely Android and iOS smartphones.
There have been rumors of an Amazon smartphone for years, but because of the insane success of Android smartphones from Samsung, HTC and LG, the Amazon smartphone hype never reached the heights that future iPhone iterations would.
Of course, Amazon is no stranger to the mobile device market. Aside from the Amazon apps and Kindle apps, Amazon also has the Kindle Fire HDX, which succeeded the Kindle Fire HD and Kindle Fire.
It's important to note its tablet efforts, because many of the features found on Amazon's tablets are also on the Fire Phone. However, the Fire Phone is loaded with things you won't find on Amazon's tablets, so it's not just a shrunken version of the Kindle Fire HDX.
So, how does Amazon's Fire Phone stack up to today's smartphone market? Does it hold its own, or is it just another vehicle for Amazon to sell you more of its products and services? Or does it fall somewhere in between? And will the fact that it's only available on O2 in the UK (and costs the same as most other high end phones with better specs and features) hurt it? Let's find out.
The Fire Phone reminds me very much of the Nexus 4 due to its glass front and back, and its soft plastic edges. It feels like a nice device, but it doesn't quite have the same high-end, premium feel of the HTC One M8 or iPhone 5S, for example.
The display measures 4.7 inches with a resolution of 1280 x 720. While it's nowhere near the resolution or pixel density of displays we're seeing today - the LG G3 comes in at a whopping 2560 x 1440 - it's not terrible. It's just not that great.
You'll have 32GB and 64GB memory options for the Fire Phone, with 2GB RAM all powered by a Snapdragon 800 chipset and 2.2GHz CPU and Adreno 330 GPU. Again, not the highest end hardware available on the market, but it's sufficient.
Around the phone, you'll find a power button at top, volume keys and camera button on the left side, and a microUSB port at the bottom.
The back is layered with glass, emblazoned with the Amazon logo, along with a 13MP camera and an LED flash. The camera up front is a 2.1MP shooter, and both cameras are capable of recording 1080p video at 30FPS.
There are also cameras on each corner of the phone that enable Dynamic Perspective, a software feature that gives the display a 3D effect when you tilt the phone.
If you're interested in the exact dimensions of the device, it measures 139.2 x 66.5 x 8.9 mm. It's not the slimmest or leanest device, but it's not bulky, either. And at 160g, it's a nice balance between heft and lightness. I don't like phones that are paper light, nor do I like them brick heavy.
In comparison to the HTC One M8, iPhone 6 and LG G3, it's hard to call the Amazon Fire Phone a high-end or premium device. In fact, in terms of specs, we could've expected a phone like this back in 2012, and hardly in the second half of 2014.
That's already a strike against the Fire Phone in terms of competing with the best out there, which is exactly what Amazon should be doing if it's going to fight for space where Samsung, HTC, Apple and LG live.
Here's where the real meat and potatoes lie, in Amazon's Fire OS. It's based on Android, but if you've ever seen or used Android before, you'll notice immediately that Fire OS looks and feels nothing like Android.
When you fire up the Amazon Fire Phone, you'll be greeted with a 5-minute tutorial on how to use the phone, along with the key features of the device - namely Firefly and Dynamic Perspective.
It's a nice introduction into using your phone, because as you'll find with the Fire Phone, it's not very intuitive. One example is the lack of a menu button and back button, which are things you'd normally find on an Android device.
For many things you'd want to do or access, you'll have to get used to using gestures. It's frustrating and confusing at first, but it's still a nuisance even when you get used to it. For example, instead of a back button, you have to swipe up on the display from the bottom near the home button. It's not naturally intuitive, and sometimes easy to forget even after doing it so many times.
If you're familiar with the Kindle HDX, or any other Amazon devices using Fire OS, you may feel at home with the Fire Phone. Many elements remain the same, such as the carousel home page where your most recent apps live.
On the home page carousel, your recently used apps will also show contextual or relevant info, such as notifications and message previews. It's nice for at-a-glance information, but if you have snooping eyes nearby it's not so pleasant.
It can also be frustrating to have to flip through so many apps to get to the one you want, and it would be nice if you could get rid of the apps with a quick swipe upward, like the old webOS (remember those days?) or the multitasking feature on iOS.
There is a notification panel, like Android and iOS, when you swipe down from the top, although it's a strange animation that takes you there. Rather than seeing the panel drop down, the screen fades into the notification center when you swipe downward.
If you swipe from the left of the display, you'll get a quick list of shortcuts, like for apps, photos, videos and more. Swipe in from the right of the display, and you'll have daily contextual info, like calendar entries and weather.
To access your panel of apps, simply press the home button when you're at the home screen carousel, and a list of app icons will appear.
I'm not here to write a tutorial or instruction manual on how to use the phone and every little feature Amazon decided to include in the Fire Phone. However, I will say that it takes time to get acquainted with the platform and to find everything you need.
Hands-on review: Updated: Samsung Galaxy Note 4
Back in 2011, Samsung decided that bigger was better and launched the Samsung Galaxy Note range which came with a 5.3-inch screen. At the time, this screen was a massive talking point: many thought it was too large to be a phone, others thought it was too compact to be a tablet.
Skip three years and that 5.3-inch screen no longer looks out of place in the phone market. Given that the Samsung Galaxy S5 comes with a 5.1-inch screen, it's clear to see the line between what was once classed as a phablet and what is now expected as a phone has well and truly blurred.
While this hasn't stopped Samsung pushing out the size boat - the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 came equipped with a 5.7-inch screen - it seems Samsung has finally put on hold the size creep.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 comes with the same-sized 5.7-inch screen as the Note 3, with Samsung instead deciding to improve on the quality of the screen rather than its size.
You can now pre-order the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 from Samsung Experience Stores, with other retailers taking pre-orders from 26 September, before its release on Friday 10 October.
The screen now boasts Quad HD Super AMOLED (2,560 x 1,440 resolution) technology that stretches to 500 pixels per inch. Couple this with what Samsung is calling an adaptive display - one that changes depending on the light of the place you are viewing the screen - and on paper you have the optimum viewing no matter what situation you are in.
Get a better look of the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 with our hands on video:
To test the quality of the screen I watched a video that was shot in UHD on the device and it was stunning. Colours were vivid and detail popped out with the clarity you would expect from a 500ppi screen. Even zooming in there were no jagged edges and playback was smooth - no judder from the demo I viewed.
But the screen isn't the first thing that hits you when you get the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 in your hands, it's the build quality.
Samsung has definitely listened about its latest line-up feeling plastic-y in the hand and has decided to give the Note 4 more of a premium finish, with a metal rim surrounding the handset, shielding the rest of the chassis like a velvet rope protecting celebs from real people in a club.
I loved the way the Note 4 felt in the hand and being a regular user of the Note 3, it definitely felt different enough and it's light too, just a touch over the weight of the Note 3 at 176g.
It's obvious but the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 does come equipped with some of the features that we saw on the S5.
The most notable is the heartrate monitor on the back (which also has a neat camera functionality I will explain shortly) and the back has been improved somewhat too, but is still a little too faux leather for my liking.
There is a lot of similarity between the Note 3 and its successor. Size difference between the two chassis is definitely negligible - the Note 4 comes it at 153.5 x 78.6 x 8.5mm, compared to the Note 3's 151.2 x 79.2 x 8.3mm size.
It's clear Samsung hasn't re-invented the Note range but refined it with clever software updates and slight tweaks here and there.
One of the most impressive is to do with the S Pen. It surprised me that the stylus (sorry Samsung, I know you hate that word) made a comeback with the Note range but four devices in and the S Pen finally makes a lot more sense.
For a start there are two new pen options: fountain and caligraphy. Of these, fountain is the most interesting as it shows off how far the S Pen has come in terms of usability. Until now, using the S Pen has felt a lot like gliding a piece of plastic over a glass screen.
The "feel" of writing on paper just hasn't been there. With the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 this has changed.
The fountain pen works best when you sweep the S Pen across the screen as you would ink on paper and because of extra sensitivity (which has doubled) it is now a joy to write on the Note 4's screen. Signatures look like signatures and your handwriting actually really looks like your true handwriting.
I'm left handed and the S Pen was still a joy to use. Considering I have never been able to use a fountain pen in real life, because of smudging, it was great fun.
And the innovations don't end there. Now you can use the S Pen much like you would use a mouse. Click the button on the side of the S Pen and you are in Smart Select mode, where you can highlight whole passages of text from a website, or even clip out sections of a site and put it into your own clippings archive.
Instead of being an added extra, the S Pen finally feels like a necessary part of the Note 4, rather than a "this is fun but I have no use for it" accessory.
Snap mode has also been improved on the Note 4. While you used to just be able to snap two separate services to the top and the bottom of the screen, you can now "resize" an app much like you would a widget.
So, if you are using the camera and want to send an image via text but stay in camera mode, a quick diagonal down swipe from the top right of the screen will shrink the camera function and show the rest of the phone screen for you. It's a nice feature that could replace using the left multi-tab hot key for many.
You can also make use of the new 'floating UI' which offers Facebook Chat Heads style pop ups on the screen for certain apps.
One other big improvement is with the camera. When it comes to megapixels it's gone from 13MP to 16MP but the innovations don't lie in the meaningless megapixel chase but also in the front camera's f stop (megapixel wise this is 3.7MP), which now clocks in at f1.9. In old money that means that the camera now lets in 60% more light and makes for better quality images.
This also comes with the added bonus of optical image stabilisation.
You can also use the camera in unison with the S Pen. A new feature called Snap Note allows you to take a picture of a piece of paper (or whiteboard) and change what's in the picture.
Although I didn't try this out myself, the demo I was shown consisted of a piece of paper with a number of images and text on it.
A picture was taken of this, put through Snap Note and then the colour and size of the images could be changed, text could be deleted and the size of objects could be increased. It's a niche new feature but one that could come in useful in a creative environment.
The way you can take pictures has changed too. With the whole world going selfie mad, it was inevitable that Samsung (and plenty more manufacturers) would want to cash in on this. It has done it twofold with the Samsung Galaxy Note 4.
First there is a selfie panorama mode. Much like the panorama mode seen on the Note 3, where a picture is stitched from images taken from a pan of a scene, the same thing happens in this mode - except it is in portrait and uses the front-facing camera.
Samsung is quoting 120 degrees spatial awareness and after having a go with it I am not going to argue about such a figure.
Samsung has also recognised that if you want to take a selfie, then it is a little difficult to get your thumb around to the front of the device to take the picture. So it has utilised its heartrate monitor functionality as a back trigger button.
One tap on this and your selfie is preserved. It's not a feature I will be using much but given the sudden popularity of taking pictures of your own face in different places it will be a feature that is used a lot.
Samsung's improved the Note 4's mic performance too. Voice recording is something that won't be used for all but the Note is a device built for business and this feature will be welcomed.
There are now three mics on the handset (two at the bottom and one on the top), these are used well when recording voices.
In a crowded room you can zoom into one voice and cut the rest out. This journalist is already salivating at the prospect of interviewing someone and playing back the interview without hearing his own voice. It's a clever feature but one that may be overlooked by many.
As for the speed of the device, it was fast. I managed to zip between apps and internet with no lag at all and it didn't break a sweat when loading up a movie. But that's exactly what you'd expect with a 2.7GHz quad-core Snapdragon 805 processor and 3GB of RAM under the hood.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is a premium-looking device that will be familiar to anyone who has used a Note. Don't expect huge changes here - you still get a ribbed plastic back, although it's more in keeping with the S5's style.
That was the phone that propelled Samsung into the AAA league of smartphone manufacturers and the Note 4 on first hands on feels like it will be a worthy addition to the Note range.
When it comes to the all-important battery, Samsung has given the Note 4 the same battery as the Note 3 (3200mAh) but it has improved charging times. You can now charge 50% of the battery in just 30 minutes and it has the same ultra-power saving technology that was built into the S5.
It is big and it is clever: the Galaxy Note 4 looks to be Samsung's best Note yet, toning down the gimmick and adding real innovation to what is becoming one of the best phone ranges around.
The biggest relief is that the software changes are innovations rather than annoying bloatware. Samsung does have a habit of adding gimmickry to its handsets but the big changes here are actually beneficial to how you use the Note.
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