By 
Looks like the LG G4 might not be doing as good at retail as the South Korean company anticipated. Korean Media reports that investment firms and analysts have cut their Q2 forecasts — by nearly half for some — for LG’s mobile division due to missing sales targets.
Trouble in la-la land? Not necessarily. LG’s goal of selling 8 million units this year might be missed, but only slightly. The company targeted 2.6 million units per quarter, but are currently selling at a rate of just less than 2.5 million.
All of that is to say that this doesn’t mean the phone isn’t doing well. It’s probably still LG’s best selling Android phone yet (and for good reason), but it probably still isn’t good enough to top the muscle and might (in both marketing and merchandise) in their hometown neighbors affectionately known as Samsung.
It’s just kind of disappointing. The new generation of phones doesn’t offer much of anything in comparison to the old generation. Once we hit 1080p screens, we really topped out in terms of display improvements. Battery life is still crappy, Android M didn’t offer us many (any?) new or unique features. The whole thing is kind of stagnant and unappealing right now and I don’t think I’m the only one that feels like this.
It’s hard for me to justify dropping $600 on a phone that’s marginally better than what I already have. This includes the S6, the G4, the M9.
I think the future will be a merging of desktop and mobile. Windows may be the one to do it. Think of a phone that can replace your laptop and can run your typical office programs displayed on a 22 inch monitor. Moto had this concept awhile back, but I don’t think industry was ready. They still may not be ready.
Yeah, I was part of the Atrix 4G race. It was a great idea and a shame that it didn’t catch on. It was a great idea.
I’d love for windows to come through with a phone and mobile os that is pretty, useful and practical. Until they have the ability to have a massive app store like android or ios, or the ability to integrate with google services like docs, drive, and gmail… it’s dead to me.
If only more online content (web pages) would be better configured for mobile viewing then this gap between desktops/laptops and mobile phones would close in quicker. There’s still a lot of web sites I frequent that have sub par mobile versions or none at all.
Like most of Moto’s history with phones. Way way ahead of everyone else, nobody gets it, Moto shelves it, forgets to pick it back up when the time is right. :(
I know this isn’t entirely applicable since my phone is more of an outsider, but the Turbo has stellar battery for me. It’s only slightly bigger than the current flagships in terms of thickness but easily outlasts any current (Non-Sony) phone.
Nice being able to use it all day without having to worry about charging or “Battery-saving” modes.
But I do agree with your general point, none of the current 2015 flagships are worth upgrading to from really any 2014 phone. It’s just not enough of a gap.
I’d love to get my hands on a turbo too, it’s really in line with what should be coming out. But it’s purely CDMA, and its Moto. I don’t use CDMA, and Moto support scares me lately.
The Droid Turbo is a 2014 flagship.
As a person who loves android and tries to upgrade almost every year. I’m quite happy with my rom’ed G3. Solid performance great battery life etc…nothing so far this year has made me even want to consider upgrading. I’m looking forward to seeing what the oneplus two has to offer and what the nexi can bring to the table after that not much else to look for. A slight but in specs isn’t cutting it for me anymore.
I agree with your sentiment. I have no desire to upgrade from my Galaxy S5.
Battery life is worse on the new phones, and I’d lose my waterproofing, a feature I like a lot when running outdoors in rain.
I think (on 5.5-inch screens) 1440×2560 is where we truly topped out in terms of display improvements. For me that’s the sweet spot and it doesn’t really need to improve much after that for a screen that size.
Battery life, of course, is extremely subjective depending on the device. My Note 4 can give me at least 24+ hours of life if I’m not watching a lot of HD videos, even then I can last several hours at full brightness. Just depends on the size of battery and how you configure your device that will really influence the life.
Investing that kind of money for a device that’s not (in your eyes) much more capable than the one you already have certainly is something that would give you pause. It’s not something you need but rather if you’ve got the surplus to spend on something you’d want.
If the device you own is still serving you the way you’d like then stick with it for as long as it does.
Yeah my Note4 is a beast.. As for screens, it is getting out of hand.. The QHD on my Note4 is more then enough and even a bit less would still be fine.. Why keep pushing res up and up on these phones with small screens (relative to monitors and tv’s)?
As for other specs though.. I’m a techie and can never get enough.. Cant wait for 8 gigs in these phones.. Of course make 4 the new norm first but the more the better and I find I use more on a phone the a desktop.. CPU’s.. As long as heat is in check and battery is not getting raped then keep on pushing.. 8 cores+ at over 3ghz..maybe 4 in not too distant future? Good luck on heat though.. Much larger flash memory is needed.. And as for speed, Samsungs new UFS EMMC flash 2.0 is the first big step we have seen in storage speed in a long time! Keep it coming..
Yes, but at some point those specs become meaningless. Take the PC, a killer gaming PC is no better than a cheap laptop if all you are doing is reading email and surfing the web. If software isn’t designed to make use of higher processing power and memory, it all just goes to waste. All you have is a status symbol.
I actually think this is the big advantage to reduced emphasis on contracts and subsidized pricing. People will make their final payment, see a reduction in their monthly bill, and realize the phone they have still does what they need it to.
This is also where the lower cost manufacturers can start making inroads. $600 every couple of years is just not going to cut it for many people out there.
I think that the rate of output of these smartphones (the “newest model” coming out) is happening too frequently. IT becomes costly to constantly upgrade to a new top tier smart phone. Do we really need one every 10-12 mos, from the same manufacturer? Maybe every 18 mos is better? By the time most people upgrade to the new device, it is almost time for the next one to come out. Just thinking.
10-12 months was acceptable when phones made notable improvements over the previous, now its just a marginal upgrade to most handsets. I think they are still trying to catch those contracts that are ending each year tho.
Agree on both points, but at some point, it is just going to bite them in the butts. I think extending the life cycle before releasing a new iteration makes more sense though. In the end, the carriers must push for the new versions more than we do, justifying your comment.
No we certainly don’t need a new phone every year. I currently own a Nexus 5 which still works pretty well and hope to use another 2 years. I replaced the battery today in the hope to improve the battery but that’s pretty much the only thing wrong with this phone.
I think most people don’t do every model. I went from an Optimus G (essentially the LG G1), to the LG G3. I will skip the 4 and go to something else next year. But a manufacturer still has to upgrade annually – not everyone is on the same cycle.
They fell into the same problem as HTC. Get a phone that does well and keeps the same design, with leather. I love my G2 but was hoping for something a little more creative.
I am sure that they can blame Verizon wireless for some of this. The way they have treated G3 and G2 Customers is crazy… I sure wouldn’t want to buy a phone where no support is given by a carrier.
I have the g2 on verizon and never noticed it being treated differently than any other phone by verizon.
Verizon treats all phones that way. They are still pushing the Droid Turbo with 4.4.4 on everyone.
They know the solution. Just sell them at $200 a piece and watch those sales skyrocket. In the meantime I’m super happy with my Note 2 running CM 12.1
Is there any stylus support? I have a old Note 2 laying around that I may root just for fun.
Pen works fine by default. If you want added “gimmicky” functionality, there are apps.
I mostly use the stylus with Evernote and works great under Nameless rom
You must be a utilitarian! If it works and does what you need, why buy another as long as that one serves its purpose, that being said, are you going to upgrade to the 5 this year or the four?
Holy Crap Note 2?!?! Good for you brah!!! That’s what I’m talking about. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Just make it better with CM!!!! ???
No surprise here. What did LG expect when they pull a page out of HTC’s play book? Why buy a G4 when you can get a similar G3 for less?
Because a whole segment of the population are not G3 users and they wanted those users – like me. So often you read this argument as if the only people LG is targeting is current users. Don’t upgrade from G3 to G4, fine. Come from an S5 to a G4 – better for them. There are people out there not using a G3 they wanted.
Even if you’re new to LG, why would u pick a G4 over a G3? What is the significant difference? And don’t say it’s the CPU because to most users, having the latest and greatest CPU doesn’t matter. Heck, the Snapdragon 600 in my One M7 is more than fast enough for me.
Most people use their phones to make calls and surf the web. The current crop of Snapdragon 801 and 805 are already blazing fast. Today’s smartphones are as good as they’re gonna get. The only improvement I want to see is battery life. If the G4 had a metal body and longer battery life, it would have sold much better. But this is not the case, so why not save some $$ and get the G3 instead?
Is battery really not that good on the g4?
I recently bought a g4. Its great. The battery will get you through a day or so.
Did you by any chance also use the g3?
Nope. I came from an HTC m7. The g4 offers the best bang for your buck trust me.
I also upgraded from an M7 and I agree. The G4 has been awesome since purchase. golo13 doesn’t know what he’s talking about. The G3 is “meh” and the G4 approves upon a lot!
Um I don’t know if you have a problem with reading comprehension, but I said the g4 offers greater value than most phones out there. The fact that I told the guy to get a g4 is a testament to you rushing in just to comment…
I wouldn’t say rushing, just as I got a couple of threads mixed up while commenting. My apology. Trying to multitask a little too much. lol
The g3 Damn near cost as much as the g4. I know because I was considering getting one, I’m glad I didn’t because the g4 offers better performance, quality, and aesthetics than the previous model. If a phone doesn’t sell well it’s not because consumers all of a sudden got savvy, it’s just bad marketing
I have the g3 and its nice, but if i didn’t already have it i would opt for the g4, aside from having the most update software and getting an extra update than the g3 will get, the camera is better, and the processor runs smoother, the g3 with LG UI does chug from time to time. Battery life is said to be better with the g4 as well. It might not be a huge drastic difference but enough in my opinion.
Buying a year old phone might not feel that bad when you first get it, but one year into its life span and it will definitely feel like you have a 2 year old phone.
I have the G2, and the G3 looked like a significant downgrade in some areas. The G4 looks better on most of those counts (battery, display), so really the G2 to G3 upgrade didn’t make any sense, but to a G4 it does. You’ll feel the same way next year maybe. I still feel like the G2 is really a pinnacle of design in some ways. It was really one of the first phones to come out that is still powerful enough to be considered a flagship. Huge screen, amazing battery life, small form factor (this thing is the same size as an iPhone 6 with a 5.2′ screen!) make it all a truly world class phone. It’s just a shame they’re not updating to lollipop in Canada -_-
Advice to phone manufacturers: make a nice phone. These gimmicky phones with lame battery life and apps and notifications that get in the way of normal usage are tanking you. Just make a nice premium phone that does what the user needs and lasts all day, otherwise get out of the way.
I agree. The problem is they all want to differentiate themselves. But if they really wanted to differentiate themselves, they make a stock phone with a few add on apps. Motorola is the closest I guess.
But then they don’t support their devices. They leave you out to die.
Which is why I think whenever a manufacturer can no longer support a device, they should start updating phones with stock Android firmware. It protects the consumer.
Just like OPPO is doing with the Find 7. They’re currently developing both Lollipop ColorOs and official AOSP Roms.
http://www.oppoforums.com/threads/find-7-7a-aosp-v1-1-beta.27233/
Best-selling phone: 4.5-5-5″ screen, retina display, accurate colors, good camera, fast and smooth, plenty of RAM, 32-64GB of storage, all carriers, nice hardware, battery lasts all day, isn’t gimped out with manufacturer and carrier garbage that looks ugly, gets in the way, and drains the battery unnecessarily, and an OK price. Wow, is that really hard to do
That is true but the g4 gets great battery life and it’s removable. Plus the notifications on it can be removed and easily replaced with google now launcher. And the phone itself although it’s not as premium as the s6, is a very solid phone with a great screen. It’s like someone said, they released it at the wrong time and their marketing dept isn’t good.
Sounds like you explained the iphone. Yuck
IMO the LG G4 Pro killed the sales for this phone….why would they release their own flagship killer so soon after the G4 being released??? I think they shot themselves in the foot.
Besides those of us who read these blogs, nobody knows about a possible G4 pro. There is no way that is causing any decline in sales.
That’s definitely a non factor
Nah..it’s the fact they are still in plastic cheap materials..When you see the S6 go premium with a superior camera…you kinda 2nd guess the purchase of any other Android phone. Also As of lately, Moto has been offering deep discounts on their phones, Free storage upgrades on Galaxy Devices, One Plus went down in price. ..all these things play a part when LG choses to release a phone mid-year. Which I think is the worst time to release a phone
Nothing wrong plastic it’s more durable than aluminum. I dropped my phone a couple of times without any major damage. The only damage so far is a small Crack wich happened when I opened my phone.
I dunno if i would call it more durable, i dropped my G3 once, and a dent went into the corner and the screen shatter, and I’ve seen M8’s with sinks n scratches n no screen shatter. Too much variable on the angle of the drop to call one more durable than another in my opinion.
I have only owned plastic phones and only cracked 1 screen cause of a motorcycle accident. But al my friends and multiple coworkers with a aluminum iPhone have cracked screens.
people say that, but iPhones weren’t even aluminum, they were covered almost entirely in glass, or they used the same plastic other phones did.
My friend cracked his m7 screen, but he also cracked his One X screen. I just don’t think there’s a direct correlation between specific materials, it has more to do with the actual design/angle of drop.
I honestly couldn’t care less if it’s plastic or metal, so long as it is durable and feels good in the hand. I love the feel of my G3, and I don’t care for the S5…
Outside of the G4, does LG have anything that they’d consider “flagship”? Samsung has two in the S line and Note line. I wonder if LG would be more aggressive in trying to compete with the Note line of its own rather than give us a lesser Note copy with their G Stylo that has no wacom-like stylus/display. Could they do better than that?
Blame the invasion of the low cost, very good mid-range Chinese phones. These devices are gobbling up a significant chunk of the cellular market, making it tough for the traditional OEMs to reach their sale target.
A lot of people are not happy with the bad taste the lagfeast that was the g3 left
2.5 million per quarter is still good..unlike HTC or sony…their are millions of people who upgrade during the summer..im one of them..and i will be buying the g4 in august..
I bet the G2 sold more on the resale market last quarter
Zero regrets with my g4. Fabulous phone!
Phones are coming out far too often, cost is going up and the cost of the minimal improvements in performance arent worth it.
These OEMs are focusing on the wrong stuff. They need to focus on battery life, smooth and consistent user experience across devices and better cameras, flash etc.
There are gimmicks (finger print scanners, heart rate monitors) and then there are actual innovation (front facing speakers, always-on audio in the cpu core for listening).
Those are innovations. Stop with the marketing BS and make a REAL solid phone.
How does selling 2.5 million when you expected 2.6 million translate into analysts cutting forecasts in half? That’s 4% by my math, nothing remotely close to half.
Coked-up Wall Street types just don’t make sense to me…
They are referring to earnings. Electronics are fairly low margin items. It takes a lot of sales to generate profit, especially for a large company with a lot of overhead. It’s also possible the forecast is for LG as a whole.
I get that, but I can’t see coming 4% short of sales translating into half the earnings. If they’d sold 2.7 million instead, would forecasts be increased by half? And did anybody really think they’d hit their sales estimates dead on perfect anyways?
You could well be right, it’s might LG as a whole, and maybe other things are pulling them down.
Or they’ve had to reduce the ASP more than they planned to make the volume.
The G3 and G4 aim to target a practical audience, and the practical audience doesn’t upgrade every year… Just a thought…
Should have went with a 3500 mAh battery
Just losing that hideous logo on the front would have moved a few 100k units more.
The phone has some touch responsiveness issues
I have a G4 and couldn’t be happier. Pleased I went with it over the Samsung S6, although I know everyone has different tastes. The amazing camera, loud sound through headphones & bluetooth, and snappy interface (with Nova on top, of course) are just what I wanted. If I was going to change one thing, it would be to make it slightly smaller (S6 size screen) while keeping the 3k battery. Small bezels mean this isn’t a deal breaker though.
In Thailand, where I am based, Samsung’s blanket marketing can’t be beat. They are everywhere. I am not surprised LG doesn’t do so well here. People who are not tech heads don’t know much about the LG G4 at all, but are always pleasantly surprised when they find out.
I would totally buy a G4 if I hadn’t recently bought a G3. I love the G3. I really hate Samsung’s insistence on that idiotic home button, and their retreat from batteries and SD card on the S6.
LG could so easily create a great-selling flagship, but they insist on some stupid things.
First, the display must be smaller. 5.2″ is the perfect size, as shown by the G2 sales. It fits in the pocket AND consumes less power.
Second, you need a larger battery. Many LG owners are geeks and they have smartwatches and all kinds of connected gadgets which eat up radio power. LG Chem could create custom batteries for G2 but they can’t create a 3500-3800mAh battery for a flagship phone ?
Third: don’t curve the damn phone just to show off your curving skills. A curved phone does not fit well into a pocket.
Fourth: just use your common sense and come out with a nice looking pattern for the plastic back. The G4 plastic back pattern is probably the ugliest that could be imagined.
Fifth: work on those narrow bezels a bit more. Don’t get lazy. There is room for improvement, especially for the top and bottom.
I love my G4. The only thing that I would change is that I would have the device run stock Android with the LG camera app as the only add on.