The latest version of Google’s Android software 4.0 or Ice Cream Sandwich has been released but when will your LG smartphone get it.
(Credit: Roger Cheng/CNET)”We’re heavily in discussions,” Ramchan Woo, head of LG’s smartphone division, told ZDNet Australia’s sister site CNET in an interview.
Over the past few years, getting the Nexus title and working directly with Google on a mobile device has carried an element of prestige.
The company has put a lot of time and resources into testing how people interact with mobile devices, including a lab in Seoul that actually measures brain wave activity during phone use.
That handset maker gets access to the latest and greatest from Google, giving it some bragging rights over its rivals, even if the financial benefits have been mixed.
Woo warned that there have been no commitments yet, and it’s unclear which version of Android LG is aiming to run with.
The next major release of Android, known as Jelly Bean, is expected to work with tablets alongside Windows 8.
LG’s Optimus Black is one of four Android phones that the company has confirmed will be updated to the latest Ice Cream Sandwich version of Android.
LG has only had middling success in the smartphone business, having jumped on the Android bandwagon a little later than its rivals.
A phone with HTC’s Sense or LG’s custom interface will take longer to get the next version of Android than a phone that uses the native operating system.
Once a major name with cell phones, the company is still trying to claw its way back up the smartphone ladder.
Even though Android 4.0, aka Ice Cream Sandwich, has been shipping in Samsung’s Galaxy Nexus since late 2011, the Optimus 3D Max will still ship initially with the older Android 2.3, aka Gingerbread.
While partnering with Google on the latest version of Android carries bragging rights, that sometimes doesn’t translate into sales.
That version, widely known as Gingerbread, is installed on another 59 percent of all Android devices, according to Google.
TheNexus One, which was Google’s experiment to sell phones directly to consumers, failed badly, while the Xoom didn’t turn many heads.
The teams essentially work together on a new version of Android, giving the handset vendor a major leg up on the next release.
The pre release versions of Android were dubbed Astro and Bender, but these names could not ultimately be used for trademark reasons.
Samsung has emerged as the only real powerhouse in Android, with HTC hitting a snag toward the end of last year, and Motorola Mobility busy getting swallowed up by Google.
LG today unveiled the Optimus 4X HD, the company’s first quad core phone, a slimmer Optimus 3D Max, and a 5 inch “phablet,” the LG Vu, all at an event keyed to Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.
LG favours customisationIn the ongoing debate about stock Android versus customised user interfaces, LG lands squarely on the side of customisation.
But beyond that, LG prefers to customize the user interface to set itself apart from its competitors.
News, analysis and tips on the Google Android operating system and devices.
Kenneth Kennedy is a business journalist based in Hong Kong, China. Kenneth has a passion for financial markets and breaking news stories and loves writing about business news, stock market, and economic opinions that matters most to its audience. Kenneth spends a lot of time discovering and researching latest financial markets and industry news stories in order to make sure the latest and greatest stories are brought to you first on BigBoardNews.com.
