LG Bails Out Of SmartPhones

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

LG to close its loss-making smartphone business worldwide

LG said on Monday it will close its loss-making mobile phone business worldwide as the once pioneer brand looks to focus its resources in “growth areas”

techcrunch.com

I was just looking at some of theirs too.

 

[Moonbeam]

Rooting for Apple to kill Facebook.

 

[linkgoron]

Too bad, IMO - IIRC the LG G4 motherboard issues were what started their fall. I assume that HTC and Sony will be next. It really looks like Samsung and Chinese makers have totally taken over the market.

 

[Bitek]

Kinda sucks, tho I never bought an lg phone as the were not that great.

I prefer the pixels and nexus for pure Android, but IDK, getting kinda bummed on Android. Google seems to just let it be messy and directionless.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

Were at a point where instead of upgrading smartphones every 1-2 years it's now becoming every 2-4 years. So... seeing the market mature and the ones that sucked falling out isn't surprising.

Like linkgoron said, I definitely see HTC falling out next. For Sony, I didn't even know they were still in the market...

I just hit ~2.5 years with my Google Pixel 3XL and my wife's Pixel 3 - and although the battery life is starting to suck a bit from when I originally bought it - it still EASILY holds out all day unless I use it extensively. So... no plans to upgrade anytime soon.

 

[Pohemi]

I had an LG G2 and then the G3 before I stopped buying flagship phones.

They were nice and worked well. Besides the G flagship line and a few budget-oriented models though, I've not noticed much from LG in more recent years, so this isn't too much surprise to me. More surprising to me that Sony is still hanging in there.

 

[Homerboy]

Rooting for Apple to kill Facebook.

why? it would be no different in the end.

 

[Homerboy]

Were at a point where instead of upgrading smartphones every 1-2 years it's now becoming every 2-4 years. So... seeing the market mature and the ones that sucked falling out isn't surprising.

Like linkgoron said, I definitely see HTC falling out next. For Sony, I didn't even know they were still in the market...

I just hit ~2.5 years with my Google Pixel 3XL and my wife's Pixel 3 - and although the battery life is starting to suck a bit from when I originally bought it - it still EASILY holds out all day unless I use it extensively. So... no plans to upgrade anytime soon.

I'm at 2 years with my OnePlus 6 (which was already a year old when I bought it used). The battery lasts all day with normal usage. I see no reason to upgrade whatsoever (minus breaking, which I have only done once). Phones are clearly at the point of home PCs - they do MORE than enough for what 99% of the people want/need. The primary reasons for upgrading are breakage or vanity.

 

[nOOky]

Bummer, but not unexpected. I've had LG phones for years, since the LG G2. I currently have the LG V40 and it's almost 2 1/2 years old, but it still adequate and I'm not looking to replace it until it dies. My wife finally went to a Samsung S20+ and while it's okay, she still think my photos look better side by side. Not sure what I'll get next, I'll decide that when I have to.

 

[pete6032]

The only LG phone I owned was a Google Nexus 5x, which was a POS and ended up dying on me, while I was on vacation nonetheless, due to a hardware defect. Fortunately I got a replacement and got paid out through a class action lawsuit. I'm not surprised LG is leaving the market, they haven't been relevant for quite some time.

 

[Denly]

Picked up my 1st LG phone 6mth ago, G8x dual screen, the dual screen is very useful if you can deal with the mass. LG lag of update is real, I have had zero update since I got the phone while my 2yrs old chinese no name phone got 2 or 3 in the same period of time.

From my exp w/ LG they make solid phone but make many bad choices and the rep of lagging update drive people away. It is really sad I don't have an upg path for cheap dual screen phone after V60.

 

[ch33zw1z]

That sucks, less competition to keep Apple / Samsung in check.

 

[Moonbeam]

why? it would be no different in the end.

I think the world would be better off with Facebook dead. It makes a difference to me. For that reason I prefer Apple to Android. Won’t care if Android works to destroy Facebook too.

 

[MtnMan]

I had an LG G5 for many years, really liked it. Fingerprint reader was great, and after 2+ years the battery is loosing its stamina, takes about 30 seconds to install a new battery.

 

[Homerboy]

I think the world would be better off with Facebook dead. It makes a difference to me. For that reason I prefer Apple to Android. Won’t care if Android works to destroy Facebook too.

I guess I thought you meant "replace" Facebook more than "kill" it.
that being said, even if FB died tomorrow, there will be a replacement. Social media is not going anywhere anytime.

 

[UNCjigga]

I think this was expected with Google taking a more dominant position with Pixels. But the fact that Android could never get past its fragmented nature is partly to blame. Android does well with lesser known brands in China (and emerging markets thanks to Android One) but in mature markets it’s been a Google and Samsung show (with Lenovo/Moto at the low end.) Few other vendors can commit the resources necessary for timely software updates, and even then you’re lucky to see major updates beyond 2 years.

Even when boutique brands achieve some level of success (OnePlus, Oppo etc.) the carriers make it difficult to manage go to market, and you’re lucky if you’re able to pick one up and handle a demo unit in a retail store.

 

[MrSquished]

Pretty soon it will just be Apple, Samsung and a bit of Pixel

 

[Moonbeam]

I guess I thought you meant "replace" Facebook more than "kill" it.
that being said, even if FB died tomorrow, there will be a replacement. Social media is not going anywhere anytime.

You have to understand that much of capitalism exists only because companies use free speech to create artificial need. We live in a nation of brain dead zombies whose greatest threat comes from themselves. Until a nation realizes it can't survive democracy by idiots and does something to propaganda proof its people by teaching them how to think, any other country that sees us as competition can destroy us from within. You either kill social media that caries fake news or collapse as a nation. Free speech among zombies leads to mass hysteria, a nation full of brain dead Republican cult fanatics. We do something about it or we die. Sadly we are already all too brain dead to see much less to act.

Edit: I shouldn't say 'you have to understand'. This is just my opinion.

 

[Commodus]

A bit of a shame as I liked some of LG's phones (I probably still have a G2 hanging around), but not at all unexpected.

The best way to sum up LG's mobile unit was "unfocused." The company ping-ponged between design strategies, dabbled far too often with experiments that went nowhere, and put out a bunch of phones that had only minor differences between each other (the V30/V35/V40 were particularly bad).

LG also represented the classic warning about the dangers of courting the "I'll wait until it's on sale" crowd. It discounted phones so aggressively and so quickly that it made Samsung look restrained... there was no point to LG's official pricing, as the only people who ever 'needed' to pay it were hardcore fans (and there aren't many of those) buying devices on day one. The company devalued its brand, and customers responded accordingly.

 

[Lost_in_the_HTTP]

Flubbed the thread title .... shudda said 'hang up on', but oh well......


Looking for a new one and LG was in the running. Not sure what to do, but it dang sure ain't gonna be made by G-, The Kings Of Spyware.


Was looking at a RotoMola, but they're financing partner Affirm, is a total waste of a company.

 

[Zorba]

I had a V20 I bought used. I liked it, really liked that the battery was swappable. However, couldn't find a decent replacement battery for it, or it just drained batteries, not sure which. Had it for a little over a year, then switched to the Pixel 3a.

The problem with Android is the lack of updates on the phones from cheaper brands, which is why I decided to go the Pixel route.

 

[hal2kilo]

At least the battery is replaceable in my Stylio V2. Not much else to say about it otherwise.

 

[MrSquished]

LG had some high quality audio output on their phones, which is what got me into them, to use with high end wired IEM's. They had a quad DAC in them and put out decent volume and of course had headphone jacks. But the allure of steady updates and stock Android drew me to Pixels. If LG just ran stock Android and gave regular updates I would have stuck around longer.

 

[Oyeve]

Just booted up my LG-G7 after months being off. No updates. Turned it off.

 

[thilanliyan]

Picked up my 1st LG phone 6mth ago, G8x dual screen, the dual screen is very useful if you can deal with the mass. LG lag of update is real, I have had zero update since I got the phone while my 2yrs old chinese no name phone got 2 or 3 in the same period of time.

From my exp w/ LG they make solid phone but make many bad choices and the rep of lagging update drive people away. It is really sad I don't have an upg path for cheap dual screen phone after V60.

Yeah their lack of updates is what stopped me from considering them last time I bought a phone.
In general they made some good phones but software support is crucial.