When we talk about manufacturers selling large numbers of smartphones, we certainly don’t turn to LG often, if at all. It’s all too easy to write off LG as a small-time manufacturer that makes some well-built phones for South Korea but, they’re holding their own in the west and the Nexus 4 might have changed many people’s minds about the manufacturer. Unlike Samsung announcing that they’ve sold 100 Million Galaxy S smartphones, LG’s announcement today seems a little modest but, it’s an achievement nonetheless. LG have now sold 10 Million LTE smartphones worldwide.
That might not sound too impressive but, we’re all pretty much agreed that 4G LTE is going to be the driving force behind handset sales – if that wasn’t obvious already – and being the manufacturer with as many patents surrounding LTE like LG does is going to set you up for a long time to come. While most of these handset sales are more than likely going to have come from South Korea, it’s still a lot of 4G smartphones for one manufacturer to sell. The number could be a lot higher if LTE wasn’t such a global nightmare for device manufacturers. With numerous different implementations across the globe, it’s a minefield to get your 4G smartphone out there in the first place. The UK has only just gotten 4G LTE and for other parts of the world it remains too expensive for widespread uptake.
LG is committed to 4G LTE, with their recent phones announced at Mobile World Congress all featuring LTE at affordable prices for all. Phones like the F5 and F7 will feature LTE and come in at affordable prices that should help the adoption of LTE across the globe. The Optimus G Pro is obviously a great high-end device that runs on LTE and with phones like that LG might have a chance at becoming a top-tier Android name.