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LG says it didn't copy the iPhone X-like notch on the G7 ThinQ

The LG G7 ThinQ has a software feature that can "hide" the notch. (Source: LG)
The LG G7 ThinQ has a software feature that can "hide" the notch. (Source: LG)
LG has said that it did not knock off the notch on its flagship LG G7 ThinQ from the Apple iPhone X. Rather, the company says that it thinks of it as a secondary display, which is there to show additional information.

LG mobile chief Hwang Jeong-Hwan has rejected suggestions that the notch on the G7 ThinQ is in any way a knock-off of the iPhone X. According to Hwang, the company doesn’t even like to refer to the notch as a "notch", but rather, a secondary display. Before you "LOL", the company has been among the leaders in advancing secondary displays on smartphones giving the argument some merit, despite the obvious similarities to the iPhone X.

"We planned the notch design before Apple," said Hwang, speaking at its launch last week. An LG patent (embedded below) from 2016 seems to support Hwang's argument. The patent in question shows a notched display that is quite similar to the Essential Phone, which was actually beat the iPhone X to market. If you look back to the LG V10 and LG V20 smartphones, both had secondary displays. However, rather than continuing that trend with the LG V30, LG appears to have moved that approach across to the G7 ThinQ instead.

In other notable remarks, Hwang says that LG will be sticking with LCD displays for the G-Series line, but will continue with OLED's for the V-Series. Each G-Series phone has introduced new LCD display technologies and the new G7 ThinQ is no exception. Its debuts LG's new Super Bright technology, which incorporates a white subpixel in the RGB array, boosting peak brightness up to 1000 nits for a period of up to 3 minutes. Given that most, if not all, of the high-end smartphones the G7 ThinQ is competing against feature OLED panels, one wonders how long LG can hold out before bringing OLED tech to its G-Series line, however.

A 2016 LG patent for a smartphone that appears to support its argument. (Source: Android Authority)
A 2016 LG patent for a smartphone that appears to support its argument. (Source: Android Authority)

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > News > News Archive > Newsarchive 2018 05 > LG says it didn't copy the iPhone X-like notch on the G7 ThinQ
Sanjiv Sathiah, 2018-05- 7 (Update: 2018-05- 7)