LG is making efforts
to improve the user experience on its devices after it opened a “Software Upgrade
Center ” in its native Korea
The new lab will be
focused on “providing customers worldwide with faster, timelier, smartphone
operating system and software updates,” the company explained in a brief
statement.
The
idea is to help get the latest versions of Android out to more users at a faster
pace than it does right now.
That’s a genuine
problem for Android OEM who are tasked with bringing the latest flavor of
Android to devices that already in the market. Issues they have to deal with
include different chipsets, Android customization and carriers.
The
issue has been pretty problematic for LG. Android Oreo, for example, announced
by Google last September only began
rolling out to the first handful of LG devices last month.
The Korean firm said
that one of the first priorities for this new center is to get Oreo out to Korea-based
owners of the LG G6 — last year’s flagship phone — before the end of this
month. After that, it will look to expand the rollout to G6 owners in other
parts of the world.
Beyond Android
updates, the center will also focus on stability update to make sure that the
newest features work on devices without compromising performance.
This move is one of
the first major strategies from new LG Mobile CEO Hwang Jeong-hwan, who
took the top job last year. He came directly from the company’s R&D
division, which suggests that he identified the update issue as a fairly urgent
one to address.
His bigger challenge
is to stop LG’s mobile division bleeding capital. LG Electronics itself is
forecasting record Q1 financial results later this month, but its
smartphone unit is likely to post yet another loss that drags the parent down.
We’ll find out more
when LG’s next flagship is unveiled next month.
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