Rumor: LG Vu III to be announced next month

BY Stefan Constantinescu

Published 13 Aug 2013

vu

Remember the LG Vu? The smartphone with a 4:3 aspect ratio that practically no one bought? Apparently there was a sequel, but what’s really interesting is a report coming out of Korea that says a third generation model will be announced in late September. Simply dubbed the “Vu III”, this new model will have a 5.2 inch 1280 x 960 pixel screen and a Snapdragon 800 under the hood.

Will this work? Let’s do some maths: 5.2 inches with a resolution of 1280 x 960 pixels = 307 pixels per inch. That’s respectable. Using the power of Pythagoras, 5.2 inch diagonal with a 4:3 aspect ratio = 79.2 millimeter wide display. The Galaxy Mega 6.3 in my pocket, the whole device, not just the panel, is 88 millimeters wide. So again, this might actually be decent.

Can LG convince people to go 4:3 instead of 16:9? That’s the hard part. If you consume a lot of video on your phone, then 4:3 is simply a waste. If on the other hand you read a lot, then 4:3 is great. Just ask anyone with an iPad.

Will this phone be sold outside of Korea? That’s the real question, and judging by how poorly the device was received in the United States, I severely doubt that Verizon is willing to stock it again.