Everyone deserves a little bit of luxury in their life. Functionality, natural materials and moody color palettes are among the key trends that have been witnessed lately in the premium home appliances space and the demand is only growing.

Designed primarily for customers who feel that style and function should be more intimately aligned, LG introduces LG Objet – a premium line of products for the home that can best be described as a unique blend of home appliances and artfully designed furniture. This is a relatively new concept that presents a different way to think about household appliances. It keeps the functionality of each product firmly intact while adding a new dimension, one of pure elegance and sophisticated home décor as well.

The growing trend of curating spaces or carefully selecting and arranging furniture pieces, art and appliances to bring about a luxe, comfortable living space can be seen everywhere nowadays. Korea is one country that has taken to this trend with much enthusiasm, seeing a surge in the demand for visually pleasing and highly useful items for the home that gives you happiness, satisfaction and convenience in the comfort of your home.

LG Objet is a fresh concept that presents a new way to think about household appliances and home electronics. LG Objet marries functionality with form, introducing aesthetics and an extra dimension of luxury to create an objet d’art. No longer is curating and arranging furnishings to create a luxurious, comfortable living space only available to owners of large homes, these state-of-the-art pieces can enhance even small spaces with élan.

Always attuned to the needs of the market, LG did its homework to fully understand what people desire – conducting in-depth research, even right down to understanding the types of materials and processes that today’s homeowners value.

LG teamed up with renowned Italian industrial designer Stefano Giovannoni on the design and selection of the perfect materials for LG Objet. After more than two years in development, LG Objet is now available to discerning customers in South Korea to begin with.

Not for the impatient, LG Object products are custom-built and can take up to three weeks to reach its proud new owner. With the use of wood, various metals, and other materials typically found on high-end furniture pieces, LG Objet products stand out from other appliances. Nine different designs and textures are available to choose from, helping consumers to craft a home environment that truly reflects their individual style and eye for good aesthetics.

Following in the stylish footsteps of the uber-premium LG SIGNATURE lineup, LG Objet will further strengthen LG’s position in the category. It has certainly cemented its status as an innovator that understands that life’s good when life’s beautiful!

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Smart technology has long been a staple of future technology forecasting. Though the public’s enthusiasm for smart technology never quite matched that of industry insiders, smart technology has finally truly arrived.

However, the increased market penetration of smart appliances has not been achieved based on the appeal of smart technology alone. Rather it is the continued inclusion of smart capabilities on top-of-the-line – and now mid-tier – products that has resulted in growing adoption.

With the industry’s most extensive range of smart appliances available today, LG Electronics is offering consumers more ways to control their home and enjoy the benefits of a connected home experience, ushering in cutting-edge connectivity and convenience and expanding the Google Assistant compatibility and functionality for LG smart appliances.

With the Google Assistant built in, LG’s AI TVs will offer a streamlined experience that allows users to expertly manage daily tasks, find answers to important questions and control compatible smart home devices.

LG developed the “Smart Living Concept” with Natuzzi Italia, Italy’s largest furniture house. The centerpiece of the Smart Living Concept is Natuzzi’s Colosseo sofa that uses technology powered by LG SIGNATURE to redefine the smart home living room experience. For example, using the Google Assistant capability in the LG SIGNATURE OLED TV and LG AI speakers, the ergonomic, tech-enabled sofa can recognize the user and interact with TV and other smart devices such as the air purifier and refrigerator, and even control smart lighting and thermostats.

The sofa is capable of adjusting the angle of the seat and backrest cushions to fit five custom scenarios – reading, relaxing, TV viewing, music listening via a voice activate smartphone app.

Always considering user needs and convenience above everything else, LG continues to surprise and delight with technology that comes to life in everyday products and a smart product strategy that benefits consumers through its focus on offering greater control and convenience.

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In recent years, the media has shone a spotlight on the importance of cultivating diversity in the tech sector but there is one aspect of diversity that remains largely untouched: ability. One of the criticisms of the technology industry is that by focusing primarily on products it has forgotten about people. Corporations need to show greater commitment to disability inclusion in product development as well as global development.

Once again partnering with Rehabilitation International Korea (RI Korea), LG hosted the 8th Global IT Challenge for Youth with Disabilities (GITC), this year in India.

From 9-11 November, The Ashok Hotel in New Delhi was the location of the event co-hosted by Korea’s Ministry of Health and Welfare and India’s Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

This year, participants from the United Kingdom, United Arab Emirates and Kyrgyzstan took part for the first time as part of an expanded group of more than 100 students from 18 countries.

The IT Challenge is based on the philosophy that strengthening the technology skills in students with disabilities is a critical part of putting access to information and communication services on an equal basis with others.

A total of four events comprise this year’s Challenge:

• e-Tool Challenge to evaluate proficiency in Microsoft Office;
• e-LifeMap Challenge to evaluate online information searching ability in specific sit-uations;
• e-Contents Challenge to evaluate video shooting and editing capabilities;
• e-Creative Challenge to evaluate group development of creative stories and games.

Winners of the IT challenge attended from various countries with different abilities proving that IT has no limitations when it comes to one’s physical capabilities.

LG has been organizing the Global IT Challenges for youth with disabilities since 2011 in association with RI Korea to help eradicate the digital divide among young people with special needs and help establish a foundation for social advancement for them. As part of the GITC, LG is making available educational material co-produced by Seoul National University’s MMLAB (Internet Convergence and Security Research Laboratory) and Inha University’s Technology Talent Center with the goal for participants to learn about technology and utilize it in real life.

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(1^st of a 3 Part Series)

 

The LG V40^ThinQ has an unprecedented five cameras and offers plenty of ways to put them to good use. Thanks to high quality lenses and superior software, users will be faced with the welcome problem of having too many good photos to choose from!

This is the first of a three part series focusing on three different aspects of the LG V40^ThinQ, the dynamic new creation from the lifestyle-enhancers at LG. Part two will focus on design and the audio capabilities of the V40^ThinQ will wrap up the series. Read on to find out how LG’s latest mobile masterpiece can help to bring a little magic back into everyday life.

1. Introducing Penta Shot and Triple Shot: Five Cameras = Five Times the Fun

The LG V40^ThinQ breaks new ground with five cameras, meaning users can take the perfect picture regardless of the distance of the subject from the V40^ThinQ. The rear camera module houses a staggering three different lenses (super wide-angle, standard angle and telephoto), and two more (wide-angle and standard) can be found on the front of the handset. The rear-facing 107-degree super wide-angle lens enables users to capture stunning panoramic scenes, whilst the telephoto lens takes crystal-clear shots from a distance without any loss of detail.

            [Telephoto Lens]                         [Standard-Angle Lens]                       [Super Wide-Angle Lens]

With all this choice, users might worry about selecting the wrong lens to shoot with. Well, they can relax because LG has included a clever feature called Triple Shot, which takes pictures with all three rear-mounted lenses at the same time. Triple Shot stitches together the images captured by each lens to create a short video file that can be easily shared.

Try out Triple Shot from the camera application. Just click on Triple Shot mode, tap on the shutter button, then hit Save. 

 2. Forget About Framing: LG’s AI CAM Automatically Adjusts Composition for Portraits That Pop

                                 [Original Image]                    [Adjusted Image]

LG V40^ThinQ gives users’ portrait taking skills a helping hand via the new AI Composition feature, which automatically activates when the phone’s AI CAM recognizes a human subject. It works just as well when taking group photos, optimizing shots according to how many people are in the composition and how they are posed. Both original and AI Composition images are saved to gallery, giving users the freedom to choose whichever version they prefer.

AI Composition can be accessed from the camera application. Click AI Camera and tap on the shutter button. Move to the gallery and click AI Composition to view the superb results.

 3. Cine Shot: Bringing Still Images to Life

LG V40^ThinQ has a wealth of features that allow users to get the most out of its five cameras, and have a lot of fun doing it. With Cine Shot, it’s easy to make six-second GIFs where one element (of the user’s choosing) remains in perpetual motion while the rest of the picture stays static – like a still life painting with a distinctly fun, modern twist.

To produce a Cine Shot masterpiece, click the Cine Shot mode from the camera application, then tap the shutter button. Select the area of the frame to keep in-motion then hit Save. 

 4. Backdrop: Change Background to Create Different Moods

                   [Backdrop ]                           [3D Light Effect_Stage Mono]               [3D Light Effect_Soft Box]

Backdrop cleverly allows users to alter the background when taking portraits using any of the front or rear cameras. Play with focus, brightness, exposure, blurring effects, or bring in a solid color to give portraits that studio look. There are 5 studio-like lighting effects – including Natural, Softbox, Contour, Stage and Stage Black & White – to brighten, contour or add drama to portraits. Users can also choose from a variety of colored backgrounds to make pictures pop.

From the camera application, simply select Backdrop then adjust the background using the Settings bar. Tap on the shutter button and Save. 

 5. Makeup Pro: No Makeup Remover Required

                                        [Original Image]                                             [Image Using Makeup Pro]

With the Makeup Pro function, it’s easy to virtually apply various makeup palettes developed by some of the top makeup artists working today. Try out transparent, chic, glamorous and more to project different moods.

Experiment with this creative feature by clicking the Makeup Pro icon and cycling through the available makeup effects. 

 6. My Avatar: Cute Emojis That Mimic Users’ Facial Expressions

[My Avatar]

The My Avatar feature in the LG V40 ^ThinQ analyzes the user’s appearance, taking one’s unique facial features into account to create a personalized 3D avatar. Adding to the fun, AR Emoji can track and copy the user’s expressions, making it possible to animate their avatar in real-time. Users may also choose from various 2D and 3D AR Stickers, and create 15 different GIFs when using the front-facing standard camera.

This concludes the first of a three part series on the LG V40^ThinQ, the phone that boasts five incredible cameras along with some truly innovative features and functions. Stay tuned for the next installment in this series where the focus will turn to the modern, minimalist style of LG’s latest mobile sensation.

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One thing the consumer electronics sector cannot be accused of is being complacent. Every year, there are new products, different trends and exciting innovations. Some consumer electronic brands struggle to keep up. LG Electronics not only relishes the challenge, it sees such developments as an opportunity to take the industry into a whole new direction.

LG has been exploring the possibility of robots and smart devices for some time now. At CES 2017, the company presented a tantalizing snapshot of its vision for the future, demonstrating how service robots might assist people in the home, at work and in public spaces.

The robotics sector relies heavily on convergence, calling on a wide range of core technologies and materials and synthesizing them to create solutions that offer an ever-broadening range of functionality. Machines that can talk to other machines, perform multiple tasks, and interact with the people that rely on them is the name of the game.

In many ways, intelligent robots could be viewed as home appliances of tomorrow. Both robots and today’s appliances perform work, can communicate with the user and are capable of adapting to changes in the surrounding environment. For example, air conditioners no longer just deliver cool air during hot summer months. Today they can also heat, dehumidify and purify the air, intelligently sensing when and what option to apply. So it’s no surprise that LG, one of the world’s largest home appliance brands, is taking a leadership position in robotics.

Thanks to foresight and hard work on home appliances, LG finds itself in an advantageous position in robotics, possessing a variety of convergence technologies. LG was even a first mover in developing robots for everyday domestic applications, introducing the HOM-BOT robotic vacuum ten years ago.

Additionally, LG has the research and development capabilities to make itself a major player when it comes to bringing the next generation of robots to market. In fact, that work is already well under way. LG is actively collaborating with a number of established industry names to bring robots that learn and evolve to the core of our everyday experience.

Earlier this year, LG inked an agreement with service robot developer Robotis to collaborate in the development of self-driving modules for mobile robots. Under the agreement, LG and Robotis will each focus on producing software and hardware to enable systems with intelligent navigation capabilities. LG will continue to invest, create and collaborate to advance the field of robotics in new and exciting directions.

Exciting things are happening at LG. Stay tuned.

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Ever since the discovery of electricity, people have been searching for effective ways to store energy for use on demand. The electricity grid is a complex system in which power supply and demand must be balanced to keep up with the immediate needs imposed by the use of air conditioners, washing machines and of course, lighting. Seasons play a big role in this equation, as does weather. This balancing act to create a flexible and reliable grid system is especially important for homeowners who are investing in renewal energy technologies for their homes.

Photo Credit: www.howstuffworks.com

Because some renewable energy technologies such as solar and wind deliver their power inconsistently and unpredictably, energy storage systems (ESS) can play an important role in “smoothing out” the electricity supply from these sources and in order to deliver power when it is needed. ESS is a key part of a more efficient, flexible and reliable electricity system.

Photo Credit: www.vox.com

LG Electronics’ entry into the fast-growing U.S. residential ESS market means that even more residents will be able to benefit from the company’s industry-leading technologies. The introduction of two solutions from LG Energy Storage Systems – an AC-coupled 5.0 kW system for those who already have solar panels of any type already installed and a DC-coupled 7.6 kW system as part of a new installation of LG solar panels – and an expandable battery pack for homeowners gives homeowners more innovative options for their energy needs.

LG ESS works by using “smart energy management” to store excess energy produced from residents’ solar panels for use during hours when no solar energy is being produced, making it available at night or on overcast days. This also allows for less reliance on the public utility grid during times of peak energy consumption when electricity rates are the highest. LG ESS achieves higher efficiency because its DC-coupled ESS converts power more efficiently than AC type ESS units.

Different families have different electricity usage patterns but normally, peaks occur in the morning and the evening when breakfast is being prepared and clothes are being laundered. LG ESS is advanced enough to account for times of high demand and adjust accordingly. In a power outage, each LG ESS can store up to four hours of energy and can be scaled up for more storage by pairing with an expandable battery pack.

In the future, as more storage technology options emerge and the United States transitions to a cleaner energy economy, energy storage is poised to play an even greater role and LG plans to be part of the solution.

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