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LG to Ship Google TV Sets Late This Quarter

By Vijay Anand - on 11 Jan 2012, 10:39pm

LG to Ship Google TV Sets Late This Quarter

Google TV is making a come back and LG is one of the four key consumer electronics giants to help give this platform some weight.

Google TV is making a strong come back with an updated software platform (based off Honeycomb), changes to its user interface, as well as support for Android applications. Other changes include improvements made to its YouTube application and also providing easier means for viewers to browse for TV programs and movie titles. Besides LG, Sony, Samsung and Vizio will be supporting Google's Smart TV platform.

Just going by the number of brands, it seems that the updates have made Google TV a much more viable platform. Still content availability is a thorny issue and would likely be the differentiating factor amongst the individual brands' own offerings versus Google's approach. It's not very clear as to how things would pan out, but more options bring about a healthy competition which would ultimately help consumers make their choice on the superior platform.

We spoke to a LG spokesperson on the CES show floor and they confirmed that their Google TV offerings will be available sometime this quarter (which is usually interpreted as late in the quarter). Sounding positive, they've got two models, the G6 series and the higher-end G8 series. The G6 is an edge-LED lit TV featuring TrueMotion 120Hz, 1080p upscaling,  LG's Cinema 3D, Authentic Smart TV (a marketing term that addresses the availability of an Android Market, Chrome browser and Magic QWERTY Remote) and is finished in a silver chrome design. The G8 goes one-up as it features LG's LED Plus technology (basically LED-backlit TVs with basic local dimming of up to 16 segments), TrueMotion 240Hz and an ultra narrow bezel design.

Product names aren't finalized yet, but we'll make do with the G6 and G8 models for now. Here are some shots of the G6 in action with the last photo being the G8:-

The new user interface using the Google TV platform has semblances to LG's own Smart TV platform.

LG's Google TV enabled tellies come with a Magic Remote QWERTY controller for easy navigation and quick input of text strings.

LG chose to showcase a sports channel from one of its listings to show off the Google TV's smooth streaming.

Google TV's native Chrome web browser looks no different than on your PC.

And this is the classier G8 series.

Pricing, full model details, and full retail availability information are still withheld at this point of time. Stay tuned to HardwareZone.com for even more updates in the months ahead.

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