LG Electronics is introducing a new User Interface (UI) for its newest Android Ice Cream Sandwich devices. The UI, aptly named Optimus UI 3.0, brings with it a bunch of key features. Some of the more interesting features it brings is a new Voice Shutter that allows users to capture photos using only voice commands, a new Pattern Lock that allows users to preset the most frequently used function and a icon customizer. Quick Memo is another feature that will be of great value to many. Quick Memo enables users to jot notes on the screen using a finger and also allows users to share their thoughts through social networks, text messages and e-mails.

The great debate rages on about manufacturer skins, some like the extra features while others protest anything other than "stock" Android. President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company, Dr. Jong-seok Park, says:

“With smartphone hardware becoming more and more similar, it’s important for manufacturers to differentiate their products from the competition through the user interface. Both carriers and customers tell us that they want LG phones to look and feel unique and the UI plays a big part in that. LG is really going to push the boundaries of what is possible in user interfaces starting with Optimus UI 3.0.”

Optimus UI 3.0 Key Features:
  • The ability to unlock the phone by dragging anywhere on the screen
  • A new Pattern Lock that allows users to preset the most frequently used function, such as the camera, which automatically opens once the phone is unlocked.
  • A simpler version of Optimus UI 3.0 for new smartphone users which organizes the main applications so that they are the easiest to access
  • A new Voice Shutter that allows users to capture photos using only voice commands
  • A special camera feature that enables users to pick up the best shot among multiple images including the moment just before the shutter button is depressed
  • An Icon Customizer that provides an additional level of personalization by allowing users to set their own photos as icons and shortcut images
  • The addition of a Download category to the menu for easier organization.

The UI is designed to be simple and unobtrusive with a major design emphasis on convenience and speed. No doubt this UI will have it's detractors, but with Android handsets becoming so similar in the hardware department the UI's are becoming more and more of a selling point. What say you?

Source: LG