9.04.2016

IFA 2016 - LG & Samsung Head-to-Head Battle


LG and Samsung at IFA 2016 were probably the two of the most visited halls. LG hosted the largest space than their previous participation and they were well-equipped with new products. Samsung booked the whole City Cube Berlin Hall, which is bigger than any company's space at IFA.

Both presented the similar lineups which inevitably compete with each other in the rest of 2016. Let's take a look at what each is offering.



LG - OLED, Centum Washing Machine, Smarthome



When entering LG area, we had to pass a gigantic OLED tunnel, which was created with 216 OLED screens. This area was probably the most crowded space in LG area.





The first thing that caught our attention after passing through the OLED tunnel was House of Cards. The Guinness record holder, Bryan Berg was making House of Cards on operating LG Centum Washing Machine. The machine was soundless as well, and LG will offer 20 years of warranty to buyers.






Smarthome products were also noteworthy. With improved sensors and partnership, LG has been creating eco-system to lead the future smarthome market. The exhibition hall was also divided by various themes such as 'Creativity Widened Area' where we could experience LG's laptop Gram and curved display designed for gaming, and 'Color Enriched Area' where we could use webOS that enables convenient multi-tasking while watching TV.







Samsung - Quantum Dot Display, Gear S3, VR, IoT



We then walked to City Cube Berlin where we could experience the world of Samsung. Challenging directly to LG's OLED, the first thing we encountered was Samsung's new Quantum Dot (QD) Displays. Although scientific information about Quantum Dot technology is a bit complex, you can simply understand Quantum Dot as a particles that bring more natural and precise color to display. More detail can be found on Samsung's official page. Click HERE to visit.



Samsung also showed the history of TV from CRT TV to QD Display, stating that they've been leading the innovation of display technology.



VR experience section was probably the most crowded area at IFA 2016. We had to wait half an hour in line to experience their VR contents, and it wasn't waste of our times at all.





Gear S3 was another popular area. With S3's standalone function, it significantly improved the access to Samsung Pay and their security solution, Knox. The users will be able to make a purchase without credit card and enter the building without a security card. The security of Gear S3 was in question, and Samsung answered to such question quite reasonably. When users try to use Samsung Pay on their watch initially, they have to type in their security code. Then, as long as they don't take off Gear S3, the Gear keeps track of users' biological signal which enable users to be free from further verification.


Galaxy Note 7 and other Samsung smartphones will work as a car key. Samsung collaborated with Mercedes-Benz to enable such technology. The car will recognize a smartphone as a car key, which will automatically unlock the car and activate side mirrors. After entering to the car and connecting smartphone, the user can start the engine and drive the car. It will also add security function which will detect sudden changes of the car and send notification via smartphone.







Family Hub, Samsung's own smarthome solution, was also noteworthy. Among various offerings, we found their universal remote controller very convenient. Typical living rooms usually have 3~4 remote controllers to control TV, DVD player, Air Conditioner, and Cable, but Samsung's universal remote will get rid of such inconvenience.


Judging from overlapping product offerings the two companies offer, competition seems inevitable. Now it is up to us to decide.






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