Seoul, South Korea — LG plans U.S. availability this month of its largest tablet to date, the Android-based LG G Pad 10.1.
Pricing wasn’t disclosed.
The G Pad 10.1 is part of a trio of Android 4.4.2 tablets unveiled in May by LG, which hasn’t yet announced U.S. availability dates of the G Pad 7.0 and 8.0.
All three tablets offer 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 1GB RAM and True IPS 1,280 by 800 HD display. The 10.1 also features 16GB memory, MicroSD slot, 5-megapixel rear camera, 1.3-megapixel front camera and 8,000 mAh battery. It will be available in black or red.
All three also come with LG’s proprietary QPair 2.0 and Knock Code UI features. The updated Qpair uses Bluetooth to connect the tablets to an Android smartphone, turning the tablets into an extension of a user’s phone. The tablets receive notifications of a smartphone’s calls and texts and enable users to respond to texts and answer calls from the tablet. A QPair 2.0 SDK enables software developers to create apps that let users stream online media and change settings on the G Pad remotely from any Android smartphone.
Knock Code lets users power on and unlock the tablet by tapping the screen using one of more than 80,000 possible “knock” combinations. A knock pattern using from two to eight taps can be entered on any area of the screen, even if the display is off. Up to four users can register a knock pattern.
The tablets also feature a minimal GUI design consistent with that of the new flagship GF3 smartphone with flat graphics and a circular motif inspired by the LG logo.
“Tablets are increasingly being used as companion devices,” spurring LG to connect the LG G Pad 10.1 to the G3 and include in it “the best core technologies of our G series smartphones,” said Jong-seok Park, president/CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications.
Other key features of the tablets include dual window, which splits the screen so that two apps can run simultaneously. The feature also lets users drag and drop content from one window to another. Smart keyboard technology is said to reduce typing errors by up to 75 percent by analyzing typing habits and choosing the word that the user intended to type. The touch-and-shoot feature lets users tap anywhere on the screen to focus and activate the shutter to save time, and gesture shot for selfies lets users clench a fist within the shot to begin a three-second countdown.