LG teases touchless interface for upcoming smartphone

• LG has teased an alternative to touch input for an upcoming device.
• The teaser video seems to suggest that Galaxy S4-style Air Gestures could be in the works.
• The company will reveal all at MWC 2019, where it’s expected to launch the LG G8.

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MWC 2019 is a month away, and LG is getting on the hype-train with a teaser video for an upcoming device, expected to be the LG G8.

The video clip, uploaded to the company’s YouTube account and spotted by Android Central, claims we can say goodbye to touch. LG’s clip also shows a hand swiping away the “goodbye touch” line several times, before revealing the MWC 2019 timing and event location.

It all seems to suggest the Korean firm is going for a touchless gesture interface on the LG G8. But how would this actually work though?

Previous takes on the technology

Well, the Samsung Galaxy S4 introduced Air Gestures back in 2013, and it allowed users to interact with the screen without actually touching it. By hovering your fingers up to seven centimeters from the screen, you could control page scrolling with a vertical swipe, scroll through photos or music tracks with a lateral swipe, and accept calls by waving your hand over the phone, Jedi-style.

The big issue with these gestures was that simply using the touchscreen was a better way to get things done. So if LG is indeed taking this route, they’ll definitely need to improve accuracy and use cases.

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We’ve also seen more advanced “air” gestures on smartphones, such as Microsoft’s cancelled Lumia McLaren device. The nixed phone packed a “3D Touch” feature, which allowed you to hover over live tiles to view additional options. Think of it like Apple’s 3D Touch, albeit without actually touching the screen. But the functionality also delivered squeezable gestures, akin to the HTC U11.

We’ll need to wait until February 24 in Barcelona to see what LG has up its sleeve, but hopefully it isn’t merely a retread of older technology. What would you like to see from the LG G8? Let us know in the comments!

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from Android Authority http://bit.ly/2DtUiS4