LG TVs have an app full of free stuff to watch and it's about to get a big upgrade
LG's popular Channels app is getting a redesign and new features that make it look rather like Roku's offering
One of the most popular apps on the best LG TVs is Channels, its free ad-supported TV (FAST) service. And the app is about to get a big makeover that makes it easier to navigate, easier to find new things you'll like watching and easier to use the channel guide.
It also looks a lot more like The Roku Channel, which is no bad thing. It's useful to have consistency when you're moving between different TV apps so you don't need to work out what lives where.
According to LG, Channels 3.0 features "a new Ul with improved navigation, more engaging placements for content discovery and an enhanced channel guide, users will easily be able to discover the content that resonates with them".
It's rolling out to South Korea first in September 2023, and then it's going to start arriving on LG TVs in the US, UK and other international markets in October.
What's new in LG Channels 3.0?
The new Channels is organized into three key areas: Home, Live and On Demand. The Home page has a large rotating carousel to show you featured channels, curated collections and premium video on demand. Meanwhile, Live now enables you to play channels directly from within the app.
The new channel guide also only covers half the screen so you don't have to completely obscure your current viewing to see what's on other channels. And as you'd expect, the On Demand tab is an electronic storefront for movies and TV shows. It includes recommendations from the Popular Now category to show you what others are streaming.
Where can I get LG Channels 3.0?
For most viewers, LG Channels 3.0 will live in their LG Smart TV. But the app is also available on iOS and Android, although the specific channel line-up may differ between devices.
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The service is currently available to viewers in the US, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Korea, Australia and Japan, and LG intends to roll it out to more countries in the near future.
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Writer, broadcaster, musician and kitchen gadget obsessive Carrie Marshall has been writing about tech since 1998, contributing sage advice and odd opinions to all kinds of magazines and websites as well as writing more than a dozen books. Her memoir, Carrie Kills A Man, is on sale now and her next book, about pop music, is out in 2025. She is the singer in Glaswegian rock band Unquiet Mind.