LG G2 and the LAG/STUTTERING issue

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Noam23

Senior Member
Feb 26, 2008
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131
I'm trying to get to the bottom of this issue, since there are many reports, yet we don't have a dedicated thread to try and understand what is the cause.

So, as far as I understand, when you first get the device, before you install anything, it runs smoothly like an HTC ONE, no matter how fast or how long you're using it. There are numerous reviews of the LG G2 to back this up.

As far as I understand, things begin to deteriorate when you start to install more apps and widgets. And eventually after you've install enough apps and widgets, the device becomes laggy like the average Samsung device (and not like the HTC ONE). I've read reports from people who said that at some situations (when the device is loaded with apps/widgets) when they press the "HOME" button, it takes the LG G2 5 full seconds to re-draw the home screen. This is unacceptable even with my 2.5 years old Galaxy S2, not to mention with a 2.3Ghz flagship quad core device.

What I'm trying to understand is:

1. Is it more apps, or more widgets, which cause the problem ?
2. Is it a problem of memory management ? how come the HTC ONE (which also has 2GB RAM) doesn't lag or stutter at all?. It does seem to be a memory management problem, because before you install apps/widgets on the LG G2, it runs 100% smoothly.
3. Is this a problem with the stock launcher only ? meaning, if you are one of those people whose LG G2 started to stutter because you've installed too many apps/widgets, does installing a third party launcher (like Nova, etc.) immediately solve the problem ?
 
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nazrin313

Senior Member
Mar 6, 2010
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Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3
Damn, how many apps have u installed? I have 200++ apps and my homescreen has tons of widgets and my phone is as fast as the first time i got it

Sent from my LG-D802 using xda app-developers app
 

Noam23

Senior Member
Feb 26, 2008
733
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Damn, how many apps have u installed? I have 200++ apps and my homescreen has tons of widgets and my phone is as fast as the first time i got it

Sent from my LG-D802 using xda app-developers app

Are you using the stock launcher ?

Is it completely lag-free as the first day you received it before you installed apps ?
 

andrawer

Senior Member
Jun 3, 2011
686
147
Haven't heard this issue mentioned before on the LG G2.

I have had the phone 2 weeks, 100+ apps, stock launcher (albeit only 3 screen filled), about 5 widgets loaded.

No lag at all, fastest smoothest Android I've ever used.
 
Aug 18, 2010
15
2
did you root or install a third party launcher? some apps (usually slide from swiping fingers from left or right side) are not quite compatible with nova launcher and can cause lag. it would be nice if you could post the screen of running apps / cached apps
 

Noam23

Senior Member
Feb 26, 2008
733
131
Haven't heard this issue mentioned before on the LG G2.

I have had the phone 2 weeks, 100+ apps, stock launcher (albeit only 3 screen filled), about 5 widgets loaded.

No lag at all, fastest smoothest Android I've ever used.

Ok, then maybe it's a problem with using more than 3 screens at the stock launcher ?
 

Noam23

Senior Member
Feb 26, 2008
733
131
did you root or install a third party launcher? some apps (usually slide from swiping fingers from left or right side) are not quite compatible with nova launcher and can cause lag. it would be nice if you could post the screen of running apps / cached apps

I don't have the device yet. I'm just trying o figure it out because it's a common problem.
 

jayochs

Senior Member
Jul 22, 2010
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www.dinosaurstakefrance.com
ok, are you talking about the launcher redraw lag stutter issue? if so, it's not the phone, and it's now how many widgets and screens you have.(i had 3 widgets split between only 3 screens..) . it's that the stock launcher just redraws all the time and it stutters when you try to switch screens as its redrawing.

solution, try another launcher until we get a fix to lock launcher in memory. v6 supercharger has this option, but it doesn't work. believe me, I spent hours one night setting up v6 for bulletproof launcher and it still redraws.

I've had the phone since launch day on Verizon, and I don't have any lag or stutter besides the stock launcher stutter, but I've been using nova now, so i literally have no lag whatsoever.

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk 4
 
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omnia38

Senior Member
Mar 1, 2009
163
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Never had this problem. Using stock launcher or the Themer launcher. I would love to see a video of this actually happening.

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk 2
 

Anilexis

Member
Dec 10, 2010
39
10
I have around 100 aps and it's ok.
But when I want around 30+ widgets - homescreen is lagging heavily like in op post. This is both in LG stock launcher and Nova launcher. For comparison I installed 60 widgets on my old samsung note 10.1 - stock touchwiz - in it was running smooth. I even created a thread here:
http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2469207
So I just stuck to standart design without to many widgets, but it's surely LG ui code bugs somewhere. Try it: create 8 screens with 6 different widgets on each.
 
Aug 18, 2010
15
2
I don't have the device yet. I'm just trying o figure it out because it's a common problem.

So far No problem on My device with around 150 apps installed and running nova launcher, as I saw from other forums, such shuttering is not a common problem, But I have seen people having YouTube and browser lag issue

Sent from my LG-D802 using xda app-developers app
 

bova80

Senior Member
Sep 12, 2013
143
19
I have 5 home screens with widgets and apps and the only time i've see the homescreen slow to load is when first booting it up after a restart. other than that it hasn't lagged. been using it for almost a month now and have no complaints.

not sure how it's a common problem when this is really the first I've heard about it.
 

jayochs

Senior Member
Jul 22, 2010
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Central NJ
www.dinosaurstakefrance.com
Here is an example of the lag issue I'm talking about with the LG G2:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gpn-hZnEPqg

haha good thing I made those videos huh ;)

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk 4

---------- Post added at 07:49 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:47 AM ----------

also, if you goto my channel and look at my screen brightness problem video you'll see it happen again at the end of the video too.

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk 4

---------- Post added at 07:50 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:49 AM ----------

btw op are you on Verizon? seems the issue is the Verizon launcher more so than the att launcher. att seems to redraw less.

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk 4
 

android404

Senior Member
Jan 19, 2013
1,427
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did you root or install a third party launcher? some apps (usually slide from swiping fingers from left or right side) are not quite compatible with nova launcher and can cause lag. it would be nice if you could post the screen of running apps / cached apps

I'm rooted on nova launcher with swipepad, swapps, 12 widgets and a hundred apps. Haven't experienced a single lag. Swipepad and swapps are there in an instance too.
 
Aug 18, 2010
15
2
I'm rooted on nova launcher with swipepad, swapps, 12 widgets and a hundred apps. Haven't experienced a single lag. Swipepad and swapps are there in an instance too.

The way to check is first go to home, swipe to right or left to next page, then quickly pull the notification bar, then if it causes lag, then maybe the app not so friendly with Nova, I got No problem with lmt launcher But some slide app:)

Sent from my LG-D802 using xda app-developers app
 

jrgilbert79

Senior Member
Mar 8, 2012
530
164
So do you greenify the apps that don't need to run in the background? Also have you debloated the stock rom or run clean Rom? Have you removed the widgets one at a time until you find the culprit. It does look like a redraw but it seems to be caused by something that updates every time you go back to the home screen.

Sent from my VS980 4G using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
 

zathus

Senior Member
Aug 25, 2009
1,526
748
Here is an example of the lag issue I'm talking about with the LG G2:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gpn-hZnEPqg

I have around 200 apps. 2 screens filled, clock widget on my home screen. 5 widgets on another screen. All icons themed using the stock launcher. Did my very best to duplicate the video. Around 10 time or so and not one redraw.

Conclusion. Retun your phone and try a diff one. There not all the same and some bad apples get through. My buddy had 3 htc ones with issues. I went though 2 gnex. It happens. If it's still doing it, try something else. I personally could not be happier with my g2. Its a beast and I am so freaking pleased with the optimusui. I almost don't want pure android anymore.

Sent from my VS980 4G using xda app-developers app
 

swagr

Senior Member
Oct 31, 2008
79
2
I think the term 'lag' is subjective cause what the OPer sees as lag another person may not see as lag. I for one see stuttering and not just with redrawing of the stock launcher, i'm using an ATT variant with a rooted, stock ROM BTW. I have about 150 apps, one home screen with one widget, one folder and 15 apps. I'm coming from an HTC One which i still have, rooted, running Viper One and prior to that i had a Nexus 4. Comparing my experience with the these devices i can say that there is a bit of stuttering throughout the G2's interface. Don't get me wrong the apps launch faster on the G2 , but the transition animation between pressing the app and it actually opening seems a bit jerky by comparison. Its not as smooth as the HTC One while scrolling the same apps side by side nor is it even close to being as smooth as the stock android running N4. I'm not equating smoothness to speed, because the G2 easily outpaces them both but jerks a lot doing it. I tried Clean ROM, didn't help much, so now i'm just in the waiting/researching phase to get this sorted out but the stuttering is real, at least for me. My friend should be getting a T Mobile variant this weekend so i'll do a comparison then.
 
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    Thus has got to be one of the stranger discussions on XDA. Lots of contributors, a lot of disagreement about other people's experiences - which is just plain silly, people who experience issues insisting that others also have these issues - but just don't know it. Finally, there's a lot of talk about "lagging" when scrolling through web pages and online apps like Tapatalk - perhaps the worst way to determine that a phone / OS combo has performance issues.

    Last item first: "lag" in a web browser can occur from a wide variety of reasons, such as user LAN, network connection, network congestion, other running local apps, server side issues such as traffic...and also the way the page is coded: is it designed to display incrementally or prepare and send the whole formatted page? Apps like Tapatalk "lag" because they pull and format content incrementally and a fast swipe down may invoke several server side data reads with a visible pause at each.

    Layer on top of this the various content caching and distribution networks like Akamai, and you really confuse the issue.

    Bloatware certainly slows things down, but you don't necessarily need a custom ROM to get past this. You can use Android's built in ability to disable the vast majority of bloatware apps without even having to root the phone. On a phone like the G2, the "downside" of having disabled apps occupying memory is negligible and the stock launcher lets you selectively hide apps. So...except for perhaps one or two apps, you can easily disable and hide bloatware so that it truly has no impact on performance - stock, unrooted. Also... With most of the G2 variants, you can turn off thermal throttling without having to root, addressing what some gamers experience as lag.

    I've been in IT for decades - architect, dev, CTO, CIO. I've been using cellphones for 22 years, and have been unlocking, rooting and modding them for about 5 years. I've got some idea what I'm talking about. I can't comment about gaming performance, but for all other normal use, this is the fastest, smoothest phone I've used or owned, period. I also can't account for other's configurations and background apps, but my G2 is essentially lag free (really - not my poor limited perception).

    Kitkat will improve things, and if we're allowed ART, we should see an even greater improvement (ART does wondrous things for a Galaxy Nexus).

    As many tweaks, mods and custom ROMs I've used over the years, and as much as I appreciate the efforts of the Devs here, I'm not entirely convinced that a generic custom ROM will perform as well, no less better, than a ROM and kernel tweaked specifically for this hardware (I know, let the flames begin). My guess is that the best will be those based, to the extent possible, on the stock LG version - tweaked and modded from there. But that's just speculation.

    Some feel obligated to find "issues" with new leading edge products. Pretty consistent pattern if you check many of the product specific forums. Also consistently, people who don't experience these issues are frequently told that they just don't get it, and simply don't recognize that they have such problems with their phones.

    No doubt this will piss off a number of posters here. So be it...not my intention. I just find it irritating to see the "issue police" bashing those who don't experience problems and insisting, in effect that they're just too ignorant to know how bad their current config and phone really are.

    I'm all for research, experimentation, customization, tweaking. But it also helps if folks will respect other's perception and experiences, and base claims of "issues" and "better performance" on objectively demonstrable metrics, rather than folklore and condescending comments to those who disagree and actually enjoy their new purchases.

    Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk
    3
    Haven't heard this issue mentioned before on the LG G2.

    I have had the phone 2 weeks, 100+ apps, stock launcher (albeit only 3 screen filled), about 5 widgets loaded.

    No lag at all, fastest smoothest Android I've ever used.
    3
    Smart Screen causing this?

    So I am one of those people who is super sensitive to micro stutter. It drives me absolutely crazy, so I was very disappointed when I got this phone and it stuttered. Today as I was waiting for a benchmark to complete I watched the "eye" come on several times for the "smart screen" setting to make sure I was still looking at the phone and I wondered how much CPU this took to run. I turned it off and to my surprise everything seems to be running much smoother. For those of you saying you have micro stutter, do you have this setting on, and if so, what happens when you turn it off?
    2
    Why people got so pissed? Anything will lag eventually..
    The only thing that doesn't lag is reality..

    Sent from my LG-D802 using Tapatalk now Free
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    Recommending potentially dangerous solutions to strange noob's problems is bound to end in tears in some cases ;) And Paranoia btw can save lives.

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