The smartphone market just a got a little more competitive. Yesterday LG Electronics introduced the Optimus G, the company's new flagship, Android-running smartphone that in leaning on the expertise of LG partners and sister brands, should stand out in the already crowded Ice Cream Sandwich market.

With the Optimus G, LG is again first to market with certain new features, this time it will be the first Long-Term Evolution (LTE) device to feature Qualcomm's Snapdragon S4 Pro Quad-Core Krait processor and newest-generation Adreno 320 GPU.

"The Snapdragon S4 Pro runs at 1.5GHz and features Asynchronous Symmetric Multiprocessing (aSMP), which enables each core to power up and down independently, for maximum performance with better battery life," LG officials explained.

The Adreno 320, they add, is also three times faster than the previous Snapdragon processors, offering a smoother gaming experience and a higher high-definition resolution.

The device is designed to lead LG's smartphone line. LG turned to LG Display for the device's 4.7-inch WXGA True HD IPS+, which features a pixel per inch (PPI) density of 320 and a resolution of 1280 by 768. A Strip RGB IPS [In-Plane Switching] Panel features a 15:9 aspect ratio. The company says it "pushed the boundaries of its technology" with the display, which is "sharper and crisper with color accuracy of SRGB 100 percent, to show natural and life-like images."

And here's another first. The Optimus G features a G2 Touch Hybrid Display, developed by LG Innotek and LG Display, that's thinner than current touch-screen panels and said to offer the sharpest visibility, even outdoors. And while the panel has been thinned down, its strength has been increased to prevent damage when dropped, says LG.

Finally, working with LG Chem, the phone maker created a high-density, 2,100mAh battery that lasts longer and can withstand more charging cycles-approximately 800 cycles at 80 percent charging capabilities, compared with the 500 cycles of regular phone batteries, according to LG.

The Optimus G is also quite sleek. With glass on both sides and a ribbon of aluminum around the perimeter, it's a sort of a longer, wider, thinner iPhone 4S, with a "polarized" pattern on the back glass and a profile that's slimmer than the Samsung Galaxy S III's.

In terms of design, the Optimus G comes with a black or white finish. The front of the device boasts a prominent screen with the LG logo and three buttons beneath the display.

There are front and rear-facing cameras- perhaps the most surprising innovation, the model on the rear is a notable 13 megapixels (MP) to complement the device's 1.3-megapixel front-facing option -and the other features, such as near-field communication (NFC) and LTE technology, that we've come to expect from devices at this end of the spectrum. The device supports "live zooming," which lets users zoom in and out while viewing a video, according to LG.

As with the Optimus Vu, users can write or draw on the display with their fingers, and there are ICS perks like photo bursts, from which users can choose the best shot and a "Cheese Shutter" that can snap a photo when prompted by a voice command.

Here are the Optimus G's specs:

Android Ice Cream Sandwich OS

Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro Processor with 1.5GHz quad-core CPU, Adreno 320 GPU with 4G LTE

Size: 131.9 by 68.9 by 8.45mm (for context, the iPhone 4S measures 115.2 by 58.6 by 9.3mm, and the Samsung Galaxy S III measures 136.6 by 70.6 by 8.6mm)

Weight: 145 grams (the S III is 133 grams, and the iPhone 4S 140 grams)

Display: 4.7inch WXGA True HD IPS+ (1280 x 768 pixels)

Cameras: 13MP (rear), 1.3MP (front)

Battery: 2,100mAh

RAM: 2GB double data rate (DDR)

Memory: 32GB

Network: 2G/3G/4G LTE

Other perks: NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, WiFi, USB 2.0, A-GPS, Mobile High-Definition Link (MHL) and Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) capabilities

While LG has repeatedly been first to market with features, it's generous to say that the brand remains in Samsung's shadow. LG ranked fifth among the globe's top-selling phone makers during the second quarter, but has lost market share as Samsung's (and Apple's, ZTE's and Huawei's) have risen. While LG shipped 24.4 million devices during the second quarter of 2011, this year its second-quarter shipments fell to 17.9 million.

"We are confident that users will have a superior experience with everything that we're offering in the Optimus G," Jong-seok Park, president and CEO of LG Electronics, said in an Aug. 28 statement. "The Optimus G isn't just another high-performance phone with the latest bells and whistles. It's a collaboration of some of the best component makers on the planet coming together for a singular cause-to develop a smartphone that stands out in a sea of me-too devices."

LG's handset is scheduled to launch in Korea in September. The company will offer the handset in other markets around the world at some point after that. With that launch schedule, the Optimus G will likely go head to head with Apple's iPhone 5, which is rumored to be hitting store shelves September 21.

LG has so far not provided pricing on the Optimus G.