Is LG Smart TV An Android? (All You Need To Know)

LG has become one of the largest and most known electronics brands around the world. Moreover, if you have become a fan of LG electronics, you may have also become a fan of Android OS.

Therefore, when it comes to LG Smart TVs and their operating system, you may be wondering: does LG Smart TV use Android OS? Keep reading to find out what I discovered!

Is LG Smart TV An Android In [currentyear]?

Unfortunately, LG Smart TVs are not Android TVs, which means LG does not use Android’s Operating System to power its TVs in [currentyear]. Moreover, LG Smart TVs operate using LG WebOS. Furthermore, LG WebOS is a Smart TV operating system developed and owned by LG and used only for LG TVs.

If you want to learn more about why LG does not use Android to power its Smart TVs, what WebOS is, and much more, then continue reading!

Is LG Smart TV Android Based?

Unfortunately, LG does not use Android’s Operating System to power its TVs. Instead, LG uses WebOS to power its TVs.

What is LG?

LG, or LG Corporation, is a multinational electronics manufacturing company that started in South Korea in 1958 after the Korean War.

In fact, it was the first company in Korea to manufacture and sell domestically produced products.

Moreover, LG manufactures mobile phones, tablets, smart TVs, home appliances, and more.

Additionally, LG Corporation is a conglomerate company made up of many subsidiaries. Some of LG’s subsidiaries are LG Electronics, LG Display, LG Household & Health Care, and more.

Furthermore, each of LG’s subsidiaries does something different for the company, such as producing a specific product.

Interestingly, LG has now become one of the largest electronics manufacturers in the world and is known in almost every household around the world.

What is Android?

Android is a mobile operating system mostly used to power devices such as mobile phones, tablets, and watches. However, Android can also be used to power cars and TVs.

Moreover, Android was first developed in 2003 as an OS for digital cameras until it was changed to an OS for smartphones in 2004.

In 2005 Android Inc. was bought by Google Inc. and in 2007 Google founded a consortium called the Open Handset Alliance to help develop and promote Android.

Furthermore, In 2008 the first mobile smartphone with Android OS came out and Android quickly became very popular.

Additionally, the Android operating system is a modified version of the Linux OS family.

Moreover, this means it is very similar to LG WebOS, which is of the Linux OS family as well.

What is LG WebOS?

LG WebOS is currently a Smart TV Operating System developed and owned by LG.

Moreover, WebOS was originally developed by Palm as a mobile OS and came out as Palm WebOS in 2009.

In 2010 Hewlett-Packard acquired Palm and became Hewlett-Packard & Palm and used WebOs in many of their smartphones and even tablets.

Furthermore, in 2013, after a failure with one of its products, Hewlett-Packard decided to make WebOS open source which allowed LG to purchase it.

Additionally, LG’s WebOS was only available on LG’s Smart TVs. However, LG has now decided to share its “WebOs TV platform ecosystem” with other TV brand partners.

Also, LG now wants to expand its services to “WebOS TV software platform development and adoption by other TV brands”.

Does LG Smart TVs Support Android?

Unfortunately, LG Smart TVs do not support Android OS.

As stated previously Android OS and WebOS are similar because they both come from the Linux OS family; however, that is where the family stops.

Moreover, each operating system comes with its own app store and pre-installed apps.

Additionally, each operating system has its own set of features, even if they are similar, they are different features designed just for that OS.

Does LG Smart TV use Android Apps?

As of right now, you can not download any Android apps on your LG Smart TV using WebOS.

Moreover, this is because the Google Play Store is not available on WebOS and without the Google Play Store you can’t access Android Apps.

Furthermore, LG Smart TVs come with their own LG Content Store and apps.

However, if you want to use Android with your LG Smart TV, it is possible to add an external device to your Smart TV so you can access Android using your Smart TV.

Therefore, to add an external device to your LG Smart TV and access Android:

First, connect one end of an HDMI cable to your Smart TV and the other end to a converter box. For the converter box, you can use Android TV, Google Chromecast, or a 3rd-party Android Box
Second, turn your Smart TV on and connect an ethernet cable to the covert box as well. Additionally, if you are asked to connect to the internet through Wi-Fi you won’t need an ethernet cable
Lastly, sign in to your Android account on your Smart TV; when you are asked to do so

Additionally, if your remote is not already synced to your Smart TV, you need to sync your remote to your Smart TV.

Once you are finished, you should be able to use your Smart TV as normal along with having access to Android and its apps.

To know more, you can also read our posts on whether LG is Android, what is LG Smartworld, and who makes LG TVs.

Conclusion

LG Smart TVs do not use Android’s operating system to run, as LG Smart TVs are powered through LG WebOS. Furthermore, LG WebOS is owned by LG and developed specifically for LG Smart TVs, however, LG is now sharing WebOS with other TV brands.

Additionally, LG Smart TVs do not support Android OS or its apps, however, by using an HDMI cord you should be able to adapt your Smart TV and gain access to Android.