LG unveiled today its latest flagship handset at Mobile World Congress, here is the all-new LG G6. We are live on the floor and LG has been kind enough of providing us a review unit a day before launch, so we've already spent some time with the phone. And the first impressions are good!
As expected, the G6 abandons the modular design used by its predecessor in favor of a more typical modern smartphone build – complete with a non-removable battery. The first thing I noticed is how nicely it sits in the hand. The LG G6 is satisfyingly large but not cumbersome, making it perfect for one-handed typing.
While some might still prefer their fingerprint scanner on the front of the device, I found my index finger naturally gravitated to the correct position every time I picked up the G6. It scans my print and unlocks in an instant, and not once during several hours of varied use did it fail to correctly read my print the first time.
Earlier press renders showed off the thin bezels on LG's flagship, a trend that many of this year's smartphones are expected to follow. It allows for more screen real estate while keeping the overall footprint at a minimum. The photo below shows the G6 next to the Samsung S7 Edge. As you can see, LG's device is the smaller of the two, yet still has noticeably more screen space: 5.7 inches compared to the S7 Edge's 5.5 inches. There are no curved edges on the screen, but that will probably mean it's less likely to break as easily.
That Snapdragon 821 chip moves things along quite snappily. I found it loaded apps and web pages faster than my S7 Edge, and just felt altogether smoother.
The most interesting feature of the LG G6 is that 2880x1440 resolution. LG's updated custom UI, dubbed UX 6.0, sits on top of Android 7.0 and takes advantage of the 18:9 FullVision display. Using the split screen option with apps and web pages feels intuitive, but the feature shines when used with applications designed especially for it. Being able to review your images on the screen while taking a 1:1 photo felt pretty impressive, and it definitely seems like something that will be popular with Instagram fans. You can check out your recorded videos while lining up another shot, too. And I love the way the calendar app splits up the dates and the events.
Speaking of the camera, while it does seem quite good, I have to admit the S7, which has one of the best smartphone snappers out there, appeared to take slightly better images, especially in low light.
More time will be needed with the LG G6 to draw accurate conclusions, and how much it challenges the current Android king, Google's Pixel XL, remains to be seen.
From the few hours I've spent using the phone, I can honestly say that I like it – a lot. It's quick, has some unique features, a bright display, and is the first non-Pixel handset to come with Google Assistant. The G5 was far from becoming the success LG hoped for, but the company looks to be onto a winner with the successor.
Our full review of the LG G6 will follow in the coming weeks.