LG will soon unveil it’s next-gen top of a line device, the LG G6. According to recent information the Samsung Galaxy S8 won’t be unveiled at MWC 2017, thus leaving the coast clear for LG to draw all the attention upon itself during the event.
Knowing that scheduling its flagship launch on the same day as Samsung, meant risking the G6 would get overshadowed, LG came up with an alternative plan. Recent rumors indicate the Korean company plans to have the LG G6 on retail shelves starting March 10, way before the Galaxy S8 becomes available for purchase.
Well now it seems LG will only have to worry about Nokia and its comeback flagship which is also expected to make an appearance at MWC 2017. Since the event is only one month away, we thought it would be a good idea to make a roundup of all information related to LG’s upcoming G6 flagship, that’s currently available. You can also read our Samsung Galaxy S8 roundup while you’re at it.
Update 02/07/2016: The invite for LG’s MWC event was posed by the company:
Design
- no modular body
- no modular add-ons
The LG G5 has seen a lukewarm reception among fans of Android, so this year the company is said to renounce the modular design language and return to the standard one. As seen in recent CAD renders, the LG G6 should come boasting the usual candybar design characteristic of today’s smartphones.
While the LG G5 featured a unibody aluminum body which didn’t really wow users, the LG G6 might come rocking a high-gloss back which could be made of glass or employ a metal polishing technique. The end result might look very much like the HTC U Ultra’s super shiny rear.
Update 02/01/2016: Images of a real life prototype have surfaced which confirm presence of USB Type-C port, 3.5mm headphone jack, bezeless display and metal body (see above and below).
Update 02/06/2017: New leak showcases the LG G6 with gorgeous brushed aluminum back.
Update 02/20/2017: Two live images of the LG G6 have appeared online revealing a glossy back and the Always-On display.
Display
- 5.7-inch display with QHD+ resolution 2:1 Univisium aspect ratio
- 564ppi
- shrunken bezels
In the display department, LG wants to do things a little bit different, so it won’t offer the flagship with the standard 1440 x 2560 resolution. Instead the company will be using a 5.7-inch panel with 1440 x 2880 resolution or QHD+ and a wide aspect ratio of 18:9.
LG says the new display allows them to make a phone that takes advantage of extra screen estate. Thus users will be able to multi-task on Android by running two or more apps side-by-side on their handset.
The new screen tech also allows the company to shrink the bezels (20% on top and 10% on the left and right sides) and reduce overall thickness of the phone. Outdoor visibility is also said to get a 10% bump, while power requirements decrease with up to 30%.
The LG V20 also features a 5.7-inch display, but compared to it the G6 should be a bit taller and feature a smaller width.
Also since VR is quite big right now, we expect the LG G6 to be launched as a Daydream-ready device.
Update 01/27/2017: Want to take another look at the LG G6 and its bezel-less display? Check below:
Update 02/13/2017: What appears to be a real life photo of LG G6’s front has leaked online thanks to the ITHome publication.
Update 02/22/2017: It appears the LG G6 will be actually the same size as the LG G5. Here’s the two of them next to one another.
Internals
- Snapdragon 821
- 6GB or 8GB of RAM
- at least 32GB of internal storage
- microSD card slot
According to a very recent Forbes report, the LG G6 won’t be powered by the new Snapdragon 835 like earlier reports anticipated. Instead, an industry insider “confirmed” the phone will be based on last year’s Snapdragon 821 just like the recently announced HTC U Ultra.
As we know the Snapdragon 835 is developed by Qualcomm in collaboration with Samsung and the Korean tech giant is said to be in need of large quantities of the chip for its Galaxy S8 flagships.
So the Snapdragon 835 won’t be available en-mass until late April. Since we told you LG is counting to have the phone out and about by March 10, it makes sense to assume LG had to opt for an alternative. While the Snapdragon 821 is a capable chip, the new Snapdragon 835 does come with a set of improvements that can’t be ignored including being 35% smaller in size and 25% less power hungry.
It comes bundled with Quick Charge 4.0 and Bluetooth 5.0 support, among other things. You can read all about it in our in-depth article.
As for the rest of specification, it’s quite unclear what the LG G6 will bring about. We can speculate LG will want to be in league with smartphone makers launching 8GB of RAM phones this year, but we don’t have any confirmation on the topic.
As for internal storage, we believe the base version will come bundled with at least 32GB of internal storage. Like in the case of the LG G5, we expect LG to keep the microSD card on the G6 as well, although some reports seem to deny this.
Cameras
- main dual camera
In a recent video teasing “the ideal smartphone”, LG hinted that the G6 might feature a big screen somehow tucked into a smaller body and a camera capable to “capture it all at once”.
Like the G5 and V20 before it, the LG G6 is expected to feature a main dual camera setup. It’s probably going to be an upgrade from the current 16MP/8MP (wide angle lens) setup.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wr-N5cZBcl0
As for the selfie shooter, it might double as an iris scanner thanks to an IR light filter, according to some rumors. Although a recent render revealed the LG G6 might have a fingerprint scanner located on the back, as most smartphones do. A dual LED flash was also visible in the image.
Update 02/22/2017: A new official teaser reveals the LG G6’s camera specs. The flagship will feature a dual camera setup featuring two 13MP sensors. One of them will have 125-degree wide angle lens and they will work in concert to deliver the best possible images.
The LG G6 will have multipe shooting modes, including 18:9 (thanks to the fll width of the screen), 1:1 (square), panorama, food mode and others.
As for the selfie snaper, it will hae 100-degree field of view – although resolution hasn’t been disclosed yet.
Other features
- 3.5mm headphone jack
- Google Assistant
- waterproof
- LG Pay
- advanced audio feature
- upgraded quad-DAC audio solution
Most smartphones coming today do away with the 3.5mm headphone jack. Just look at the recently launched HTC U Ultra. However, the LG G6 won’t be part of this trend, so customers will be able to use their older headphones with the device.
LG’s recent video teaser also revealed the phone will be waterproof. But the most interesting part come now. It appears the G6 will be the first non-Pixel smartphone to come with the Google Assistant onboard. It makes sense, since most high-end handsets these days have an AI driven companion. Samsung is going to put Bixby onboard the Galaxy S8, while Nokia’s Viki will probably make an appearance on its upcoming flagship(s).
Another report claims the LG G6 might come bundling a service akin to Samsung Pay, which got dubbed LG Pay. So owners of LG’s upcoming premium handset might be able to make payments using the device.
Will LG continue to bestow unique audio capabilities on its flagship via the B&O partnership? For example, the V20 shipped out with a 32-bit “quad” DAC and B&O in-ear headphones, so it makes sense to assume the LG G6 could come packing with serious audio features.
Update 02/13/2017: A new announcement by LG, reveals information about the G6’s audio capabilities. As it turns out, the new flagship will even surpass the V20’s audio solution.
The company said an upgraded version of the latter will be available with the LG G6. The quad DAC setup features four DACs on a single chip which should bring static noise down by 50%, The audio system will also be able to control left and right channels separately thus being able to deliver an improved audio solution. Last but not least, increased circuit integration was used to bring down loss of information and overall distortion to merely 0.0002%.
Update 02/22/2017: LG teases the LG G6’s dust and waterproof body in a series of videos:
OS and UX
- Android 7.1.1 Nougat
Since the V20 was the first phone to launch with Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box, it makes total sense to assume the LG G6 will make it out into the wild with the latest Nougat version, Android 7.1.1
The company is probably going to bake some new tricks of its own like allowing users to customize their virtual navigation buttons and lots more.
Update 02/16/2017: Take a look at this video teasing the LG G6’s UX which the company just posted.
Battery
Some reports claim the LG G6 will do away with the user-replaceable battery, while others claim that due to fire hazard concerns LG is going to opt for a replaceable battery after all.
LG has already announced its strategy to prevent the G6 from overheating. The company says it employ a copper heat pipe cooling system that will dispel heat from the battery. LG also claims it’s testing the battery of the new flagship at temperatures 15% higher than US and EU standards in order to make absolutely sure the phone won’t overheat.
Update 01/27/2017: A new report coming out of CNET seemingly confirms the LG G6 will be ditching the removable battery in favor of a waterproof body.
Update 02/15/2017: The LG G6 will feature a non-removable 3,200 mAh battery.
When will I be able to get it and for how much?
As we already told you, LG is expected to make the G6 official on February 26, a day prior to MWC 2017. Then the phone should become available for purchase on March 10. The price is currently unknown, but you should expect to pay a pretty hefty sum.
02/02/2017 Update: A new report indicates the LG G6 price will start at $770 in South Korea
02/07/2017 Update: According to “planning material” obtained by Venture Beat, the LG G6 will become available April 6 in the US.
02/23/2017 Update: The latest information indicates the LG G6 will become available on March 10.
