LG G6

Key Features

Processor Snapdragon 821 Quad-core	Battery Capacity 3300mAh
RAM 4GB	Storage 32/64GB
Display 5.7-inch	Resolution 1440×2880 pixels
Rear Camera Dual 13MP	Front Camera 5MP

Introduction:

LG is starting the year on the right foot ready to let go of the past. After the unexpected failure of the G5 last year, LG has completely revised its copy for its new high-end smartphone, the LG G6. This time, LG has introduced to the market a device completely changed which follows the trends and the preferences of its users; an attractive shape, an edge screen, a dual photo sensor and much more.

LG 6 was greeted wholeheartedly in the Mobile World Congress but is it enough to make us forget the mistakes of the past and initiate a relationship based trust? Well, we have the answer to that for you; after the test comes the verdict.

The physics specs:

Thanks to the LG Friends extensions, LG have kissed goodbye the modular design of the LG G5. The latter turned out to be very controversial; the unibody metal frame gave a plastic feel, even though it is built in aluminum. With the LG G6, the doubt is no more possible; the back is made of aluminum and covered with a layer of glass.  It actually can be distinguished by a slightly different design with a rear face made of a highly reflective metallic material. The rendering is actually very successful and with its metal borders; the smartphone immediately gives an impression of a premium device. However, the choice of materials is not the best, LG opted for the latest generation of reinforced glass (Gorilla Glass 5) for the back while Gorilla Glass 3 would more convenient (and 40% more sensitive to scratches according to the manufacturer Corning) in the front.

Given the size of the screen of the mobile (5.7 inches), the only doubts remained are on the hand-holding of the device if it’s slippery or not. Nevertheless, LG offers a smartphone with a large screen in the hand that enters a pocket pants without a certain difficulty. The screen of the G6 offers very excellent performances: a satisfying brightness of 472 cd / m² and especially an excellent contrast ratio of 2222: 1.

On the design level, the G6 actually adopts almost the same screen ratio as the Galaxy S8 (18: 9), but without the curved edges of the latter. Only the AMOLED slabs for which Samsung has opted can indeed offer such a form. On the other hand, LG has chosen the IPS technology for its smartphone. Even if LG opted for an IPS and not AMOLED (which offers a better contrast ratio), the colors are bright and the contrast rate satisfactory. Especially, hard not to appreciate this “giant” screen of 2880 x 1440 pixels which makes it particularly more interesting for watching movies, videos on the Internet, playing video games or even reading an article on the web.

All in all, the quality of display meets our expectations and the legibility is without a single reproach, evidently since the smartphone shows a high resolution of 565 points per inch.

The performance:

The chip used in the LG G6 has been upgraded to a Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor. Indeed, it is not the last processor in the range of Qualcomm. Samsung having reserved the latter for its Galaxy S8 but it still does great and it fastened the performance of the mobile. During the tests, it did not show any slowdown. With the games and different applications that we tried, the smartphone has done well. The interface, already successful, takes again the same basis as on the previous models and is particularly fluid. The device even developed a water resistance, which makes more attractive.

Addition to that it has a RAM of 4 Go, available with two storage memory options; 32 Go and a  64 Go UFS 2.0.

Autonomy:

The autonomy was probably the weakest point of LC G5; however, there are some improvements in this regard on the G6. Despite its great power, the G6 handles very well the energy consumption of its 3,300 mAh battery.  But unfortunately, consumption varies greatly depending on the use. In surfing, calling and text messaging, the phone keeps the road worry-free and will allow you a strong hold very easily during a good day. On the other hand, as soon as you take a long photo shoot, or use your mobile data, the battery melts like snow in the sun. Streaming has the same effect sadly. So for a phone that is clearly oriented towards photo and multimedia, it is kind of regrettable. Let us be clear, in 90% of the cases, the G6 will battle without problem for a whole day, but we need to be fair by comparing it to other devices. It’s not the best one on the market when it comes to autonomy.

Although, this is still all remarkable because other models that use the Snapdragon 821 processor do not perform as well as the G6, for instance, the OnePlus 3T. This actually seems to demonstrate that LG knew how to optimize the consumption of its smartphone while maintaining a good performance.

Camera:

Above the fingerprint reader are the two photo lenses. LG retains the principle inaugurated on its G5 by proposing a different focal length for each of the 13-megapixels sensors of the brand Sony. The first lens opens at f / 1.8 and uses a focal length of 30 mm, while the second opens at f / 2.4 with a focal length of 11 mm. The latter makes it possible to have an angle of 125 ° to capture the maximum details possible of the scenes in front.

We got to admit that it’s in the picture that the G6 is particularly distinguished. With its dual camera of wide angles, the smartphone rivals the best. In good light conditions, it slightly surpasses the Galaxy S7 edge of Samsung and equals the Apple iPhone 7 Plus. In more complex conditions, at night in particular, it arrives at the same level as the iPhone 7 Plus and manages to realize clear shots. Also the presence of the wide angle, in the front (the 5-Megapixel front camera) as well as the back, makes it possible to make photos of groups or larger landscapes.

The camera application offers everything that is expected of a modern smartphone: manual mode, square format and filters of all kinds. We simply regret that the triggering of the photo is not as instantaneous as what offers Apple and Samsung on their devices. It will be necessary to wait until the autofocus, sometimes a little slow, finish making the point for the photo to be taken. On the other hand, LG decided to set the default resolution to 8.7 megapixels in the 18: 9 format to fit the ratio of the screen. But we noticed that the results obtained by adjusting the camera in the standard 4: 3 format for a definition reaching 13 megapixels was much better.

In both cases, we can see in the pictures taken that the smoothing that eliminates the noise is clearly visible, but remains used with enough parsimony to preserve the details.

Conclusion:

The G6 knew how to draw the lessons that were necessary after the failure that was G5. We consequently believe that this new device will receive as many positive feedbacks as its rivals since LG made sure that all the market requirements are present. Now we have a waterproof device which is equipped with a large screen QHD 5.7 inches format 18: 9. Operating with Android 7.1, it embeds the Snapdragon 821 processor with 4 GB of RAM and 32 GB of storage. It has 2 main 13-megapixel photo sensors and a 5-megapixel front panel sensor.

After several days of use, the LG G6 leaves a very good impression.  The LG smartphone’s design is quite pleasant to hold in hand and to the eye of the beholder. It has a very nice screen, does not suffer from slowdowns and makes very beautiful pictures. LG works every year to assert itself as one of the kings of mobile photography and taking 2017 in consideration the G6 is an undeniable success.

We therefore have the right to say that this is a high-end device that focuses on simplicity while embarking the advanced functionalities, which only proves how much it deserves its premium price.

That said, even if the IPS screen is very good, we were right to hope for the insertion of an AMOLED screen on a new version of G6 at least by the end of 2017 also LG still has work to equal the endurance of other high-end mobiles like Samsung.

Despite these technical details, we believe that those for whom photography is primordial and who are ready to make small technological sacrifices can therefore rush eyes closed on the last mobile of LG. Be sure that it deserves the hype it got!

LG G6 Detailed Specifications

CELLULAR

HARDWARE

SOFTWARE

DESIGN

CAMERA

DISPLAY

BATTERY

CONNECTIVITY

MISCELLANEOUS