LG was criticised quite a lot when it introduced the LG G2, and that was for the design. I was one of them who hugely criticised the brand for saying that the users demanded a change. Though with time, everyone had to adjust to what the company had to offer, the placement of buttons on the back led to the company receiving some flack from the critics.
Then came in the LG G3, which was the first to have a Quad HD display, and even though that was a good addition to to the quality of content output, it ate up a lot of battery. The only good device from LG in the flagship series was the LG G4, which at least was a simply good phone with an amazing camera. Wish the battery on it lasted for longer.
Finally, in 2016, we see something new for any smartphone. A design that allows for customization with the hardware. Lenovo had its layered phone more than a year ago but then, it didn’t ever come up with the extra layers. But what has been introduced now, as the LG G5, is well commendable.
Without a doubt, it is one giant step from the company into the future of smartphone designs. It surely won’t be the first and last one, and we already know what to expect from Project Ara, and even if LG has done too far from what Ara is, it is a flagship that we’re talking about.
But, betting on a modular-type design and calling it as the USP would help LG regain some share in the market? Of course not, but then the company has, thankfully, not stopped with the design but has done a lot to keep up with the competition when it comes to other specifications as well.
A Dual camera setup on the back (having the same 16MP sensor that the predecessor G4 had, and an 8MP sensor that helps in wide-angle shots with its 135mm lens), the latest best chipset from Qualcomm (Snapdragon 820), 4GB of RAM with the only doubt being on how good the performance of 2800 mAh battery might be.
The buttons are where they usually are on most of the smartphones except for LG’s previous devices – on the side! But the fingerprint sensor on the back acts as a power button to activate the screen. The full metal body has got the protection on the front by Corning Gorilla Glass 4, and the screen curves down on the top to have no poking edge that would have been uncomfortable while talking on the phone for a long time.
The LG G5 runs Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow OS and the first thing to notice – there’s no app drawer by default. One would still wonder that when you have every user feeling it hard to manage app icons on the home screen, what made LG change it to how many of the Chinese ROMs are. But then, LG hasn’t ever stopped from being different, even if it hurt them.
While playing around with the camera for some time, it was all about how excellent the secondary sensor on the back helps in taking wide-angle shots. It isn’t always that you would want such captures, but imagine how helpful it should be when you travel and want to capture some sceneries without having to always struggle in getting the Panorama shots right.
The way the modules work on the LG G5, it is way different from that shown on the Project Ara videos. Things are too limited right now, and you have to press a button and harshly pull out the bottom section of the device to pull out the battery. Why do you have to pull out a battery? To replace with another battery if the current one is running out of the charge, or to replace with a module that not just has the battery but also a complete camera control kit along with an extra 1200 mAh battery.
Just for the early thoughts, you notice there’s so less talked about anything negative here, because we are yet to talk about the camera, performance and the battery life of the G5 in comparison to the other flagships that got launched this year. For now, LG should get some cookies for the attempt that at one time gives a feel of holding a prototype, but that’s nothing to do with the device but the concept that is quite refreshing and new.
