Last year’s modular LG G5 received mixed reviews; we thought it a “modular wonderphone” displaying a feat of “technical wizardry”. This year, rumours suggest that we’ll see LG revert to form and drop the modular design for the LG G6. While it’s obviously a shame to see LG move away from a completely new way to *do* smartphones, it’s probably not a bad thing in terms of how immediately successful the LG G6 will be.
LG G6: Release date and price
There’s precedent here: the LG G6’s baby brother, the LG G5, was announced in February 2016 – optimally ahead of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona – and released in April. Similarly, the LG G4 before it was released in April 2015 (albeit only in South Korea, with general release in June). So there’s a lot to suggest that we can expect an LG G6 announcement in the forthcoming weeks. If that is the case, it’s likely a release date will follow in April, if recent history is anything to go by.
Cost-wise, LG shouldn’t deviate too far from that of the LG G5, expecting something around the £500 mark (for a SIM-free model) – more affordable than its high-end competitors.
LG G6: At a glance
- Next flagship phone from LG
- Expected price point in region of £500
- Announcement anticipated circa MWC 2017 (27 Feb - 2 March)
LG G6: Specs
So, what is going to be in the LG G6? Well, a lot of what we know comes from an image leaked by The Verge– showing a pared-down, sleek and, notably, curved-edge screen. The curved-edge LG G6 screen itself is rumoured to be a 5.7in Quad HD+ display with an odd 2:1 ratio.
LG G6: Design
Word on the (Wall) street is that the LG G6 will have shed the modular design of the LG G5; The Wall Street Journal recently reported the sentiment of an LG spokesperson that the company is “responding to feedback that consumers aren’t interested in modular phones”. A greater valued aspect of design, it seems, would be to make the LG G6 waterproof, with ET News reporting that this now supersedes modular design as the brand’s focus.
The LG G6 also looks set to ditch the metal body (the LG G5 boasts a painted aluminium shell) and potentially start using a tempered-glass back, an anonymous source has affirmed to Korea’s ChosunBiz. David Ruddock of Android Police has, however, retracted a tweet that the LG G6 would have a solely glass design, amending the statement to say that the device will in fact include “a highly metallic material on the rear”.
Meanwhile, it seems unlikely that the LG G6 will feature an OLED panel, despite circulating rumours enhanced by the fact that LG produces OLED displays for its TVs. The ChosunBiz report indicates that LG previously struggled with the displays in the arena of smartphones, and won’t be including them in this new generation.
LG G6: Features
There’s been a fair bit of back and forth surrounding the LG G6’s prospective features. Most exciting are the rumours of a wireless charging system; in 2016, LG revealed a wireless-charging transmission module capable of filling a phone battery to 50% in an impressive 30 minutes. Dissection ensued, with reports surfacing that LG wouldn’t have the hardware ready in time, although ET News was tipped by a source that the device would get wireless fast charging after all.
The camera on the LG G5 was fantastic, with the handset sporting a dual rear camera that received copious praise from reviewers and users alike, so naturally, great things are to be expected of its successor. Indeed, a rumour on DK.co.kr has suggested that the LG G6’s front camera could double up as an iris scanner.
In addition to this, the LG G6 could sport the world’s first QHD+ screen with 18:9 aspect ratio. PocketLint has reasons to believe that the upcoming flagship will have a 5.7in, 2,880 x 440 Quad HD+ panel – a not-so-negligible upgrade from the LG G5’s 5.3in screen.
We will update this page as and when we learn more about the LG G6.