LG G6 Review: Other Than The Display, This Is a Nice Attempt Gone Wrong Or Maybe Not

LG G6 has been finally launched in India after a year long speculations, leaks and rumors, and the smartphone is priced rather competitively at Rs 51,990 as an Amazon exclusive. We have seen a host of premium smartphone launches in the last couple of months and the biggest rival that LG G6 will face is the Samsung Galaxy S8, with iPhone 7 and Google Pixel poking it here and there.

Indian consumers have been waiting for the Snapdragon 835 SoC that Qualcomm and Samsung have recently developed and after Galaxy S8 failed to offer the chipset in India and launched its next premium offering with an Exynos processor, LG G6 too have followed suit and will be offered as a Snapdragon 821 smartphone. Why? We’ll get back to that later.

LG G6 Specifications

• 5.7-inch 18:9 QHD+ FullVision Display (2880 x 1440 / 564ppi)
• 2.35Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 Processor
• 4GB LPDDR4 RAM, 32GB or 64GB of internal storage with MicroSD support (up to 2TB)
• Dual rear camera with a 13MP Wide shooter (F2.4 / 125°) and a 13MP primary camera with OIS 2.0 (F1.8 / 71°) and Dual LED Flash
• 5MP Wide (F2.2 / 100°) Front Camera
• 3,300mAh (embedded) battery with Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0
• Android 7.0 Nougat OS
• Measurement: 148.9 x 71.9 x 7.9mm, Weight: 163g
• 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a, b, g, n, ac / Bluetooth 4.2 BLE / NFC / USB Type-C 2.0 (3.1 compatible)
• Colors: Astro Black, Ice Platinum, Mystic White
• Other features: Water and Dust Resistant (IP68), Fingerprint Sensor, UX 6.0, Dolby Vision, HDR10 and 32-bit Hi-Fi Quad DAC

What’s Good in LG G6

• The 5.7-inch QHD+ ‘Full Vision’ display is the biggest highlight of LG G6. It offers more viewing space despite a compact form due to the near ‘Bezel-less’ design. The 18:9 display ratio offers immersive experience while gaming and watching videos.
• The 13MP+13MP rear camera with 125 and 71-degree view and the 5MP front camera with a wide-angle lens with f/2.2 aperture and 100-degree lens. While the rear camera unit offers vibrant colors and exceptional low light quality, the front 5MP is just enough to stand against its premium counterparts. However, group photos have been a clear focus for LG G6. Dolby Vision technology, HDR 10, panoramic view and 4K video capture, will further let you capture those moments perfectly.
• The IP68 rating (water and dust resistant), being a trend in the heavyweight category, is a welcomed feature. LG G6 can withstand being submerged in 1.5 meters of water for up to 30 minutes.
• Android 7.0 Nougat with UX 6 on top, makes the UI one of the lightest yet most hardcore interface.

What We Miss in LG G6

• Well for starters, the 5MP front cam is not up to the stands sets by the newly launched Samsung Galaxy S8 and the previous benchmark setters iPhone 7 and Google Pixel.
• Moreover, the non-removable 3300 mAh battery could have had more juice to support the heavy hardware. However, considering the competition, it’s still up to the mark but LG G6 had the opportunity to start a new trend.
• And the biggest goof up, if instead of the 2.35Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 Processor, LG could have waited to gain access to the Snapdragon 835 SoC, it would have been a different story altogether. What has made matters worse for LG G6, is the fact that Samsung Galaxy S8 and the Plus variant are at least offered with the new processor overseas.
• Considering the price and specification of LG G6, it could have had an upper hand over the competition if it had been launched with features like 6GB of RAM and a better front camera.

Now the biggest question, Why Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 Processor?

Mobile hardware is well ahead of mobile software these days and there is no modern challenge, other than some high-end games, that a processor developed between 2011 to 2016 can not face. As for LG, the company said that during these five years, they have focused on tuning new chipsets for full optimization and that has been the case with Snapdragon 821 Processor. LG G6 is claimed to have better hardware proportions, despite having an old SoC, over the Snapdragon 835-powered smartphones until the new chipset is fully optimized.

LG has also claimed that we no longer need to bother ourselves with raw hardware potential, but rather focus on improving optimization and stability. While a lot of this makes sense, it will be interesting to see how LG G6 performs against its competition and if it does well and for how long?

The biggest worry here is the battery back-up. In simple words, a new chipset means better battery backup and one can not twist the statement, period. The capacity can be improved but not in a way to challenge the recent SoC and it will be interesting to see what LG G6 is capable of squeezing out from the Snapdragon 821 Processor.

But if, LG G6 happens to be capable of working fluidly and reliably, while managing to offer comparable battery life, you won’t even notice the difference between the 821 and 835 unit.

What are your thoughts about the gamble that LG has played with the G6? Share it in the comments section below.