It looks like LG has stolen the show at this year's WMC event. Their latest flagship, the G5, seems to have even overshadowed the likes of Samsung and their latest Galaxy phones. This is with good reason. The LG G5 seems to have drastically changed LG's idea of a flagship smartphone. Reinventing The Wheel? Although LG did keep a few of their much favored features (the removable battery and expandable storage are here to stay) with the G5, they made even more changes. Design In the past, LG's flagship smartphones featured plastic builds that were, on occasion, somewhat disappointing. With this year's update, however, LG opted for an aluminum unibody for the G5; a drastic change from the previous models. Another, change LG made to exterior of the phone, is the placement of the volume buttons. The volume buttons on the G5 are located on the left side of the phone rather than the back. Display The G5 comes with a 5.3" IPS LCD display, with a resolution of 2560 X 1440. The display also features an Always-on function. According to LG, this feature is why they opted for the IPS display rather than an AMOLED display. They stated that showing information all the time on an AMOLED display would lead to a burn out. Camera(s) Like the building material of the phone, the cameras are one of the biggest changes to the G5. The LG G5 features an 8 megapixel from facing camera, and in the back is where it gets really interesting. On the rear of the phone there are two cameras; one is a standard operating 16 megapixel sensor, the other is a wide-angle 8 megapixel sensor. These two cameras offer a wide range of functions that you wouldn't be able to find on a standard smartphone setup. For example, you can record video and shoot stills at the same time. Power
The G5 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820, onto-core processor and 4GB of RAM. For storage, there is 32GB built-in and a Micro SD card slot to expand. The 2800mAh battery isn't particularly impressive on its own, but when you take into consideration that the phone has a removable battery and Quick Charge 3.0 with USB Type-C. Modular Build The LG G5 also has another feature that radically operates it from any other smartphone currently on the market. The G5 features a modular design that allows you to add additional parts to your phone. LG currently has two models for the G5. The Cam Pro, which enhances your photography experience, as well as expand your battery to 4000 mAh. The other module is the LG Hi-Fi Pro, which offers a 32-bit DAC and amp meant to offer an audiophile experience through your handset. Thoughts Personally, I think that the LG G5 has a lot of great features that make it an amazing flagship. The metal build is a much needed enhancement. I felt that the G3 and G4 were too light, they almost felt like they were nothing more than mock-ups of a phone. The ability to add additional parts to the phone, and change the overall capabilities of your device. That is something truly unique at this time, and I hope that other phone manufacturers follow the lead. For me, the only downside to the G5 is the screen size. I know that a 5.3" display isn't the smallest screen currently on the market, and with its resolution offers a higher pixel density; but I would prefer at least a 5.5" display. What do you think about the LG G5? Did it hit the mark, or is it lacking anything else you would like to see?
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We already know when we are getting the new LG G5, we might even have an idea of what it it looks like. Now, thanks to the twitter page of LG South Korea, we have a hint at another feature that will be included in the companies latest flagship. As you probably already know, last years LG V10 featured a secondary "always on" display. This display is located at the top of 5.7-inch primary display. The "always on" is meant to give you constant access to notifications, frequently used apps/contacts, as well as certain controls (media controls, flashlight, wifi, bluetooth, etc.) without having to unlock your phone. Well, it appears that LG will be applying this "always on" function to their latest flagship, with a slight twist. It appears as though the LG G5 will feature an Always-On Primary Display. So, rather than having an additional thin display on the top of the phone, the G5 will give you those same controls throughout the entire display. As I said earlier, this feature was hinted by LG, in a tweet sent out earlier today. This tweet was also accompanied by a GIF that-in all honesty-didn't provide much additional information, but does seemsupport the conclusion of an Always-On primary display. If LG is planning on making an Always-On Primary display, it would be interesting to see how that affects other aspects of the phone, such as battery life. Will LG be sticking with a removable battery as rumored before. I guess we'll see on the 21st.
With an official release date set and a lot of speculation about what's inside the phone, the only thing missing is the design of the LG G5. Well, thanks to an early release on Amazon, we now have a look at a possible case (along with a render) of the latest flagship phone from LG. When/Where As stated earlier, the LG G5 now has an official release date. The LG G5 will be unveiled at this year's Mobile World Congress on, February 21st (same as the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge). Design It is possible that this year's LG flagship will feature a premium all metal build. This would be a big change from the plastic or leather that was featured on previous LG smartphones. It is also being suggested that LG will keep the removable battery and expandable storage. The idea is that the LG G5 will feature a large battery tray, similar to the one that holds your SIM card. Display Rumors are suggesting that the G5 will have a 5.6-inch display, with a resolution of 2560X1440. Depending on the bezel size, the phone could potentially be the same size as last year's G4 (5.5-inches). Camera There is still some debate as to what camera the G5 will have. While some rumors are saying that it will have a 21MP sensor, others are suggesting that it will feature a 20MP camera with a custom 1/2-inch Sony sensor. Then there is the matter of the dual-lens camera, and what that could feature. Power According to reliable sources, the LG G5 is expected to be powered by a Snapdragon 820 chip and 3GB of RAM. Currently, the LG G4 runs on a Snapdragon 808 chip. Based on the release date, the G5 is expected to ship with an LG skinned version of Android Marshmallow. Miscellaneous Some other features that the LG G5 may come equipped with include; a USB-C port on the bottom, a lone fingerprint sensor on the back (volume rocker is said to be moved to the side), and an "accessory slot" that allows for modular hardware expansion. As of right now, there is no word on what the pricing of the LG G5 will be. However, that detail will more than likely be unveiled during the G5's launch.
Has Sony just confirmed that the iPhone 7 Plus will feature dual-camera? According to Sony, their dual-lens camera technology will make its way into devices from "major smartphone players" in the year 2016. This information was shared by Kenchiro Yoshida, Sony's CFO, during the company's Q3 earnings call. Although, Sony cameras are used by numerous smartphone manufacturers, it is probably safe to say that Apple is the biggest. When asked, Yoshida would not specify which companies would be executing this technology. Thoughts Now, I do think that these dual-lens systems are great, and offer some great features to smartphones. For example; the ability to adjust focus after taking a photo, or the versatility of having the two different lens types. I do also think that there is one very small downside to having a dual-lens camera on your smartphone. This downside will not be an issue for many smartphone photographers. This issue I'm referring to is external lenses, or lack there of. If the iPhone 7 does feature a dual-lens camera, things like the Olloclip, Moments lens, and iOgrapher become irrelevant. Now, obviously without getting our hands on this new iPhone, there is no way of knowing if the features that the dual-lens system adds will be worth the trade. What do you think? Do you think that an iPhone with two rear-facing cameras is a good idea? Why? Why not?
It has been recently announced (officially), that Samsung's latest event will be held on February 21st. At this event, it is expected we will see the latest flagship smartphones from samsung; the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge. Design In terms of the design of the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge will-supposedly-look almost identical to last years S6 model phones. Now, for many (including myself) this is not a bad thing. According to rumors, the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge will share the same metal and glass build of the their predecessors. The only downside to this, in my opinion, is the slipperiness of the phones. Although this is an issue, it is a small issue that can be easily fixed. All you need is a case (or a skin, if you prefer). There is one "big" differences that the S7 edge will bring to the table, and that is its size. Last year, the Galaxy S6 and S6 edge shared the same screen size of 5.1 inches. Supposedly, the S7 will stick with this screen size. The S7 edge, however, is said to come equipped with a 5.5 inch screen. Specs
Camera Last years Samsung phones featured probably one of the best (if not the best) cameras on a smartphone. It looks like Samsung will be making a drastic change to the camera on the S7 models. Instead of keeping their 16MP rear camera, it seems like Samsung will be lowering the camera to 12MP in favor of improving low light performance. Lowering the pixel count would be a strange move, although it could prove to be a worthwhile improvement. The front-facing camera is supposedly still going to be 5MP. This should be more than enough to keep those selfies look extra crispy. Battery The battery of the Galaxy S7 phones will still be non-removable, but should be increased from 2600 mAh to 3000 mAh. It is also being suggested that Samsung will be taking measures to keep the phone cool. This will keep the battery from overheating, thus further improving battery life. Chipset Samsung is said to be offering to different chipsets on their phones-probably varying by region. One variant will more than likely include an Exynos chipset, while the other will include a Snapdragon 820. There currently isn't anything to suggest where these different chipsets will be made available. Miscellaneous One of the big improvements coming to the new Galaxy phones is the return of expandable storage. The S7 and S7 edge will supposedly feature a dual-card SIM slot (one for your SIM card, and another for a micro SD card). It is possible that another change coming to the new Samsung phones, is the charging port. This years Galaxy phones might be getting rid of the micro-USB port, in favor of a USB Type-C port. Verdict Overall, I think that the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge will feature some exciting changes, although they don't exactly make the upgrade necessary especially if you are currently |
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