The end of 2015 is shaping up to be a competitive race. Of course we had iPhone launch day, Google’s new Nexi, and we’ll be talking new Windows Phones in about a week, but LG is making sure they don’t go quiet before the holiday buying season.
Before their official keynote, LG published an aggressively stylish video to show off their new aggressively stylish smartphone. The V10 builds on the success of the G4, but mixes in some new technology tweaks and higher quality build materials.
We’re looking at the same Qualcomm 808 processor, but now paired with an additional gigabyte of RAM. We also keep the same 3000mAh battery, with a removable back and MicroSD card storage expansion.
That’s where the similarities with the G4 end. Everything else gets some kind of tweak.
The display remains the same Quad HD resolution of 2560×1440, but it loses the gentle curve the G4 had. Instead we get a second always on display above the main screen for shortcuts, advanced notifications, and multi-tasking.
The front face adds a second camera. One camera has a narrow field of view for selfies, the other camera is wider for group shots. Because the cameras have different focal lengths, they wont be used for 3D, but LG says shots from both cameras can be joined in software. Hopefully this produces cleaner images in low light.
The main camera also gets some improvements. Full manual control is coming to video. This is hugely helpful, as the G4 only shoots video in full auto mode. Shutter speed, exposure, white balance, an advanced image stabilization mode, and a new video setting for 21:9 cinema style widescreen.
Audio also gets a refresh with a three microphone array for better stereo sound and noise reduction. These mics can also be “focused” on a specific subject to better isolate the audio you want and ignore noise.
Lastly, the build steps up to a more premium finish. Often criticized for using mostly plastic on their phones, LG is moving to stainless steel for the chassis. We can hope that using steel instead of aluminum we will stave any potential bend-gate situations.
We’re still waiting out pricing information, but we can expect that with higher quality build materials, and feature improvements across the board (without losing any features like MicroSD card expansion coughcawffSamsungKoFF) that the V10 will likely start at a higher price than the G4 which came before it.
You can catch LG’s sexy cool teaser video below.