The LG G4: My smartphone of the year?

[Suika]

 
When the LG G3 was released way back when, I didn't think I would be the type of guy to use a 5.5" screen comfortably. By then I was accustomed to the Nexus 4 and Nexus 5 in terms of their size, and not too much of a fan of the whole Phablet concept. Well, then I picked up a OnePlus One for cheap. It was an amazing phone, but I would be lying if I said it was easy to handle when I received it. I had to grow accustomed to the screen, but it didn't take long to do so. Long story short on that one, large screens require adjustment, but they're not too difficult to use. On to what I love about the phone, I'll brake it apart into a few things.
 
For those still in the dark, here are the specs on the device.
 
Snapdragon 808 Hexacore Processor, big.LITTLE architecture with a dual-A57 core processor at 1.87GHz, and smaller quad-A53 core processor at 1.44GHz.
Adreno 418
3GB RAM, 32GB Storage (Expandable up to 2TB, though such a MicroSD card doesn't exist)
5.5" 2560x1440 IPS "Quantum" Display
3,000 mAh Removable Battery
 
The camera is impressive enough to get a description of its own.
 
16MP Rear Shooter Camera, 8MP Front Facing "Selfie" Camera
1/2.6" Sensor with f/1.8 Aperature
Laser Autofocus
3 Axis Optic Image Stabilization
LED Flash
Color Spectrum Sensor, for amazing white balance in photos.
 
This is something I'm going to update as I haven't had the phone for too long yet, so some aspects are bound to change.
 
Camera: This was the defining feature for me. I wanted a DSLR but didn't want to make the investment. I actually considered the Galaxy S6 on the basis that I could at least grow into taking photos with a good shooter but be able to justify the cost on it being a premium smartphone. Here comes the G4, with a very full manual mode that gives it DSLR like control and features as well an already spectacular auto mode. Video is also great and with a little post processing in a program like Adobe Premier, could make off as looking like a DSLR solution. If video is your thing, though, I would look at getting an external mic too, but this also holds true to just about any DSLR solution.
 
The screen: I'm a big believer in Apple's Retina Display concept, anything above 320ppi is overkill and difficult to notice differences in higher pixel densities. Moving from my OnePlus One at 1080p to the LG G4 nailed that thought into me, as while the display is brilliant, 1440p isn't doing it as much justice as advertised. That goes without saying that this is a beautiful display, however. It's less saturated than Samsung's AMOLED technology, but I'm on the side of the spectrum where that's what I prefer. The G4's quantum display is a stunning one, it gets bright and can deal with sunlight very well actually, nothing is less than beautiful looking. My only gripe is that whites aren't as white as I would like, when I view the LinusTechTips mobile website, everything has a sort of darker tint than on my OnePlus One, but that may be personal preference.
 
Battery: The battery, again coming from the OnePlus One, is an improvement. With the One, I could end a day with 20% battery left and only an hour and a half of screen on time, keeping it charging in the car in a total of a 40-45 minute commute, and I was OK with that for the most part. The G4, I haven't gotten quite an all-day battery life, but unlike the OnePlus, I haven't plugged it on a charger yet and am still at two hours of screen on time, with approximately 30% charge remaining. It's not what I want, but maybe Verizon's Droid Turbo is the only stock solution that would actually satisfy what I want, but that comes with the con of being a Verizon phone. LG helps with their free additional battery promo, but I would only consider using it on days where I know I won't be near a charger for some time. For reference, I keep the screen at 60% brightness, bluetooth, location, and WiFi services typically on (I keep a Moto 360 on my wrist), so I may torture phones more than others. My OnePlus also had a lower screen brightness, I believe around 25-40%. I'm being especially torturous to the G4 right now, as I want to see how far I can go with the battery on average.
 
Speaker: Yes, the speaker is on the back, very few manufacturers decide to place it on the front, but this is still a very, very loud speaker. It beats my OnePlus One, Galaxy S5, and even the HTC One M7. It makes a nifty little boombox, having the volume buttons on the back as well. The headphone audio levels leave some to be desired, with HTC and Samsung offering higher levels than LG, but quality is good nonetheless.
 
Comfort and Luxury: I'd be lying if I said the OnePlus One had either of these. The One was more difficult to hold, being slightly larger and heavier, and I didn't like the feeling of the Sandstone Black cover. It felt as cheap as it was, but it was still a high-end device. The G4, specifically with the leather cover, feels so much nicer in the hand and actually looks like a device that can be considered a flagship phone. It still has a plastic construction but the leather makes up for quite a bit of that I feel. The Galaxy S6 has a glass body and aluminum frame, but at what cost? No removable battery, no expandable storage, and if you drop it, you're risking a crack on either side of the phone, costing a very, very expensive replacement. The G4, specifically with leather, still feels luxurious, the camera and buttons with a slightly gold hue over them is a very nice touch, and if you end up damaging the leather, it's not as costly of a replacement, and you can do it yourself, unlike certain other flagships. The curve to the device attributes to the comfort of the device as well, being large enough that you can feel it, but subtle enough where it's not too terribly easy to see and become uncomfortable in practice. LG claims that the screen is 20% more crack resistant because of the curve, but I don't know how you can quantify that number.
 
With many good things, have to come some bad things. Typically the things that are wrong with the phone are minor and some may be limited to just me. These deducted very little for the general experience of the device, but if they were improved upon or I wasn't stupid, they'd make the best phone for the year, but right now, it's competitive with the Galaxy S6, not a 100% better option.
 
Plastic: For a high-end device, yes, plastic does feel like it makes the device cheaper. Perhaps it makes it lighter versus other materials, but I can't say it's a nice touch. This isn't a huge gripe for me.
 
Battery: I praised the battery over surpassing my OnePlus One, but it still leaves a lot to be desired. Running the Snapdragon 808 using the big.LITTLE architecture, I'd expect far more out of the device in terms of battery life. Maybe it'll improve with time through software updates, but I can't speak with certainty on that, as previous updates on the LG G3 did not yield considerable results. I'm excited for the second battery to arrive, as while it isn't the best solution, it's decent.
 
The buttons: This is a rather small complaint, and is specifically with the leather, but sometimes it's difficult to tell if I'm pressing the volume up or volume down button because the power button and leather feel oddly alike, both slightly rising. If I go too far up, I risk putting a finger smudge on the camera. This may just be something I'm yet to get used to.
 
Software: Kudos to LG for making Android far more customize-able, more so than Google, but I feel like LG's UX software kind of drowns me in features, whereas I'm used to the stock Google Launcher. LG's Smart Notice isn't as terribly convenient as you would hope, in fact, I prefer stock Android's weather widget in place of it. Google Now cards feel more relevant and useful, and it may just be me, but LG Health doesn't feel as worth it over Google Fit or Motorola Connect (I use a Moto 360). The settings menu is by no means difficult to navigate but I remain rather neutral on that, I don't believe it's any better or worse versus stock. Wallpaper selection is rather minimal and I wish LG would at least include stock Android wallpapers as well, there's not even a single live wallpaper with UX UI.
 
All in all, though, this is an amazing device, my favorite Android device so far, right behind the Nexus 4 (which is aged quite a bit by now). I absolutely love the camera, a budding photographer would go crazy with it. The battery is alright but I feel like more could be done to make it better in terms of optimization, but LG's second battery promo is pleasant and welcomed. It's a band-aid solution but it's a solution at all. The software leaves a lot to be desired and for once in a generation of phones, I think Samsung's Touchwiz is a bit more desirable. I do not regret my purchase, and recommend this to any who have these three concerns in a smartphone: Camera, battery, and storage.

[Guest]

Nice review!

 

 

I actually want this phone badly....wanting to switch up from the M8 Even though the M8 is working fine and has amazing speakers.

[GrimNeo]

How many smartphones do you buy a year? Nice review. I like my Samsung Galaxy s6 because it was free.

[Guest]

 because it was free.

????????? how

[GrimNeo]

????????? how

I'm a loyal customer lol jk. It was because I did not upgrade in 3 years. They even made my plan better. I was paying for 400 minutes with limited data and now I get unlimited everything and unlimited international.

[Guest]

I'm a loyal customer lol jk. It was because I did not upgrade in 3 years. They even made my plan better. I was paying for 400 minutes with limited data and now I get unlimited everything and unlimited international.

Oh neato!

[GrimNeo]

Oh neato!

Sprint ftw. Verion wanted to charge me $200 and $100 a month for that same plan sprint has. Sprint is $65 a month.

[Suika]

How many smartphones do you buy a year?

Several. The G4 may be the past phone I own for 2015, until the S7 or G5.

[GrimNeo]

Several. The G4 may be the past phone I own for 2015, until the S7 or G5.

Damn baller. I get a new cell phone every 3-5 years

[evilarceus]

Once CyanogenMod comes out for the G4, the software con can be taken out (and possibly the battery?). Or you can somehow remove the bloatware

[Suika]

Once CyanogenMod comes out for the G4, the software con can be taken out (and possibly the battery?). Or you can somehow remove the bloatware

I don't think I'll be rooting and flashing ROMs on this phone, and bloatware isn't actually as bad as some reviews mention. I suppose most reviewers expect only the essential apps, and I'll be fair in saying I did too, considering I've used stock Android for almost an entire year. 

 

Yea, I just opened my phone, and there are duplicate apps versus Google's, but there's maybe several apps I decided to disable because they seemed bloatware like, otherwise it's not too bad. I'm actually not allowed to disable T-Mobile apps, which kind of pisses me off. My general grief with the software is basically just how much more there is to it versus even TouchWiz.

[s3ns3]

Once CyanogenMod comes out for the G4, the software con can be taken out (and possibly the battery?). Or you can somehow remove the bloatware

if you use cyanogenmod on todays flagships you basically lose half of the phone. the camera would just suck,no more IR blaster,no more knock code,no more smart settings(opens music when you plug in earphones and other options),no more multitasking with multiwindow and qslide etc etc etc .

 

stock features are very good these days and its just not worth flashing cyanogenmod. not even on lg g2 or galaxy s5.

--

OP 1:30min screen on with oneplus one ? a friend always hits 4h minimum .anyway according to gsmarena the lg g4 is not good at battery life.the lg g3 lasts longer and it wasnt a phone that was known for its battery life.so that worries me...a lot. 

[Suika]

OP 1:30min screen on with oneplus one ? a friend always hits 4h minimum .anyway according to gsmarena the lg g4 is not good at battery life.the lg g3 lasts longer and it wasnt a phone that was known for its battery life.so that worries me...a lot.

Well I had just about every feature on and I did absolutely no power saver jazz, and usually a half hour or less was spent on a game. I was running OxygenOS to be fair, and when I had Cyanogenmod it felt like battery life was better, but I don't have any numbers.

I can mark the OPO's battery life as a software issue with OxygenOS, because it felt like it drained with use but my G4 doesn't.

[Mew]

2 hours of screen on time? That's horrid. What kind of tasks do you do when you use your phone? Heavy gaming? Web browsing should see battery life in the area of 4 times better unless you have horrible carrier signal. 

[Suika]

2 hours of screen on time? That's horrid. What kind of tasks do you do when you use your phone? Heavy gaming? Web browsing should see battery life in the area of 4 times better unless you have horrible carrier signal.

Two hours is correct, I just checked my use for today and I had two hours again, but I did some gaming which really ran down the battery.

[ErickS89]

Two hours is correct, I just checked my use for today and I had two hours again, but I did some gaming which really ran down the battery.

That's pretty bad even for gaming on a phone... And the S6 doesn't have that great of a battery but I get more than 2 hours...