Another LG flagship device with a way too blue display. I believe I called that when it was announced. Next up, poor update policy (quarterly security updates or worse) and a usual $200-$350 price drop in 3 months.
Seriously??? You're gonna complain about a problem that almost any smartphone has, and is yet correctable??? What a cry baby! Just like the Galaxy S9 came with a red tint, it was corrected through the rgb display settings. So too can you correct it on the LG G7! As for updates, I've gotten two updates since I got the phone! Yes, I got the G7 and it's an awesome phone! My question for most people hating on it is... Have you even spent time with it??? Then until you do, don't judge!!! I for one, am loving it!!! Specially since I got the BOGO deal at T-Mobile! Making my G7 better than most phones at about $425 each with tax!!! This whole talk about a price drop is what would be expected from someone who probably copies and pastes everyone else's opinions but their own. Smh!
That is an... excessive amount of punctuation. As leexgx says here, it seems that you're compensating for something. A bit of insecurity regarding the quality of a product you just spent $850 on, perhaps? Sure, for $425 it's a great deal (any SD845 phone at that price would be), but the review clearly shows that the blue tint cannot be corrected at all. A white point of 7800K is ridiculously high, and a DeltaE of more than 6 at its best is atrocious for a flagship phone in 2018. You might not care about accurate colors, and that's fine, but not even giving users the option is really, really bad. It speaks of either rushed development or just plain bad software development on LG's part. These lapses do not belong in flagship phones in 2018 - the market has moved beyond that quite a few years ago. If LG can't match the basic features of their competitors, they should either quit trying or start making an effort. It's a real shame too, 'cause that display seems great in most other regards (contrast is fantastic for an RGBW panel, brightness is astounding). The camera seems like it could be improved significantly too, given how much better the V30 with the same hardware is. I suppose it doesn't matter much if the pictures are only ever viewed on phone screens and never zoomed, but that's not for me. I'm too much into photography to settle for overprocessed, smudgy pictures.
As the review points out, at this price point you really shouldn't have to play the LCD lottery. There's this thing called 'quality control', after all.
Definitely is a carrier issue. I just bought my phone a couple of days ago on AT&T and on the same day as activation got Oreo plus July security updates.
While Samsung is fairly slow on full feature updates, they're by far one of the best for regularly monthly security patches, which LG has seemingly abandoned. So lets not just throw them both together here, Samsung is demonstrably more reliable when it comes to security updates, even if they are slow on full android version updates (mainly because their version of android is already packing a significant amount of extras on top of stock android)
I'd be looking at your carrier more than the phone OEM.
I have an LG V20 from T-Mobile that only has Android 7.0, but has the May 2018 security update installed. Considering the phone will be two years old this October, I'm fairly impressed with the updates. Sure, it's not running Android 8.0 or 9.0, but the security fixes are only a few months behind.
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Honestly I don't take photos very often, so if you take that out of the picture... it's the best phone to buy right now because of the price as usual. Only cost $500 through my carrier.
I'm pretty sensitive to display calibration with computer monitors, so I was surprised to see that mentioned here, as it looks perfectly fine to me.
Every time I read reviews, I'm always surprised how many annoyances in the S9 are glossed over, but every small issue with the G7 is a "major" defect.
S9+ size, super fast, amazingly bright display in sunlight, best speaker I've heard in a phone, tiny bezels and a smart implementation of the notch, I'd give this phone a huge recommendation at any discounted price vs the competition.
I just checked my carrier, the LG G7 is $520 USD on promotion, the S9+ is $820. I really feel LG should launch with a lower MSRP so that reviews don't get misled, thinking the prices are similar. Just as good as an S9+ and the same size (but nice and light), and $300 cheaper.
What happened to nand benchmarks? That was one of the big things I liked reading anandtech reviews for. It would also be nice if you didn't remove the display measurement comparison graphs so that we could actually compare different displays to see how they did against each other. I like the addition of speaker evaluations but that should be an addition, not a replacement...
Phone reviews released before December 2018 were shelved as AT didn't have a mobile editor at the time before I rejoined, and it didn't make sense logistically to try to catch up with past devices when it was better to focus to be on time with the newer releases.
Performance, battery, and camera evaluations of the V30 are included in all follow-up reviews from that date on.
@Andrei/Anandtech: First, thanks for the review! Would it be possible to include the water-proofing as a line in the specs table in future reviews, as well as the hours of use (intensive) one gets out of a full charge. Lastly, please add a line in the conclusions on past record and promised future on OS updates of that phone maker. These three are key decision points, at least for me. I don't want to worry about getting the phone wet in a downpour, and having to take the charger with me, then look for and stay at a power outlet every few hours is really not exactly "mobile". Similarly, it's more than just annoying if a brand-new phone stays stuck two releases behind current Android versions for years or forever - I don't appreciate built-in obsolescence in $ 500+ phones. While I get the criticism of a too-blueish white balance, water-proofing (IP68, 67 or not), hours of intense use per full charge and keeping the OS current for the next 2-3 years are more important to me for a purchase decision than bluish screens, although I'd like a good white balance, too. The camera in the LG7 is a letdown, especially the video. Why still no EIS in 4K or at 1080 p60, and why not offer HEVC recording? The 845 is perfectly capable of all these. Not having those is just lazy, and not on flagship level. Regarding the hours of use, this is another disappointing result. LG, hang your head in shame!, Don't try to make an S9+ clone; instead, make a true alternative, and dare to be different. To all phone makers: I get it, thin is hip, but a. I don't use my phone to cut vegetables with, so don't need razor-blade thinness and b. I rather take a slightly thicker and larger (longer) phone with a 4000-5000 mAh battery over a slim phone that won't make it through the day.
Added in the IP68 rating - somehow I missed putting that into the table.
In regards to hours of usage of a full charge. That's an inexact metric and can't and won't post subjective numbers. The battery tests are reliable, reproducible metrics that I think are still extremely good. In my usage I found the web test largely correlated with overall device runtime - of course this will differ for most users based on screen brightness and cellular connectivity.
I had the same reaction when the OnePlus 5 didn't have a bigger battery either. On my older phones I could observe the battery counting down just reading an article like this.
But the 835 and 845 or I guess anything done on that 10nm FinFET LPE process feels twice as power efficient as the 14nm LPP from the 820 and it's the first time I never worry about the phone battery any more. Even after a long day, I've never dropped below 70% remaining charge and I tend to panic below 50%, just seeing 15% on review pictures makes me sweat :-)
But I'm not a smombie or a member of the look-down-clan and I guess others will want 12 hours with a non-stop screen full of Facebook action...
And then QuickCharge gives you another day within minutes.
My LG G4 died from Boot Loop a little over a month after the warranty expired. Verizon and LG did not offer anything to make up for the fact that it was sold to me at a time when they already knew about the Boot Loop failure rates. LG and Verizon are both on my shit list and will stay that way for quite some time.
I don't care about waterproofing on my phone. LG needs to bring back removable batteries. That's the whole reason I bought their phones. If I want waterproofing I'll go out and buy a waterproof case.
Just buy a power bank. Removable battery as a run time extender is as inconvenient as it gets. Also, some of those low-end smartphones with A53 CPUs as their main cores can get an amazing run time. I can forget to charge my honor 6X and it can still last through the day with just 40% in the morning.
Yeah I have a LG G4 which has been a great phone but this September I am coming up for three years with it and was going to replace it (probably a G6). However, I remembered I could change the battery and really the G4 still does everything I need so I just got a new battery. Sorted for another year at least...
so even higher specs with a low Mah battery, for shame..."modern" smartphones IMO especially the ones that have high to very high end (for phone) specs should not hamper them with "normal" size batteries that tend to be in the range of 2200-3200 they should be targeting a minimum of 3200-4200 range, especially when they have the space to cram a larger battery in there (which many of them do)
I just don't get t when "knock off" brands manage to often use a better display AND larger battery, shame of the bigger companies expecting as much $ as they can think to get away charging and using a dinky little battery....example even lower spec G4 Play had a 2800Mah battery REMOVABLE, this is much higher spec but barely any increase in battery capacity, I do not give a crud what OS version it is using, the capacity of the battery matters very much >:(
The notch again no innovation especially from LG, I had the V20 and the second screen can be very useful and didn't ruin the whole experience, the G6 were nearly perfect beside the decision to use a year old SOC plus no wireless charging.
The LG V35 is what should be the flagship. Better specs, better display, more memory, plus the audio, wide angle camera and 845 from the G7. I've had mine for a week, and it's definitely the best phone I've ever had.
I got this phone after some bad experiences with Samsung and this is the most accurate review of it I've seen to date. The biggest downside for the G7 is the unreliable camera. Some shots are okay, some are downright bad. And most reviewers don't shoot pictures of moving subjects, but the G7 consistently misses focus on moving subjects. All the issues with the camera in this review I've seen in my use. Most of it I think is related to it's inability to auto focus on the correct subject. When using manual focus, the camera actually takes good pictures.
The rest of the phone is actually really great. I don't notice the color calibration in regular use, and the speaker is great even if other flagships also offer great speakers. The size of the phone is the best out there. It is comfortable and has a large screen without feeling too wide to hold and use in one hand. While I do mostly use BT headphones, I have a range of wired headphones and when I use them they sound amazing on the G7 in comparison to other phone's weak headphone output.
And the last great feature, but one that was not touched on in this review, is the outstanding idle battery life of the G7. Even with the always on display enabled, the G7 barely loses any charge when idle. If I don't use my phone very much, I can end the day with 80% of my battery life left. Most days I have 40-50% of battery left over even taking pictures, making calls, watching videos, and browsing the web. In comparison to Samsung phones I've had that can lose 5% an hour at idle, the idle power use of the G7 makes it outlast every other phone I've ever used.
I have a V30 after having upgraded from a V10 a while back. Personally speaking, I'd rate the V series above the G series but that's just me. I can say that I've been quite satisfied with my V30 and given how close to each other these phones happen to be, it wouldn't be worth it to "upgrade."
LG has come a long way with their phones (that boot loop issue was a killer) and are genuinely competitive with every other high end device out there.
Its amazing how average these so called Android flagships are when compared to the iPhone where every details is thought out. The worst thing is that they arent cheap either.
I got new G6 week ago and was really disappointed with the jpeg processing and softness of the ultrawide angle module. Then someone noted that Google Pixel camera app was ported to other snapdragon devices and gets much better results. You can still see that it is not perfect if you pixel-peep, but I am in peace with it now when using the ported app.
One comment. I loved LG's but I had to return the LGG7 the worst phone Ive ever had in regards to reception. Makes all the bells and whistles worthless. This in many areas city and rural. Traded for the S9 it is much better but not as good as the Motorola z force that I was replacing. Too bad because I had good luck with the g2 and g3
I'm reasonably happy with G7. Got it for my work phone as it is much cheaper than S9+ here in NZ... $1000 vs $1500.
Camera is my only real disappointment - yes it does watercolor greenery. That said, I am a bit of a camera freak, and there is no camera phone that really satisfies me - whenever I plan to shoot, I will have at least RX100 on me, if not dSLR. This makes me dislike G7 camera even more - but, at the same time, it makes me not care much as well, since I usually don't depend on phone cameras. Down-sampled to ~2MP (1080p full screen), photos are usable. This is really where my phone cameras' expectations end, regardless of model.
Oddly, screen color hasn't really impacted me, albeit I have moved to this phone from Nexus 5X and Lumia 950 XL... both should have decent screens, if memory serves. Might be because I use phone under different light and ever-changing conditions are preventing me from really having an issue with screen accuracy. Screen readability is quite good, even under sun, and resolution is a pleasure. I am wearing glasses for distance and they don't work well up close, so I usually look at the phone screen over the glasses, and, in result, bring phone very close to my face... where resolution shows more than from "normal" reading distance.
Battery holds well in my scenario. Even at the begging when phone use was higher than average - downloading and trying apps, setting accounts, running initial updates etc., I was not draining more than 60% between morning and evening. Everyday use it is 30 - 40%. Basically I can do full 2 days, and with wireless chargers at my office desk and bedside, absolutely no problems here... that said, I don't play games on phone.
Overall? Happy, so far. I'm aware of compromises, but price difference more than justifies them, imho. I am also not a big fan of Samsung's curved screen - it does nook nice but it also does expose screen more, judging from my colleagues' experiences with S7 Edge and S8.
What this review did better than anything else was convince me to get a OnePlus6. It has the best camera at mid/high light levels and the (very well done) LCD screen of the G7 is inefficient at the lowest light levels (which is where I set my phone the vast majority of the time). The smaller-sized battery isn't great either.
There is not a single smartphone on the market that I want to buy, because I want three features: 3.5mm audio jack, dual front facing speakers and a removable battery. 19.5:9 screens and bezelless design offers nothing useful in my opinion. I really hate being forced to buy a new phone, just because the battery no longer holds a decent charge after 500 discharge cycles. I really wish that tech reviewers would talk about how hard it is to replace the battery and how well the phone is designed to survive drops. I could care less about CPU benchmarks, compared to how long the phone will last.
Well, I am in your boat. Recently decided to go back to the future, bought a new-in-box V20 with warranty for about $ 250 with taxes, added a big ass replacement battery with (claimed) 6800 mAh (vs. the 3200 stock) for about $30, and - so far, so good. The phone is bulky, due to its necessary bigger replacement back, but I am Ok with that. Battery seems to be living up to its specs (6 weeks in), easily get 2 days of full use, despite Snapdragon 820 and bright screen setting. Wish many of the LG apps would be better or could be uninstalled or at least disabled, but the V20 seems to be as good as it gets if one wants a 16:9 screen, a removable battery, and decent phone performance. I suggest LG also goes "back to the future" and makes the next V phone (V40?) with a removable battery once again - there is a market there that Samsung is not serving.
Thanks for the great review. The wide angle camera is a critical feature for me. I have a V20 and a G6 and was hoping that the G7 would be my next phone, a phone with a better camera than the G6. I guess I will hold on to the G6. I too hope that LG will have a software fix for the camera problems, but I am dubious. LG seems to produce, sell and forget.
I think this is a very fair review for the G7. I've had it for 1 week and almost all the reviews are accurate. I just want to mention one thing that I think should have been mentioned in the conclusions of the review. Is this phone better for audiophiles? That is a point of sale for some people and should have been directed properly In addition, he did not mention the DTS: X 3D Surround function, which can be enjoyed in some scenarios (movies and some games).
The audio recordings from LG G7 Fit are total crap. There are lack of bass and mid frequencies. Same problem is in Video records. Too much only high trebles and noise, pair this with too aggressive noise reduction and you have just unusable sound. I must sell that phone is ASAP
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anactoraaron - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Another LG flagship device with a way too blue display. I believe I called that when it was announced. Next up, poor update policy (quarterly security updates or worse) and a usual $200-$350 price drop in 3 months.Integrazimmy - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Seriously??? You're gonna complain about a problem that almost any smartphone has, and is yet correctable??? What a cry baby! Just like the Galaxy S9 came with a red tint, it was corrected through the rgb display settings. So too can you correct it on the LG G7! As for updates, I've gotten two updates since I got the phone! Yes, I got the G7 and it's an awesome phone! My question for most people hating on it is... Have you even spent time with it??? Then until you do, don't judge!!! I for one, am loving it!!! Specially since I got the BOGO deal at T-Mobile! Making my G7 better than most phones at about $425 each with tax!!! This whole talk about a price drop is what would be expected from someone who probably copies and pastes everyone else's opinions but their own. Smh!leexgx - Friday, August 10, 2018 - link
Seems like your compensating for something in that postExtraneus - Sunday, December 2, 2018 - link
Not really, no. Just addressing ignorance... Just like I'm addressing your rude condescending.Valantar - Friday, August 10, 2018 - link
That is an... excessive amount of punctuation. As leexgx says here, it seems that you're compensating for something. A bit of insecurity regarding the quality of a product you just spent $850 on, perhaps? Sure, for $425 it's a great deal (any SD845 phone at that price would be), but the review clearly shows that the blue tint cannot be corrected at all. A white point of 7800K is ridiculously high, and a DeltaE of more than 6 at its best is atrocious for a flagship phone in 2018. You might not care about accurate colors, and that's fine, but not even giving users the option is really, really bad. It speaks of either rushed development or just plain bad software development on LG's part. These lapses do not belong in flagship phones in 2018 - the market has moved beyond that quite a few years ago. If LG can't match the basic features of their competitors, they should either quit trying or start making an effort. It's a real shame too, 'cause that display seems great in most other regards (contrast is fantastic for an RGBW panel, brightness is astounding). The camera seems like it could be improved significantly too, given how much better the V30 with the same hardware is. I suppose it doesn't matter much if the pictures are only ever viewed on phone screens and never zoomed, but that's not for me. I'm too much into photography to settle for overprocessed, smudgy pictures.Alistair - Friday, August 10, 2018 - link
Maybe the reviewed screen was bad and the rest are not. It can vary wildly.Valantar - Saturday, August 11, 2018 - link
As the review points out, at this price point you really shouldn't have to play the LCD lottery. There's this thing called 'quality control', after all.frases lindas - Monday, August 13, 2018 - link
https://frases.bidmelgross - Friday, August 10, 2018 - link
No, most better smartphones don’t have this problem. Just look at th displays on the Samsung and Apple phones. Both are far better.jo-82 - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
I have a G6 and I'm stuck at Nougat, Sec Patch March 2017. LG is as well as Samsung one of the worst manufacturers you could possibly buy.Alistair - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
You know how Android is, I received the 8.0 update for the G6 a long time ago. You should contact your carrier and ask what's up :)frasesparainsta - Saturday, August 11, 2018 - link
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That's a provider issue. I've been on Oreo (after doing an upgrade the day after purchasing it two months ago).faizoff - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Definitely is a carrier issue. I just bought my phone a couple of days ago on AT&T and on the same day as activation got Oreo plus July security updates.melgross - Friday, August 10, 2018 - link
It’s also a manufacturer issue. They make different deals with carriers. Some are better than others.Kaboose - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
While Samsung is fairly slow on full feature updates, they're by far one of the best for regularly monthly security patches, which LG has seemingly abandoned. So lets not just throw them both together here, Samsung is demonstrably more reliable when it comes to security updates, even if they are slow on full android version updates (mainly because their version of android is already packing a significant amount of extras on top of stock android)phoenix_rizzen - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
I'd be looking at your carrier more than the phone OEM.I have an LG V20 from T-Mobile that only has Android 7.0, but has the May 2018 security update installed. Considering the phone will be two years old this October, I'm fairly impressed with the updates. Sure, it's not running Android 8.0 or 9.0, but the security fixes are only a few months behind.
repatch - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Nothing to do with LG. My G6 got Oreo quite a while ago. My security patch level? June 1, 2018. Your carrier is the problem.collegsd - Friday, January 18, 2019 - link
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Alistair - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Honestly I don't take photos very often, so if you take that out of the picture... it's the best phone to buy right now because of the price as usual. Only cost $500 through my carrier.I'm pretty sensitive to display calibration with computer monitors, so I was surprised to see that mentioned here, as it looks perfectly fine to me.
Every time I read reviews, I'm always surprised how many annoyances in the S9 are glossed over, but every small issue with the G7 is a "major" defect.
S9+ size, super fast, amazingly bright display in sunlight, best speaker I've heard in a phone, tiny bezels and a smart implementation of the notch, I'd give this phone a huge recommendation at any discounted price vs the competition.
Alistair - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
I just checked my carrier, the LG G7 is $520 USD on promotion, the S9+ is $820. I really feel LG should launch with a lower MSRP so that reviews don't get misled, thinking the prices are similar. Just as good as an S9+ and the same size (but nice and light), and $300 cheaper.djayjp - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Good thing we have speaker measurements because who could possibly want NAND benchmarks? You should stop including benchmarks in SSD reviews as well.Dr. Swag - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
What happened to nand benchmarks? That was one of the big things I liked reading anandtech reviews for. It would also be nice if you didn't remove the display measurement comparison graphs so that we could actually compare different displays to see how they did against each other. I like the addition of speaker evaluations but that should be an addition, not a replacement...faizoff - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Will the LG V30 review not be done due to the lottery display situation?Andrei Frumusanu - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Phone reviews released before December 2018 were shelved as AT didn't have a mobile editor at the time before I rejoined, and it didn't make sense logistically to try to catch up with past devices when it was better to focus to be on time with the newer releases.Performance, battery, and camera evaluations of the V30 are included in all follow-up reviews from that date on.
lopri - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
December 2017, you mean?Andrei Frumusanu - Saturday, August 11, 2018 - link
Yes sorry, I'm a year ahead >_>eastcoast_pete - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
@Andrei/Anandtech: First, thanks for the review! Would it be possible to include the water-proofing as a line in the specs table in future reviews, as well as the hours of use (intensive) one gets out of a full charge. Lastly, please add a line in the conclusions on past record and promised future on OS updates of that phone maker. These three are key decision points, at least for me. I don't want to worry about getting the phone wet in a downpour, and having to take the charger with me, then look for and stay at a power outlet every few hours is really not exactly "mobile". Similarly, it's more than just annoying if a brand-new phone stays stuck two releases behind current Android versions for years or forever - I don't appreciate built-in obsolescence in $ 500+ phones.While I get the criticism of a too-blueish white balance, water-proofing (IP68, 67 or not), hours of intense use per full charge and keeping the OS current for the next 2-3 years are more important to me for a purchase decision than bluish screens, although I'd like a good white balance, too. The camera in the LG7 is a letdown, especially the video. Why still no EIS in 4K or at 1080 p60, and why not offer HEVC recording? The 845 is perfectly capable of all these. Not having those is just lazy, and not on flagship level.
Regarding the hours of use, this is another disappointing result. LG, hang your head in shame!, Don't try to make an S9+ clone; instead, make a true alternative, and dare to be different. To all phone makers: I get it, thin is hip, but a. I don't use my phone to cut vegetables with, so don't need razor-blade thinness and b. I rather take a slightly thicker and larger (longer) phone with a 4000-5000 mAh battery over a slim phone that won't make it through the day.
Andrei Frumusanu - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Added in the IP68 rating - somehow I missed putting that into the table.In regards to hours of usage of a full charge. That's an inexact metric and can't and won't post subjective numbers. The battery tests are reliable, reproducible metrics that I think are still extremely good. In my usage I found the web test largely correlated with overall device runtime - of course this will differ for most users based on screen brightness and cellular connectivity.
zeeBomb - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Andrei reviewing phones again? Man I'm just so disappointing it has only 3,000 mAh...CLEARLY rushed and the display is tooo blue.abufrejoval - Saturday, August 11, 2018 - link
I had the same reaction when the OnePlus 5 didn't have a bigger battery either. On my older phones I could observe the battery counting down just reading an article like this.But the 835 and 845 or I guess anything done on that 10nm FinFET LPE process feels twice as power efficient as the 14nm LPP from the 820 and it's the first time I never worry about the phone battery any more. Even after a long day, I've never dropped below 70% remaining charge and I tend to panic below 50%, just seeing 15% on review pictures makes me sweat :-)
But I'm not a smombie or a member of the look-down-clan and I guess others will want 12 hours with a non-stop screen full of Facebook action...
And then QuickCharge gives you another day within minutes.
johntmosher - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
My LG G4 died from Boot Loop a little over a month after the warranty expired. Verizon and LG did not offer anything to make up for the fact that it was sold to me at a time when they already knew about the Boot Loop failure rates. LG and Verizon are both on my shit list and will stay that way for quite some time.takeshi7 - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
I don't care about waterproofing on my phone. LG needs to bring back removable batteries. That's the whole reason I bought their phones. If I want waterproofing I'll go out and buy a waterproof case.UtilityMax - Friday, August 10, 2018 - link
Just buy a power bank. Removable battery as a run time extender is as inconvenient as it gets. Also, some of those low-end smartphones with A53 CPUs as their main cores can get an amazing run time. I can forget to charge my honor 6X and it can still last through the day with just 40% in the morning.jabber - Saturday, August 11, 2018 - link
Yeah I have a LG G4 which has been a great phone but this September I am coming up for three years with it and was going to replace it (probably a G6). However, I remembered I could change the battery and really the G4 still does everything I need so I just got a new battery. Sorted for another year at least...Dragonstongue - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
so even higher specs with a low Mah battery, for shame..."modern" smartphones IMO especially the ones that have high to very high end (for phone) specs should not hamper them with "normal" size batteries that tend to be in the range of 2200-3200 they should be targeting a minimum of 3200-4200 range, especially when they have the space to cram a larger battery in there (which many of them do)I just don't get t when "knock off" brands manage to often use a better display AND larger battery, shame of the bigger companies expecting as much $ as they can think to get away charging and using a dinky little battery....example even lower spec G4 Play had a 2800Mah battery REMOVABLE, this is much higher spec but barely any increase in battery capacity, I do not give a crud what OS version it is using, the capacity of the battery matters very much >:(
Xex360 - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
The notch again no innovation especially from LG, I had the V20 and the second screen can be very useful and didn't ruin the whole experience, the G6 were nearly perfect beside the decision to use a year old SOC plus no wireless charging.hirschma - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
The LG V35 is what should be the flagship. Better specs, better display, more memory, plus the audio, wide angle camera and 845 from the G7. I've had mine for a week, and it's definitely the best phone I've ever had.Hubb1e - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
I got this phone after some bad experiences with Samsung and this is the most accurate review of it I've seen to date. The biggest downside for the G7 is the unreliable camera. Some shots are okay, some are downright bad. And most reviewers don't shoot pictures of moving subjects, but the G7 consistently misses focus on moving subjects. All the issues with the camera in this review I've seen in my use. Most of it I think is related to it's inability to auto focus on the correct subject. When using manual focus, the camera actually takes good pictures.The rest of the phone is actually really great. I don't notice the color calibration in regular use, and the speaker is great even if other flagships also offer great speakers. The size of the phone is the best out there. It is comfortable and has a large screen without feeling too wide to hold and use in one hand. While I do mostly use BT headphones, I have a range of wired headphones and when I use them they sound amazing on the G7 in comparison to other phone's weak headphone output.
And the last great feature, but one that was not touched on in this review, is the outstanding idle battery life of the G7. Even with the always on display enabled, the G7 barely loses any charge when idle. If I don't use my phone very much, I can end the day with 80% of my battery life left. Most days I have 40-50% of battery left over even taking pictures, making calls, watching videos, and browsing the web. In comparison to Samsung phones I've had that can lose 5% an hour at idle, the idle power use of the G7 makes it outlast every other phone I've ever used.
SkyBill40 - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
I have a V30 after having upgraded from a V10 a while back. Personally speaking, I'd rate the V series above the G series but that's just me. I can say that I've been quite satisfied with my V30 and given how close to each other these phones happen to be, it wouldn't be worth it to "upgrade."LG has come a long way with their phones (that boot loop issue was a killer) and are genuinely competitive with every other high end device out there.
Lavkesh - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
Its amazing how average these so called Android flagships are when compared to the iPhone where every details is thought out. The worst thing is that they arent cheap either.melgross - Friday, August 10, 2018 - link
Interestingbthatvwhile they include theciphones in a few benchmarks, they aren’t mentioned in the article even once.lucam - Thursday, August 9, 2018 - link
iPad Pro review anytime soon? Or You guys have given up on testing tablets?collegsd - Friday, July 5, 2019 - link
https://bit.ly/2Xt0XYc
https://bit.ly/32jw9bk
ados_cz - Friday, August 10, 2018 - link
I got new G6 week ago and was really disappointed with the jpeg processing and softness of the ultrawide angle module. Then someone noted that Google Pixel camera app was ported to other snapdragon devices and gets much better results. You can still see that it is not perfect if you pixel-peep, but I am in peace with it now when using the ported app.https://photos.app.goo.gl/d4K6LH4oazGmboBK6
abufrejoval - Saturday, August 11, 2018 - link
Must be quite a sight, seeing you walk around Luxemburg taking pictures with dozens of phones...Andrei Frumusanu - Saturday, August 11, 2018 - link
It's more of an issue of having enough pockets...chadhumm - Saturday, August 11, 2018 - link
One comment. I loved LG's but I had to return the LGG7 the worst phone Ive ever had in regards to reception. Makes all the bells and whistles worthless. This in many areas city and rural. Traded for the S9 it is much better but not as good as the Motorola z force that I was replacing. Too bad because I had good luck with the g2 and g3nikon133 - Sunday, August 12, 2018 - link
I'm reasonably happy with G7. Got it for my work phone as it is much cheaper than S9+ here in NZ... $1000 vs $1500.Camera is my only real disappointment - yes it does watercolor greenery. That said, I am a bit of a camera freak, and there is no camera phone that really satisfies me - whenever I plan to shoot, I will have at least RX100 on me, if not dSLR. This makes me dislike G7 camera even more - but, at the same time, it makes me not care much as well, since I usually don't depend on phone cameras. Down-sampled to ~2MP (1080p full screen), photos are usable. This is really where my phone cameras' expectations end, regardless of model.
Oddly, screen color hasn't really impacted me, albeit I have moved to this phone from Nexus 5X and Lumia 950 XL... both should have decent screens, if memory serves. Might be because I use phone under different light and ever-changing conditions are preventing me from really having an issue with screen accuracy. Screen readability is quite good, even under sun, and resolution is a pleasure. I am wearing glasses for distance and they don't work well up close, so I usually look at the phone screen over the glasses, and, in result, bring phone very close to my face... where resolution shows more than from "normal" reading distance.
Battery holds well in my scenario. Even at the begging when phone use was higher than average - downloading and trying apps, setting accounts, running initial updates etc., I was not draining more than 60% between morning and evening. Everyday use it is 30 - 40%. Basically I can do full 2 days, and with wireless chargers at my office desk and bedside, absolutely no problems here... that said, I don't play games on phone.
Overall? Happy, so far. I'm aware of compromises, but price difference more than justifies them, imho. I am also not a big fan of Samsung's curved screen - it does nook nice but it also does expose screen more, judging from my colleagues' experiences with S7 Edge and S8.
jvl - Sunday, August 12, 2018 - link
But...does it Loop Good®?!? Or will we have to wait until we find out?Great_Scott - Thursday, August 16, 2018 - link
What this review did better than anything else was convince me to get a OnePlus6. It has the best camera at mid/high light levels and the (very well done) LCD screen of the G7 is inefficient at the lowest light levels (which is where I set my phone the vast majority of the time). The smaller-sized battery isn't great either.collegsd - Friday, April 12, 2019 - link
https://bit.ly/2IpXaSM
https://bit.ly/2UyJJY6
amosbatto - Wednesday, August 22, 2018 - link
There is not a single smartphone on the market that I want to buy, because I want three features:3.5mm audio jack, dual front facing speakers and a removable battery.
19.5:9 screens and bezelless design offers nothing useful in my opinion.
I really hate being forced to buy a new phone, just because the battery no longer holds a decent charge after 500 discharge cycles. I really wish that tech reviewers would talk about how hard it is to replace the battery and how well the phone is designed to survive drops. I could care less about CPU benchmarks, compared to how long the phone will last.
eastcoast_pete - Friday, August 24, 2018 - link
Well, I am in your boat. Recently decided to go back to the future, bought a new-in-box V20 with warranty for about $ 250 with taxes, added a big ass replacement battery with (claimed) 6800 mAh (vs. the 3200 stock) for about $30, and - so far, so good. The phone is bulky, due to its necessary bigger replacement back, but I am Ok with that. Battery seems to be living up to its specs (6 weeks in), easily get 2 days of full use, despite Snapdragon 820 and bright screen setting. Wish many of the LG apps would be better or could be uninstalled or at least disabled, but the V20 seems to be as good as it gets if one wants a 16:9 screen, a removable battery, and decent phone performance. I suggest LG also goes "back to the future" and makes the next V phone (V40?) with a removable battery once again - there is a market there that Samsung is not serving.Ultraman1966 - Tuesday, September 18, 2018 - link
You can't use the biggest disappointment twice in the review when it lists two different things!!!al3xisss - Tuesday, October 2, 2018 - link
Do you know if they have pushed a software update to fix the display and camera calibration?Archipelago - Thursday, October 4, 2018 - link
Thanks for the great review. The wide angle camera is a critical feature for me. I have a V20 and a G6 and was hoping that the G7 would be my next phone, a phone with a better camera than the G6. I guess I will hold on to the G6. I too hope that LG will have a software fix for the camera problems, but I am dubious. LG seems to produce, sell and forget.joser0913 - Saturday, December 29, 2018 - link
I think this is a very fair review for the G7. I've had it for 1 week and almost all the reviews are accurate. I just want to mention one thing that I think should have been mentioned in the conclusions of the review. Is this phone better for audiophiles? That is a point of sale for some people and should have been directed properlyIn addition, he did not mention the DTS: X 3D Surround function, which can be enjoyed in some scenarios (movies and some games).
Hrel - Monday, January 28, 2019 - link
I can't believe you test Huawei but not Sony smartphones. Sony makes the best value smartphones period, review them.Sakisucc - Sunday, February 3, 2019 - link
The audio recordings from LG G7 Fit are total crap. There are lack of bass and mid frequencies. Same problem is in Video records. Too much only high trebles and noise, pair this with too aggressive noise reduction and you have just unusable sound.I must sell that phone is ASAP