LG V30 review: All screen

LG V30 unboxing

The LG V30 comes in a box that's much larger than that of the G6 - even too much so given the marginal difference in size between the two phones, perhaps to evoke a phablet impression. Inside, you'll find the same things that came with the G6. There's a QC 3.0 charger and a USB cable, plus a couple of adapters - a male Type-C to female Type-A for USB OTG applications and a male Type-C to female micro-B so you can reuse old microUSB's.

Box contents • B&O headphones

Our review unit bundle also includes a B&O headset, but we're not entirely sure if that will ship with all V30s everywhere.

LG V30 360-degree spin

The LG V30 measures 151.7 x 75.4 x 7.4mm which makes it smaller than the V20 in every direction: it's 8mm shorter, 2.7mm narrower, and 0.2mm thinner. It's not all that much larger than a G6 either, just 2.8mm taller and 3.5mm wider and actually half a mil thinner. On top of that, the V30 is practically a featherweight - its 158g are 5 less than a G6, despite packing a bigger display and the same battery capacity.

The Galaxy S8, the small one, is 3g lighter, so there's that. It's also a little more compact - some 2.8mm shorter, but the 7.3mm difference in width is what you'll notice for sure. Then again, the S8 should supposedly compete with the G6 while the V30 is in S8+ territory where the LG handset is again the more compact one. Even more so against the Note8. Not to mention that the S-Pen wielding Samsung phablet is a massive 37g heavier. The S8+ is a more manageable 173g, still 15 more than the V30. Impressive stuff, LG.

Hardware overview

We have here for review the LG Galaxy V30 tucked right in between the S8 and S8+. Okay, that might be too harsh on the LG designers, but if you have the three face-up on a table, you could mistake them for members of the same family.

The flat edges of the display that LG lauded as infinitely superior in terms of handling on the G6 are gone and the V30 is nicely rounded to the sides. It's just the glass though, the display underneath is still flat as the curvature starts where the screen ends. And while Samsung's dual-curved bodies have been getting less curvy and easier to handle, this V30 may be just slightly superior in this respect.

Samsung Galaxy Note8 vs. Samsung Galaxy S8+ vs. LG V30 vs. LG G6

There's Gorilla Glass 5 covering the P-OLED display, so you should expect the same level of scratch protection as most other current high-end phones.

There is no pressure sensitive area at the bottom of the display that acts as a home button - it's not, after all, a Samsung. Samsung's solution is more of an interim one until under-display fingerprint recognition becomes commercially available.

FullVision 6-inch display

LG, on the other hand, has a perfectly good thing going with the power button on the back that houses a fingerprint reader and is in a sensible location smack in the middle. We're no fans of the S8/Note8's fingerprint reader placement, if that's not been abundantly clear. And some of us actually insist that the back is the better location for the sensor instead of the front. It's an ongoing debate.

Anyway, above the sensor is the dual camera within a very discrete module that sticks out only so much. It's symmetrical though, so those that have a habit of complaining about wobbling phones shouldn't bother. Additionally, LG's choice to have the camera module match the body color makes for a much more stylish look than black on blue, for example.

Rear panel in Moroccan blue • Camera module • A small bump

There is some black though, even on our gorgeous Moroccan blue review unit. To the right of the cameras is the flash, a single LED unit, and the laser autofocus emitter/receiver assembly. Laser autofocus makes a comeback on the V30, after being absent from the G6.

Then again, if we had to name just one eyesore, it would probably be the B&O logo that's more prominent than LG's own. Alternatively, you might appreciate being able to flaunt your quad DAC and we wouldn't judge you for that.

The back panel itself is covered in Gorilla Glass 5 too, so should be reasonably safe from scratches. One thing we've been noticing with dual glass phones is that their backs tend to get more easily scratched than the displays. Perhaps it's because we probably keep our phones lying on their backs more often than face down, but it's just something worth keeping in mind if you want your V30 looking its best for as long as it can.

Oh, yes, the back panel is non-removable, as is the battery. Previous Vs had that feature, which is headed to extinction, but this one trades it off for an IP68 rating - seems like a reasonable deal. The V30 has also passed 14 of the 25 tests in the MIL-STD-810 standard, though which ones exactly and what that means for everyday durability is unclear.

One minor niggle we have with the V30 is that the joint between the back panel and the aluminum frame doesn't feel as seamless as it could be.

There's even a headphone jack, what's not to like about that? It's on top of the phone, some folks think it should be on the bottom, we're just happy there is one. Another thing you'll find at the top is a secondary mic.

The primary one is on the bottom, of course - people used to call that 'mouthpiece'. The USB-C port is here too, as is the single loudspeaker.

3.5mm jack and secondary mic on top • USB-C, primary mic, and loudspeaker on the bottom

The volume controls are on the left, two separate buttons instead of a rocker. The card tray is on the right side and takes a nano SIM and microSD. Presumably, the dual SIM version would have a hybrid slot for the second SIM/microSD.

Left side • Volume buttons • Right side • Card tray

In the hand, the V30 feels surprisingly light. Coming off of a Galaxy S8+/iPhone 7 Plus as a daily driver, people at the office reported a tangible difference. Yes, it's there in the numbers, but it's also easy to feel.

In the hand