LG V30 review: All screen

Telephony

The LG V30 will be available in both single-SIM and dual-SIM versions, only not in all markets. Ours is the single-SIM one.

Nougat offers native number blocking and call screening. You can block numbers based on their initial or final digits or just specific numbers. Third-party apps can ask Android which numbers are blocked, so apps that use them to identify users (like WhatsApp and Viber) can also reject calls and messages from those numbers.

Dialer • ...with smart dial, of course • Contacts • Contacts settings • Blocking calls

Loudspeaker

After subjecting the V30 to our three-pronged loudspeaker test, we're pleased to report that it scored a 'Very good' rating. It's an improvement over both the G6 and the V20 and is also as loud or louder than most competitors.

Text input

The LG custom keyboard that is found on the V30 and other recent phones by the company offers extensive customizations. You can change its size, hide/show the number row, add/remove some buttons and more.

The keyboard • Settings • Customizing the keys • Emoji

In landscape you get two possible layouts - either spread across the whole width of the screen, or condensed in the middle. The third, and most logical split option is a separate setting that needs to be enabled. Once you do, swiping out from the center of the display with both thumbs brings the keys closer to the edges.

Portrait keyboard: Largest setting • Smallest setting • Landscape keyboard

Other apps

The V30 'only' has two mics, as opposed to the V20's three, but two are enough for the HD Audio Recorder app. It adjusts the source mic depending on orientation, so when you hold it in portrait it's the top one only, while in landscape both mics work.

Concert mode optimizes the mics' response for extremely loud environments, while in Studio mode you can record voice over an audio file (say, a vocal track for your new song) and you can use headphones to monitor the sound.

The quality is top notch - uncompressed WAV and compressed FLAC are available at up to 24-bit and 192kHz. Going to Custom gives you manual control over Gain, Low cut filter (75Hz/150Hz) and Limiter (prevents clipping of low-frequency sounds).

HD Audio recorder: Normal mode • Concert • Custom mode • Settings

LG's backup app is now part of LG Mobile Switch. It has two main functions - backup and transfer. Using the latter, you can copy most data off your old phone onto the V30, simplifying the upgrade process. Backups store personal data and settings, data from the internal storage and downloaded apps. There's no cloud backup solution, though - you have to manually upload the backup file to your cloud storage provider of choice.

LG Mobile Switch

Smart cleaning is now Smart Doctor, but its functionality is the same - it takes care of your storage, RAM, and battery. It can free up both RAM and internal storage. It also serves as a portal to Android's battery saving features. Diagnose goes a bit further and will look for issues with apps, network connectivity, storage and battery and point you to the right section of the online Help documents. You can also do a sensor checkup right from the UI - there's no need for dialing specific codes to get into a service menu.

A quick glance at your phone's health • RAM * Storage * Optimization in progress • Sensor check-up

LG has come up with its own implementation of Game tools. Much like Samsung's identically named utility, LG's app lets you select resolution and put a cap on frame rates on a per-game basis. There's also a break mode, which puts a pause on your game an lowers brightness until you're ready to go back to playing.

Game tools