LG V50 ThinQ 5G Dual Screen review

Dual Screen: The case

The LG V50 was the first smartphone to introduce the Dual Screen accessory and quite expectedly - it is rough around the edges.

The accessory is powered through the pogo pins at the back of the V50 and doesn't tap into the USB-C port - as was the case on the G8X. But that's probably the only advantage over the G8X's Dual Screen expansion.

The case has an all-glass front, dark gray or black - depending on available light. It is incredibly prone to fingerprints, but there probably is some sort of an oleophobic coating as it is effortless to clean.

Unfortunately, there is no cover screen as on the G8X's. Instead, the only event notifier you get is a tiny while LED light around the thin hole at the top for letting on the sound from the earpiece during calls.

Then the actual second screen is yet again inferior to what we saw on the G8X. The Dual Screen case for the LG V50 has a notch-free 6.2" OLED screen of 1,080 x 2,160 pixels - meaning it is not a match to the V50's primary screen in any way - not in size, or resolution, or aspect ratio.

So, the V50 goes into the case, and the first thing you will see is that the V50 will lower the primary screen resolution to 1080p to match the secondary one. The add-on has no battery of its own and draws power from the phone, so this may be a good thing anyway.

The back of the DS case revels half of the V50 back, while the other half is covered by a plastic piece with matt finish.

The two hinges click nicely, and you can rotate the screen at whatever angle you like. Yes, it can go all the way to the back of the phone.

The accessory makes the V50 bulky, sure. With the case attached, the ensemble measures 161.4 x 83.4 x 15.5 mm in its closed state. The extra 131 grams add up to a total of 304g which does make a pretty good case for leaving the DualScreen at home, when not using it.

Indeed, this dual-screen case was not meant for non-stop use. It sure is great for gaming (onscreen controls outside the main screen), multi-tasking, watching movies and texting, and various other use cases. But for the most part - the phone will do just fine without it.

And that's what we love about this case - you put it on when you need it, and you slide the phone out of it when you don't.

Dual Screen: How it works

LG V50 ThinQ Dual Screen accessory is quite easy to use - put the phone in, and you are good to go. The second (left) screen is turned off by default the first time, but once you are in the case, you will notice a small and floating dual-screen button on your main screen. This is your controller for the entire Dual Screen behavior, and this is where you switch the screens on and off.

The second screen has an app drawer, and from there, you can populate it with app shortcuts. Widgets are supported, too. There is also a shortcut for the Dual Screen settings - here you can adjust brightness, set wallpapers, enable or disable the DS floating key, you can even set an app that will open anytime you attach the DS case.

So, what this screen can do? Multi-tasking is its primary function. You can open any app on either screen and work with two apps simultaneously - it can be a messenger and video, a doc editor and web browser, navigation, and travel guide, you get the possibilities.

Turn the second screen on • Floating controls • Second homescreen • App Drawer

There is also the so-called Wide view, which extends an app on both screens. It's not pretty as there is more than 15mm distance between the two screens, and then the rounded edges make things even worse. But if you want a web page, a document, or even a video to use the whole screen estate - you can very much get that.

You can also swap apps between screens with a single tap from the floating key.

Dual Screen options

Another thing you can use the second screen for is as a gamepad. LG has designed a proprietary onscreen game controller, and it has everything on it - D-Pad, two O-pads, triggers, 4 action buttons. Android OS recognizes it as a connected Bluetooth hardware controller, which expands its compatibility a lot. If a game supports any Bluetooth gamepad, it can work with the second screen.

We tried this, and it works just as advertised - easy, hassle-free, and it helps improve the gaming experience by a mile. It's not a physical gamepad, obviously, but it's the next best thing. You don't even need to map anything, the game will tell you which keys are for what, and then if you don't like the arrangement, you can opt for different (if the game allows it, that is).

While using the gamepad, you will see a floating button for rotating the pad or turning it off. You can also choose the type of controller from here - console, racing, arcade, basic, or you can even design one of your own - depending on the keys you need!

The LG gamepad

So, the second screen comes in handy in quite a few use cases and some people will appreciate it. It adds some extra weight and makes the phone bulky, yes, but since you can put the DS case on and off anytime you want, we'd recommend buying the V50 Dual Screen bundle rather than the vanilla package. It is not as great as the G8X's DS, but it is at least equally useful.