LG G5 review: Evening the odds

22 March, 2016
Someone at LG must have thought: “Leather is so last-year, let’s do something nobody has done – or long quit trying.” And here we have the LG G5. It has the looks of a brand new flagship, the heart of a dragon and an adventurous dual camera setup suited for every occasion. But there’s more than meets the eye, the Magic Slot. The LG G5 is a modular smartphone, which lets you plug a handful of external add-ons: a semi-pro camera grip with shutter buttons and a bigger battery, or an external sound amplifier by B&O.

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  • d
  • dasman
  • Yc3
  • 27 Mar 2016

Do you have always on enabled? Are you using memory hungry apps like the junk Facebook? (Metal Pro is waaay better) Have you tried dsiabling touchwiz apps

    • ?
    • Anonymous
    • krW
    • 27 Mar 2016

    mir, 27 Mar 2016Maybe they had trouble on focusing during 60fps. Might add ... moreGood point. Better to wait then to send it out buggy. Hopefully soon.
    Regardless of what anyone says this is still pre production.

      • ?
      • Anonymous
      • krW
      • 27 Mar 2016

      Anonymous, 27 Mar 2016So Always On Display uses less power on the G5 than on the ... moreActually since around the S5 or Note 4 due to samsung panel efficiency they have done comparable or better than most lcds in browsing.
      At 5.7 inch QHD and higher brightness the Note 4 had a better browsing score than most phones even with 5 inch less bright 1080p displays.

      It was up to 40% more efficient overall.

        • m
        • mir
        • t7E
        • 27 Mar 2016

        GTRagnarok, 27 Mar 2016No 1080p 60fps...WTF. It's 2016. My 2014 Note 4 has that. C... moreMaybe they had trouble on focusing during 60fps. Might add it in a future update.

          • ?
          • Anonymous
          • nYK
          • 27 Mar 2016

          So Always On Display uses less power on the G5 than on the S7, funny.

          What I don't understand is why since the G3 the battery life sucks in the browser, it's very good in video and calls but not in browsing, LG uses LCD panels and tose use on every other phone less power in the browser compared to AMOLED, EXCEPT on the LG G series, it is strange even AMOLED scores better vs browsing time on LG G series...

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • XjE
            • 27 Mar 2016

            GTRagnarok, 27 Mar 2016No 1080p 60fps...WTF. It's 2016. My 2014 Note 4 has that. C... moreWould you intend to buy their phones?

              • D
              • AnonD-458606
              • X{x
              • 27 Mar 2016

              AnonD-518666, 27 Mar 2016What is the ram of the phone??4 GB

                • D
                • AnonD-518666
                • uwq
                • 27 Mar 2016

                What is the ram of the phone??

                  No 1080p 60fps...WTF. It's 2016. My 2014 Note 4 has that. Come on LG.

                    • ?
                    • Anonymous
                    • 7FC
                    • 27 Mar 2016

                    Anonymous, 27 Mar 2016Who says the S7 is the better choice for most people? You? ... moreWell objectively it is more ahead

                      • ?
                      • Anonymous
                      • 7FC
                      • 27 Mar 2016

                      Aspros, 27 Mar 201660hours?? OmG FAIL!! They never learn, people loved LG for... moreAgreex. However is not a stretch to think that there will be improvements in the final release and tests of the final release units

                        • ?
                        • Anonymous
                        • 7FC
                        • 27 Mar 2016

                        Anonymous, 26 Mar 2016I didn't mix up anything. It's just that you have poor read... moreAgain you are doing it. That's cute.

                          • T
                          • Thoughts
                          • v0q
                          • 27 Mar 2016

                          Feels like Nokia 808 pureview sans camera bump.

                            • ?
                            • Anonymous
                            • XjZ
                            • 27 Mar 2016

                            AnonD-442781, 26 Mar 2016The s7 has micro SD support. And anyway, the s7 is the b... moreNote 4 is better than s7.

                              • M
                              • Mooza
                              • RNK
                              • 27 Mar 2016

                              I see a lot of people comparing these phones and deciding that one is significantly better than the other. Not sure how you could think that, the S7 and G5 are pretty much even overall, with the minor differences coming down to personal preference.

                              The one thing that I don't see much in these comments though is a mention of Samsung's horrible android update history.

                                60hours?? OmG FAIL!!
                                They never learn, people loved LG for the G2 small bezels and outstanding battery and now they make them biggerr and biggerr with smaller and smaller batteries, thanks but not thank, if i wanted big bezels and small batteries, i would get an iphone.
                                LG have lost their way...

                                  • D
                                  • AnonD-519213
                                  • xG9
                                  • 27 Mar 2016

                                  I thought phones were supposed to get better with each successive generation? This phone somehow has a worse battery life than the G3. Yeah, this phone has a great processor and 4gb of RAM, but what good is it if I have to plug in my phone half way through the day or carry around an extra battery all the time? Which is what I already have to do with my G3, and it has an endurance rating that is higher than this phone! I keep waiting for LG to make a phone as awesome as the G2 again, but they keep going down the road of trying to be different and unique rather than better.

                                    • D
                                    • AnonD-442781
                                    • pJc
                                    • 27 Mar 2016

                                    Anonymous, 27 Mar 2016Who says the S7 is the better choice for most people? You? ... moreUSB type c is hardly a benefit when nobody uses it. Everyone knows very few people make use of removable battery, after all it was an android staple for several years and most people would never change it out for a fresh one anyway. Many people with ir blaster don't even know that they have it, radio is also another niche feature.

                                    All of those are things that hardly anyone uses, close to being called a gimmick (especially radio), to claim otherwise is laughable. The g5 doesn't have anything that the s7 doesn't that the average person would care about.

                                    Better display, camera, design, and battery life on the other hand are things you can experience all the time and are things the average person cares more about. It even has better ergonomics with a curved back and less bezels, making it feel slimmer and smaller in the hand.

                                    You want a gimmick phone? Get the g5. Otherwise get the s7.

                                      • ?
                                      • Anonymous
                                      • q5D
                                      • 27 Mar 2016

                                      AnonD-442781, 26 Mar 2016The s7 has micro SD support. And anyway, the s7 is the b... moreWho says the S7 is the better choice for most people? You? People on here and other sites? Of course. Think of the fanbase Samsung has compared to LG. These phones could be reversed and majority would still choose Samsung.

                                      Removable battery, fm radio, IR blaster, USB type-C. Those are things that the G5 has, that the S7 doesn't. It's not like the G5 only has 1 pro over the S7. Obviously I could do the same with the S7 over the G5 too, but i'm just trying to make a point.

                                        • D
                                        • AnonD-442781
                                        • pJc
                                        • 26 Mar 2016

                                        Anonymous, 26 Mar 2016Talk about a bunch of losers on here arguing about phones. ... moreThe s7 has micro SD support.

                                        And anyway, the s7 is the better choice for most people. The very few who absolutely depend on the few features the g5 has like removable battery are the only people who should be choosing that phone. However some lg fans act like the g5 is the better phone for the average person and refuse to recognise the g5 is only good for a very small niche in the market.

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