The LG V30 is aimed at users who love shooting a lot of videos on their phones. Here’s what the previews say.
As expected, LG today took the wraps off the V30 and V30+ at the ongoing IFA 2017 in Berlin. The smartphone is in line with various leaks we’ve come across in the run up to the event today. With some publications having spent sometime with the new smartphones, here is a roundup of their first impressions.
When it comes to the design, there is no denying that the LG V30 is premium. It seems to have retained the best elements from the LG G6, and also seems to have taken some inspiration from the Samsung Galaxy S8 series. ZDNet’s Matthew Miller writes, “The LG V30 has all of the buttons and openings in nearly the same places as the LG G6, but it is wider, taller, and a bit thinner. The silver sample I am testing has less blue tint than the silver G6, but still looks great.” “The edges appear to be more similar to the Samsung Galaxy S8 than the G6,” he adds.
The V30’s display is among its highlights, and many seem impressed with the use of ultra-slim bezels. The Next Web’s Napier Lopez writes, “The V30 has one of my favorite takes on small bezels so far. The top and bottom bezels are even smaller than on the G6, S8, or Note 8 – let alone any other devices.” As for the OLED display itself he writes, “It gets a little brighter than the S8’s screen, and it seems more accurate using default settings, though some might prefer Samsung’s punchier colors.”
The smartphone’s USP though is the camera. LG had already teased the dual-camera setup as well as the f/1.6 aperture. The setup includes a 16-megapixel snapper combined with a 13-megapixel wide-angle snapper. Besides the large aperture, the camera also comes with support for OIS, EIS, and Hybrid Auto Focus with Laser Detection Auto Focus and Phase Detection Auto Focus.
LG is billing this device as one developed with creators in mind. There is a feature called Cine Video that can add color grading presets and perform jitter-free zoom with Point Zoom. While it is too early to comment on how good the camera really is, early impressions are positive. Phandroid’s Joe Fedewa writes, “The cameras still look great and the wide-angle lens is still really handy. LG’s cameras are very underrated in the Android world. The V30 looks like it could be as good as anything else out there.”
Under the hood is Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 835 SoC, so performance isn’t really an issue. The device comes with 4GB of RAM, and 64GB internal storage. The V30+ variant, on the other hand, comes with 128GB internal storage. There is also support for expanding the internal memory using a microSD card.
Summing up the first impressions, Engadget’s Chris Velazco writes, “After years of being underwhelmed by LG phones, it feels very strange to like one this much…” He adds, “Sure, LG made some compromises, and I can imagine some long-time V-series fans not being pleased with the company’s shift in strategy and design. That’s fair, but I can’t get too upset: In the process, LG has managed to build what certainly feels like its best phone in ages.”