The new flagship of the company LG was presented at the very end of April, so while I had very little time to get to know the device and use it. As usual, the review will be released after about two or three weeks of using the 'tube' as the main smartphone, but now I want to tell you about the points that I have already understood and appreciated in a week with LG G4.
I'll start with the most important thing – design and dimensions. The size of the G4 is very similar to last year's G3, yes, the new smartphone is slightly higher and a little wider, but the difference is barely noticeable and not felt, and to see it, you need to attach two smartphones to each other – then you can see it. I also hardly notice the bend of the case, so I can't say that this gives any advantages over 'flat' smartphones, but I don't see any drawbacks in this either. And if in LG they do not deceive about the higher resistance of the curved body to damage during a fall, then even more so – let it be bent, it does not interfere. The main thing is a genuine leather cover. Yes, the LG G4 does have a genuine leather lid option. I have a sample with a light brown lid, a very successful shade, close to orange. The device looks amazing from the back, it feels the same in the hands. The skin is pleasant to the touch, fingers do not slip, it is convenient to hold the smartphone even with a wet hand. The line in the middle looks quite appropriate, personally I have no associations with boots and other things, but I don't know, maybe someone will have them. For a week of use, the lid has not changed at all in appearance, but there are a couple of dents on it (they were right away), so I assume that with active use the skin will change, the only question is how much of a change it will be. The so-called natural aging of the skin when using wallets and bags usually makes it even more beautiful, as it will be here – I don’t know yet, I’ll tell you in the review what has changed.
The display is definitely better than it was in LG G3. The artificial sharpening (oversharp) has disappeared or has become weaker, due to which the fonts were with a characteristic moire, the color rendition is also closer to natural. Although, of course, I cannot say that I like the screen in the new LG G4 unconditionally, but using a smartphone with it is pleasant and I personally have no discomfort.
With the speed of work, everything is fine – there are no serious jams or delays in the operation of the shell, sometimes microlags occur, but personally I have such situations on almost all smartphones, exceptions – HTC One M8 and One M9. There is heating, but not too noticeable, the case does not get as hot as in the already mentioned One M9, for example.
The main camera is gorgeous – moreover, we are talking about everything: shooting speed, pleasant characteristic sound of shooting, an intuitive interface with the ability to choose one of three options – as simple as possible without elements, simple and manual mode with setting all important parameters. Focusing is accurate, the sharpness of the frames is excellent, the detail is also. There are some problems with the white balance, it is not always detected correctly and the strange post-processing of frames, noticeable in photographs taken in low light conditions, but these disadvantages fade against the background of the overall quality of the camera. If you wish, you can shoot in RAW, it is clear that nothing supernatural can be pulled out of this format in a smartphone, but at least you can immediately set the correct WB when viewing pictures on a PC.
The front camera has disappointed so far – the resolution is high, the shooting speed is good, and the shots in conditions other than 'bright sunny day' are far from being the best. Of course, I compare the shots with Huawei P8, where the front camera is great, but from the flagship LG I want at least the same level. However, here I will note that the camera in those samples that are in Russia (and for which reviews have already been released) is about 80% ready in terms of software. New firmware will be coming out soon, so both cameras should shoot better in the end. I plan to prepare a review already on the final release firmware.
The updated LG UX 4.0 based on Android 5.1 looks, let's say, something like LG G3. Everything seems to be fine: laconic colors, no variegation, a minimum of additional features besides the basic interface Android, but something is missing. It is convenient to use this interface, and for the opportunity to change each (!) Application icon to any other, the developers need to say special thanks, but there is no integrity here, as in Sense from HTC or Flyme from Meizu, for example. However, if you do not specifically look for shortcomings, then there is practically nothing to blame LG UX 4.0, except for one traditional and characteristic not only for smartphones LG 'features' – the unlock system.
There is one problem with unlocking a smartphone from a locked state. When you just need to unlock the screen – just swipe your finger from anywhere to any direction – a beautiful animation takes place and you are on the main screen. But if there are notification cards on the lock screen, then everything is done very inconveniently. In an amicable way, in Android 5.0, the transition from the notification card on the lock screen to the notification itself is simple – you touch the card twice and it throws you to the application, that is, the unlocking process takes place with just these two tapes. In LG G4, this is implemented differently – you double-tap the notification card on the lock screen, then throw it to the blank lock screen, where you need to swipe, and only then the screen is unlocked. The system is absolutely clumsy, it was in LG G3 and is in a bunch of other devices from major manufacturers, and it's a pity that it is not fixed in any way in LG or Samsung.
Despite a number of drawbacks and the still general dampness of the smartphone software, I really like LG G4 – the company did a competent job on the mistakes made when creating LG G3, and was in no hurry to go anywhere . There is no top-end 810 chipset here, but the heating is moderate, there is no 20 Mp camera module, but 16 Mp is already made for a solid four, and with the release of new firmware, the camera LG G4 will certainly become one of the best among all smartphones on market. And, moreover, LG immediately took care of releasing the device with a fresh Android 5.1 on board. It remains to wait for the exact information on the price and it will be possible to draw final conclusions in the review.
