LG V30
The V30 is in a similar position. Occupying the flagship large-screen phone position in LG’s line-up, the V30 is packed with interesting features, top-end hardware and enough good stuff to match this year’s competitors. But it’s once again up against some massive new devices, particularly the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 and Google Pixel 2 XL, leaving LG with an uphill battle to ensure the V30 remains in the conversation.
But now there's the LG V30. As the name suggests, it's a direct successor to last year's V20 — the product of a very different LG, which was all about removable batteries and a chunky metal chassis. So the svelte, compact V30 is as much a successor to the G6 as any other LG phone, and it continues the no-nonsense approach of that device, while also bringing the upgrades we expect from a V-series handset: high-quality audio, great cameras, and unique new video features.
For the LG V30, that means a display that measures 6-inches on the diagonal, yet a body width that's only about that of a 5.3-inch device. Reducing the front bezels top and bottom and shifting away as much of the clutter to maximise display space dominated the LG G6 design, an act repeated on the LG V30.
The V30 feels more accomplished than the LG G6 ever did. The metal core of this phone creates the edges, while the Gorilla Glass 5 front and back curve neatly to meet those edges. It's smooth, it's sleek, it's very refined. It also comes in smaller than the Pixel 2 XL and the HTC U11+ - two newer 18:9 phones that don't manage to pack so much into a small package. So from a design point of view, all credit to LG.
Coming in four colours - Aurora Black, Moroccan Blue, Cloud Silver, Lavender Violet - it's the silver we have in hand for this review (although it's a Korean-sourced model rather than UK) and it looks great. There's a depth to that rear colouration, it's not a flat silver like the metal phones of 2016, thanks to the use of glass. This being a glass phone, however, you'll probably want to look at a cover - we've already managed to smash one LG V30 (and, separately, a Huawei Mate 10 Pro, cue sad face), as is the unavoidable peril of glass phones.
The screen is now a 6.0-inch POLED display with 18:9 aspect ratio and a resolution of 2880 x 1440 or QHD+. LG calls the display a “Full Vision” display, a buzzword for a screen that practically goes edge to edge. By no means is the LG V30 a one-handed phone, but thanks to the aspect ratio and minimal bezels, it feels far more manageable than other 6-inch phones like the Nexus 6 or 6P.
The large size is perfect for web browsing, checking social media, playing games, watching YouTube, or streaming Netflix, or whatever else you can throw at it. The V30’s display is just an absolute joy to use. There are still some apps out there which aren’t optimized for 18:9 though, so you will still experience letter- or pillar-boxing with videos or certain games, but I don’t find it to be that bothersome. 18:9 is still relatively new but it’s only a matter of time before developers catch up to the new standard.
LG smartphones have a strong pedigree when it comes to camera performance, and the V30 is yet another LG phone that's defined by its photographic chops. The headline spec is a 16-megapixel main camera with optical image stabilization (OIS), behind an f/1.6 lens a first in a smartphone camera. The secondary wide-angle shooter has a 13-megapixel sensor, like the G6, only now behind a brighter f/1.9 lens. And that makes for a powerful photographic duo, building on the strengths of the G6 and V20.
There's a mess of shooting modes to explore, as is often the case with the best smartphone cameras, though most of the time you'll just want to stick to full auto. If you want to play around with creative photo modes, the Manual shooting mode has been updated to include Graphy, a new app with downloadable ISO, shutter speed and white balance presets for different kinds of shots.
As good as the V30's main camera is and it is really good the biggest improvement might actually be in the wide-angle camera. It still captures a 120-degree field of view, only now with less distortion around the edges, and with significantly improved low-light performance thanks to the brighter lens, on top of the improved post-processing afforded by the Snapdragon 835.
Of course, you'll still get better night shots out of the main camera, but it really surprised me how usable the wide-angle was even in relatively dimly-lit indoor conditions. And that's a meaningful upgrade, because wide-angle photography is by far the most fun thing about using an LG phone. Say what you want about portrait mode and fake depth-of-field — for my money, there's no substitute for being able to simply press a button and instantly capture these wider, more dramatic scenes.
As for the selfie camera, the V30 does a serviceable job, with a 5-megapixel front-facer, but the end results aren't anything special. The camera app presents you with two options — a wide-angle view, or a closer crop, which is literally digitally zoomed section of that 5-megapixel sensor. As such, there's not much room for additional fidelity in brighter situations, which is a point of weakness compared to phones like the OnePlus 5 and HTC U11, which boast 16-megapixel selfie cameras.
It's always been implied that the "V" in LG's V series stands for "video," and so it's no surprise to see a bevy of extra videographic capabilities in the new phone. The new LG Cine Log mode takes inspiration from techniques used by professional filmmakers. It lets you capture footage that, on the surface, might appear more washed-out than regular video shot in Auto mode, but it's captured a way that lets you bring out more shadow or highlight detail when you process it later. There's also an array of presets in Cine Log mode that lets you give your footage a particular kind of look — like warm tones for an action movie, cooler hues for a more romantic look, or sepia tones for an old-timey vibe. These are more than just Instagram-style filters, they actually change the way the color is processed, and that can dramatically change the look of your footage
we love the idea of this. But we think it runs up against the main problem faced by high-end photo features, like RAW capture, on smartphones. In order to support these high-end manual capabilities, you need a great camera to begin with. But a great camera is often so good in auto mode that there's no real incentive to explore these more exotic shooting modes.
Personally, we've found the new cinematic mode more useful for its point zoom feature, which lets you smoothly zoom into any point in the frame, without the jarring motion you normally get from digital zoom in video. It's still digital zoom, so you'll run into a resolution wall eventually, but on a 16-megapixel shooter there's plenty of fidelity to go around, particularly in daylight scenes.
What the V30 lacks in display performance, it makes up for in actual performance. Inside of the V30, LG has opted to check just about every box required to stand up against the latest and greatest competition.
Like some rivals, the screen can provide information without being fully switch on such as the time, date and battery level. You can also scroll through options for things like music control quick settings.
The Floating Bar is used when you’re using the phone and can be moved around like a Facebook Messenger Chat Head. Tap on it and you can access the apps you want as well as other functions. We’re not sure how much we’d use this just yet.
LG has provided various security options so you don’t have to use the fingerprint scanner if you don’t want. You can also unlock the phone with your face, the old school Knock Code or even your voice.
The Google Assistant is built-in, it supports Google Daydream and there are loads of features hidden in the settings menu that you might not know exist unless you go digging. For example you can switch on a Mini view that allows you to run apps in a smaller size if the 6in display is too big.
For the past few generations of devices, LG has been looking to improve the quality of the audio performance. It's a common theme across smartphones and in the V30 it has resulted in a pairing with B&O. Well, on some devices.
The bundled headphones are good quality, offering a nice crisp bass punch and coming with a fancy braided cord, rather then plain plastic wire, so are definitely better than your average bundled headphones. The presence of a 3.5mm headphone socket will keep many happy as this gives plenty of freedom to connect whichever headphones you want, although Samsung offers the same.
But it's really the presence of the Quad DAC (digital-to-analogue converter) that LG is making a lot of noise about - because it means access to Hi-Res Audio file formats up to higher sampling rates and frequency ranges than you'd ever get from a basic phone lobbing out MP3.
That might sound great on paper, but it's a slightly strange position. The DAC is off by default, so when you connect your headphones you'll have to seek it out and turn that option on. Without the DAC enabled, the phone sounds thin and lifeless. So why not just have it on all the time?
There are some tuning options that come with it too. We actually didn't change anything because we think it has a nice balanced tonality when combined with a good pair of headphones (by good, we mean headphones that have a suitable sound profile for your ears). There are some sound presets, which we think all sound a little odd, apart from "normal", and there's a digital filter option which can also bring some slight changes to your preference.
As you might have suspected from the design, the V30 has sealed in the battery – a necessary, but nevertheless slightly unfortunate move to ensure that waterproofing works. Either way, we’ve been delighted by the 3,300mAh battery in the non-final unit. Ringing in at the same size as the cell found with the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, all-day battery life is an easy goal for this phone to meet.
When we watched a 90-minute movie file in 1080p, the V30 remarkably only dropped down to 87% once it was finished. Most phones drop down at least 20% during this test, so we’re pleased with this discovery.
When it comes to recharging the phone, we’re pleased to say that the final retail unit lives up to the numbers that we got with the pre-production unit. From 0%, it can raise up to 30% in 15 minutes, up to 67% after a half hour, and 100% in just under two hours. The final 20% is always the slowest, but for most, an hour of charging will easily get them through the day.
Sitting next to each of this year’s exciting flagships, the V30 holds its own thanks to a dollop of power, expandable storage, Daydream support and a capable camera that’s loaded with things to do. The price is tipped to be reasonable too so we can't really find fault.
A Great Big Phone
LG’s smartphone division is in an interesting position right now. They are continuing to produce decent handsets with innovative additions each year, yet the company can’t get much traction in the market in the face of strong competition from other brands. The G6 was LG’s best phone design in years, launching as one of the first with a small-bezel display, but sales have not rocketed as expected.
The V30 is in a similar position. Occupying the flagship large-screen phone position in LG’s line-up, the V30 is packed with interesting features, top-end hardware and enough good stuff to match this year’s competitors. But it’s once again up against some massive new devices, particularly the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 and Google Pixel 2 XL, leaving LG with an uphill battle to ensure the V30 remains in the conversation.
But now there's the LG V30. As the name suggests, it's a direct successor to last year's V20 — the product of a very different LG, which was all about removable batteries and a chunky metal chassis. So the svelte, compact V30 is as much a successor to the G6 as any other LG phone, and it continues the no-nonsense approach of that device, while also bringing the upgrades we expect from a V-series handset: high-quality audio, great cameras, and unique new video features.
LG V30 Design
Both LG and Samsung made a major shift in smartphone design in 2017 by adopting a different screen aspect ratio. The advantage of this move is in allowing lots of screen space without the phone getting too wide in the hand. It has kickstarted a trend that's reached beyond these two companies and all the way to Apple, in the iPhone X.
For the LG V30, that means a display that measures 6-inches on the diagonal, yet a body width that's only about that of a 5.3-inch device. Reducing the front bezels top and bottom and shifting away as much of the clutter to maximise display space dominated the LG G6 design, an act repeated on the LG V30.
The V30 feels more accomplished than the LG G6 ever did. The metal core of this phone creates the edges, while the Gorilla Glass 5 front and back curve neatly to meet those edges. It's smooth, it's sleek, it's very refined. It also comes in smaller than the Pixel 2 XL and the HTC U11+ - two newer 18:9 phones that don't manage to pack so much into a small package. So from a design point of view, all credit to LG.
Coming in four colours - Aurora Black, Moroccan Blue, Cloud Silver, Lavender Violet - it's the silver we have in hand for this review (although it's a Korean-sourced model rather than UK) and it looks great. There's a depth to that rear colouration, it's not a flat silver like the metal phones of 2016, thanks to the use of glass. This being a glass phone, however, you'll probably want to look at a cover - we've already managed to smash one LG V30 (and, separately, a Huawei Mate 10 Pro, cue sad face), as is the unavoidable peril of glass phones.
We really like the placement of the fingerprint sensor. Like many Huawei and Honor phones, or even the 2016 Pixel devices, the fingerprint scanner sits on the rear. Unlike Samsung's phones, it's easy to hit and distinct, also incorporating the power button, so it will depress slightly.
That leaves the sides of the phone, where the volume buttons are housed on one side and the SIM/microSD card tray on the other. Everything looks ordered and neat - an accomplished design that somehow fits the size of the device better than it did in the smaller G6 format. We'd happily say that we think this is LG's best designed phone in a long time, with big screen appeal.
That leaves the sides of the phone, where the volume buttons are housed on one side and the SIM/microSD card tray on the other. Everything looks ordered and neat - an accomplished design that somehow fits the size of the device better than it did in the smaller G6 format. We'd happily say that we think this is LG's best designed phone in a long time, with big screen appeal.
One of the things that might pull the V30 down a little is its weight. This is very much a perception thing, but this phone feels incredibly light compared to other rivals. There's great heft in the iPhone X or Galaxy Note 8, which leaves the V30 feeling a little lesser. Some might see that as an advantage, some might think it feels cheap as a result.
LG V30 Display
Another drastic change that LG made to the V30 this year is with the display. Not only has LG switched up the display technology but the once signature secondary screen is now gone. It lives on in the form of a software feature, but we’ll talk about that later.
LG’s switch back to OLED is certainly a welcome change and something for which many, including myself, have been waiting for a long time. The display itself is gorgeous in every way imaginable. It’s easily LG’s best smartphone display to date and is one that can even give Samsung a run for its money. The colors are vibrant, the blacks are truly black thanks the OLED panel and it has fantastic contrast, too. Outside visibility is also quite good as it gets so bright that even under harsh sunlight the screen is still easy to read.
LG V30 Camera
Despite having small, 1-micron pixels, the V30's main camera takes phenomenal photos. The high resolution and bright lens, plus OIS, can capture sharp, clear photos even in low light, with fidelity and sharpness to match the Galaxy S8. One quirk I've noticed in this early firmware is that the V30 tends towards underexposing night shots in some situations, so occasionally I've had to manually bump the exposure up a little. Nevertheless, with a little adjustment, the V30 is neck-and-neck with the best phone cameras available.
Mercifully, LG has also pared back the gratuitous oversharpening seen in the G6 and many earlier cameras, which means more fine detail is preserved with fewer artifacts.
Mercifully, LG has also pared back the gratuitous oversharpening seen in the G6 and many earlier cameras, which means more fine detail is preserved with fewer artifacts.
As good as the V30's main camera is and it is really good the biggest improvement might actually be in the wide-angle camera. It still captures a 120-degree field of view, only now with less distortion around the edges, and with significantly improved low-light performance thanks to the brighter lens, on top of the improved post-processing afforded by the Snapdragon 835.
Of course, you'll still get better night shots out of the main camera, but it really surprised me how usable the wide-angle was even in relatively dimly-lit indoor conditions. And that's a meaningful upgrade, because wide-angle photography is by far the most fun thing about using an LG phone. Say what you want about portrait mode and fake depth-of-field — for my money, there's no substitute for being able to simply press a button and instantly capture these wider, more dramatic scenes.
It's always been implied that the "V" in LG's V series stands for "video," and so it's no surprise to see a bevy of extra videographic capabilities in the new phone. The new LG Cine Log mode takes inspiration from techniques used by professional filmmakers. It lets you capture footage that, on the surface, might appear more washed-out than regular video shot in Auto mode, but it's captured a way that lets you bring out more shadow or highlight detail when you process it later. There's also an array of presets in Cine Log mode that lets you give your footage a particular kind of look — like warm tones for an action movie, cooler hues for a more romantic look, or sepia tones for an old-timey vibe. These are more than just Instagram-style filters, they actually change the way the color is processed, and that can dramatically change the look of your footage
Personally, we've found the new cinematic mode more useful for its point zoom feature, which lets you smoothly zoom into any point in the frame, without the jarring motion you normally get from digital zoom in video. It's still digital zoom, so you'll run into a resolution wall eventually, but on a 16-megapixel shooter there's plenty of fidelity to go around, particularly in daylight scenes.
LG V30 Performance
You’ll find the Snapdragon 835, which is making its LG debut here, paired with 4GB of RAM. Our time with the V30 has seen zero lag while switching between apps and multitasking – even when loading up intensive games or the camera app’s unique and new abilities.
Multitasking has not been an issue either as the 4 GB of RAM is plenty for running apps without any slow down. It’s an all-round pleasurable experience and the V30 holds up well no matter how much you’re pushing the device.
The phone comes with 64 GB of storage and there’s a V30+ model which doubles the storage to 128 GB if you happen to live in a region where it’s available. Storage is also expandable via microSD with support for up to an additional 256 GB if the phone’s internal storage is not enough for you. Its also got Bluetooth 5 on board for better wireless throughout and longer range connections.
Combining the latest tech with a pixel-dense OLED display was the right move here for LG. Not only does it put the V30 in line with the competition, it’s finally primed for the Google Daydream View virtual reality headset. In our experience, this worked just as well as the Samsung Galaxy S8 – one of the other Snapdragon 835-equipped Daydream-ready phones.
Combining the latest tech with a pixel-dense OLED display was the right move here for LG. Not only does it put the V30 in line with the competition, it’s finally primed for the Google Daydream View virtual reality headset. In our experience, this worked just as well as the Samsung Galaxy S8 – one of the other Snapdragon 835-equipped Daydream-ready phones.
LG V30 OS
One of the only surprised with the V30 is that it doesn’t come pre-loaded with Android 8.0 Oreolike the new Xperia XZ1. Instead it has 7.1 Nougat but we assume an update will arrive before too long. The V30 comes with LG’s UX 6.0 but the biggest thing here is that the second screen is gone. Now there’s a ‘Floating Bar’ which you can optionally use and an always-on display feature.
Like some rivals, the screen can provide information without being fully switch on such as the time, date and battery level. You can also scroll through options for things like music control quick settings.
The Floating Bar is used when you’re using the phone and can be moved around like a Facebook Messenger Chat Head. Tap on it and you can access the apps you want as well as other functions. We’re not sure how much we’d use this just yet.
LG has provided various security options so you don’t have to use the fingerprint scanner if you don’t want. You can also unlock the phone with your face, the old school Knock Code or even your voice.
The Google Assistant is built-in, it supports Google Daydream and there are loads of features hidden in the settings menu that you might not know exist unless you go digging. For example you can switch on a Mini view that allows you to run apps in a smaller size if the 6in display is too big.
LG V30 Sound DAC
The bundled headphones are good quality, offering a nice crisp bass punch and coming with a fancy braided cord, rather then plain plastic wire, so are definitely better than your average bundled headphones. The presence of a 3.5mm headphone socket will keep many happy as this gives plenty of freedom to connect whichever headphones you want, although Samsung offers the same.
But it's really the presence of the Quad DAC (digital-to-analogue converter) that LG is making a lot of noise about - because it means access to Hi-Res Audio file formats up to higher sampling rates and frequency ranges than you'd ever get from a basic phone lobbing out MP3.
That might sound great on paper, but it's a slightly strange position. The DAC is off by default, so when you connect your headphones you'll have to seek it out and turn that option on. Without the DAC enabled, the phone sounds thin and lifeless. So why not just have it on all the time?
There's also left and right balance, but you don't get a regular equaliser - you have to use the presets, which is a bit of a shame. You also don't get the sort of tuning that HTC and Samsung offers that will detect what your ears prefer.
On the Bluetooth front, the LG V30 supports aptX HD, again meaning Hi-Res Audio support without the wires (not to the same ultra-high-end degree as from the DAC, mind). We paired it up with the excellent Sony WH-1000XM2, which also support aptX HD, for a great result. Bluetooth isn't always plain sailing, though: we have two LG V30 handsets (one pre-production and one retail), and the retail one won't connect to any Bluetooth devices.
On the Bluetooth front, the LG V30 supports aptX HD, again meaning Hi-Res Audio support without the wires (not to the same ultra-high-end degree as from the DAC, mind). We paired it up with the excellent Sony WH-1000XM2, which also support aptX HD, for a great result. Bluetooth isn't always plain sailing, though: we have two LG V30 handsets (one pre-production and one retail), and the retail one won't connect to any Bluetooth devices.
This all sounds impressive but It’s a shame that with a focus on audio, there are no stereo speakers but the bezel-free design makes this very difficult to achieve.
LG V30 Battery
Another longstanding fold in the V-series DNA has been great battery performance. And that’s not just limited to how the battery inside can withstand the rigors of the day, but also that up until now, they’ve been removable and thus, performance is everlasting given that you own an extra battery.
As you might have suspected from the design, the V30 has sealed in the battery – a necessary, but nevertheless slightly unfortunate move to ensure that waterproofing works. Either way, we’ve been delighted by the 3,300mAh battery in the non-final unit. Ringing in at the same size as the cell found with the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, all-day battery life is an easy goal for this phone to meet.
When we watched a 90-minute movie file in 1080p, the V30 remarkably only dropped down to 87% once it was finished. Most phones drop down at least 20% during this test, so we’re pleased with this discovery.
When it comes to recharging the phone, we’re pleased to say that the final retail unit lives up to the numbers that we got with the pre-production unit. From 0%, it can raise up to 30% in 15 minutes, up to 67% after a half hour, and 100% in just under two hours. The final 20% is always the slowest, but for most, an hour of charging will easily get them through the day.
LG V30 Price
The unlocked LG V30 is available for pre-order now through B&H for $829.99 with expected availability in December. Through U.S. carriers prices will vary, so expect it to cost you $800 or more. While the price tag is certainly no drop in the bucket, it’s fairly standard flagship pricing and still undercuts competing devices like the Galaxy Note 8.
Verdict
If you’ve been holding out for a smartphone that doesn’t put the squeeze on useful features, but does the opposite, filling it to the brim with utilities, you might have thought you’d be waiting an eternity. But actually, the LG V30 is that very phone.
Sitting next to each of this year’s exciting flagships, the V30 holds its own thanks to a dollop of power, expandable storage, Daydream support and a capable camera that’s loaded with things to do. The price is tipped to be reasonable too so we can't really find fault.
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