LG V20: A Comprehensive Review

The LG V20 is a powerhouse of a phone that's packed with features. It has a 5.7-inch display with a Quad HD resolution, making it a great choice for those who want a clear and vibrant screen.

One of the standout features of the LG V20 is its dual rear camera setup, which includes a 16MP standard-angle lens and a 8MP wide-angle lens. This allows for some amazing photography capabilities.

The LG V20 also has a long-lasting 3200mAh battery, which can easily last a day and a half with heavy use.

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The LG V20's design is a significant departure from its predecessors, with a squarish shape that's quite different from the rounded surfaces of the G5.

The phone's metallic back plate gives it a premium feel that's hard to ignore. The combination of sturdy metal and damage-resistant plastic used for the bottom and top caps should keep the phone looking great even after months of use.

The dual camera module on the back of the phone protrudes a couple of millimeters, but it's not a major concern. The phone's MIL-STD 810G rating ensures it can withstand shocks, making it a solid choice for anyone who wants a durable phone.

You can easily access the phone's user-replaceable battery and SIM/microSD slot by popping open the back cover with a button on the side. This feature is a major plus for anyone who wants to extend the life of their phone.

The LG V20 will be available in three color options: titanium (gray), silver, or pink.

The LG V20 is a powerhouse of a smartphone, and its specs are no exception. It's powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 system-on-chip.

The phone comes with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, which is standard for a flagship device. You can also expand the storage up to a certain limit.

The display is a 5.7-inch Quad HD IPS LCD with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels. It's a stunning screen that's perfect for watching videos or browsing the web.

One of the unique features of the LG V20 is its secondary display, which is an IPS Quantum display with a resolution of 160 x 1040 pixels. It's a tiny screen that's located at the top of the main display and provides additional information.

The rear cameras are a dual 16MP and 8MP setup, with the 16MP camera having a 75-degree angle and the 8MP camera having a 135-degree angle. The front camera is a 5MP wide-angle camera.

The battery is a 3,200mAh removable battery, which is a major advantage over other smartphones. It also supports Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 fast charging.

Here are the key specs of the LG V20:

The LG V20 has a removable back chassis made of aluminum alloy, allowing for easy access to the battery and internal components for repairs.

This design also makes the phone more durable, as the removable cover and battery can pop out in the event of a drop, dispersing the impact and protecting the main components.

The phone features a 5.7-inch 1440p IPS LCD display with up to 500 nits of brightness, coated in Gorilla Glass 4.

You can choose from three color finishes: Dark Grey (Titan), Pink, or Silver.

The V20 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, paired with 4 GB of LPDDR4 RAM.

This combination provides smooth performance and efficient multitasking.

The phone includes 64 GB of internal storage, which can be expanded up to 2TB via microSD card.

The battery is a removable 3,200 mAh unit, designed to absorb shock and impact in the event of a drop.

A secondary display is located at the top of the device, providing notifications, access controls, and app shortcuts.

This feature is similar to the V10, but with larger and brighter screens.

The phone also features an IR blaster, FM radio, and a dedicated 24-bit high fidelity audio recorder.

The audio recorder can record up to 24-bit/192 kHz audio, with manual channel controls for effective noise elimination.

The V20 also includes Bluetooth 4.2, NFC, and dual sim support for the H990N/H990DS international versions.

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A pair of Bang & Olufsen H3 in-ear headphones is included with the phone for a limited time.

The phone's audio specifications and sound are tuned by Bang & Olufsen in some countries, including the international variants.

The LG V20 features a dedicated ESS Sabre ES9218 32-bit Hi-Fi Quad DAC, which can drive up to 600 ohm headphones.

This DAC enhances wired headphones sound output quality with specifications of 130 dB SNR, 124 dB DNR, and -112 dB THD+N.

The LG V20 ships with Android 7.0 Nougat and LG UX5.0+ software, making it the first Android device to ship with Nougat.

This was a significant achievement, beating Google's own Pixel devices to the punch. The V20 runs Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box, featuring split-screen mode, quick app switching, smarter notifications, new emoji, and the enhanced Doze mode.

LG also boasts that the V20 is the first device to showcase the new In App Search feature of the Google app, which lets you search through all your apps for quick access to the information you need.

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Consumer Reports conducted a survey of 128,298 new smartphones purchased between 2018-2024, and owned for no more than 5 years.

Their research suggests that some smartphone brands stand out for their reliability and customer satisfaction. The survey found that certain brands performed better than others in terms of reliability and satisfaction.

A total of 128,298 smartphones were surveyed, providing a comprehensive picture of the performance of different brands. Consumer Reports' Summer Surveys from 2022, 2023, and 2024 offer valuable insights into the reliability and satisfaction of various smartphone brands.

Some brands have a reputation for producing reliable and satisfying devices. However, the survey results show that even these brands can have their issues.

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The LG V20 was the first Android device to ship with Android 7.0 Nougat.

It was also the first device to showcase the new In App Search feature of the Google app, allowing you to search through all your apps for quick access to information.

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The V20 runs on LG UX 5.0+, an enhanced version of the software powering the LG G5.

This software offers features like split-screen mode, quick app switching, smarter notifications, new emoji, and the enhanced Doze mode.

Unfortunately, later versions of Android are not supported by LG for the V20, so you're stuck with Android 7.0 Nougat.

However, if you're feeling adventurous, you can try unlocking the bootloader on certain models, like the US996, to install custom ROM images like LineageOS.

The V20 was a game-changer in the smartphone world, with a unique combination of features that set it apart from the competition. It had a user-replaceable battery, a feature that remains exclusive to this phone as of Q1 2024.

The V20's audio capabilities were also impressive, with higher quality audio than the competition and high acoustic overload point (AOP) microphones that allowed recording in very loud concert settings. This made it a favorite among music enthusiasts.

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One of the standout features of the V20 was its infrared (IR) blaster, which allowed it to control televisions and other remote-controlled devices. This was a feature that many users found incredibly useful.

The V20 also had a strong focus on video, with configurable bitrate video and audio recording, lossless audio, and steerable sound focus and waveform display while recording. This made it a top choice for videographers and filmmakers.

Here are some of the V20's key features:

The V20's focus on features over refinement made it a cult favorite among users, despite its bloatware and lack of an easily unlocked bootloader.

The LG V20 has a dual camera setup that's perfect for capturing wide scenes, with one camera offering a 135 degree angle.

The main 16MP camera features optical image stabilization and Hybrid Auto Focus, which selects between laser autofocus and phase-detection autofocus depending on the scene.

You can switch to the 8MP wide-angle camera when you need to capture a wider scene, with a 135 degree angle that's great for large vistas or group shots.

The LG V20 can record video with features like Steady Record 2.0 and Hi-Fi Video Recording, which gives you access to advanced audio features like Low Cut Filter and a recording distance limiter.

The phone's 32-bit Hi-Fi Quad DAC reduces distortion and ambient noise for a superior listening experience, and it can play lossless formats like FLAC and DSD.

The LG V20 is set to go on sale in South Korea starting this month, with other regions to follow later.

No information about the price of the LG V20 has been released so far, but we can look to the LG V10 for some guidance. The LG V10's price fell within the $600 – $700 price range off-contract last year.

We can expect to see similar pricing for the V20, as the article mentions that the V20 is expected to go for a similar price to the V10.

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If you're eager to get a closer look at the LG V20, we've got you covered. Check out our hands-on review for a detailed first impression of the device.

We also put the LG V20 to the test, dropping it from various heights to see how it holds up.

If you want to see how the LG V20 performs in a real-world scenario, our drop test is a must-watch.