LG G2, it’s more than just the latest specs

If you’ve been following smartphones for the past couple of years, there’s not a lot of innovations done in terms of design and usability. Screen display and resolution just get bigger, latest chips are used, camera megapixel count gets higher, and new software features that you probably won’t use are made.

Progress has been quite boring if you ask me, not until LG launched their G2 recently. Just G2, no more Optimus on LG’s latest flagship device and it looked like they did a good job in designing this phone not just to look better but also to give a better user experience.

Let’s get the usual specs out of the way before we talk about the new things they came up with on this phone. The LG G2 has a 5.2-inch Full HD IPS screen, latest quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 chip clocking at 2.2GHz and supports LTE-Advanced, 2GB RAM, 32GB internal storage, no microSD, 13-megapixel rear camera, and 3,000mAh battery. It also has the usual built-in Q-apps found in the Optimus line such as Quick Memo.

Now on to the interesting parts which they say is the result of them learning from us, the consumers.

If you would notice, despite having a 5.2-inch screen, the phone still retains a compact form. LG says their screen size is the maximum you can go for comfortable one-handed operations. The 2.6 mm bezels on the sides contribute to an edge-to-edge display and compact size of the G2.

The LG G2 deviates from the usual button design and placement of phones and they have a darn good reason to. This phones doesn’t have any buttons on the sides, every thing you need is located at the back below the camera lens. LG explains that side buttons were designed when phones were smaller and easier to grip. Now with phones getting bigger, it’s harder for your finger to reach the buttons on the side or that button on top. If you try holding a phone with a 4.5-inch screen or above, you’ll notice that your index finger always rest at the back.

With buttons at the back, you can easily operate the LG G2 with your index finger whether you’re left or right-handed and you don’t even need to look at them. Pressing and holding the Volume Down will trigger the camera from Sleep state, while doing the same on Volume Up triggers Quick Memo. The camera lens is covered with sapphire glass and has an anti-smudge coating because you will most likely touch it given the placement of the buttons.

Another cool feature shown during the launch was the customizable default Android buttons. If you’ve been using different Android phones, you’ll notice how manufacturers rearrange the placement of the Task Manager, Home, and Back buttons to their liking. LG G2 allows you to rearrange these buttons yourself and you can even use a 4-button configuration (bringing back Menu) if you like.

LED notification alerts blink on both front and back so you can take a quick glance whether the phone is lying face up or down. It also has an Answer Me feature so you can simply place the phone over your ear to answer it. No need to press any buttons or swipe the screen. And since the Wake button is at the back, you can also knock twice on the screen to wake it up in case it’s lying on its back.

This phone also looks sexy with a body measuring 8.9mm thin on its thickest side. It has that arching design similar to the HTC One making it grip-friendly and giving it the illusion of a slim body. What’s interesting here is that LG was still able to put an OIS (optical image stabilization) module on its camera despite the slim frame without the lens protruding from the body. The camera is also capable of recording 1080p at 60 fps when other flagship can only do 30 fps. It also has three stereo mikes so you can zoom in better to the audio source while recording.

LG also used a new battery design enabling them to maximize the curved back and cram a 3000mAh battery inside beating the Galaxy S4, which is the current leader of its class with 2600mAh.

Now for the audio purists out there, you’ll be happy to know that the LG G2 is the first smartphone to natively support 24bit/192KHz Hi-Fi playback for studio-like quality sounds. It can play FLAC and WAV files from the get-go whether via speakers or headphones. It can also record in high quality with its multi-mic recording with advanced noise cancellation.

I don’t know about you but these are the phone improvements that really caught our eyes and we’re excited for LG for successfully raising the ante of flagship phones. Now the big question is the when and how much.

LG G2 Specs:
5.2″ Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) power-efficient IPS LCD screen, 424 ppi
450 nit brightness, Gorilla Glass 3
2.3GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800
Adreno 330 GPU
2GB RAM, 32GB internal storage, no microSD
Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean
13 MP optically-stabilized camera with LED flash
9-point Auto-Focus, Sapphire Crystal Glass Lens
Full HD (1080p) video recording at 60fps
2.1 MP front-facing camera with FullHD video capture
HSDPA, 42 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps; LTE
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot
Bluetooth 4.0 LE, MHL, NFC, Miracast
24bit x 192kHz Hi-Fi Sound
3,000mAh Li-Po battery
Color: Black, White
138.5 x 70.9 x 8.9 mm
143 g
SRP: TBA