LG decided to shake things up this year and release a stunning smartphone with a 5.2-inch display and buttons on the back. The LG G2 has officially landed on most US carriers, and today we’re taking a detailed look at both the Verizon and AT&T variants. Most notably, we’ll be running through the hardware and software, button changes on Verizon, and everything else you’d like to know. How does this flagship quad-core powerhouse stack up? Very well. Read on for our full thoughts.
There really is nothing not to like about the G2. LG checked off nearly every box on the spec sheet, added the latest and greatest hardware available for nearly everything, and designed a super sleek phone. How does that 2.3 GHz quad-core processor and massive 1080p display handle daily tasks, and does it suck your battery dry? We have that and more in our full review.
Hardware
The LG G2 hardware is some of their best yet. With each smartphone of late things have improved, but they’re still stuck on the familiar plastic designs. The 5.2-inch “world’s thinnest” full 1080p HD IPS display is crisp, vibrant, and viewing angles are excellent. The sides are curved and comfortable, and it all wraps into a powerful device.
Under the hood we have Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor running at 2.3 GHz. It packs 2GB of RAM, and promises to offer the best performance, battery-sipping efficiency, and charging super quick. All three of those came true. This thing flies, it has the best battery life of any LG smartphone to date, and charging the 3,000 mAh battery with Quick Charge 2.0 technology is quite nice.
Then with Verizon we have 32GB of storage and built-in wireless charging, which was awesome, but a little slow. All other carriers don’t have wireless charging. The back was redesigned as a result, and the Verizon model has different buttons than the other G2’s, but more on that below. To wrap up the hardware we have the speaker grills (one on the Verizon model) on bottom, which get extremely loud and sound quite nice, micro-USB and the 3.5mm headphone jack. There’s no buttons anywhere on the sides, obviously, but a lone SIM slot. Then another microphone and the IR blaster grace the top.
To be honest I actually really enjoy the hardware. The bezel is one of the thinnest of any phone, and you get a huge 5.2-inch screen in a relatively small package. It’s slightly bigger than the Galaxy S4. Both carriers have plastic backs that are fingerprint magnets, but that’s my only complaint. Overall the hardware is extremely well built, durable, and feels like a premium device.
Buttons on the back
The jury is still out on this one. To be honest the volume buttons on the back is a nice touch, but we’re not fans of the power button being back there. For real. I found myself constantly flipping it over to make sure I hit the right one, and my finger was always too high which put fingerprints all over the camera lens, instead of hitting the power button.
The design on the international and all other carriers aside from Verizon is much better. As Verizon had to change it up and be different. They’re smaller, harder to hit, and the LED light on the power button isn’t very bright and hard to see. Personally, the volume buttons are fine on the back and actually make more sense to be right where an index finger is while talking on the phone, and we got used to it rather quick. My favorite part about turning the device on and off wasn’t that darn rear button, rather it was LG’s new KnockON feature. A quick double-tap on the screen fires it up to be unlocked and used. This extremely minor software tweak was probably one of my favorite aspects. It’s just so fast, simple, and extremely easy. Not to mention familiar.
A quick double tap on the top of the phone, or anywhere on screen with no icons or widgets will do the opposite, and put it back to sleep. Instead of searching for a button just tap twice, and throw it in your pocket. It sounds minor, but will change the way you wake/sleep your smartphone. I guarantee it. Or maybe I’m just easily amused.
Software
With the LG G2 we have Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean, and hopefully 4.3 or 4.4 KitKat is coming soon. However, we don’t need it, not yet at least. LG has so many customizations, tweaks, and software improvements this has almost as many options as a device with a custom 3rd party ROM. It’s like Samsung’s array of add-ons, only they’re actually useful.
The screen unlock animation was really neat and eye-catching, and all the custom options just drove home the fact that LG has stepped up their game. Anything from custom launchers that changes how the animations act as you swipe between screens, the on-screen navigation buttons (and color), notification LED, vibrate level, multi-tasking and multi-window modes and more. LG thought of it all, and it’s all inside the G2. Instead of talking about it, check out our detailed 12 minute extended hands-on and software tour.
As you can see from the video above, the LG G2 is blazing fast. Between the buttery smooth Android 4.2 and a quad-core 2.3 GHz processor, nothing can slow it down. Tons of animations, neat unlock effects and more. It handles it all without breaking a sweat.
LG put a lot of time into Slide Aside, QSlide, multi-window, their Quick Memo note app, and much more. While Android 4.2 Jelly Bean is obviously heavily skinned and tweaked, there is still key parts that keeps it from looking too custom. I’ve slowly warmed up to their subtle changes, and feel I can say this is the best LG yet. I might actually like their software more than Samsung’s TouchWiz.
There’s even a neat little pop-up for quick reply on a text message that appears on the top left in the notification bar. I actually found this really convenient, and just one more nice little touch. It’s the little things folks. From customizing every aspect, changing homescreens, wallpapers, and even the color of the on-screen buttons down below. LG thought of almost everything. It’s nice to see such effort put into their devices.
Performance and Benchmarks
Echoing a little of what was mentioned above, the LG G2 is one of the fastest phones I’ve used to date. Whether that was streaming with my Chromecast, playing Asphalt 8: Airborne lag free, to browsing the web with 13 tabs open and still streaming video in the background while using Google Now. It manages to handle things quite well. Android’s great at multitasking, and the quad-core and 2GB of RAM only helps things here.
Benchmarks are a little hit and miss with our readers, but we know you die-hard users want to see them. In AnTuTu I got the highest score I’ve ever achieved on a smartphone, around 36,000, and even their database had me #2 globally. Although I’m not reading into that too much. It scores well above the Snapdragon 600 powered Galaxy S4 and HTC One, and is certainly ahead of any and all competition. See for yourself. However, plenty more Snapdragon 800 devices are coming this year.
Benchmarks are only a small part of the story, and many throw their results out the window anyways. Daily usage is where it matters, and this smartphone is rock solid. Our longer than usual video above should have gave you an idea of just how smooth everything truly is.
Camera
The camera here is also rather new, as LG’s struggled a bit in this area in the past. The G2 they’ve introduced the first Android phone with a quality camera with optical image stabilization. Snapping photos while in a moving car, walking, or with shaky hands was no issue. As the software did all of the work. That’s along with a 13 megapixel camera. One that also does some great video capture at up to 60 FPS in 1080p.
Those software features we talked about above, are also included here. Voice actions to say “cheese” and anything you want to snap photos. Custom 5 different shutter sounds, built-in filters, Geo-tagging, and the option to use those volume keys to zoom, or to capture photos. We have a panorama mode, VR panos, burst shot, beauty shot (which smooths all surfaces and makes you look purdy) and even a dual-camera feature. Which lets you take a photo with both front and rear cameras at the same time.
We didn’t go too crazy with the camera samples, but just know no matter how much shaking was going on the photos usually still turned out rather crisp. It isn’t going to replace your DSLR, but it’s one of the better smartphone cameras we’ve used of late. The OIS sure is nice, and that along with a quick shutter speed does quite well. Here’s a few quick shots. The car shift knob was while driving (not me) and an up-close macro, to show how well that image stabilization truly works.
And yes. I blame Google and Nestle for making me a fat kid, as I’m now buying KitKat bars whenever I see them. It’s all their fault!
Battery Life
Yes! Finally an LG smartphone that truly has great battery life. As we said on our social pages, all of you LG fans will be happy to know this gets some of the best battery life we’ve seen. And by far the best of ANY LG smartphone. With a huge 3,000 mAh battery paired with Qualcomm’s battery saving Snapdragon 800. Even the heaviest usage should still net you 8-10 hours at least. Which means heavy usage and still getting through an entire day of work.
For what we’d call an “average” smartphone user that doesn’t check their device every 10 minutes, and instead every hour or so and does the occasional emails, web browsing, and voice calls, you’ll realistically get well over 24 hours on a single charge. With mild use I saw over 40, and as you see below even 50. This will last two days for most. I love it.
Competition
The LG G2 faces some stiff competition now, and in the coming weeks and months. It edges out the Galaxy S4 in all categories, although we all know Samsung has a loyal following. Myself included. It’s the Galaxy Note III where things might get messy. As it offers nearly the same specs with a much bigger display, 3GB of RAM, and tons of S-Pen features to take advantage of this big-screen era we have found ourselves in.
And we can’t forget about the LG Nexus 5, which at this point is more than just a rumor, and likely coming sometime in middle or late October. They won’t look alike, but Google’s poised to offer another Nexus based off of LG’s latest smartphone. The Nexus 5 should be similar in many ways, probably cheaper, and sold direct from the Play Store. Oh, and lets not forget the upcoming HTC One Max and its 5.9-inch display. We still need to get more details on that though, which is coming eventually.
Wrap-Up
Overall we’re actually rather impressed with this latest and greatest device from LG. You can clearly tell that they’ve been making leaps and bounds with both hardware, and software, and this is their best device yet. LG just put their best foot forward, and Samsung and the others have some serious competition. For those worried about the large display, it isn’t too bad, but you might want to try it in stores if you have little hands.
LG’s software hasn’t been my favorite in the past, and no matter what Qualcomm processor was under the hood standby battery life has always been terrible. Even when the device isn’t in use. LG has finally curbed this issue and the LG G2 gets the best battery life of any LGE device I’ve used to date. It’s fast, efficient, user friendly, and slightly innovative with the new buttons on the back. There’s truly nothing we absolutely didn’t like.
Personally the bright and quality HD display, quad-core processor, and outright impressive battery life makes this device get a thumbs up from us. After all, what’s the point if you’re not using it to the full capabilities because you are always low on battery. That won’t be the case with the G2. It’s impressive all around, and we suggest you check it out on any of the 4 major US retailers, then pick one up. That, or wait for the LG Nexus 5.
How do the low light shots compare with other phones such as the iPhone 5 (s), Galaxy s4, and HTC one?
(I’m waiting to get the Nexus 5 which is said to have the same camera… Though, I’m really disappointed Google decided to go with a 2300mah battery instead of a 3000mah like LG did. I actually would have preferred it being thicker, and going higher to 3500-4000mah. I would kill my Nexus 4 multiple times over in a single day if I didn’t alter my usage to save battery)
I saw a review last week which compared the cameras on the IPhone 5&S4 to the G2, and let’s just say the G2 made them look silly. I’ll try to find the article and link you, I believe it was Anandtech but I’m not sure. I’ll dig it up and edit accordingly 🙂
I took some awesome photos today with it. And will feature a post soon with a gallery of about 20.
Yay!!! Cory, fantastic job… FINALLY a, “rightfully deserved rave review for the LG G2” without any “buts” or “whining about plastic casing”…ty ty ty! i so love this phone!
BTC
Is that what KitKat packaging looks like in the US? I must say, I prefer the red colour that we have here in the UK.
I hate its back. It is so terrible.
The Note III is not a true competitor to this device. You didn’t even mention Sony Xperia Z1…now that’s a head to head contendor…the S4 of course though it’s older.
This phone is extremely delicate. I just broke mine last night. A simple drop made the disabled the whole functionality of the screen.
im getting the at&t version tomorrow…I have to say…Verizon, ballzed that back area up…buttons just became too small and narrow…all for a wireless charger?…douchey move…oh well…im sure it will be ok for many…food for thought…:)
Thank you for the review. How did the phone handle calls and bluetooth devices?
Bob, the Verizon one is great for calls-nice and loud on both ends and not too distorted. As for Bluetooth I did buy the LG Tone hands free headphones and I was amazed that with the phone on the charger I could listen to music just about anywhere in my house with the phone is on it’s charging pad. I haven’t had a whole lot of experience with Bluetooth though.
Which charging pad do you have? Do you like it?
Simply the BEST ! Nice phone & thanks for the review
that is great. Google decided to slap battery that is 75% of the G2 and they expect that phone to last more than 14hrs of usage that wont make you look at % bar while you do it ?? WTF Google
For those that think SD800 will save battery well look again.
Compare LG G, nexus 4 and LG G Pro (bigger screen bigger battery) this is what will happen with nexus 5 🙁
This is why I am going to pass on the Nexus 5 and get the G2. Hopefully they’ll get the bootloader unlocked and the device will get some love from CyanogenMod.
THE BEST PHONE RIGHT NOW.
How long will that last?
Theres no way the Nexus 5 will keeps comparable specs to the G2 while remaining at that Nexus price range.
The Note 3 looks real good however all that power its packing seems to be bogged down by all the S-Ware. In almost every video I have seen there appears to be lag on the Note 3, kinda like the S4 situation where you have to disable some features to get the phone to operate lag free.
Still waiting on Z1 and Note 3 full reviews before making my final decision
Another stunning phone ruined by the lack of expandable memory. What are people hoping to use these power-house phones for? Where are you meant to store all the pictures, video, music, movies, games, etc.? And don’t say the cloud – I can’t even listen to streamed music reliably while walking the dogs in the morning. All the places I’d want access to cloud content, car, train, plane, subway are all no-go areas. I wonder why HTC or LG haven’t realised why Samsung sells a lot more phones than them; clue: it certainly isn’t build quality or software additions.
Agreed. 24-bit/192kHz audio is nice, but where are you supposed to put those huge files? /smh
You can have all the 24/192 in the world on your phone, but the problem is that the 24/192 DACs in pretty much every phone that has one aren’t all that great. It’s the reason why there’s still a market in the desktop realm for high-end sound cards when HDA audio can do 24/192.
Anyway, to really notice a difference over 24/96, you’d need a good external DAC or a upper mid-range audio system.
Samsung sell more because of marketing. Expandable memory is massively under used in Samsung devices. Barely anyone is taking advantage of it. Note how well the smallest iphone sells with no storage capacity. Granted a power user like you might need it but thats not the majority. Incidentally I’ve gone cloud only for video, photos and music with no issues so its really a locale/regional issue and most people don’t care enough to let it dictate their purchase decisions.
Can I get and play Bejeweled Blitz on this? And how does it compare to the Motorola Droid Max?
like Judith explained I didnt even know that any one can profit $7935 in 1 month on the internet. imp source www.JAM20.com
Yes… I just got this phone last night and LOVE IT! Bejeweled Blitz is one of the first one’s I downloaded.
My buddy is the Manager at the Verizon store in our area. He was telling me about the Droid Maxx has 48hrs battery life. Droid Ultra has 28 and I believe the LG has 18-20. Other than that the processor, screen resolution just about everything was better in LG (he compared the two spec for spec at the store for me). He was really impressed w/ the breakdown, and said he needs to pay more attention to this phone. He was trying to sway me toward the Motorola Droid’s, but then said based off the specs he would go w/ LG G2 as well. So far…LOVIN’ IT!
Nice phone, wish I could afford it. Shows what technology is currently capable of. Don’t see Apple keeping up much longer, and Intel should fear ARM (that is, Qualcomm/Motorola/TI).
Cory, do you know if a special charger is required to enable the “Quick Charge 2.0” capabilities? It seems the literature on the technology implies that it does but there doesn’t seem to be any chargers on the market that are designed with it.
I’ve always thought LG could make the best handset running Android.
You talk like no other phones have knock on feature? It has nothing to do with the S800 SOC…. Lumias has had it for a while and they are not running S800 and they are not killing the battery. LG stole this straight from Nokia not that I am complaining, I was loving it on my Nokia and now my LG G2!
For users interested primarily in specs and hardware, the G2 has plenty to offer. But for most smartphone shoppers, this phone is going to have a tough time standing out in the crowded menu of enticing Android options.