LG V10 officially announced: everything you need to know

Even before the launch of the LG G4 back in March, LG began teasing a new “super premium” flagship that would be launched sometime near the end of 2015. Although details have been pretty scarce up until roughly a few weeks ago, the South Korean company has finally taken the wraps off its newest high-end smartphone, the LG V10.

The first device in the company’s V series of phones, the LG V10 was created to give users a richer multimedia experience than what’s possible on other smartphones in today’s market. And from its innovative new Second Screen feature to manual video recording mode, we’d say the V10 is doing just what it was set out to do.

There’s certainly a lot to cover with this new device, so let’s not waste any more time. Here’s what you need to know about the LG V10.

LG V10 specifications

As you can see from the table above, the V10 is certainly no slouch when it comes to the spec sheet. It features a big 5.7-inch IPS LCD Quantum Display with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 and an impressive pixel density of 513. LG has been including QHD resolutions on its flagship devices for a while now, so this should come as no surprise. The big news here isn’t the main screen, though. It’s the smaller secondary display that sits towards the top of the phone’s front, which LG is calling Second Screen. We’ll touch more on this later, but for now just know that it provides some pretty awesome functionality that we think you’ll enjoy.

The V10 comes the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor and Adreno 418 GPU that we saw on the G4, though the V10 has 4GB of LPDDR3 RAM, as opposed to the G4’s 3GB. In our full G4 review we told you that the Snapdragon 808 was plenty capable of performing tasks that will satisfy power users and everyday users alike. Seeing as how the internal specs are just about the same on the V10, we shouldn’t expect a big change here.

During a time that other major smartphone manufacturers are choosing to forgo expandable memory, LG is still choosing to stay firm in its beliefs. The LG V10 comes with 64GB of on-board storage and supports microSD card expansion up to 2 terabytes. In addition, it also comes with a removable 3000mAh battery. LG says it will only take around 40 minutes to achieve a 50 percent charge, thanks to the device supporting Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 2.0 technology.

LG V10 design, software and features

The V10 sports a familiar design that LG includes with most of its higher-end devices, but with a few added benefits. Around back there’s a 16MP rear-facing camera with an f/1.8 aperture and optical image stabilization version 2.0. The V10 is actually the first smartphone ever to offer manual mode for video. The feature is called Manual Video Mode, and it will let you adjust shutter speed, frame rate, ISO, white balance, and focus, all while you’re recording your video. Videos can be recorded in three resolutions – HD, FHD or UHD – and two aspect ratios – 16:9 standard or 21:9 cinematic. Not only is Manual Video Mode a nice addition to the device, but LG is including some other nice features like Steady Record that uses electronic image stabilization to help eliminate shake, Snap Video Mode that will let you easily create one video from multiple shorter videos, and Audio Monitoring for adjusting your microphone sensitivity during video recording.

The front of the device features 5MP Dual Front Cameras with two separate lenses that will let you capture standard 80-degree selfies, or wide angle selfies at 120 degrees. With wide angle shots, the V10 uses a software algorithm that combines the images from the two separate lenses, which LG says are just far enough apart to provide two different points of view. There’s also a new Multi-view Mode that can utilize all three cameras (two on the front, one in the back) to help capture up to four different angles at one time. Crazy, right?

The LG V10 is pretty strong, too. The V10’s frame is composed of SAE grade 316L stainless steel which is the same material used to make surgical tools and higher-end watches. There’s also a pretty resilient Dura Guard frame that surrounds the device to protect the phone from nicks and bruises. The phone also comes with a Dura Skin coating on the back and bottom of the display, and the grid pattern on the back was made to make the phone much more grippy. Perhaps the most impressive part of the device’s build is that it’s been rated MIL-STD-810G Transit Drop Compliant for shock.

Because this is a multimedia-centric smartphone, the V10 comes with a 32-bit Hi-Fi DAC electronic processor. It’s also the first commercial device to employ Qualcomm’s QFE2550 closed-loop antenna tuning solution, which will allow for better voice quality and much wider network coverage compared to other smartphones on the market.

The V10 also sports a fingerprint sensor in the home button on the back, which will let you wake and unlock the device with a single tap (similar to what we saw with the new Nexus devices the other day). It will also work with Android Pay, so you can easily purchase items when you’re out and about.

The LG V10’s Second Screen

The headline feature of the V10 is what LG’s calling the Second Screen. This is a smaller secondary display that aims to provide its users useful information without the need to turn on the main screen. This is an IPS LCD Quantum Display as well, measuring just 2.1 inches long. It also sports a resolution of 160 x 1040 and comes with the same 513 pixel density that the main display has. The Second Screen works independently from the main display, and can be set up as an ‘always on’ display without impacting battery life.

You can set it to display things like the weather, time, date and battery percentage when the main display is off. When the main screen turns on, though, the Second Screen can convert to a launching area for your most-used applications. Moreover, it can discreetly notify you when a text or call comes in when you’re watching a video or playing a game. It won’t distract you if you choose to ignore the notification, either.

This is some true innovation on LG’s part, and we’re really excited to see how the Second Screen fares in the real world.

LG V10 pricing and availability

The LG V10 will be available for purchase in Korea starting this month, followed by the United States, China, Latin America, the Middle East and select countries in Asia soon after. Additional availability and pricing information will be announced in the following weeks, so stay tuned to Android Authority for all of the details.

Okay, so now that you have all the juicy details on the LG V10, it’s time for you to chime in. What are your thoughts? Interested, or is the V10 still not checking off all the boxes for you? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

LG Watch Urbane 2 official: first Android Wear watch with cellular connectivity

Tonight LG officially took the wraps off its latest hero device, the LG V10. That wasn’t the only announcement that LG had for us though, as they have also revealed their latest Android Wear smartwatch, the LG Watch Urbane 2nd Edition.

The new LG Watch Urbane sports a similar design to the original, albeit with a more refined look this time around. Cosmetics aside, the biggest difference is under the hood, as the Urbane 2 is the first Android Wear device to feature cellular connectivity. That means you not only can connect via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, but also 3G or 4G, giving you greater independence from your phone.

The Urbane 2 utilizes a nano-SIM and is not carrier locked, giving you the freedom to use it with whatever network you choose. That means you can now leave your phone at home and still have access to your emails, messages, and all your other important contacts and data.

Aside from cellular support, other specs for the LG Watch Urbane 2 include a 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 with 768MB RAM and 4GB storage, a 1.38-inch P-OLED display with a resolution of 480 x 480, and a 570 mAh battery. You’ll find all the typical sensors a smartwatch would need as well, like an accelerometer, gyro, compass barometer, and GPS. The watch is also water and dust resistant with a rating of IP67.

While the Urbane has the standard UI we have seen with all other Android Wear devices, LG makes accessing some of the watch’s features a bit easier through the addition of three buttons on the right side that give shortcut access to settings such as contacts, LG health, and app list. The watch’s crown can also be used to quickly enable and disable ambient mode on the watch. The LG Urbane 2 even has a few minor software customizations such a 16 included watch faces, special fitness apps and features, workout tips, and even stress level monitoring.

Pricing or a release date haven’t been confirmed for the LG Watch Urbane 2nd Edition just yet, though LG says the watch will first arrive to the US and Korea, followed by select markets in Europe, CIS, Asia, and the Middle East. When the watch does arrive, buyers will have the choice of four colors: space black, opal blue, luxe white, or signature brown. We imagine that the addition of cellular activity will make this one of the more expensive Android Wear options on the market, but that’s really just speculation at this stage.

What do you think of the new LG Watch Urbane 2nd Edition? Let us know in the comments!