Surprise, surprise: The LG G5 isn’t as metal as you might think

When we first picked up the LG G5 at MWC 2016, we were surprised by the feel. We commented at the time that it had a finish that didn’t quite look and feel right.

This was something we echoed in our review having spent more time with the LG G5 – admittedly a pre-release device not running final software – where we say: “…it’s the only metal phone to feature a removable battery. That might sound like a winner but, like we say, the finish somehow looks and feels entirely plasticky.”

Well that’s because it is.

In a teardown of the new LG G5, available today in the US and launching in the UK on 8 April, it’s clear that the body of the phone is coated in fairly thick plastic. 

That perhaps explains the difference in feel between the LG G5 and something like the iPhone 6 or HTC One M9. Those latter phones are anodised and blasted smooth, resulting in a wonderful finish, whereas the LG G5 appears to have a metal core that’s then coated in plastic and painted.

This might come as something of a surprise, as LG’s language surrounding the LG G5 doesn’t quite reflect this. The company talks about “a sleek, metal uni-body” and “a sleek metal aluminum body”, but that’s not the feel you get, because you’re gripping a painted plastic coating.

The source of the teardown video, JerryRigEverything, spends some time looking at the build quality of the phone, and we’d encourage you to watch to the end for the final scratch down of the G5’s casing.

Whether this matters to you or not will very much depend on what you expect. The finish isn’t as premium as some metal unibody rivals, but then with a price of £499 SIM free, the LG G5 isn’t as expensive either. 

You can read up on our impressions of the LG G5 in our review – of course we didn’t cut the back of the phone to pieces to discover how it was made up.

READ: LG G5 review: Modular misfire?