LG G4 Release: 5 Things You Need to Know

With the LG G4 release coming soon, more and more details are starting to come to light. LG has already started showing off its latest smartphone display coming in at 5.5-inches offering the best visual experience to date which will be featured inside the new LG G4, and they’ve sent out invites for the product announcement as well. With the Samsung Galaxy S6 and HTC One M9 both official and coming soon, the next major release will be the LG G4.

Last year the LG G3 was announced in late May and arrived over a month later, far behind the competition. However, that release was earlier than the G2 before it, and the G2 arrived even earlier than the original Optimus G. Here in 2015 LG is doing the same thing again, and releasing the new LG G4 earlier than the model before it. The launch is officially set for the end of April.

Read: 5 Reasons to Wait for the LG G4

In early February the new LG G4 smartphone was somewhat confirmed by LG themselves, following some early rumors, and soon those will all be put to rest when they officially announce the new device. With a release date quickly coming and more and more teasers being released by LG, here we go over a few things buyers need to know about the LG G4 release.

Over the past few years the LG G smartphone line has improved by leaps and bounds. Its smartphone now competes directly with the Galaxy S series, the iPhone, and even the HTC One M9. This year LG plans more of the same, and hopes a fancy new design, a stunning display, and a few other neat tricks will help them take on the new Galaxy S6 and HTC One M9, not to mention an incoming iPhone 6s later this year.

While we don’t have all the details just yet, and are mostly going on leaks, below are five things buyers need to know about the LG G4 release. Some are right from LG themselves, others are leaks, and some just make sense given the natural update progression we’ve seen the past few years from LG.

Display

Recently rumors have been back and forth regarding what to expect from LG in the all-new G4 for 2015. Some rumors suggested a crazy curved display similar to the LG G Flex 2, and others claimed it would feature a smaller 5.3-inch screen with an extremely high 3k resolution display. However, that doesn’t appear to be the case. The screen will be the same 5.5-inch size as the last model, but be much improved.

This week LG announced its new 5.5-inch 2560 x 1440 Quad-HD display. This is the same size and resolution as last years LG G3, but they promise big improvements. According to the LG press release this new 5.5-inch Quad-HD display achieved a “quantum jump” in color gamut and brightness. The new LG G4 screen will be brighter, feature extremely rich and stunning colors. All while being more efficient and easier on battery life, thinner, and deliver improved touch function and precision.

It has a new advanced In-Cell Touch technology that allows it to react to touches, even with water on it. Finally, it’s expected to show even more accurate colors over last year’s QHD panel in the G3 by offering a 120% color gamut, 50% increase in contrast, and 30% jump in brightness.

All this means is that the slightly washed out screen from the LG G3 has been ditched, and those looking forward to the LG G4 can rest assured knowing it should have one of the best smartphone screens available on the market. Of course we’ll have to see it first, but LG is promising a lot of improvements this year.

Specs

While specs and hard numbers aren’t everything, many buyers look at these details when deciding on their next purchase. And while we don’t have all the details just yet, multiple leaks state the G4 will be a powerful device with top-tier specs. Reports and rumors state it will come with the Snapdragon 810 8-core processor, 3GB of RAM, 32 and 64GB storage options with a micro-SD slot, and a large 3,200 or bigger battery. LG will increase the camera to 16 or 20 megapixels, retain the rear buttons and laser auto-focus features, and launch running Android 5.0.2 Lollipop similar to the LG G Flex 2.

Camera

Speaking of specs, one extremely important aspect of any smartphone is the camera. The LG G3 had a decent 13 megapixel camera with optical image stabilization, and debuted a new laser auto focus promising some of the best camera performance around. It was great, but the new Galaxy S6 with its F1.9 speed camera is one of the best of any smartphone to date. Most phones are over 2.0 with the f-stop, which is the speed of the sensor and how well it captures details and light.

Today LG is teasing an all-new F1.8 camera for the LG G4, and we even see the words “LG G4” stamped in leather in the video, which we’ll talk more about below. The video just released by LG is rather short, but is obviously teasing that the camera should be excellent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZdWPqpVbEk

With an F1.8 camera lens the LG G4 should shoot insanely fast and accurate, be great in low-light situations, and could prove to be one of the best smartphone cameras in 2015. Add in the laser auto focus and optical image stabilization, and this is looking very promising. We’re hearing it could stay at 13 megapixels, or be increased to 16 to match some of the Samsung competition.

Release Date

Another important aspect of this phone is the release date. The HTC One M9 and Galaxy S6 hit carrier shelves in the US on April 10th, so LG needs to make a splash and get buyers interested, or at least waiting to see what LG has in store. In the video above they confirm the all-new LG G4 will be announced on April 28th, which matches earlier reports.

One thing worth noting, is the invite ends with the LG G4 logo and name being branded on what appears to be leather. This follows “see the great, feel the great” which is a hint that a new build material will be on board. Early rumors suggested a metal LG G4 to take on the GS6 and HTC One M9, but its looking like the new G4 will be made of plastic like previous models, but that LG will have some sort of leather options, similar to the Moto X 2014. We’ll have to wait and see, but we’ll know everything come April 28th when it’s officially announced.

Rumor has it the release will be just a few weeks after April 28th, so potential buyers can look forward to an LG G4 release date in mid May. This is over two months earlier than last year.

Price

For now we have no exact details on carriers, availability, or the price. That being said, most flagship smartphones typically cost $199 with a new 2-year contract, and come in around $599 or more outright. The LG G3 last year launched for exactly that, even though Verizon had it for $99 with a new 2-year contract.

As the April 28th release nears we’ll likely get more details about the specs, pricing, potential release dates, as well as some leaked pictures or video. Each major LG smartphone has leaked before being announced over the past few years, so expect some solid information in the coming days or weeks. We’ll update as we learn more.