LG V30 (Unlocked, Like New)

Product Description

For many years, LG have been among the elite of smartphone manufacturers, but there’s no getting away from the fact that they are having to work hard just to stay the pace with Apple and Samsung. The LG V30, though, is the phone that puts them right into the middle of the fight once again.

Good Looks Matter

There has long been a desire to see LG release a smartphone with a 6″ display. Well, the wait is over. The V30, despite being almost an identical size to the rival Google Pixel XL, packs in a display a full half inch bigger. This is no mean design or technological feat. There is a slight bezel around the display, so it doesn’t quite go edge to edge, but that’s okay. In no way does this detract from the overall look.

In fact, apart from the display, the front of the LG V30 isn’t dominated by buttons or icons. This allows the display to dominate instead, as it should do. There is a slight curve to the rear of the V30, as is more and more common these days, but the whole thing is remarkably lightweight for all the technology LG have somehow managed to squeeze in.

At just 5.57 oz, and with a 6″ display, it truly is a remarkable achievement by the LG techs. And when you hear what else the V30 has, your amazement will be even greater.

Build Quality

Unusually, even for a flagship smartphone, the LG V30 doesn’t stop at being water and dust resistant. Besides being IP68, the V30 also meets many of the requirements of the MIL-STD 810 testing grade. This military testing program tests for all sorts of things like shockproofing, sudden temperature changes, oils and chemicals, and much more. It means that the V30 is well set up to last through the average day with ease. It also means it will get through more above-average days than not.

Although the display remains the weakest part, as with almost any smartphone, the chassis is reinforced to take the knocks better than most. Many situations where displays are damaged is because the frame twists on impact. This puts excessive strain on the glass, and the shockwave causes it to shatter. By preventing the twisting, your display has a much better chance of making through the odd tumble.

All in all, despite it’s lighter-than-average weight, the LG V30 is made to last.

Hardware Specs

We’ve mentioned the size of the display, but we’ve yet to talk about quality. Samsung are the kings of displays with their Super AMOLED wonders, but this display matches them every step of the way. Also an OLED display, but without Samsung’s embellishments, it carries a 2880 x 1440 px resolution. It may be a little behind the 4K displays we’re now seeing, but only in the pixel count. The quality is so good that you’d never know the difference.

One difference with the V30 from the previous V20 is the lack of a second display. Instead, the V30 has a Floating Bar. This allows easy and quick access to chosen apps or features, and can be positioned anywhere on the screen. It does take a little getting used to, but makes performing common tasks a breeze once you master how it works.

I know we keep going on about the lack of weight, but here’s why. Wireless charging, fingerprint sensor, that rigid chassis, dual cameras, 4GB of RAM, 64GB built in storage, a 3300mAh battery, an 8 core processor, dual-band wifi up to ac speeds, Cat 16 4G, USB-C, Bluetooth 5, NFC. The list is almost endless.

This list of hardware components matches just about any other smartphone currently on the market. Add in that glorious display and the V30 is a winner.

Cameras

Often, usually wrongly, touted as the make or break for smartphones, those on the LG V30 don’t disappoint. The rear, twin-lens setup carries 16MP for the “normal” lens and a massive 13MP for wide angle. The front camera is a useful 5MP, more than enough for all those selfies.

But where the cameras excel is in what they can do, as opposed to what they are. As well as having a full Pro mode for total manual control, color grading and exporting to Adobe Premiere is possible. These are unheard of features on smartphones up until now. In addition, if you are a fan of shooting video, the V30 has a Point Zoom feature. When shooting video, tap anywhere on the screen and it will smoothly zoom in, keeping focus on where you tapped.

This, again, is a new and very useful feature.

Battery Life

The 3300mAh battery is sealed to be waterproof, so it means it can’t be replaced. However, the performance is impressive. 16 hrs talk time and 15 days of standby can be achieved if you stay away from power-hungry activities. It can take a lot of juice to run the hardware in the V30, but neither battery nor processor skip a beat. Performance is always smooth and fast.

Summary

Given that we’ve seen upgrades to both the Google Pixel and the Samsung Galaxy S since the V30 was released, it’d be easy to look at those. But, when you compare them all side by side, the LG V30 stands its ground wonderfully. It matches the Pixel and S9 step for step, but doesn’t carry the excessive price tags that come with the others.

You can try and find better for the price, but you won’t.