Everything you need to know about the LG G4
LG has been stepping on Samsung and Apple's toes in the smartphone space in recent years and 2015 looks set to be all about the eagerly awaited LG G4 release date.
Having re-established itself as a serious smartphone player on the back of its partnership with Google on the Nexus 4 and Nexus 5, the 2014 released LG G3 further cemented the Korean manufacturer as a rival to the leading smartphone players.
Now, however, despite the LG G3 still making waves, attention has already turned to what’s next. According to early reports, the LG G4 is on its way and the handset looks set to continue the company’s smartphone resurgence.
Recent LG G4 rumours have suggested the handset – heading for a mid-2015 launch – could build on the G3’s stunning QHD screen by introducing flexible display technologies to the mix - similar to the recent LG G Flex.
With further LG G4 leaks suggesting the handset will pair a 64-bit Snapdragon 810 processor with Google’s latest Android 5.0 Lollipop OS, it's believed the device will be in direct competition with the likes of the iPhone 6 and the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S6.
Taking a slight step left field, it has been suggested LG's next flagship will firmly adopt its phablet-sized dimensions and coming packing its own stylus. While this would see the handset go head-to-head with the likes of the Galaxy Note 4, it would be a serious step away from the company's past efforts.
We'll continue to update this page with all the latest LG G4 release date news and rumours moving forward. Bookmark it now to keep on top of all things G4
LG G4 Release Date
Unlike many of its rivals, LG doesn't currently have any regimented launch cycles for its flagship phones. This makes accurately predicting the LG G4 release date all the more difficult.
While September’s IFA conference means a new Samsung Galaxy Note device, and Mobile World Congress in March is all about the latest HTC handset, LG’s smartphones have fallen between the cracks in recent years.
Landing firmly between the year’s two popular flagship phone cycles – late Q1 and early Q3 – the LG G3 was unveiled in May ahead of a June release. Further confusing the matter, back in 2013, the G2 was announced in August but didn’t make its way to retailers’ shelves until October.
Although it's unlikely that the manufacturer will follow this same sub-one-year launch cycle with the G4, if it did that would put the device firmly in MWC 2015 launch territory.
What's looking more likely, though, is that the LG G4 release will be held during the coming summer.
Avoiding the mass hysteria of a major tradeshow will give the LG G4 announcement room to breathe. By targeting May or June, LG will avoid trading blows with a mass of rival announcements, giving the device consumers’ undivided attention.
At this stage we can’t be sure when exactly the LG G4 release date will be revealed, but expect it to be in the first half of 2015.
Read More: Samsung Galaxy Note 5 Release Date, Rumours, News, Specs and Price
LG roadmap
LG G4 News
While there are questions over whether Apple’s next handset will be dubbed the iPhone 6S or the iPhone 7, there's no such confusion surrounding LG’s future flagships.
Keen to ensure its leading handset line retains the same simplistic branding for years to come, the Korean manufacturer has already trademarked the names of its next six flagship phones – now that’s planning for the future.
Taking the ‘G’ line-up to the year 2020, LG has patented the LG G4 name, as well as securing the rights to the LG G5, G6, G7, G8 and, yep, you guessed it, LG G9.
So, with the name sorted, what else can we expect from the future phone? Well, LG has offered a heavy hint that the G4 could feature some innovative display tech.
With the company keen to show off its advancements around Plastic OLED (P-OLED) screens, LG recently unveiled a detailed roadmap of how it will adopt these technologies within its key product lines moving forward.
LG G Flex
Joining rollable TVs and foldable tablets (both tipped for 2017) on this list was a bendable smartphone destined for a 2015 release. Having introduced the world’s first curved-screen smartphone back in 2013 – the LG G Flex – LG is looking to build on this P-OLED technology in increasingly mainstream ways.
“LG Display is devoting its energy and resources to respond quickly to fast growing market and consumers’ needs in order to develop Plastic OLED to become the key OLED application technology in the future,” an official LG spokesperson said of the screen technology and its potential in the mobile market.
They added: “It seems that Plastic OLED will play an important role in people’s everyday lives in the future.”
Although it's unclear if this bendable screen tech will be added to its flagship phone line – and we’re not convinced it will – such an inclusion would see the LG G4 go head-to-head with the recently introduced Samsung Galaxy Note Edge.
Read More: Sony Xperia Z4 Release Date, Rumours, News, Specs and Price
LG G2
LG G4 Rumours
One recent LG G4 rumour to catch our eye is the suggestion that the handset will come packing a stylus. Yep, Note 4 style.
Although LG has launched a stylus-hosting spin-off to the G3, forcing the peripheral on its flagship handset seems like an unusual, and unlikely move. According to Korean sources, however, the G4 will come bunded with a stylus to allow users to make better use of the phone's sizeable screen.
While LG has added fuel to the fire, patenting the term LG G Pen - presumably related to a stylus - such an introduction would seemingly add bulk to the handset's mimimalist frame - a feature LG has worked hard to keep down in recent years.
On design, aesthetics is one area where LG is widely expected to improve its next flagship phone. With the company’s design heads having previously expressed remorse at not bestowing the G3 with a premium metal finish, the G4 is expected to adopt more high-end materials.
“In order to show off the luxurious nature of the phone, maybe we could have applied some high-end metal on the side or on the back,” Chul Bae Lee, LG’s Vice President of Mobile Design, said when speaking about the LG G3 with TrustedReviews earlier in the year.
Those hoping for a fully metal device à la the HTC One M8, however, might be left a little disappointed.
Lee added: “I don’t really agree that the entire body has to be metal… If you could charge $300 more for the phone, maybe we could make it metal.”
Another area where the LG G4 design looks set to be boosted is by moving to even slimmer bezels. It was one of the key selling points of the G3, and LG looks set to make its next flagship phone even closer to being completely bezel-bereft.
The company has recently unveiled a 5.3-inch Full HD screen that features bezels a mere 0.8mm thick. Although not the exact panel set to feature on the G4 – we’re expecting a QHD panel at least 5.5 inches in size – that announcement shows a sign of what’s to come. The near-frame-free screen has been achieved though the use of a new ‘Neo Edge’ module processing technology.
“With the growing trend for large-screen smartphones, customer demand for displays with a narrow bezel is increasing, because it enables users to enjoy the maximum use of screen area without compromising excellent grip and design,” Byeong-koo Kim, President and Head of IT/Mobile Development Group at LG Display said recently.
He added: “With this innovative product having many advantages, ranging from its narrow 0.8mm bezel and high-resolution picture quality to its slim design and touch-embedded solutions, LG Display will continue to lead the growing market for large screen smartphones, meeting the expectations of customers and users by enhancing the quality of devices.”
Read More: Samsung Galaxy S6 Release Date, Rumours, News, Specs and Price
LG screen tech
LG G4 Specs
Qualcomm provides the chipsets for most flagship Android and Windows Phone handsets currently doing the rounds, but this could be about to change. Samsung has long been adding its own Exynos chips to iterations of its flagship phones, and now it appears LG could be bringing its chip supply in-house, too.
The manufacturer recently announced its first mobile application processor dubbed the Nuclun. The octa-core chip pairs four 1.5GHz ARM Cortex-A15 cores with four 1.2GHz ARM Cortex-A7 cores. The result: plenty of power.
With the Nuclun adding Cat 6 LTE connectivity support – compatible only in certain territories – we don’t anticipate this model will be introduced to the UK, however. What we’re likely to get here in Britain is far more traditional.
With the LG G4 all but certain to run Google’s latest Android 5.0 Lollipop OS, a 64-bit Snapdragon processor is seemingly set to be on the handset’s features list.
The era of the Snapdragon 805 is already firmly underway, so expect the G4 to run the same Snapdragon 810 chip as we expect to see in the Sony Xperia Z4.
Away from power, and although LG might have promised a bendable phone for 2015, some reports have suggested this innovative technology won't be bestowed on the G4. Instead, it's been claimed that the flagship phone will offer some impressive screen tech all of its own – namely a sapphire crystal display.
Previously rumoured for the iPhone 6 Plus, this toughened panel would see the G4 become more resistant to scuffs and scratches. It's also been suggested that the handset could follow the Xperia Z3 and Samsung Galaxy S5 in adopting a water- and dust-resistant coating.
Further LG G4 specs are currently unclear. We anticipate the phone will retain the G3’s laser-focused camera and rear-mounted volume and power controls, though.
Read More: Apple Watch Release Date, Rumours, News, Specs and Price
LG G3
LG G4 Price
While LG’s recent flagship phones have stood out for their specs and performance, it's pricing and value which have really helped them grab consumers’ attentions. We'd expect the LG G4 to follow in a similar vein.
At launch, the LG G3 was pushing the £500 mark. Although this has subsequently tumbled to around £400, this is still highly competitive given the phone’s QHD panel and powerful CPU.
We'd expect the LG G4 price to be in a similar ballpark at launch. As you might expect, however, there's currently no official word on the matter.
What features would you like to see LG bestow upon the G4? Let us know via the comments section below and bookmark this page for all the latest on the LG G4 as new details emerge.
