LG G6 Black

I've had this phone for almost 2 years. For the majority of the time, my only complaints were that the cameras distort things in a weird way, especially the front facing camera, which makes the phone not ideal for selfies. With that exception, it worked perfectly for about 15 months (just until the warranty ended... what a surprise!)I still was not too worried about it after 15 months were up since I had the 2nd year promise, but then it started breaking. There were two times when I took it out of my pocket, where I normally carry it, and the first time the screen was cracked, and the second, the back camera glass was cracked. There was no dropping or force put on it in either case, and I always keep it in a protective case, but it seems that it just got weak and ... MoreI've had this phone for almost 2 years. For the majority of the time, my only complaints were that the cameras distort things in a weird way, especially the front facing camera, which makes the phone not ideal for selfies. With that exception, it worked perfectly for about 15 months (just until the warranty ended... what a surprise!)I still was not too worried about it after 15 months were up since I had the 2nd year promise, but then it started breaking. There were two times when I took it out of my pocket, where I normally carry it, and the first time the screen was cracked, and the second, the back camera glass was cracked. There was no dropping or force put on it in either case, and I always keep it in a protective case, but it seems that it just got weak and cracked. Neither of these bothered me a lot, although it does significantly decrease the quality of photos.Then, a few months later (after about 21 months) the fingerprint scanner stopped working completely. It no longer even shows up in the settings after resetting and factory resetting the phone. Additionally, due to the cracks, which as far as I can tell are the result of normal use, there is no way to redeem the 2nd year promise.I was so excited about this phone, especially because they were ensuring that it would work for 2 years, but that appears not to be the case... I would be suspicious of purchasing any LG phones in the future.

Great Phone for the Price w/ Lots of Extras

Wow, what a great phone to have and a good value – definitely a keeper. It was simple to setup with my existing Verizon 4G SIM with the VZW-VS987 model, just load up your Authorized SIM and it was working in minutes. I did purchase an inexpensive skin cover to help protect it further for the elements and dropping it, which actually helped me hold it better in my hand.I also like the fact that the phone is water and dust resistant, and fits nicely in large hands; one thing that the other guy’s phones always seemed to do was slip out or didn’t fit well. The Phone worked great and was able to use the Verizon LTE-Advanced calling features like VoLTE or IP Calling (I always had a decent signal so never used the IP Calling Function). Photos and Videos always turned out ... MoreWow, what a great phone to have and a good value – definitely a keeper. It was simple to setup with my existing Verizon 4G SIM with the VZW-VS987 model, just load up your Authorized SIM and it was working in minutes. I did purchase an inexpensive skin cover to help protect it further for the elements and dropping it, which actually helped me hold it better in my hand.I also like the fact that the phone is water and dust resistant, and fits nicely in large hands; one thing that the other guy’s phones always seemed to do was slip out or didn’t fit well. The Phone worked great and was able to use the Verizon LTE-Advanced calling features like VoLTE or IP Calling (I always had a decent signal so never used the IP Calling Function). Photos and Videos always turned out great, and Dual 13mp extra-wide HDR Photo Mode of 120 degrees was super nice too allowing for more semi-panoramic views. Average/heavy use still gave me about a day’s worth of use. However, using Games or plying videos seems to eat it much faster. It does have a very good Battery Saver mode that I used before going to bed, which extended it use considerably. Browsing on the phone was also fast, and it rapidly changed from Vertical to Horizontal display mode in milliseconds. Although the Internal ROM is only 32Gbs, it will support MircoSD Cards up to 2Tbs (I used a 128Gb) something many others don’t, so can store lots of APPS, Videos, and Photos – a definite plus.From the perspective of being a Pilot (on a shoe string budget as all us) I was very pleased that the Cell phone has all the primary sensors (Barometer, Compass, Proximity, Gyroscope, Accelerometer, Magnetometer, and GPS -- more is better) that a Pilot needs for any emergency Backup Flying apps. Pilots can't use it as a Primary Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) as no Android device has been certified by the FAA yet, but as a Backup EFB it’s a good one to have and is compact. I did test it using a Compass & Altitude App, and both were very accurate after calibration, when compared to accrual instruments. It also allows for running two APPS in a dual Split Screen mode, so you can view both of them at the same times – no one does this that I know of.Being an IT Guy, got to have a few CONS – the main power and finger print reader button is on the Back, not a bad thing, just something you have to get used to. One thing I really didn’t like was that Verizon locked out some of their APPS from being deleted (not a fan of their APPS), so you will have to ROOT it to delete them or at least I couldn’t find a simpler way – so recommend getting the fully Unlocked Version. Verizon also disabled the ability to do an Internal Components tests.I do wish the FM Radio Feature was active w/ Verizon, would be nice to have in an Emergency.

Great Replacement

My google pixel died due to a broken wifi chip. The phone still worked fine, however, with a broken wifi chip, I'd have to replace the entire motherboard since that is where it is installed. The part and labor would have cost more than a used first generation pixel replacement. No thank you. Before I bought a pixel, I originally owned an LG G3, it was big, and at the time was considered to be a great phone. Technology evolves so quickly now and it was obsolete in a mere 2-3 years. I stayed with my trusty LG though since it did what I needed it to do, make calls and surf the web whenever I needed to. This new LG G6 may not be "new" by today's standards, but hey, smartphones seemed to have plateaued in both design and software. What pushed me to an older model besides ... MoreMy google pixel died due to a broken wifi chip. The phone still worked fine, however, with a broken wifi chip, I'd have to replace the entire motherboard since that is where it is installed. The part and labor would have cost more than a used first generation pixel replacement. No thank you. Before I bought a pixel, I originally owned an LG G3, it was big, and at the time was considered to be a great phone. Technology evolves so quickly now and it was obsolete in a mere 2-3 years. I stayed with my trusty LG though since it did what I needed it to do, make calls and surf the web whenever I needed to. This new LG G6 may not be "new" by today's standards, but hey, smartphones seemed to have plateaued in both design and software. What pushed me to an older model besides the price was the features that LG implemented in their devices. The ability to encrypt your phone and SD card was a real plus, their design to make bezels a bit thinner like other flagships was a big improvement as well. The position of the sd card was great too, I no longer have to risk breaking any back covers to replace an sd card as it is now located with the sim card, and wow, they included a sim ejection tool in the box. Thanks. I won't say anything about the camera because I already own a professional dslr camera, so I'll leave the camera comments out of this review. One final thing I love about the phone is that they decided to keep the headphone jack, some may love bluetooth connectivity, but I always believed that if you wanted to experience the full audio of a device, it has to be wired, no delays or dropped sounds, and most importantly, no batteries needed for wired headphones. Hopefully this will help you If you are on the fence considering an LG product, just remember to do your homework and research before you buy.

Great phone with a few drawbacks

I have had the LG G6 for well over a year now and I have to say I love most aspects of this device however I have come to find a few bigger drawbacks of not only the device but the support via updates. As most people know this phone got the snapdragon 821 chip instead of the 835 which was out at the time of release and that is one smaller disappointment I had with the device. The performance is still really great but this chipset will show its age sooner than the 835 will not to mention a few updates to Bluetooth and such that came with the 835.Now a larger issue I have with the phone is the camera. It has a dual lens setup like most higher end phones of late (Including the G5, its predecessor) but for some reason the G6 lost the laser assisted auto focus which I ... MoreI have had the LG G6 for well over a year now and I have to say I love most aspects of this device however I have come to find a few bigger drawbacks of not only the device but the support via updates. As most people know this phone got the snapdragon 821 chip instead of the 835 which was out at the time of release and that is one smaller disappointment I had with the device. The performance is still really great but this chipset will show its age sooner than the 835 will not to mention a few updates to Bluetooth and such that came with the 835.Now a larger issue I have with the phone is the camera. It has a dual lens setup like most higher end phones of late (Including the G5, its predecessor) but for some reason the G6 lost the laser assisted auto focus which I noticed right away after transitioning for the G5. The camera will struggle to get the correct focus the first try and you have to do a little shimmy to get the camera to refocus on what it should have picked up. I never had a problem with this on the G5. The quality of the camera is also a little lower than I would like to see on a phone of this range. After using the G5 for a year prior I felt like that phone had a higher quality camera both in the fact it had laser focus and quality of photos.Lastly, I have experienced LG's VERY slow software update process. The G6 finally received Oreo after a year of it being released to a first device and only a short while before Pie was released as well. LG in my honest opinion needs to step up their game when it comes to supporting updates to its devices and the speed at which they get them. To my eyes a minimum of two major updates should be supported by manufacturers pending hardware can run that software well.Overall I really have enjoyed this phone especially for the price you can get them on the used market. I would love to test out a G7 or V35 with the snapdragon 845 processor next but I want to be confident in the software updates will come in a timely manner.

Just shy of excellent

Let me start by saying I loved the LG G3 but really wanted the updated camera and processor when I purchased the G6. The camera is way better, and the processor works faster but after that I start to miss the G3. I miss the rear buttons and it takes two hands now to operate the camera. Also the wide angle lens is great for still photos but when using the video feature zooming in and out when it switches between the lenses it pauses and re shifts its focal point essentially ruining videos if you frequently use the zoom (for example live music). Also the microphone during video shoots can’t handle loud volumes and distorts during every bass beat. This is bluegrass mind you not rock so I was disappointed in that aspect. Also what I had not realized previously is how ... MoreLet me start by saying I loved the LG G3 but really wanted the updated camera and processor when I purchased the G6. The camera is way better, and the processor works faster but after that I start to miss the G3. I miss the rear buttons and it takes two hands now to operate the camera. Also the wide angle lens is great for still photos but when using the video feature zooming in and out when it switches between the lenses it pauses and re shifts its focal point essentially ruining videos if you frequently use the zoom (for example live music). Also the microphone during video shoots can’t handle loud volumes and distorts during every bass beat. This is bluegrass mind you not rock so I was disappointed in that aspect. Also what I had not realized previously is how much better the headphone jack works on the bottom on the phone and with the G6 it was moved back to the top. The headphone chord is constantly blocking the view of the screen and needs to be relocated. In addition if you want to charge the phone and use the headphone jack at the same time wires are going in both ends which eliminate the possibility to place the phone in a cup holder in the car and takes up a lot of unnecessary space on a desktop at the office. The glass back may help with wireless charging but it makes for a much heavier phone, and don’t the infrastructure in place to take advantage of wireless charging in my home or my car. Just about everybody I know uses a case to protect their investment so the glass back makes even less sense when someone can’t actually touch it. I have no idea why the enhanced sound of the Quad Dac is not available in the United States? U.S. Citizens like to listen to music too? I would trade that feature in a heartbeat over wireless charging. I typically like to keep my phones for two years but this one will not make it that long as soon as I can afford to upgrade. The 19/9 aspect ratio works great with Netflix but few others support this format so most of the screen is not in use watching media, and then makes it bigger than necessary. I thought I would miss the removable battery but the battery life has been surprisingly good and it has not been an issue. Well-built phone, but a few steps short of excellent that many people I know would never have the same issues I have had. The average user will likely love this phone. The amateur videographer, heavy headphone user, and music lover will not.

Phone made me want to change my routine

Prior to this phone I had an Lg Stylo 2 Plus. I used my phone for 4 things: 1) sending texts, 2) watching youtube, 3) played a few games and 4) actually used my phone to talk to people.After "spider-webbing" my screen, I needed something new and LG garnered my attention to their higher end G6 and V30 through a recent promotion.Specs were all top tier and the camera features were really snazzy, but the screen was what sold me on the G6.I watched a "guy at smokey train station" demo video and it blew my socks off. I was gonna buy a much cheaper, more basic phone, but I just wanted to have that experience available to me after seeing it.I love my full 42" 1080p tv and the 4k tv's I see out now make my pockets itch. I want to buy one so bad. Even though ... MorePrior to this phone I had an Lg Stylo 2 Plus. I used my phone for 4 things: 1) sending texts, 2) watching youtube, 3) played a few games and 4) actually used my phone to talk to people.After "spider-webbing" my screen, I needed something new and LG garnered my attention to their higher end G6 and V30 through a recent promotion.Specs were all top tier and the camera features were really snazzy, but the screen was what sold me on the G6.I watched a "guy at smokey train station" demo video and it blew my socks off. I was gonna buy a much cheaper, more basic phone, but I just wanted to have that experience available to me after seeing it.I love my full 42" 1080p tv and the 4k tv's I see out now make my pockets itch. I want to buy one so bad. Even though technically, the LG G6 screen is a specially tuned lcd adjusted for this specific application, meant to replicate HDR, the screen is still amazing and if I hadn't done the research to know the technical difference, I wouldn't know the difference.I titled my review "makes you want to change your routine," because now I am seeking out 4k entertainment options that make use of this wonderful screen. Prior to owning the G6, I didn't care about HD or 2k or 4k on my cell phone because it was a cell phone. I have actually found myself wanting to do things that give me more time to use this feature on the phone like use public transportation, rather than driving to have an excuse to watch stuff on this screen in transit. The screen on this thing is really like having a 4k tv in the palm of your hand.On top of the screen, you get the gorilla glass front and back, the amazing dual cameras I mentioned, the drop rating and water resistance rating.And let me not forget about the quick charging!!! This thing goes from 25% to 80% in a good half hour. At the same time, I also feel that the battery depletes pretty fast, but in the G6's defense, I also run live wallpapers and keep my emails updating every 15 minutes.Also on a side note, when I'm doing runs for uber the phone does get a little hot to the touch. For any reader to understand this side note, in full transparency, when I run my uber app, which uses the screen and the gps, I also have my bluetooth on for my phone calls and have my hotspot on to play online music through my car stereo. Also, this phone is also metal and glass, strong conductors and insulators of heat.All in all, I believe as I can access more HDR/4k type content I will feel more and more pleased with my purchase.LG did a great job with the G6 and I will be making my friends jealous when I show them the videos on this phone.

Room for improvement

I have had this phone since it came out and while it is overall a great phone, it is not without its flaws. A few months after i got got the phone the camera which was flawless when i first got the phone, started having some issues. The rear camera would periodically auto-focus upon starting up the camera application and it would be blurry which i thought was odd since the camera lens looked fine and there appeared to be no objects close by that were in focus. Now fast forward to now and the issue with the rear camera has progressively gotten to the point where the camera application's auto focus has become completely useless and i can only take wide-angle un-zoomed pictures. As soon as the bar at the bottom gets about 1/3 of the way from the left side of the screen ... MoreI have had this phone since it came out and while it is overall a great phone, it is not without its flaws. A few months after i got got the phone the camera which was flawless when i first got the phone, started having some issues. The rear camera would periodically auto-focus upon starting up the camera application and it would be blurry which i thought was odd since the camera lens looked fine and there appeared to be no objects close by that were in focus. Now fast forward to now and the issue with the rear camera has progressively gotten to the point where the camera application's auto focus has become completely useless and i can only take wide-angle un-zoomed pictures. As soon as the bar at the bottom gets about 1/3 of the way from the left side of the screen it then becomes out of focus and everything is blurry. It also does it with the camera on video as well as other external applications like snapchat, instagram, and facebook. Lately it has also started having an issue with the internal time setting as well, where on auto it sometimes shows that the time is roughly 5 hours ahead of the actual time for where I am.I am unsure if there are any fixes for any of these issues but aside from those two main issues i have really had no issues with the phone. Great battery life, runs smoothly, excelent video quality, despite dropping the phone a couple of times (all of which i have had it protected inside an otterbox phone case) the screen has held up, no cracks or color bleeding. Its still a solid phone despite those two issues.

The BEST LG phone yet!

The first thing that caught my eye was the new look and feel, slightly smaller than the V20, but with more screen real estate and a sleek aluminum body design. The next thing that I noticed was the CRYSTAL clear display, looking so crisp and clean that it is uncanny when watching hi-definition videos. On top of that, the fact that it supports higher frame rates makes the videos or games that support it, looking like you are watching live action. I also noticed the incredible responsiveness of the apps and features being quick and seamless, showing off LG's refinement of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor being next to none. The V30's cameras also did not disappoint, with the rear facing cameras showing a noticeable improvement in the quality of photos and videos. ... MoreThe first thing that caught my eye was the new look and feel, slightly smaller than the V20, but with more screen real estate and a sleek aluminum body design. The next thing that I noticed was the CRYSTAL clear display, looking so crisp and clean that it is uncanny when watching hi-definition videos. On top of that, the fact that it supports higher frame rates makes the videos or games that support it, looking like you are watching live action. I also noticed the incredible responsiveness of the apps and features being quick and seamless, showing off LG's refinement of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor being next to none. The V30's cameras also did not disappoint, with the rear facing cameras showing a noticeable improvement in the quality of photos and videos. Even with the forward facing camera not being much in improvement of the resolution, it still manages to take amazing selfies, as well as record pretty good quality videos. Plus, with the addition of CineVideo, and all the new toys in the built in camera app, with the V30's ability to record at 40k resolutions this phone is now the go-to for aspiring videographers, cinematographers, and even film producers or directors. The features have been improved as well, with the addition of Calling Plus+ making it to where you can seamlessly transition from WiFi to carrier calls without the call dropping. I also have noticed a slight improvement of my carrier signal quality, where before if I had 2 bars, I now have 3 to sometimes 4 bars. One of the best features of the V30 is it's built-in Hi-Fi Quad DAC, making it to where listening to music if you are using wired headphones is like listening live at a concert. There's more that I could say about this phone, but this review would go on to be multiple pages! All in all, this phone is definitely LG's top of the line flagship in the industry, and should make all others jealous with its top of the line hardware and software upgrades.

Unbeatable phone for the money

Still a great phone, especially for the incredibly low price of $80 I paid for it. The 5.7 inch screen is small enough that reaching every part of the screen isn't too much of a struggle, while being big enough that you don't have to squint. I honestly think 5.7-5.8 inches is the sweet spot for phone displays. The build quality is excellent, with glass on the back and solid-feeling metal sides. The LG G6 has a tanky, blocky type feel that few phones today go for, and it reminds me a bit of older metal HTC phones in that regard. Even though it has a Snapdragon 821 which is several generations old, I haven't noticed any slowdowns or performance issues. However, it can get a bit hot when installing lots of apps or playing intensive games. The camera is pretty good, ... MoreStill a great phone, especially for the incredibly low price of $80 I paid for it. The 5.7 inch screen is small enough that reaching every part of the screen isn't too much of a struggle, while being big enough that you don't have to squint. I honestly think 5.7-5.8 inches is the sweet spot for phone displays. The build quality is excellent, with glass on the back and solid-feeling metal sides. The LG G6 has a tanky, blocky type feel that few phones today go for, and it reminds me a bit of older metal HTC phones in that regard. Even though it has a Snapdragon 821 which is several generations old, I haven't noticed any slowdowns or performance issues. However, it can get a bit hot when installing lots of apps or playing intensive games. The camera is pretty good, although I think the camera on my current Galaxy S8 Plus daily driver is of superior quality. It does have a wide angle lens though, which lets you fit much more into a shot without having to back up. This is especially awesome for group photos or shots of architecture. LG's software can feel a bit bloated at times, but I never found it detracted from the performance. I really do think this phone should have had 64GB minimum, on Oreo the software alone takes up 10GB, leaving you with only 22GB to play with. If you're a heavy user, you're going to want a MicroSD card to store your stuff, which the G6 supports. The phone I received was advertised as B quality, but I cannot find any marks, scratches or dents anywhere on this thing. Delivery was lightning fast and only took 2 or 3 days. Battery life has been excellent so far, and Accubattery estimates the total battery capacity of my G6 at 91% of the starting 3300mAh, which is amazing for a phone that has presumably seen 2 years of use. Overall, this is a phone packed to the brim with features like wide angle camera, IP68 water/dust resistance, headphone jack, the list of great features is so long it's difficult to include them all here, and the performance is lightning fast, all for the unbelievable price of $80. I bought this as a backup phone, but I honestly might be using this as my daily driver from now on, it's that good. I couldn't be happier with this purchase and would recommend this to anyone looking for an excellent smartphone for an unbeatable price.

Underated Excellence! Love it!

I bought this phone when it first came out and was very excited to be one of the first to own one. I love the features of this phone including the FullVision display (the tall screen makes the phone comfortable to hold, dolby vision is astounding, and media consumption in the tall aspect ratio from movies to long web articles is a real pleasure without rounded edges like the galaxy), the dual camera set-up (wide angle camera is amazing in certain situations and provides photo opportunities you just can't capture on other devices), the waterproofing and the military drop standards are piece of mind every manufacturer should supply and is another great feature (I like to keep my phone clean and being able to give it a quick rinse without worry is amazing). I also love ... MoreI bought this phone when it first came out and was very excited to be one of the first to own one. I love the features of this phone including the FullVision display (the tall screen makes the phone comfortable to hold, dolby vision is astounding, and media consumption in the tall aspect ratio from movies to long web articles is a real pleasure without rounded edges like the galaxy), the dual camera set-up (wide angle camera is amazing in certain situations and provides photo opportunities you just can't capture on other devices), the waterproofing and the military drop standards are piece of mind every manufacturer should supply and is another great feature (I like to keep my phone clean and being able to give it a quick rinse without worry is amazing). I also love the skin on android from LG and always have, the skin provides actual improvements to android without slowing down the phone. With that said I do have some criticisms. The LG G6+ came out a few months later with features I would have liked to have in my unit such as the quad dac. I am quite the audiophile and would have loved that feature on the original device rather than releasing it on the same flagship a few months later. Also I wish the wide angle camera had OIS and found that my camera glass had scratched when the rest of the phone is blemish free. This could be fixed under warranty perhaps but is annoying and I don't want to have to go without my device for something so trivial. I also like the additional colors of the LG G6+ and will again have to live with that. Bluetooth 5.0 would also have been nice because I use many different bluetooth devices as well. All in all out of all the devices currently on the market I do not see a better option than the LG G6. I love the features, utility, software and hardware in this elegant and competent package and would not trade up for anything. I also love LG products. I have an LG television which is getting old but still looks stunning after 6 years, might upgrade to an LG OLED soon. Thanks to LG keep making amazing products. Lastly the addition of the Google Home LG G6 launch promotion and the second year promise (when the warranty runs out I'll be getting the LG G8 by then) were even more icing on the LG G6 cake. Heck we are past icing and cherries and all that we moved on to RGBing this LG G6 cake haha.