LG has been slowly improving their line-up of Android devices, quietly enhancing their hardware over different models to the point where their flagship G line of phones are anticipated with much enthusiasm especially after the introduction of the G2 that we reviewed a while back, Sadly the review unite I received for the G Flex came without a box so I couldn't do an unboxing video or even talk about the curved box.
Smartphones have been a bit staid when it comes to design for quite a while so it’s been a lot of fun to play with something a little different. The phone attracts attention wherever you go, first with the massive 6 inch screen, then the curve, the flexibility and even still the rear mounted keys. With this phone, LG has thrown a lot of different design changes at the wall and will invariably be seeing what sticks.
Before we get started let's take a quick look at the specs:
Display:
6.0 inch Plastic OLED HD Display at 1280×720.
Processor:
2.26GHz Quad-Core Snapdragon 800 SoC with Adreno 330 GPU.
RAM: 2GB
Memory: 32GB on-board Storage.
Camera:
13MP Rear Camera with LED Flash with UHD(3840x2160) video recording and 2.1MP Front-facing camera.
Connectivity:
Bluetooth 4.0), WiFi 802.11 b/g/n Dual (2.4/5GHz), GPS, NFC, IR Remote.
Radios:
2G (900/1800/2100/2600), HSPA (900/2100), LTE (800/1800/2600).
OS: Android 4.2.2, Jelly Bean.
Size: 160.5×81.6×8.7mm @ 177g.
Battery: 3,500mAh Stepped Li-Po Battery.
Hardware
The G Flex is a purpose built phone, it’s been designed with focus on the main feature of the phone – that curved screen, LG have stressed that there have been no compromises in the design and build of the G Flex and that’s evidenced in the high level laundry list of components that will impress even the most power hungry hardcore user, from the Snapdragon 800 CPU to the 3,500mAh battery it’s a finely polished and well thought out device.
The G Flex is a really large phone to start with – with a 6 inch screen you can’t get away from it and it’s one of the first downsides that a large number of people will target when they see it, but personally I love phaplates and I consider the big screen a plus, The G Flex is deceptively comfortable to hold for such a large phone. Perhaps due to the curve. Yes, the physical buttons arrangement is pretty hard to get over especially with a big device like this one, but it also has it's upsides... we'll get to that in a minute.
The front of the phone is dominated by a 6 inch display, and it’s the first Plastic OLED (P-OLED) screen to launch on a smartphone. On the front, above the screen you find the various ambient light and proximity sensors as well as the front facing camera, like the LG G2, the G Flex continues their unique hardware key placement of placing the volume rocker and power key on the rear of the phone beneath the camera lens, they also moved the IR blaster to the back next to the camera which I didn't dig because you're going to have to hold the device in portrait when using the remote control instead of horizontally (like all the other phones). The downside to the rear key arrangement is difficulty in taking screenshots and lowering the volume while watching videos, nothing major but it’s really difficult with this rear-key setup.
The build quality is nice, the usual test of getting flex from a device to test the durability is null and void with the G Flex. But even in this respect, once you’re over the fact you’re flexing your phone, it feels like its meant to flex. There is a creak when it does flex, but flexing a phone through the range of flexibility that the G Flex has available will elicit more than a creak in any other phone.
From the curved screen, with a plain understated front with protuberances on the sides of the device, even the microSIM tray on the left hand side can’t be seen readily. Anyway you look at it, the G Flex is a striking, memorable design and overall one that’s very pleasing to look at.
Screen
That 6 inch screen is without doubt the crown jewel in the G Flex. Yes, The low resolution and low pixel density are not exactly there to blow you away but the ability of OLED to deliver consistent blacks works particularly well on the curved screen, especially when watching movies is one of the primary use cases for this phone. Though it still has issues with whites, it’s not as noticeable given the darker theme on the LG Skin used on the G Flex and rarely during playing a movie.
The screen on the G Flex is bright and with the curve, seemingly doesn't pick up as much glare as a more traditional flat screen will, with very little light reflected off it making it easy to read under most conditions. That’s overstating it, the only time I had issues with reading the screen was in the midday sun and I've had far more problems with phones with better screens than the G Flex.
Camera
The camera is one part of the G Flex I feel doesn't quite live up to the ‘no compromise’ stance that LG has projected when speaking of developing the G Flex. As grandiose a statement as that is, there’s really only one problem with the camera on the G Flex and that’s the lack of Optical Image Stabilisation.
For a smartphone camera the LG G2 was one of the best smartphone shooters I had the pleasure to use, the G Flex camera uses the same 13MP rear camera module, but just lacks the OIS that made the G2 a stunning shooter in low light conditions.
At the end of the day, you probably won’t be disappointed in the G Flex camera. As far as pictures on the G Flex are concerned you will get a beautifully true to life colour correct shot, as long as you’re in good to Ok lighting conditions. In low light... there's nothing you can do really.
While the phone video recording is acceptable – it’s nothing flash, but it will certainly get the job done – the exciting news from the US is that the Android 4.4 update for the G Flex will bring a new feature to the camera – 4K video recording, but exactly when will we see that internationally is not certain.
LG phones have traditionally come with most kinds of connectivity and the G Flex is no different, with the exception of 802.11 AC Wifi and a 900MHz Radio for 3G calls, there’s little to complain about in terms of connecting the G Flex to anything. Bluetooth accessories connect quickly and have a decent range. NFC is also present.
Sadly since I live in Jordan and we have no LTE nor our 3G is decent, I can't judge the device's performance in that area.
The sound on the G Flex is decent, the sound works well through a headphone/earphone setup, likewise with a Bluetooth headset. As usual with a phone speaker, it’s an Ok experience but nothing to blow you away with awesome sound that you can use to show off videos on your new curved screen beast.
The G Flex has a single rear facing speaker on the back of the device. While you can cup your hand around the back of the phone while holding it, to direct the volume, it’s just not ideal. Who wants to spend time consuming media with your speaker facing away from you? The majority of the time you will of course be listening through head/earphones but still, it’s one decision I hope they revisit in any possible sequel.
With its Snapdragon 800 SoC, 2GB of RAM and while brilliantly coloured and good looking but low resolution screen, there’s little issues here with speed at any part of the interface on the G Flex. LG’s ability to fine tune even their admittedly heavy skin to perform buttery smooth is an amazing feat for a company who was releasing some less than stellar devices a few years ago.
Playing games like Asphalt 8 will occasionally see a dropped frame or two, but it’s not something you notice hugely unless you’re very attentive and overall games will perform quite admirably.
Software has always been the point at which LG phones continue to let me down. But it’s not that they released it with Android 4.2.2, a more than 12 month old version, nor is it due to their lack of features, integration of tools or overall functionality, because LG excels at including all of those things, no, what LG has consistently failed to deliver is a good looking interface….until the G2.
With the G Flex, LG has done what I thought impossible up till recently, they've made me like the look of their interface and they did it by making one very easy change – they made a dark theme. Whereas the LG skin on previous phones has been light and repeatedly called cartoonish, by simple dint of giving dark overtones throughout their OS, the phone feels more usable.
The notification drawer is similarly still asking for some work, but as LG use the Notification Shade to show off QSlide Apps you can forgive them somewhat, because given half a chance, QSlide Apps can be extremely helpful. Similarly, the Quick Settings toggles are ordered to show off Quick Memo first and foremost, but unlike the seemingly useless and un-configurable quick settings from stock Android, the order of all these quick settings can be changed easily.
Overall, LG has done a nice job with the Optimus UI on the G Flex by making that one change. The software has functionally changed very little from the LG G2, with a few exceptions. LG has added a few features to their software which enhance the user experience further for those wanting to experience video on the curved screen of the G Flex.
First and foremost of these is Q Theater, a function which is activated by holding the phone in landscape and using your thumbs to slide out from the centre, like sliding curtains across a theatre screen you’re then taken straight to a multimedia hub where you can view pictures, video or YouTube.
Next they've implemented a multi-tasking service on top of the floating QSlide Apps option that you normally get. Press and hold the back button and you can run a dual window setup with one App at the top and one App below. The Apps you can choose from are mostly, but not limited to, QSlide Apps, which can still be used in their capacity as floating Apps over any running App. This dual-App screen is certainly handy for multi-tasking and really shows off that gorgeous 6 inch screen and just how much real estate you have there.
LG has also made a change to the soft keys adding a notification key which you can add from the settings menu. Where as previously you could always add in which soft keys you want – except multi-tasking – and the order they display in, you can now add a soft key which pulls down the notification shade. A really useful option for using a 6 inch device for people with smaller hands, even with my larger hands I found it useful.
Lastly on the lock screen you will notice that the accelerometer is active to show off a cool feature that just looks neat on the curved screen. Tilt the phone up and the view on the lock screen animation scrolls up, likewise for down. It’s just a cool feature.
Battery life
If you want a phone purely based on battery life, you can not go wrong with the G Flex. The LG Chem division in charge of battery technology has outdone themselves, cramming a 3,500mAh battery into a platform that is not only not regularly shaped, but also curved and flexible.
With the G Flex I was comfortably using the phone with every application and function I wanted to for over a full day without even worrying about where I was going to find a charger. This kind of battery life and integrity is something I haven't experienced since using the G2 last year and the G Flex kicks it up a notch from what I thought was an exceptional battery life on that phone.
Excellent performance.
LG's launcherSkin (Optimus UI) has become extremely usable.
Very long battery life.
Cons:
No SD card slot.
No Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) for the camera.
No Full HD screen.
Bottom line
The G Flex brings together a lot of cool, innovative and futuristic technology – the curved screen, flexible design, self healing back – This device is all in all an experiment that LG created to test out the waters in terms of customer feedback and industrial design, It's something quite unique and special... and I can't wait to see more.
