Hands on with LG's new flagship phone, the G4

Today LG announced its new G4 flagship at an event in London, and we had a chance to go hands on with device. From first appearance, the G4 takes the best from the G3 and combines it with the curved design of the G Flex 2 but how is the LG G4 in person? Let’s take a look.

As shown in our hands on video, the G4 borrows several features from both the G3 and the G Flex 2 but also adds in several upgrades, such as an improved camera and display. On the front, the near bezel-less 5.5-inch Quad HD Quantum Display offers an immersive experience while the curved rear ensures that while the handset is large – it measures 148.9 x 76.1 x 6.3-9.8 mm – it remains easy to hold.

On the back, the LG G4 shares many similarities with the G3 but with a few key differences in both the camera and the rear cover itself. The camera now has an upgraded 16MP sensor – versus 13MP on the G3 – and the use of a colour spectrum ensures outstanding colours and contrast in images captured.

The G4 also comes with laser autofocus and phase detection and LG have added the unique ability to double press the power button to capture an image. While this will have its uses, it’s likely to be less useful than you'd think as you’ll need to keep the handset still for it to launch the camera, detect the subject, and capture the image.

The G4 borrows the curved design from the G Flex 2 in a rather subtle way with LG opting to introduce a slight curve to improve the usability of the handset in one hand. As a result, the G4 is as big as an average phablet but still remains usable and I can easily wrap my hand around the back of the handset. The size alone means that the G4 is one of few handsets to successfully bridge the size-gap between phablets and smartphones by offering a large screen in a body that’s easy to hold.

In our hands on video, I had time to use the G4 with black leather rear cover and this is probably my favourite of all the various options. While the leather may fade over time – as all real leather products do – the black colour should help hide any discolouring and if I was going to buy a G4, theblack leather would, without doubt, be my choice. However, if leather isn't your thing, then LG has a titanium finished plastic rear cover - as you'll see in these hands on images - which is actually rather nice to hold as well.

The LG G4 is expected to land in stores by June at a cost of around $750 (~£500 in the UK) and at this price, it’s cheaper than both the Galaxy S6 Edge and HTC One M9 but arguably offers a more impressive experience. I’ll leave you with our LG G4 hands on gallery.