LG V40 ThinQ review: the top missed

Last October the South Koreans have presented the LG V40 ThinQ. In the past few weeks I've had the opportunity to put the thinking smartphone through its paces. Now there is my conclusion and tell you why it just missed the top.

Even if we will see a new smartphone from LG shortly, you can also take a closer look at the current models. It's been almost a year now - but that doesn't mean that the smartphone is necessarily bad. This is exactly why I asked LG in July for a test device for the LG V40 ThinQ. This is my review now.

Packaging & exterior

The package of the LG V40 ThinQ contains a QuickCharger, together with a USB-C charger, a cleaning cloth and quick start guides. USB-C headphones are also on board.

The back of the V40 ThinQ comes in a mix of glass and metal. The metal makes it feel no less slippery than like devices with a glass back. In fact, on the contrary: I found the smartphone more slippery than comparable models with a glass back. On the side there is also the classic volume rocker, followed by a power button.

In addition, the LG flagship also has a Google Assistant button. With this - as the name suggests - the smart assistant can be started with the push of a button. Let's put it this way: I found it more annoying than really useful. The Google Assistant button can at least be assigned to another app or action.

Display

Like all other smartphones in recent months, the V40 also comes with a notch (a display recess). For this reason, you have very thin display bezels both at the top and at the bottom. Two front cameras, a brightness and proximity sensor plus an ear cup are installed in this recess on the top. It is of course not as narrow as a drop notch, but still not really wider than competing models.

Display without borders, but with a large notch. (Image: © 2019 TechnikNews)

Overall, a 6,4-inch OLED display with a ratio of 19,5: 9 is used. In addition, it offers a pixel density of 537 PPI and the resolution of 3.120 x 1.440 pixels remains the same as in the previous V30.

But somehow the display of the LG V40 ThinQ seemed very dark to me in the sunlight. A look at the data sheet then confirmed my suspicion: a light intensity of 350 cd/m² is used here. The Huawei P30 Pro For example, the OnePlus 700 comes with almost 7 cd/m² Pro with almost 590 cd/m². So there is still some catching up to do here – otherwise all the content is crisp and sharp. The color matching also fits. There is also an always-on display, which can even be adjusted quite generously in the settings.

Performance & software

The performance in everyday life fits. Inside is Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 – not the newest, but still perfectly fine Proprocessor. This is supported by 6 GB of RAM - 64 GB or 128 GB of internal memory are used to store apps, files and images. This can also be expanded by up to 1 TB using a micro SD card. Of course, I did a few benchmark tests for you again:

• Antutu: 244.148 points
• Geekbench 4 (single): 2.709 points
• Geekbench 4 (multi): 8.717 points

What I don't like, however, is the software together with LG's update policy. The smartphone received an update to Android 9.0 shortly after the end of my test phase, which I was therefore no longer able to test. But in general, updates, let alone security patches, seem to be treated rather carelessly. Otherwise, the style of the surface is based on Samsung's software - the settings, for example, look very similar.

Camera

Let's take a closer look at the camera on the LG V40 ThinQ. This comes in triple format with 12 MP (standard, f / 1.5), 12 MP (telephoto, f / 2.4) and 16 MP (wide angle, f / 1.9). Video recordings are possible in UHD in 30 and 60 fps, in 1080p with 30/60/240 fps. Zooming is possible up to two times - you can't go any further without loss. The front camera uses a dual camera: 8 MP (standard, f / 1.9) and 5 MP (wide angle, f / 2.2). Sounds much better than a single cam, but it takes just as good photos as with competing models. The wide-angle camera is not a bad idea for group selfies.

A dual camera with a wide angle sensor for better group selfies. Plus point. (Image: © 2019 TechnikNews)

In general, I was quite enthusiastic about the camera quality review - but what bothered me the most was the software. The autofocus often takes a long time to focus and then the shutter release often takes forever. Perhaps these points have now been fixed after the update to Android Pie, but unfortunately, as mentioned, I could no longer avoid itprobeer The daytime pictures are very good, even if the photos in "AI Cam" mode are a bit too colorful. The artificial intelligence recognizes the subject and optimizes the image accordingly - but don't use it, it looks unnatural.

The triple camera delivers solid images - but the software is not necessarily the best. (Image: © 2019 TechnikNews)

Otherwise you should definitely have HDR activated (by default on automatic), which significantly improved the image quality in my test. With the LG V40 ThinQ, we get pretty good, sharp and detailed images during the day. However, these colors were often not really in line with reality and looked far too artificial. At night, the images also appear rather muddy and noisy.

LG V40 ThinQ camera - test images

Sound - awesome

I was really blown away by the sound of the LG V40 ThinQ (with headphones). Here you can not only specify exactly what kind of sound quality you want in the settings, but also support other sound features. These include Hi-Fi Quad DAC, which ensures a clearer sound experience - there are also DTS: X surround effects. However, these functions are only active with real over-ear headphones.

Did I already mention the 3,5mm jack connector? There is! (Image: © 2019 TechnikNews)

These functions are not available with USB-C or Bluetooth headphones. This also applies to the integrated loudspeaker, which sounds really rickety and not really good when turned up loud. But that was also the case with LG predecessors - there is still room for improvement here.

Battery

The battery comes with a capacity of 3300 mAh on the data sheet. It seems pretty small, and it is too: the battery often went away in flight. Getting through from 07:00 a.m. to 20:00 p.m. on a single charge was very difficult. Although I hadn't played in between and started other demanding apps. In my defense: no WiFi was active here - that way you could have tickled out even more battery life.

If you run out of juice, you can recharge it using Quick Charge 3.0 - up to 50% battery capacity takes around 30 minutes on electricity. After that, the whole thing slows down and a full charge takes over an hour. The LG flagship also supports wireless charging.

Conclusion

While I'd love to find positive points for the LG V40 ThinQ - I'm sorry. Even if I really like the back, the workmanship and the extended sound functions and I find extras such as a wide-angle camera useful for group selfies, I cannot give a clear purchase recommendation. The neglected software, the often artificial-looking camera and the slow autofocus and the short battery life prevent me from doing this.

Although the smartphone has now become significantly cheaper from its original 899 euros (RRP) (currently just under 500 euros). Nevertheless, there are better models from the competition - good examples in this price range are the Huawei P30 and the OnePlus 7. In addition, LG does not seem to be proud of the current flagship itself and does not even sell the model at the moment on Amazon (or is no longer available) and many other online retailers. In Austria, the smartphone is currently only available from MediaMarkt and Saturn - but only in stores.

The LG ThinQ smartphone will soon be available on the IFA 2019 queue - we will follow the performance. My advice until then: don't buy a V40 anymore and wait for the successor.

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