LG Electronics is preparing to release its next-gen flagship LG V40 ThinQ in early October, a little over a month after Samsung’s Galaxy Note 9 goes on sale. Samsung will unveil the Note 9 on August 9th and launch it on August 24th.
LG V40 ThinQ to go on sale on October 5th
The V40 ThinQ will reportedly feature as many as three cameras on the back and dual cameras on the front to take on the competition. Carrier sources told ETNews that Korean carriers such as KT, SK Telecom, and LG Uplus have agreed to start selling the V40 ThinQ on October 5th. The phone is expected to launch in international markets on October 18th.
LG Electronics reportedly chose the October timeline to avoid competition with the Galaxy Note 9 and the 2018 iPhones (expected to debut in September). Interestingly, Google’s third-gen Pixel phones are also rumored to debut in October.
The Korean company will hold an event after the IFA trade show in mid-September to unveil the LG V40 ThinQ. The biggest highlight of the new phone will be its triple rear camera setup. Sources told ETNews that the handset would feature a 20-megapixel main lens, a 16MP wide-angle lens, and a 13MP telephoto sensor on the back. The ThinQ branding suggests that AI will be deeply integrated into the camera and other features of the device.
It will have dual cameras on the front, probably to let you take portrait selfies. ETNews adds that the front-facing sensors will also have 3D facial recognition similar to Face ID on the iPhone X.
Further, the Korean publication notes that the LG V40 ThinQ will ditch the “conventional” design. It means unlike LG G7 ThinQ, it could launch without the display notch. The device will have a huge 90% screen-to-body ratio, leading to slim bezels. By comparison, the G7 ThinQ had the screen-to-body ratio of 83% and last year’s LG V30 had 81%.
The LG V40 ThinQ will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 845 SoC, the same chipset that would run the Galaxy Note 9 and Google’s upcoming Pixel 3. It will also have the Quad DAC speaker and a dedicated button to activate Google Assistant. The V40 ThinQ is said to retain the fingerprint sensor on the back panel. At this point, it is unclear whether it will have an OLED or LCD screen.
Will it hurt the Galaxy Note 9 sales?
Should Samsung be worried about the LG V40 ThinQ, especially considering it will have a triple camera on the back? Recent leaks suggest the Galaxy Note 9 will launch with a dual rear camera setup. I believe Samsung has no reason to worry, and there is only a slim chance the V40 ThinQ would hurt the Galaxy Note 9 sales.
For one, it doesn’t matter whether you have three cameras or 30 cameras on the back of your device if smartphone photography is not your area of expertise. Yes, LG devices lag far behind their Samsung counterparts when it comes to photography. Even phones made by Chinese vendors like Huawei, OnePlus, and Xiaomi take far superior photos and videos than LG’s best handsets. Samsung’s flagship phones are among the best when it comes to photography. There is a good chance the dual camera Galaxy Note 9 would be superior to the triple camera LG V40 ThinQ.
Second, the Galaxy Note 9 will be a beast in its own right. According to the rumor mill, it will pack up to 8GB RAM and run the Snapdragon 845 or Exynos 9810 chips depending on the market. Chinese tipster Ice Universe claims the Note 9 will bring a new Crown UX software skin on top of Android Oreo to enhance the user experience. What’s more, Samsung’s phablet will get an upgraded S Pen stylus with Bluetooth connectivity and an improved Bixby 2.0 AI assistant that will enable a more natural communication between the user and the device. Oh, did I mention the Note 9 will have a gorgeous 6.4-inch Super AMOLED Infinity display? It is also said to include a bigger 3,850mAh battery.
Third, do you remember the last time LG delivered a flagship phone that took the market by storm? I don’t. The company seems focused on rushing products out the door hoping for a hit as its mobile business continues to sink, instead of creating truly innovative phones that grab consumers’ attention. Example? The LG V30 was launched late last year. Before you could blink, there was LG V30S ThinQ. Just when some people were making up their mind to give the V30S ThinQ a try, there was LG V35 ThinQ. All of them have failed to revive the company’s smartphone business. If the LG V40 ThinQ debuts in October, the company would have launched four models in the V-series in just about a year. Impressive churnout rate!
