To kick off Day one of MWC 2016, a few smartphones were announced and showed off as expected, but among these announcements was the LG G5 which is LG’s first approach at modularity.

Before I get into specifics of the LG G5, I just want to point out that seeing a new company try their luck at modularity is most welcomed. 2015 was somewhat of a disappointing year for modular fans in that we were all looking forward to Google’s long awaited modular smartphone, which did not arrive, but if it takes them an extra year to make the device, then we’ll all just have to wait. This year, however, we are all expecting things to change as Google, Blocks and Circular Devices are among the top companies expected to show off their modular devices.

LG’s G5 is not a complete modular smartphone, it simply utilizes the use of modularity to add additional features through the removal of the very bottom/ chin of the device. The LG G5 currently has three Modular chins (or should I say Chin modules?): The standard module which consists of an attachment support for the battery, a Hi-Fi Plus module with B&O Play, and the LG CAM module. The standard module will come attached to the device and you will be able to purchase the other two modules to add functionality to the G5. All additional modules will have attachment support for the battery in addition to providing unique functions.

The CAM Plus module is a little bulkier than the standard module which adds additional grip to the device similar to that of a digital camera. It consists of physical buttons for zoom, power, shutter control and record. The extra bulk that the module has is due to a 1200 mAh battery which when connected adds some extra battery power to the device.

The Hi-Fi Plus module was created in collaboration with Band and Oufsen, a Danish consumer electronics company that designs and manufactures audio products. When attached the Hi-Fi module adds superior audio decoding to the LG G5 and supports up to 32-bit/384kHz high-def audio files.

Other features of the LG G5 Are:

Chipset: Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 820 Processor

Display: 5.3-inch Quad HD IPS Quantum Display (2560 x 1440 / 554ppi)

Memory: 4GB LPDDR4 RAM / 32GB UFS ROM / microSD (up to 2TB)

Camera: Rear Standard 16MP, Wide 8MP / Front 8MP

Battery: 2,800mAh (removable)

OS: Android 6.0 Marshmallow

Size: 149.4 x 73.9 x 7.7mm

Weight: 159g

Network: LTE / 3G / 2G

Connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11 a, b, g, n, ac / USB Type-C / NFC / Bluetooth 4.2

Colors: Silver / Titan / Gold / Pink

LG’s approach to modularity is quite simple, and you can see that they played it very safe. The slot like design that they went with allows anyone who is interested in a very simple device to be able to purchase the LG G5 and not have to worry about having to deal with modules that they don’t want, while at the same time offering something that a modular fan can play with. And with the addition of top hardwares such as a quad HD display, and the Snapdragon 820 chip coupled with 4GB of RAM, there really isn’t much to complain about no matter what your reason is for purchasing the device.

While it could be said that the LG G5 has something to offer anyone, it doesn’t offer much to the true modular fan, but, I’m pretty sure that hardcore modular fans aren’t the crowd that LG hopes to please with this offering. I am however very interested to see if the average smartphone user will gravitate to the LG G5 for the additional modular features.

But to help sell the G5 as a modular smartphone, LG has got to offer more that just two modules, and even if they come around to offering more modules, we still have to wonder if they have a long term plan since these devices are usually forgotten after their yearly predecessor arrives. It makes no sense purchasing extra modules for a device that will not be supported after a year or two, you will simply be left with modular paperweight and no device to make use of them.

But with that being said, It is very exciting to see LG trying their luck at modularity, and we look forward to see how consumers will respond to the device.