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One of the stars of this year's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the LG G5 is anything but conventional by today's smartphone standards, with an entourage of swappable hardware bits that set it apart from its competitors as well as its predecessors.

Modular components are not the only novelty that the G5 brings to LG's flagship smartphone range. All-new design language and a premium aluminum body are also among the device's key features, with the latter a being a particularly welcome bit. Earlier LG phones were often criticized for being a tad too plasticky for their price range.

A duo of camera sensors on the back is another cool new trick. The feature consists of one regular and one wide-angled snapper. Together with the swappable hardware components, they will help the device stand out in the contested market for top-shelf smartphones.

A Few Nerdy Bits

Like every high-end smartphone these days, the LG G5 comes with a spec sheet that's full of impressive numbers. Below are some of the most important ones you should know.

LG G5 packs a 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chipset, which will be standard on many high-end smartphones this year. The SoC supports LTE network download speeds of up to 600 Mbps.

Memory-wise, the handset features 4GB of RAM, 32GB of built-in memory, and a microSD card slot for further expansion.

LG has outfitted the smartphone with a duo of camera sensors on its back — a 16MP snapper with a standard lens and an 8MP unit with a wide-angle. The device is capable of capturing 4K video.

The front-facing camera of the handset is an 8MP unit.

The smartphone's display is a 5.3-inch QHD Quantum IPS unit by LG with 554 pixels-per-inch.

There is a fingerprint sensor on the back of the smartphone. It is integrated into its power/lock button.

The G5 boots Android Marshmallow out of the box with custom user interface.

The handset features a 2,800 mAh removable battery. It supports Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 over the USB Type-C port.

Other connectivity features of the device include Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.2, and NFC.

The LG G5 is 7.7 millimeters thick and weighs 159 grams.

In the Metal

The LG G5 looks nothing like any of its predecessors — only its power/lock key with the embedded fingerprint sensor harken back to the smartphone it replaces. With a sleek metal body and rounded corners, the G5 takes LG's design language in a new, more exciting and premium direction.

LG deserves credit for executing the device's removable bottom (home of the swappable battery, as well as a connecting point for the optional modular components) so neatly into the design of the G5. Typically, such feature requires a removable back cover.

There are four eye-catching color options to choose your LG G5 from, though their availability depends on the wireless carrier of your choice. They include silver, titanium gray, gold, and pink.

The build quality of the smartphone is solid as expected. LG G5 is crafted from aluminum alloy, so it looks and feels quite sturdy. The handset's screen is entirely covered by Corning Gorilla Glass 4, so accidental scratches are highly unlikely.

Even though the device is well put together, we'd still recommend that you pick up a protective case for it. That metal body will surely handle accidental scratches, but drops might not turn out so well.

LG G5's 2,800 mAh removable battery surprised us pleasantly by easily powering the smartphone through a day of use. Charging of the smartphones is extremely fast thanks to its support for Qualcomm's Quick Charge 3.0 technology — you can fill more than three-quarters of the battery in a tad over half an hour with the device's bundled charger.

Most importantly, power users can swap out the battery with another one when it runs out. LG offers a separate battery charger, thus allowing you to never connect the device to a power outlet if you wish.

Oddly, wireless charging is a missing feature on the LG G5. Considering the incredible convenience it offers, we wish this weren't the case, especially in 2016.

Because of its ultra-thin screen bezels, the LG G5 handles much easier than its 5.3-inch display diagonal suggests. However, the device's metal body is quite slippery, so this is another reason to get a protective case for it.

Display

LG's high-end smartphones have always features some of the best screen panels in the business, and the G5 continues the tradition. Developed in-house by LG, the device's 5.3-inch Quantum IPS display is tack-sharp (it has a resolution of 2,560 by 1,440 pixels), as well as capable of delivering excellent color reproduction and viewing angles.

Sunlight legibility of the display is quite impressive too. You will be able to use the LG G5 even in bright sunlight.

Like its Samsung rival, LG G5 has an option to keep its display always-on. Designed to go easy on the device's battery, the feature consists of a clock, as well as a display of the device's notifications.

LG Friends

LG has dubbed the modular components for the G5 as "Friends." At launch, the latter include a camera grip, a 360-degree camera, and a VR headset. Managing the components takes place via an app.

A high-end headphones amp by Bang & Olufsen and an LG Rolling Bot will also be available at some point in the future. The latter is a cool-looking spherical robot with a built-in camera, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth connectivity. The gadget can be remotely controlled from the LG G5.

The camera grip is arguably one of the handiest accessories from the bunch. It allows users to fully utilize the dual cameras of the device by offering a handy grip, and a zoom wheel. Coupled with the device's powerful snappers, the accessory can truly replace a cheap point-and-shoot camera.

LG's 360 VR virtual reality headset plugs into the USB Type-C port of the smartphone. It utilizes its powerful hardware to deliver content.

A pair of premium wireless earbuds and a standalone battery charger are also among the available accessories for the LG G5. Also, the tech giant is hard at work at courting third-party companies to create their own bits for the device.

Customized Android Marshmallow

LG G5 boots Google's latest Android Marshmallow. LG's latest custom user interface doesn't the usual app drawer out of the box, so it looks rather iPhonesque. We reckon that seasoned Android users, as well as owners of previous LG G-series smartphones, might find it a bit difficult to get used to.

Thankfully, LG gives G5 users the opportunity to switch to a more familiar UI via an alternative homescreen launcher. It is available to download and install for free from the LG World content store, and it will bring back the app drawer.

Because of the powerful hardware it packs, LG G5 is capable of delivering a smooth UI experience. Switching between multpile apps is seamless as expected from a top-shelf smartphone.

Two Excellent Cameras

The two camera sensors on the back of the LG G5 are undoubtedly its biggest highlight alongside the modular components. The setup consists of a 16MP main camera sitting behind a lens with f/1.8 aperture and an 8MP wide-angle snapper with f/2.4 lens. Both camera's optical image stabilization, as well as laser focus.

Just like in the case of last year's G4, LG offers three distinct camera interfaces at your disposal in the G5. Those include an auto mode (enabled by default), simple mode (you take photos by tapping anywhere on the screen with no settings whatsoever), and manual mode. The latter allows more advanced shutterbugs to control the camera's white balance, shutter speed, and aperture, among other settings.

The image quality of the "regular" 16MP camera that the LG G5 packs is excellent. Photos come out with nice exposure and colors, as well as plenty of detail, especially in conditions with good lighting.

The dynamic range is also quite good — the camera has auto HDR mode, which is quite handy on this instance. Thanks to the camera's bright aperture and stabilized lens, low-light images captured by the camera are also stellar.

The 8MP wide-angle camera is equipped by a 135-degree lens, so it can capture a whole lot of your surroundings. Its image quality is good, though nowhere near that of the 16MP snapper.

An 8MP camera with f/2.0 lens is in charge of selfies at the front of the device. Its image quality is solid.

Switching between either camera requires a tap on the well-placed button in the UI.

Just like any top-shelf smartphone in 2016, LG G5 can capture 4K video with exceptional quality. This is hardly a surprise, as the device's predecessors also did great on this instance.

Conclusion

Thanks to its modular components and two camera sensors on the back, LG G5 pushes the envelope of smartphone hardware design. At the same time, thanks to its removable battery, the newcomer will also appeal to past LG G-series owners.

The removable components are a tad geeky, so they might not appeal to everyone. We reckon that the camera grip will be the most popular one, as it truly helps the users take advantage of the excellent cameras that the LG G5 features.

A metal body is also a welcome addition to the G-series, as the feature has come to be expected from a high-end phone these days. The same goes for the blazing fast performance that the device delivers.

LG G5 is priced between $600 and $700 depending on your wireless carrier. It is also available to purchase on monthly installments. The modular components cost between $70 and $200, though some of them are bundled for free with the device depending on the provider.

Unsurprisingly, the biggest rivals to the LG G5 in today's marketplace are Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge. Both Samsung offerings have more polished design, water-resistant bodies, and support for the tech giant's excellent payment service. If you are not keen on playing with two camera sensors and swapping hardware bits, you should just go ahead and pick up a member of the Samsung duo.

If you are looking for an excellent smartphone camera experience (especially with the attached grip), as well as the convenience of having a swappable battery, then the LG G5 deserves your attention.

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Photos by Stefan Vazharov

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