If you’re one of the brave few who are still clutching on to Samsung’s recalled Galaxy Note7, I can’t blame you.

The Note7 was an amazing phone — still is, for some. But with its discontinuation and flight ban, it’s only a matter of time before you have to make the tough decision of what phone to get after handing your Note7 over to the authorities.

Consider this: The LG V20. It has the same 5.7-inch display, dual-cameras, an additional always-on display, solid battery life, and runs Android 7.0 Nougat.

It doesn’t compete on every level with the Note7, but it comes close to giving you the same experience.

A game of give and take

With the current trend of releasing waterproof smartphones, LG is going in the exact opposite direction. Instead of sealing up the V20, LG has kept the removable back and battery as the V10 had. A button on the right side of the device, towards the bottom, acts as a release. Press it, the metal back pops off, and there you’ll find a removable battery, nano SIM card tray, and a microSD card slot.

Hey, look at that. The LG V20 has a removable back for swapping batteries and expandable storage. #mashabletech A video posted by Jason Cipriani (@mrcippy) on Oct 25, 2016 at 10:41am PDT

While the V20 won’t survive a dunk in the pool, LG touts it has passed military drop tests (MIL-STD–810G Transit Drop Test for the curious) and will keep performing after several drops. The metal housing is made of the same material commonly used in boats, mountain bikes, and planes.

The V20 uses USB-C for charging, with a speaker and a headphone jack flanking each side of the charging port. On the back of the phone is a fingerprint reader that doubles as a power button, as well as the dual-camera setup.

Due to the second display just above the regular screen, the V20 is slightly larger than the Note7, measuring 159.7 x 78.1 x 7.6mm (compared to 153.5 x 73.9 x 7.9mm) making it a little bit harder to use with one hand. Although for someone who is already accustomed to a phablet, the adjustment period will be minimal.

Samsung does custom Android better

The LG V20 runs Android 7.0 Nougat with LG's own custom skin. Image: JASON CIPRIANI/MASHABLE

The V20 is the first non-Google device to ship with Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box. With that, you get all of the fun features Nougat brings to the table such as multi-window support, quick app switching, direct replies from notifications, and improved battery life.

All the Nougat features are welcome additions to Android as a whole. Unfortunately, LG has mucked up the experience with its proprietary LG UX 5.0+ skin.

LG has mucked up the experience with its proprietary LG UX 5.0+ skin.

After years of tech pundits and reviewers taking Samsung to task for its TouchWiz skin, the company has slowly pared down redundant features and unnecessary customization.

LG, on the other hand, continues to push UX 5.0+. For example, the Settings app is broken into various categories, and you have to swipe between pages to find what you’re looking for. It takes far too long to find settings in this setup, and it’s frustrating.

In LG’s defense, you can switch to a list view of the Settings app with a slide out navigation drawer just as stock Android Nougat ships with. But why bother with a panelized version of the settings app to begin with?

Instead of forcing users to go without an app drawer as the company originally did with the G5, the V20 prompts you to select your preferred launcher; one with an app drawer, and one without. I prefer the app drawer; otherwise, it's just like iOS.

Lot and lots of sweet bloatware. Not. Image: jason cipriani/mashable

Naturally, there’s plenty of bloatware preinstalled on the AT&T V20 I tested. Almost immediately after setting up the phone, you’re tasked with figuring out how to disable a persistent DirecTV notification. I don’t have cable, let alone DirecTV, and plastering an ad in my face isn’t about to make me switch.

Pardon the hiccups

The V20 ships with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, 4GB of memory, 64GB of storage expandable up to 2 TB through microSD, and a 3,200 mAh battery.

In terms of performance, the V20 performed as well as any 2016 smartphone equipped with the same processor. I experienced occasional stuttering and lag when switching between apps using Nougats new fast-app switcher (double-tap the multi-tasking button). Other times it would take longer than expected for apps to open after being force closed.

Image: jason cipriani/mashable Image: JASON CIPRIANI/MASHABLE



The primary display is vibrant, with vivid colors. The secondary 2.1-inch always-on display offers the same number of pixels-per-inch as the primary screen, at 513 ppi, and is just as colorful.

At first, I struggled to appreciate the always-on second display. After a few days of using it, however, I adjusted to using it for shortcuts to common settings like the Flashlight or playback controls when listening to music.

The LG V20's secondary display sits above the main screen and is always on. Image: jason cipriani/mashable

You can swipe across the small display, switching between recently used apps, quick settings icons, and a daily agenda overview to name a few options.

My only complaint about this display is that it’s clear at the top of the phone. When the phone is sitting on my desk, it’s a non-issue. During one handed use, though, I find it problematic to have to reach to the top of the phone with my finger to use the extra display.

Note7 users accustomed to an always-on display, should think of the second screen on the V20 as a smaller, more interactive version of that.

For audio enthusiasts, get excited: The V20 is also equipped with a 32-bit Hi-Fi Quad DAC. I tested by listening over a period of time, toggling the DAC on and off and naturally found it to make a big difference in the quality of music pumped out of the phone.

Wide-angle photos for everyone

The LG V20 has two rear cameras. Image: jason cipriani/mashable

On the rear of the V20 you have two camera lenses. One houses an 8-megapixel 135-degree ultra-wide angle lens, the other is a 16-megapixel wide-angle shooter. On the front, you’re treated to a single 120-degree lens wide-angle camera with 5 megapixels.

To switch between rear lenses, you tap a button in the camera app, going from the standard to wide-angle view with little effort.

Regular wide-angle camera. Image: JASON CIPRIANI/MASHABLE

Ultra-wide angle camera. Image: jason cipriani/mashable

As I found with the G5, I like having the option to choose between shooting angles. The added capability comes in particularly handy when taking group photos or landscape shots. Sadly, LG doesn’t offer any sort of fake bokeh (blurring) effect like the iPhone 7 Plus.

The V20 focuses fast, and has no lag when pressing the shutter button. Picture quality in my initial run-through isn’t up to par with the Note7 or iPhone 7 Plus, but it’s no slouch either.

Not a bad photo out of the camera, TBH. Image: JASON CIPRIANI/MASHABLE

The V20 offers video stabilization at 1080p, with an added option of 4K video recording sans the smoothness stabilization provides. As with the Google Pixel, the stabilization on the V20 is a bit jerky if you’re moving the phone from side-to-side.

Another quirk I noticed is when recording video and switching between the two rear-cameras, there’s a slow-motion like effect applied for a brief second after switching back to the standard 16-megapixel camera.

A worthy Note7 replacement?

The LG V20 has a removable battery. Image: jason cipriani/mashable

There’s a lot to like about the V20, yet at the same time I can’t help but feel frustrated by the overbearing LG UX 5.0+ skin and bloatware. Especially after using the Pixel for the last two weeks or so, it feels as though LG is getting in the way of its own hardware with its heavy and bloated version of Android.

Still, I think the V20 is as close as you’re going to get until Samsung’s next batch of smartphones are available. The V20 has nearly all the same capabilities as the Note7, save for the S-Pen.

A large display, combined with a removable battery and expandable storage could make it enough of a temptation for Note7 refugees to make the switch to LG.

LG V20 The Good Long battery life • Excellent dual cameras • Large, clear, crisp display • Removable battery and expandable storage The Bad LG’s UX 5.0+ skin bogs Android down • Random performance hiccups The Bottom Line LG’s V20 is a big phone with a fast camera, but its second screen is in a weird spot.

BONUS: Android phones to replace your Note7