opinions now that it's been out a while? - LG V20 Questions & Answers

How are you V20 owners feeling about the phone now that it's been out a while? I'm looking for a new phone and the options with Sprint suck, so it seems like it's either the S7 Edge or the V20. Both have good reviews, but those reviews are always done after maybe a few days or a week of use, and right at the phone's release, so I wanted to get some real world opinions from every day users.
I have an LG G3 right now (came to this from a Note 2) and I've been pretty unhappy with it for a while. It was okay (but nothing special) for the first year, then really went to crap--laggy, restarting itself, losing data connection. So I'm a little leery of going with another LG product, but this phone does have my interest.

I had a Note 2 and 4 prior to the V20 here and I love this phone. Even before root, I thought it was excellent. I find it fast and snappy, it doesn't seem to carry the lag that Samsung phones do. And the second screen is pretty awesome, I use it way more than I ever used the s-pen (never had an edge phone, so I can't compare it with thag).
Having said that, there are a couple downsides. I don't like the lcd screen - Samsung's amoleds are far better looking. And I feel like the camera on the Note 4 was better. But otherwise I'm really pleased with this phone. It's a great phone in and of itself, but it's the stuff that differentiated it from Samsung, the removable battery and ir blaster, that put me over the top.
And now that we have root? Oh yeah, I would definitely recommend this phone.

I too shared the concern of lag after using a G3, but this V20 is one of the fastest phones I've ever used (owned it since release). It's still snappy, no weird crashes or restarts, battery still lasts 2 solid days, wifi is still stronger than my Note 7 was. The more I use it the less things like the lack of notification LED bother me, and I'm more and more impressed with the audio that this phone delivers. However I still miss AMOLED, if this V20 had an OLED display it would be 10/10 for me.

Personally, both my dad and I want to throw our devices out a window. Mine regularly locks up, and both of our devices occasionally heat up, and drop 20% or more battery life in 5 minutes. I'd like this phone a lot if these issues didn't exist but as it stands they outweigh the incredible audio quality that this phone provides
Sent from my LG-H910 using Tapatalk

I got the V20 when I had to give up my Note7. The note 7 was hands down my favorite phone I've ever owned, but the V20 is good. I also owned the V10, which was okay, the V20 is a vast improvement though. Good performance, decent battery life (not getting a secondary with charging kit would defeat the purpose), and the camera is pretty good (but not on par with Samsung as far as I'm concerned). I like the second screen, but it's a trade for the edge screen function. Honestly I would have gotten the S7 edge, but after the note 7 debacle, I refused to support Samsung this year. Will upgrade to the next note though as soon as I can.

Nick281051 said:
Personally, both my dad and I want to throw our devices out a window. Mine regularly locks up, and both of our devices occasionally heat up, and drop 20% or more battery life in 5 minutes. I'd like this phone a lot if these issues didn't exist but as it stands they outweigh the incredible audio quality that this phone provides
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That's interesting - did you use dirtysanta on your phone? If so, use the Konverged kernel. It helps significantly (using it on my H910).
If not, you can also do these couple of things to help you out - turn off/disable Lookout. That is terrible to have on the phone and drains battery like no other. Go into your developer options menu in Settings, change all the different scales like animation scales, etc. to 0.5x. There's a couple of other small things you can do - like disabling the bloatware installed on your phone. But those will help out the most I believe.
Twisted

twistedvip said:
That's interesting - did you use dirtysanta on your phone? If so, use the Konverged kernel. It helps significantly (using it on my H910).
If not, you can also do these couple of things to help you out - turn off/disable Lookout. That is terrible to have on the phone and drains battery like no other. Go into your developer options menu in Settings, change all the different scales like animation scales, etc. to 0.5x. There's a couple of other small things you can do - like disabling the bloatware installed on your phone. But those will help out the most I believe.
Twisted
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope I already always disable all possible bloatware and my phone is stock. Changing the window speed also will not help because my problem isn't sluggishness, it's the fact that the phone becomes unresponsive.
Sent from my LG-H910 using Tapatalk

Overall I would have to say I'm kinda disappointed with the lg v20. Coming from the note 3, I don't know if I expected too much, or was looking to be blown away, but for the price, I expected so much more. If the phone would've been like $400-500 maybe I wouldn't be so disappointed. I had to send my v20 to lg because of the speaker problem, so I have been using a ZTE z958, a $50 go phone from att. Honestly I can't really tell the difference between the v20 and the ZTE. Not enough to justify the $800 difference. The only two things I miss from the v20 are the finger print sensor and FM radio. Think I'm going to stick with my ZTE. Luckily my wife got an iPhone 7 plus and she didn't like it very much and wants to switch back to Android, so I think I'm just going to give her the v20 and sell the iPhone 7 plus. Much more easier to sell iPhone and not loose that much money, than to try and sell v20.
Sent from my Z958 using Tapatalk

Thanks to everyone for all of the info.
I know this is the LG section so I might get a biased answer, but if I could get the V20 and the Galaxy S7 for the same price, which one should I go for?
Sprint has a deal on the S7 right now until 12/28, and I was told by a rep in the forums that the same deal is going live for the V20 on 12/29. Both will come down to about $6.50/month after the sale plus my loyalty credit.

Coming from note 3, 4 and 7 - I am very pleased with the V20. Not rooted yet as I'm not sold that root will gain me much of anything and the more I read, the less I am interested in rooting. Bad battery life, no fm radio, worse signal, loss of sound improvement from quad dac and no means of reverting to stock unrooted.
I miss the look of the super amo-led a little bit, but I don't miss the screen burn on every samsung amoled screen I have owned or seen with many family members samsungs.
Love the second screen, sound quality with and without headphones. Happy with the camera using manual mode. Love the removable battery, sd slot, ir blaster, fm radio. The fact that I can disassemble and repair the phone if the need arises. Something the samsungs can be hard or even impossible to do.

Related

Anyone feeling a bit let down? V20 review

I am trying to convince myself that I am wrong or somehow biased, but I don't think I am in this situation. I am a phone junkie and I bounce between devices quickly. In the last 6 months I have had the Axon 7, HTC 10 (still have, S-off'd with Unlocked GSM firmware/ software), Nexus 6P, HTC M9, s7 edge, s6 edge+, iphone 7 plus, Droid Turbo, and now the V20. I will say that over all, the V20 is built beautifully and performs well. The battery life is a bit weaker than I was hoping, just like the HTC 10, the quick charge 3.0 almost covers that short coming. The things that are making me disappointed though are as follows:
LG Skin / UI : Feels a little off, made up a bit by using Nova launcher, but everyone knows it won't remove it all...
Performance: I might be expecting a bit much, but I have had my device slow down (to unbearable lag / waiting on apps to switch/come up) more than a handful of times requiring a reboot
Battery Life: As stated above, the battery life is pretty week and I find myself having to top up a towards 6 pm, it does charge quickly, but find that a little sad.
Camera: This is where I am shocked. The camera overall doesn't live up to what I expected or how it was advertised. In ideal situations, it can take good photos, and I mean GOOD, not Great. If you don't switch to manual and tweak everything out, you will be sadly disappointed. Auto focus has a hard time locking in, can get a bit of grain / noise, and if there is movement or action, good luck. In video mode or if you flip into manual mode, you can get much better results, but in the heat of the moment, not everyone will be quick to get it ready in time to get that shot. In low light situations, it has been very disappointing. The lag time between the flash / focus and getting a picture off, I end up with a blurry out of focus picture most of the time. I am basing this off pictures I take of my young daughter. The camera on the HTC 10, Axon 7, iPhone 7 plus, S7 edge, and S6 edge+ all out perform in these situations. For a phone/device that is supposed to be built around photography and video, it has been a major disappointment. the Main camera/sensor is decent, but the zoom/cropped area is a bit small. The wide angle does cover a lot more at the cost of resolution. I am hoping that LG does something to address this in software/firmware updates, but as of now, it is a huge let down.
Audio: The single firing speaker does an admirable job for playing music, speaker phone on the other hand is a somewhat weak and sometimes hard to hear, even when driving in silent vehicle with the windows closed. The Quad DAC has also let me down. After the DAC in the Axon 7 and the HTC 10, I am not impressed. It does improve the audio, but not as well as the competition. With the DAC enabled and audio all the way up, the volume level is weak. With the same headphones that I used in the Axon 7 and the HTC 10, I have no problem hearing the outside noise. I also don't feel that it is nearly as tweakable / noticeable as the HTC 10. When I had the DAC on the HTC 10 on, I could immediately tell the difference and the Highs, Mids, and Lows were way easier to notice / spot changes on. Again, maybe software updates may resolve this, but definitely a let down for me.
Overall: The phone is beautiful. For a phone with removable battery, it honestly feels like a unibody device. I am a bit disappointed in all phone manufacturers currently going to this 2.5D curved glass for no good reason, making getting tempered glass protectors a joke majority of the time. The software overall is fairly smooth. The screen is above average and the secondary screen has become second nature to me. Being able to snap a wide angle shot when others can't definitely something that has lead to people asking me what phone I am using. Had I not gone through all the phones I have in the last 6 months, I may have been way more impressed. As a flagship device, I will say it comes close to delivering what was promised. Had the Note 7 not failed miserably with the exploding issue, I think the V20 would have easily been eclipsed. This phone gets so close in many departments, but doesn't quite nail them down. Considering there is nothing else in the market that draws my attention, I will try and see if it makes it through the initial growing pains that might be solved with software updates.
Before anyone wants to say I forgot about the Pixel, no, I didn't. After having the HTC 10 (which I still have and love as a backup device) and playing with the Pixel, I see absolutely no reason to waste the money on the sad excuse of a flagship device at the same taxing price as an apple product. How google basically took the HTC 10, made it ugly , went with onscreen buttons and a whole lot of bezel, and took away removable storage but is still succeeding with it is beyond me. Yes it has an "amazing camera", assistant (you can get with root on the v20 and nexus 6p), and can charge the battery super fast, but the price tag and lack of innovation is a deal breaker.
So, please, let me know if you agree or disagree. I have been trying to be unbiased and love this phone. Am I being unreasonable, or is it really just a device that got close to the finish line and just gave up?
I think it all depends on what your needs are. We know it doesn't have the best camera. It's very competitive, but not the best. Performance can be fixed with updates. I suspect that LG rushed the ROM to be the first to have Nougat, which was one of their selling points for this phone. Battery life depends on your usage. LG's Quantum displays are horribly inefficient, so the screen is your primary battery drain, but my understanding is that idle drain is very good. Then you have fast charging and one of the few phones that you can instantly go to 100% on by swapping batteries.
For me, this is the only phone that checks all of my requirements: Functional always-on-display, IR blaster, 5.7"+ screen, good camera, removable battery and SD card. So, I'm buying the complete package, not because it's the best at everything. Every single phone has shortcomings. You need to decide which ones you can live with and buy your next device based on that criteria.
I'm with you, I thought the camera was quite a disappointment when shooting in auto mode. I liked the phone a lot (coming from a Nexus 6p) and if the camera had been good it would have been a no-brainer for me, because as greyhulk says it checks most, if not all, the boxes. But I need a camera that shoots good pics in auto mode. Sent it back.
Also disappointed with the camera. Especially after coming from the Note 7..
Settings/Developer Options/ Tick on "Force GPU Rendering" should make your beast smoother/snappier. So any kind of lag should disappear!
If root available try L Speed/Entropy/fstrim apps found on Play Store!
LG V20 & LG G5 are snappy beasts and are well optimised with the Snapdragon 820 and is better than Samsung!
Battery is my main disappointment. Even with minimal use I have only made it an entire day once. Something keeps eating battery while the phone is idle and I have yet to track it down. I suspect it is an app that needs a Nougat update. Same usage and set of apps on the S7 Edge and Note 7 would usually leave me near 50% at the end of the day.
Have to say I disagree.
The Hi-Fi is plenty loud enough and noticeably changes on the go. I have noticed though, it depends on the headphones that you are using. I have used 4 different sets. And each pair gave different results.
The camera is great. Video is turning out to be exactly as expected. As for the camera, it doesn't grab the shot in the first try every time and its nothing a tap of the screen and refocus hasn't been able to fix. But than again I haven't had a camera phone that has been able to take the shot first time every time.
Battery, that's a user to user base question. The other day I was able to get 32 hours out of my battery. But than on the other hand with very heavy use I only got 6.5 hours.
Weird I get about the same battery life as I did with my note 7. When at work I use the phone about the same amount every day 12 hr shifts and I am between. 50 to 70 percent
Sent from my LG-H910 using Tapatalk
I think your disappointment stems from using so many current generation phones, lets face it most years the hardware upgrades (specifically processors) match each other.
The HTC 10 runs the same hardware as the LG v20, so you've experienced it already. S7 has the same processor as well (assuming its the Qualcomm version) so it's not a big difference compared to someone coming from last generation phones.
Like for me I am coming from a v10 which had an outdated processor out the gate (others were using 810 while the v10 had the 808 due to overheating issues with the 810). The phone is literally over twice as fast as the v10 so I would certainly see a difference compared to you coming from the same generation of processors.
I don't own the phone yet but I will say it's a disappointment to see the camera being a letdown in reviews when you consider that the camera was the big feature of the v10.
Battery doesn't sound all that great either but it's got to be better than the v10. I am sure this will be remedied by 3rd party extended batteries that we will hopefully see. My v10 battery sucked until I upgraded to a 9000 mAh Zerolemon battery pack.
Sent from my LG-H901 using XDA-Developers mobile app
Ali Mirza said:
Settings/Developer Options/ Tick on "Force GPU Rendering" should make your beast smoother/snappier. So any kind of lag should disappear!
If root available try L Speed/Entropy/fstrim apps found on Play Store!
LG V20 & LG G5 are snappy beasts and are well optimised with the Snapdragon 820 and is better than Samsung!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello! What specifically does the "Force GPU Rendering" option?
I think you will settle with the Porsche Design Mate 9. Just a feeling lol
Why's there no option for ambivalence or just predictable? Just look at the stats and you pretty much know what you're getting. I'm happy with this phone after the $200 off and assuming I get the ~$150 headphone offer. I would be unhappy for full list price without those promos. For the price w/promos there just isn't anything comparable.
The display is the worst part of this phone for me. AMOLED just beats LCD anyway you slice it, this phone looks badly washed out and the auto brightness does weird things. Also the viewing angles are wonky, I was used to being able to use my phone at extreme angles but now I find myself lifting the phone up more. If this phone had AMOLED it would be a solid 9.9/10 for me, of course I knew I wouldn't like the screen when I bought it I just couldn't find a solid AMOLED phone. I don't particularly like the fingerprint reader position, have to pick it up off a table to use it and I've found my finger accidentally turns the screen on sometimes when I put it in my pocket. The second screen is nice for changing tracks or seeing what track is playing (or seeing the time at night without going blind), but it sucks for notifications. I miss my notification LED and my Qi charging.
Other than that this phone is pretty solid. I'm getting almost identical battery life that my Note 7 got, namely about 2 days. The standby battery life is phenomenal, I usually lose 1-2% overnight even with the second screen on. I love the removable battery so I don't have to worry about the battery dying before I'm ready to get rid of the phone. I'm no audiophile, so to me this phone is the best audio experience I've ever had with a phone hands down. Even streaming at just 192kbps this phone really makes my Shure SE215's sing. The camera is noticeably worse than the Note 7 at low light but it's still the 2nd best camera on a phone I've seen. Close up pictures have lots of nice detail and that's the kind of pictures I usually take. It focuses quickly and locks focus down better than the Note 7 did. For the kinds of the pictures I take in fact this camera is better, unlike my Samsungs this phone's auto white balance mode works correctly. The whole phone feels quick and snappy, comparable to the Note. I'm getting slightly better signal than I've ever gotten, in fact the wifi is much stronger than either of my Note 7's were.
I like the look of the phone and it feels great in my hands, which although not as great as the all glass Note 7, it feels like I could drop it and have nothing to worry about. I don't find the UI intrusive or laggy, eventually I'll swap over to nova prime once I'm tired of stock. For me it ticks all the right boxes of keeping old features rather than heading the apple direction and removing everything. Removable battery, SD card, IR Blaster, headphone jack, USB C, etc For that reason alone I think it's worth supporting LG
I agree
Main reasons I am keeping it are the $200 off, switched to T-mobile from VZW, and they are paying off the ETF so saving that money and the headphones makes the phone ideally almost free to me. For the full retail, I would return it in a heartbeat. People have hit it on the head that it really might be the fact the the Snapdragon 820 and the 4 GB ram is now getting long in the tooth. The camera can produce some nice pictures in manual mode, so I try to jump to that right away, but just a bit of a hassle to be on the ball to take a simple pic. With moderate light and close up, it does perform well. I can't really control lighting at all times and try and get my daughter up close and still when a picture moment comes though, the s7 handled it much better. I am going to try some different headphones to see if it is just the main pair I use that is letting me down. For the money / hardware, I think the Axon is the better bang for the buck with the AMOLED screen and the all carrier support. The speakers on that are ridiculous and the DAC was solid. This phone over all falls somewhere in the 7.5-8 /10 for me. Between the V20 and the HTC 10 I'll be good til the next wave of Flagships hit. I just have the feeling that LG pushed it out in a hurry to capitalize on the Note 7 flop and they could've polished it up a lot more. I can see them making the camera more responsive in low light and possibly addressing the battery life / hifi-dac customization / volume in the updates. It does a lot right but overall I was expecting and hoping for more from LG when they have had the perfect shot to grab the market. So far I am seeing the responses that seem line up with my expectation. Thanks everyone for taking the time to read and respond!
bishmaster5000 said:
Why's there no option for ambivalence or just predictable? Just look at the stats and you pretty much know what you're getting. I'm happy with this phone after the $200 off and assuming I get the ~$150 headphone offer. I would be unhappy for full list price without those promos. For the price w/promos there just isn't anything comparable.
The display is the worst part of this phone for me. AMOLED just beats LCD anyway you slice it, this phone looks badly washed out and the auto brightness does weird things. Also the viewing angles are wonky, I was used to being able to use my phone at extreme angles but now I find myself lifting the phone up more. If this phone had AMOLED it would be a solid 9.9/10 for me, of course I knew I wouldn't like the screen when I bought it I just couldn't find a solid AMOLED phone. I don't particularly like the fingerprint reader position, have to pick it up off a table to use it and I've found my finger accidentally turns the screen on sometimes when I put it in my pocket. The second screen is nice for changing tracks or seeing what track is playing (or seeing the time at night without going blind), but it sucks for notifications. I miss my notification LED and my Qi charging.
Other than that this phone is pretty solid. I'm getting almost identical battery life that my Note 7 got, namely about 2 days. The standby battery life is phenomenal, I usually lose 1-2% overnight even with the second screen on. I love the removable battery so I don't have to worry about the battery dying before I'm ready to get rid of the phone. I'm no audiophile, so to me this phone is the best audio experience I've ever had with a phone hands down. Even streaming at just 192kbps this phone really makes my Shure SE215's sing. The camera is noticeably worse than the Note 7 at low light but it's still the 2nd best camera on a phone I've seen. Close up pictures have lots of nice detail and that's the kind of pictures I usually take. It focuses quickly and locks focus down better than the Note 7 did. For the kinds of the pictures I take in fact this camera is better, unlike my Samsungs this phone's auto white balance mode works correctly. The whole phone feels quick and snappy, comparable to the Note. I'm getting slightly better signal than I've ever gotten, in fact the wifi is much stronger than either of my Note 7's were.
I like the look of the phone and it feels great in my hands, which although not as great as the all glass Note 7, it feels like I could drop it and have nothing to worry about. I don't find the UI intrusive or laggy, eventually I'll swap over to nova prime once I'm tired of stock. For me it ticks all the right boxes of keeping old features rather than heading the apple direction and removing everything. Removable battery, SD card, IR Blaster, headphone jack, USB C, etc For that reason alone I think it's worth supporting LG
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ali Mirza said:
Settings/Developer Options/ Tick on "Force GPU Rendering" should make your beast smoother/snappier. So any kind of lag should disappear!
If root available try L Speed/Entropy/fstrim apps found on Play Store!
LG V20 & LG G5 are snappy beasts and are well optimised with the Snapdragon 820 and is better than Samsung!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please stop posting this everywhere
Sent from my LG-H910 using Tapatalk
You also forgot to mention the locked bootloader
Sent from my LG-LS997 using Tapatalk
I came from the LG Nexus 5x and I loved that phone. While it's only been a few days, I am more than happy with the V20.
I get a phone through work, but upgraded on my own last year to the 5x. So when I cracked my screen a few weeks ago, I went through work this time. Options were limited on AT&T and since I'm gonna be stuck with a phone for 2 years I wanted the newest phone I could get without "compromising" what I'd wanted in a phone. I also didn't want to settle for a year old phone or switch to the iPhone (Android since 2010 and likely forever).
Anyway, I say all that to say that the V20 was never on my radar, mostly because of the size, even though I'd previously had the Note 2, 3 and briefly 4. I'd been very happy with the size and feel of the 5x, but the battery life was horrendous. Basically anything would have been an upgrade, and the V20 does more than I need in the battery department. If I can get to my bed before needing a charge, I'm a happy man, since I'd be charging around lunch on a daily basis before.
I was already used to the fingerprint sensor and love the fact it's on the back on the V20 as well. I can deal with the volume buttons swapped and the power button moving to the fingerprint sensor. It was a little odd at first but I'm used to it already.
Again, the camera and screen on the 5x was mediocre so anything would be better. And again the V20 checks both of those boxes; huge, vibrant screen, and pictures that look beautiful to my eye. If you're going from newest flagship to newest flagship an argument can be made on those points, but if you're upgrading after a year + the hardware is always going to be better, even if you find some flaws, and IMO the V20 does great in both categories.
The removable battery does have its pros. A few years ago it was a 'must-have' for me, but nowadays I'd taker water/dust proofing over it. Not a deal breaker though. The SD card slot IS however a wonderful thing. Despite the 64 GB internal, I love being able to add and not worry about space. I've had my local music library backed up to an SD card for quite a while and it's so convenient to have that at my disposal locally (no network connection needed).
The software. Not much better than PURE Android and rooting has always been a priority for me. BUT, stability ultimately is the most important thing on a phone to me now. Being able to lower DPI via adb shell is huge. Really not having TiBu or the ability to remove some carrier apps is about the worst left we can't do. And to be honest, it's easily overlooked. Is it annoying AF we can't remove everything we don't want? Absolutely. But said apps can be hidden with certain launchers, and I've come to just ignore them in the app drawer, forgetting they're even there.
Add in the FM radio (so novel yet so great), Second Screen (which I actually could use some tips on getting the most out of) and I'm digging this phone. Is LG's UI a little clunky? Yea, but I'll live. And using something new is refreshing, honestly.
It's only been a few days but I'm happy with this device and have no regrets. The V20 may also get me back on the Phablet train, being unable to use something smaller as they feel like toys. I've not gone a full 2 years without upgrading in quite some time. This phone is going to be the test.
/ rant
Sent from my LG-H910 using Tapatalk
I agree with what you say. I think my let down is from moving from flagship to flagship all into the same time frame. The coming from any device before the snapdragon 820 and a quad HD screen, this thing is a major upgrade. I agree that the fingerprint scanner is best on back... Loved it on the nexus 6p and the axon 7. I just sold my htc 10 so I'm committed to the v20. Holding out til something amazing comes this way...
bishmaster5000 said:
Why's there no option for ambivalence or just predictable? Just look at the stats and you pretty much know what you're getting. I'm happy with this phone after the $200 off and assuming I get the ~$150 headphone offer. I would be unhappy for full list price without those promos. For the price w/promos there just isn't anything comparable.
The display is the worst part of this phone for me. AMOLED just beats LCD anyway you slice it, this phone looks badly washed out and the auto brightness does weird things. Also the viewing angles are wonky, I was used to being able to use my phone at extreme angles but now I find myself lifting the phone up more. If this phone had AMOLED it would be a solid 9.9/10 for me, of course I knew I wouldn't like the screen when I bought it I just couldn't find a solid AMOLED phone. I don't particularly like the fingerprint reader position, have to pick it up off a table to use it and I've found my finger accidentally turns the screen on sometimes when I put it in my pocket. The second screen is nice for changing tracks or seeing what track is playing (or seeing the time at night without going blind), but it sucks for notifications. I miss my notification LED and my Qi charging.
Other than that this phone is pretty solid. I'm getting almost identical battery life that my Note 7 got, namely about 2 days. The standby battery life is phenomenal, I usually lose 1-2% overnight even with the second screen on. I love the removable battery so I don't have to worry about the battery dying before I'm ready to get rid of the phone. I'm no audiophile, so to me this phone is the best audio experience I've ever had with a phone hands down. Even streaming at just 192kbps this phone really makes my Shure SE215's sing. The camera is noticeably worse than the Note 7 at low light but it's still the 2nd best camera on a phone I've seen. Close up pictures have lots of nice detail and that's the kind of pictures I usually take. It focuses quickly and locks focus down better than the Note 7 did. For the kinds of the pictures I take in fact this camera is better, unlike my Samsungs this phone's auto white balance mode works correctly. The whole phone feels quick and snappy, comparable to the Note. I'm getting slightly better signal than I've ever gotten, in fact the wifi is much stronger than either of my Note 7's were.
I like the look of the phone and it feels great in my hands, which although not as great as the all glass Note 7, it feels like I could drop it and have nothing to worry about. I don't find the UI intrusive or laggy, eventually I'll swap over to nova prime once I'm tired of stock. For me it ticks all the right boxes of keeping old features rather than heading the apple direction and removing everything. Removable battery, SD card, IR Blaster, headphone jack, USB C, etc For that reason alone I think it's worth supporting LG
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. Top tier amoled should've been here. Probably would've improved the already great battery life another 20%ish. And notification LED would've been awesome. Yeah yeah. I know we have second screen, but I don't use it. Probably why I get 6h+SOT all the time. 8h 1m was my best and I had 3% left. I get 7h+ often. Standby time is incredible. Hasn't been consistent for me but probably lose 1% about every 5h average. Need to root and get adblocking. That will probably improve battery life even more. Hoping a custom kernel with only modification of voltage settings will help too. Tired of all these unstable kernels with features I don't use or care.about. haven't stuck with a custom kernel since...maybe note2. It has been awhile. Just roll with stock kernel since no dev wants to make a simple kernel with voltage adjustments. Not paying anymore devs on kernels until they deliver. I've paid upfront twice and font nothing in return. Scumbags.and I hope the fingerprint scanner has features. Features like being able to use as track pad or minimum that uses swipes for shortcuts like the pixel. That would be friggin' awesome. And aside from camera on auto not being consistent the phone otherwise is almost flawless. I've gotten accustomed to the camera on auto though. Multiple pictures and using focus at different spots has helped tremendously. I've been able to tweak my screen close to accurate by eyeballing it so pictures look like the scenery on screen now. Got to test video and bi def recording today at veterans day parade. Both exceeded my high expectations. Just need slmevody to find binning of chips which I made a dedicated thread for but nobody answered. I've looked everywhere. And one of first things I do when I root is customize the boot up screen. Boring. Very boring and.typical of T-Mobile. I've only had to reboot for sim or micro SD reasons though. Very very stable. Micro SD isn't up to par unless I have root. Nonetheless I've been able to work around it. Just had to take care out. And everybody keeps saying IR blaster. I think our IT is a transceiver. Supposedly it can learn but I haven't tried yet. R.I.P. remotes if it indeed can learn. LG did good. Seems rushed but this is truly a flagship phone in many ways. Swappable battery in 2016on a flagship. Say what? LG needs to step it up on the accessories. Ready to buy a 6 pack of batteries. I got in on the $51 deal for the BCK-5200 package on Amazon. Now just need a good sale on batteries.
Coming from a note 7 I have mixed feelings. It ticks a lot of the boxes but I miss waterproof, the great samsung screens and I knew about those when I bought. The camera really disappointed me though. I was expecting it to take way better pics than it does. Spoiled from the note 7 I suppose. I didn't realize before buying it that it had the IR blaster and I had really been missing that from my s5. Nice to not have to hunt for remotes anymore. Its not ideal, but for someone like me that over 5.7" screen is a requirement it really is the best second choice to my old note 7. The bootloader sucks too. I had gotten out of the habit of reroming phones since samsung pay and now that I am off samsung I thought it would be fun to start that again. But nope. I have a sprint one and it seems to be non rootable at the moment.
---------- Post added at 05:19 AM ---------- Previous post was at 05:13 AM ----------
I do think a little bit of my dissapointment in the camera is not genuine. I am mainly comparing shots taken with this phones camera viewed on this phones screen to shots taken by the note 7 on the note 7's screen. The same photo would of course pop more on the amoled screen even if it was the same camera so thats part of the disappointment. But even still I think the note 7 took way better pics.
I love the phone other than no root, the camera I'm not really disappointed because I'm no photographer, the IR blaster is a must thank you LG, Samsung what are you thinking. The removable battery isn't a big deal since the battery does pretty good. If it was water proof that would top it off.
Sent from my LG-LS997 using Tapatalk

Advice wanted from experienced LG V20 users

Hi folks. I've been on a T-mobile Note 4 for a long time now, and love it- no problems yet and an 8000 maH battery keeping me quite happy.
Thinking forward to buying a new phone soon. Lots of new stuff coming out soon, but the V20 still looks attractive to me (being able to get a 10,000 maH zerolemon battery is a BIG factor). IR blaster and SD card availability is big to me too.
Couple of questions:
1) Thinking about what's coming out, and having lived with the V20, would you wait for what's coming out this spring, or even sit back until the "V30"?
2) I love taking pictures with the Note 4, and they turn out well. Low light, well, not so much. Flowers on a sunny day are great. Are you happy with the main and selfie cameras, or do you find yourself wanting "just a bit more" (for the average user... I'm not a full time amateur photographer).
Your comments would be much appreciated. I just retired, so I have more time to play with things these days- so I'm sure I'll be using the next beast I buy extensively especially for reading, nice photos, and the ir remote (oh, I got a great e-z chair for tv time ).
Thanks much!
Steven.RN
I like my V20 but unfortunately I do not "love" it like I did with my OG Motorola Nexus 6.
The stock battery is utter crap and I am on my 2nd LG battery after having to recall the 1st one. The 2nd one greatly improved but not by much. Rooting this phone has saved me from returning it. If it wasn't for Root I would of returned the phone.
1. Other than the G6 or the S8 coming out - what other phones are coming out (T-Mobile Wise)? Nothing right now seems to give me that "wow" factor like the Pure Android experience from the Nexus 6 did (yes, as you can tell, I loved that phone) The Pixel phones are a complete joke to me...horrible design....
2. The camera is okay for an average user. I do find myself liking the fact I have two lenses to choose from. Wide angle and normal angle. Very helpful in the Security field that I am in. But be warned the pictures are not amazing like Samsung devices.
If I were you, kinda wish I was right now. I would wait for the Note 8!
But other than that the 2nd Screen is incredibly helpful, to me. The removable battery and SD card is a great addition. The IR Blaster is cool but I do not use it at all. I have enough "Universal" remotes. LG's UI is pretty neat I like it a lot better than Samsungs ugly TouchWiz UI.
To each their own, I suppose.
I think the phone is awesome, the smart phone market has peaked advancements aren't going to be as neat as they used to be.
The snapdragon 820 is about 3 times faster than the 805 in your note 4 (assuming you've got the snapdragon variant).
The camera is snappier than the note 4 and takes pretty good photos (better than the note 4).
If you like the stylus though I'd wait it out 6 months for the note 8.
It's a worthy upgrade and it'll probably be a phone that would carry you through two years if not longer.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Absolutely the best phone I've ever had.
Very well built, great reception, zero lag, large screen....and I have to disagree about the battery. I've had nothing but FANTASTIC life, and this is with two different batteries, one just for backup just in case. Fast charging works great...volume is perfect, removable battery, rootable and TWRP-able...honestly, I wouldn't even think about "upgrading" from this phone right now. Samsung who?
I came from the note 4 also. This phone is much faster (no Lag). I didn't think there was any lag with my note until I got this phone. With that said, I am rooted with a custom rom and that did speed things up a little. My note was also rooted with a very nice custom rom.
When the note 7 came out, the were a lot of people on XDA saying they wished there was a flat screen version, i.e. not the curved screen. You can bet the note 8 will have a curved screen which makes finding quality screen protection tough. The v20 does have slight curving at the top and bottom, but people here have found tempered glass solutions that work.
You can also bet the note 8 won't have a removable back, so replacing the back plate with a bigger battery and cover won't be an option.
The camera takes very good pictures and if you understand the options in manual, you can really optimize it. Is it as good as the note 8 will be? No.
Sammy screens are also the best looking. The V20 screen while it has the specs, just doesn't look as good as a sammy. If you use a kernel with kcal support, you can get close.
Good luck.
I also came from a Note 4.
I personally never used the stylus for anything except taking screen grabs. I fount it easier than remembering the button combo for a screenshot.
My gps stopped working due to a known defect in the note 4. I broke the display trying to take it apart to fix it.
I love my V20 so much more than my note 3 or 4 or 7 even.
I won't buy note 8 as like all Samsungs -
1. The sound will most likely be horrible.
2. You probably will never be able to root it.
3. As nice as the amoled looks - everyone I've owned as well as my wifes, bil's, sisters all suffer bad screen burn in.
4. If they force that curved edge screen again. I hated that on the Note 7.
I'm done with Sammy. LG V20 is the best I've ever had so far
I also came from the Note 4. I got the s7 edge which i gave to my wife. The buttons(or lack of) take a little getting used to, but the ability to root determined my buying the V20 and I think it is on par with my note feature wise(minus stylus\plus FM radio) just faster and maybe a bit lighter. If Note 8 is rootable, i might jump but i doubt it. I could keep this phone for awhile.
Love it
But dont love the front cam is really bad
And rear cam
My old nexus 6p was better
But performance is great and second screen is great
Battary is ****
Charge is 3 times at day
Hi dac is fantastic
Screen is good but not great
---------- Post added at 01:22 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:21 AM ----------
For me
Camera
At day light 10/10
At night 9/10
Indoors craaap 2/10
Another perk with LG is that the amount of garbage software that it comes with is minimal when compared to Samsung. I know the note 3 and note 4 were filled with Samsung garbage apps.
The other consideration is there is no know so warranty shouldn't be a issue since there is no knox switch that gets flipped when you root it, you can (in most cases) reverse the rooting without any problems.
Of course I turned in my v10 rooted and they didn't even care (T-Mobile) so I am not sure if this is a real issue with warranty or not.
I say go for it, its going to beat the note 4 in just about everything. The only perk for the note 4 is the amoled display which saves quite a bit of battery. Of course you can always get aftermarket battery packs to off set it with the LG v20.
The v20 battery life is much improved over the v10, I typically have about 30 percent battery by the end of the day (this is with spotify and Bluetooth running during the work day).
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
I really do like it a lot, although it had to grow on me a little bit. In term of pictures, I think it takes rather nice pictures (at least for me). The wide angle lens is pretty cool too. My note 5 broke so this is why I have this phone. The second screen is really useful and I like that it doesn't have a notification light. The screen is nice and big for reading also. I don't use the IR blaster at all so i can't really tell you what its like.
I hope this helps!
The v20 is OK but my note 7 was far superior. Better camera, screen, battery life, only thing the v20 had over the note 7 was the DAC. Personally I would wait until newer phones comes out. I'm looking FWD to the note 8.
Sent from my LG-H910 using Tapatalk
As someone who have had a wide variety of samsungs and LG .... I believe i will be keeping this phone for at least 4 years easily. There are just not way too many cons and there are way to many pros. The battery can sometime be a pain but that's just like any other phone since nothing last forever. But hey, the dozen mode!!! OUTSTANDING! my V20 consumes 1% of battery in 8 hours with screen off and 2nd screen on. so, it might not last more than 5:30-50's+ hours with screen on, full brightness, wifi on, gps on, and a video in 1440p. But,,,, as far as dozen mode goes.... It is outstanding! And if the promotion stills on, you can get the phone for 600+ instead of the 800+ by exchanging any 4g crap phone ($19 dollars at walmart should do lol). Im happy with the phone (sometimes pictures if zoomed in can look like waterpaint style but it doesnt happen that often (At least to me)). And as far as waiting for the V30 or note 8 ... Well, that is truly up to you. However, if you are hoping for root , there is just not guarantee given the fact that they are truly patching up every door from nougat 7.0 and up. So... you could wait for the V30 or note 8 but if you wish for root or developments.... i dont recommend to buy them before someone finds the way to root it.
I was one of the ones that was coming from an S6 edge instead of something newer, so obviously it's a bigger upgrade for me than it was for most others. I am pretty happy with the camera. I miss having the double-tap home button from the Samsung for the camera launch, but that's about it. I took it with me to Colorado and took some quite lovely pictures in the sunshine. Most people will concede that the low light performance leaves some to be desired, but I usually don't take any in conditions that are that bad, where that I would complain afterwards. I kind of figure that in sub-optimal conditions, I'll have sub-optimal results.
My battery seems to be quite fine, BUT, I'm also rooted and running a debloated ROM (the US996 stock deodexed, on my 995 Verizon model). The battery under whatever kernel it's running, is quite fine, and it is removable for people needing more length. I wish it had wireless charging, but that's just how it is. But for example, 8 hours on standby, and I was still at well over 75% today at work. And I can usually get through a good 3 hours of straight video playback at least. But the way people use their phones varies so much, it's hard to say. I do get better life rooted than when it was stock.
It also is plenty snappy, and I've had no issues, no overheating, no weird battery drain, no lag, or the like. I would say that coming from what you have now, it might be a step up but you might feel it won't be a big enough one yet. But the LG G6 being rumored out might be worth holding out, assuming you aren't looking to root. That might get tricky as Nougat (mentioned above) starts getting locked down. I have faith in the community - after all, it didn't take long for the V20 to get opened up, though there are some that worry that it'll continue to get harder as exploits get patched.
For what it's worth, I love mine. I miss a couple weird tricks from other phones, but on the whole, I am very satisfied with my decision.
CharlzO_2000 said:
I was one of the ones that was coming from an S6 edge instead of something newer, so obviously it's a bigger upgrade for me than it was for most others. I am pretty happy with the camera. I miss having the double-tap home button from the Samsung for the camera launch, but that's about it. I took it with me to Colorado and took some quite lovely pictures in the sunshine. Most people will concede that the low light performance leaves some to be desired, but I usually don't take any in conditions that are that bad, where that I would complain afterwards. I kind of figure that in sub-optimal conditions, I'll have sub-optimal results.
My battery seems to be quite fine, BUT, I'm also rooted and running a debloated ROM (the US996 stock deodexed, on my 995 Verizon model). The battery under whatever kernel it's running, is quite fine, and it is removable for people needing more length. I wish it had wireless charging, but that's just how it is. But for example, 8 hours on standby, and I was still at well over 75% today at work. And I can usually get through a good 3 hours of straight video playback at least. But the way people use their phones varies so much, it's hard to say. I do get better life rooted than when it was stock.
It also is plenty snappy, and I've had no issues, no overheating, no weird battery drain, no lag, or the like. I would say that coming from what you have now, it might be a step up but you might feel it won't be a big enough one yet. But the LG G6 being rumored out might be worth holding out, assuming you aren't looking to root. That might get tricky as Nougat (mentioned above) starts getting locked down. I have faith in the community - after all, it didn't take long for the V20 to get opened up, though there are some that worry that it'll continue to get harder as exploits get patched.
For what it's worth, I love mine. I miss a couple weird tricks from other phones, but on the whole, I am very satisfied with my decision.
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Random FYI... Double press down volume when screen is off opens camera. (options in settings to open and immediately take pic or just open)
I figure you already know and just miss the convenience of the home button location but... Just in case...
planetbeen said:
Random FYI... Double press down volume when screen is off opens camera. (options in settings to open and immediately take pic or just open)
I figure you already know and just miss the convenience of the home button location but... Just in case...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, there is that one. But it's also a little more awkward that way. It's just as easy to double-tap the screen and swipe into the camera app. The home key on the Samsung was perfect, because I could bring the phone to landscape orientation, double tap, and bam, ready to go. It's rare that I need to get a picture THAT fast that I need to, but it was really convenient.
I love almost everything about it, but If this thing had a brighter or amoled screen I would never get another phone.
slayerh4x said:
I love almost everything about it, but If this thing had a brighter or amoled screen I would never get another phone.
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Click to collapse
Do not bring AMOLED INTO IPS!!! Every single phone i had with AMOLED screen (10 to be precise), all of them developed burn in image. LOL I will never buy another phone with AMOLED screen. Unless..... They A) fix the issue with the burn in image, and B) they manage to make it last at its full potential for at least 5 years and then after 5 years the pixels can start dying. Not to mention that many of the AMOLED screens from nowadays have removed soooooooo many important features in a phone such as removable battery and sd card slots. That alone makes me move within an instant to LG G or V series (AKA Large Giraffe as some people call it LOL)
jinkerz9430 said:
Do not bring AMOLED INTO IPS!!! Every single phone i had with AMOLED screen (10 to be precise), all of them developed burn in image. LOL I will never buy another phone with AMOLED screen. Unless..... They A) fix the issue with the burn in image, and B) they manage to make it last at its full potential for at least 5 years and then after 5 years the pixels can start dying. Not to mention that many of the AMOLED screens from nowadays have removed soooooooo many important features in a phone such as removable battery and sd card slots. That alone makes me move within an instant to LG G or V series (AKA Large Giraffe as some people call it LOL)
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Hahaha Yeah it would have to be a revised version of that hardware. I just find that the screen is way too dim outside. I even used that adaptive display mod which does help, but washes out the colors.
I literally just went from a note 4 to v20 and its amazing. The phone is so much more intuitive . tap screen to wake .fingerprint scanner unlocks phone faster than I can swipe. So much more. All around it just works better. I feel like all Samsung phones are the same. Bc I've had only Sammy past 8 years. I love this v20
Sent from my LG-H910 using Tapatalk

Thinking about upgrading Note 4 to LG V20. And has some questions!

Hey everyone I'm from Toronto, Canada. I currently own a Samsung Note 4. I wanna buy the LG V20 but I want to root it and also have it work with Freedom(Wind) mobile's LTE network. Is there a American or International LG V20 that is rootable & can take advantage of Freedom's LTE network.
Any answers would be helpful!
Thanks
hey there!
here you can find some details about the lte frequencies each version supports
https://www.techwalls.com/lg-v20-model-numbers-differences/
since freedom uses b4 and b66, I guess your only choice for a full LTE support is H918.
actually on freedommobile.ca you can get the h915 with full official support to their bands... no idea if it's rootable though, guess you'll need someone else to help on that
I'll bet if you went to the ROMs and other development subforum, you'd find the answer to your question regarding root. The search function will help you, too.
Like I said in another thread. Go back to your Note 4. Trust me I regret getting rid of my Note 4 for this POS. Went through 2 v20's already and waiting for my 3rd replacement as this one just died.
Dont do it. I sold my note 4 for a note 7, then of course had to turn the note 7 in and I mistakenly chose the V20 as a replacement. I wish I could have kept my Note 4, because the V20, even with updated processor, is no better than my previous Note 4. In fact, the camera on my note 4 was WAY better. =(
SaintZ93 said:
Like I said in another thread. Go back to your Note 4. Trust me I regret getting rid of my Note 4 for this POS. Went through 2 v20's already and waiting for my 3rd replacement as this one just died.
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damn you must be as salty as the sea LOL! Only my first one had issues with the sim card, my second one is perfect!
i actually owned both phone now and I would go for v20 anyday. I have sent my note 4 to repair 3 times.
SaintZ93 said:
Like I said in another thread. Go back to your Note 4. Trust me I regret getting rid of my Note 4 for this POS. Went through 2 v20's already and waiting for my 3rd replacement as this one just died.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Whats wrong with the LG V20? I think it would be a perfect phone if it had a Super AMOLED display instead of Quantum LCD. I think that's the only thing I'm giving up. :crying:
I have both. The Note 4 was my primary phone before purchasing the V20. In my opinion, the V20 is a much better phone. My Note 4 has been sitting in my nightstand, untouched for months. I know many disagree, but I prefer the LCD display over AMOLED. While AMOLED may look slightly better, it really isn't something you'll notice in daily use. Plus, my Note 2, 3, and 4 all suffered from screen burn-in rather quickly. Something you don't have to deal when using an LCD display
Sent from my LG V20 using XDA Labs
Outside of the battery saving power of amoled and the stylus, everything is better than the note 4.
- faster processor (about x3 in benchmarks)
- double space
- 1gb more of ram
- better camera
- better display (in certain aspects)
- second screen no other phone has is quite useful once you get used to using it especially playing music without having to turn the screen on.
Having to replace a phone 3 times for defects is extremely rare, the chances of getting a perfect unit is much higher. I am curious to know what SaintZ had problems with.
I upgraded from a note 3 to a v10 and had no regrets and that phone wasn't nearly as good as the V20.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
evo4g63t said:
Outside of the battery saving power of amoled and the stylus, everything is better than the note 4.
- faster processor (about x3 in benchmarks)
- double space
- 1gb more of ram
- better camera
- better display (in certain aspects)
- second screen no other phone has is quite useful once you get used to using it especially playing music without having to turn the screen on.
Having to replace a phone 3 times for defects is extremely rare, the chances of getting a perfect unit is much higher. I am curious to know what SaintZ had problems with.
I upgraded from a note 3 to a v10 and had no regrets and that phone wasn't nearly as good as the V20.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know I wish it was Super AMOLED display then the LG V20 would be a complete upgrade. Can always swap out the battery. LG V20 looks like a direct upgrade to the Note 4.
Ive got my note 5 and the v20. I also had the hct 10.
I love the amoled screen for samsung but i was getting tired of not having something a little newer.
The v20 has s good processor and is managing heat a ton better then i imagined after their last few phone's.
The screen is big.. Overall color is that of a lcd. Cf lumen or any 9other color adjustment is a good option when rooted
The battery is fair. It is removable so that i guess is a plus.
No wireless charging
Finger print scanner
Dual cameras are cool.. Still some grain on screen when taking photos that shouldn't be there. It dosnt actually effect photo tho.
Ir sensor on top is nice. It reads and sends thats a huge plus.
Type c port is nice
Sd card slot.
I mean overall its not bad at all.. There could be some adjustments to speaker quality and the 2nd screen utilization. Its fast and sturdy.. Probably lgs best phone they've put together.. But the note 7 still would have killed it cold if it hadn't been recalled.
Team DevDigitel said:
I mean overall its not bad at all.. There could be some adjustments to speaker quality and the 2nd screen utilization. Its fast and sturdy.. Probably lgs best phone they've put together.. But the note 7 still would have killed it cold if it hadn't been recalled.
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Click to collapse
Agreed speaker could use a definite update only company that seems to do decent in this department is HTC.
I also think the options for the second screen when it is on should be the same as when it is off, the options when the screen is off is pretty limited.
I would agree on the note 7, in fact I was considering a jump from the v10 until all that battery bs happened.
If the Note 8 offers a removable battery I will definitely upgrade but that's very unlikely. I like getting aftermarket batteries for my phones and a battery charging case isn't the same in my opinion.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
I was a huge fan of the Samsung Note line and I had every one of them up to the Note Edge (which is what I had up until I got the V20), but personally I had to draw the line when Samsung started trying to be like Apple and did away with expandable storage and removable battery with the Note 5.
It's just a shame because I actually really liked the Super Amoled screens and especially the S-Pen, but I just refuse to own a phone that can't be rooted, doesn't have expandable storage, and doesn't have an IR blaster (because I literally use it to control my entire house).
With that being said the only real option for me was the V20 and to be honest I was actually surprised to see all the negativity towards it, I love my V20 and I'm still extremely glad that I got it because I was honestly worried about whether I'd like it or not (especially just coming off of 6 plus years of having nothing but Samsung phones).
I love the placement of the fingerprint scanner/power button and it's just nice to finally have a fingerprint scanner that actually works right for once, and overall the V20 has been smooth as butter for me with impressive battery life, I really like and use the crap out of the dual cameras, and overall it's been hands down the best phone I've had to date.
To each their own of course but for me at least it covers all the "requirements" I look for in a phone, which unfortunately is getting to be like finding a diamond in the rough nowadays.. so I'm glad I found it!
Sent from a ridiculously modified ColecoVision
jeep447 said:
I was a huge fan of the Samsung Note line and I had every one of them up to the Note Edge (which is what I had up until I got the V20), but personally I had to draw the line when Samsung started trying to be like Apple and did away with expandable storage and removable battery with the Note 5.
It's just a shame because I actually really liked the Super Amoled screens and especially the S-Pen, but I just refuse to own a phone that can't be rooted, doesn't have expandable storage, and doesn't have an IR blaster (because I literally use it to control my entire house).
With that being said the only real option for me was the V20 and to be honest I was actually surprised to see all the negativity towards it, I love my V20 and I'm still extremely glad that I got it because I was honestly worried about whether I'd like it or not (especially just coming off of 6 plus years of having nothing but Samsung phones).
I love the placement of the fingerprint scanner/power button and it's just nice to finally have a fingerprint scanner that actually works right for once, and overall the V20 has been smooth as butter for me with impressive battery life, I really like and use the crap out of the dual cameras, and overall it's been hands down the best phone I've had to date.
To each their own of course but for me at least it covers all the "requirements" I look for in a phone, which unfortunately is getting to be like finding a diamond in the rough nowadays.. so I'm glad I found it!
Sent from a ridiculously modified ColecoVision
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
V20 is is missing one thing though. A stylus. Other than that everything else trumps the note series handily.
I never used the stylus on my Notes for anything except doing a screen capture. On my V20 I have a screen cap icon setup on my buttons below the dock. Right between the home and recent app button.
Love my V20.
midmadn said:
I never used the stylus on my Notes for anything except doing a screen capture. On my V20 I have a screen cap icon setup on my buttons below the dock. Right between the home and recent app button.
Love my V20.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Even better we can use pie for shortcuts and all that if you are rooted . Screw the styles. Lol i never used it either when i went through the note's series

v20 still worth it?

so i have a google pixel, not the xl. love the phone but the battery life stinks and id prefer a larger device with a qhd screen. i have an opportunity to pick up a v20 for installment payments, specifically the US996 model. i know this can be bootloader unlocked and rooted. i also see there is aosp based roms which is awesome. do you guys think it would be worth getting? i mean hows the dev scene and battery life on it? id get a xl but they are still on backorder.
Go for the v20 blindly. It has an amazing battery life.
Sent from my LG-H990 using Tapatalk
fix-this! said:
so i have a google pixel, not the xl. love the phone but the battery life stinks and id prefer a larger device with a qhd screen. i have an opportunity to pick up a v20 for installment payments, specifically the US996 model. i know this can be bootloader unlocked and rooted. i also see there is aosp based roms which is awesome. do you guys think it would be worth getting? i mean hows the dev scene and battery life on it? id get a xl but they are still on backorder.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if you're interested in its HIFI feature, then absolutely!!
otherwise if music isn't your primary concern, you may want to wait and see how the S8 shapes up, IMHO
buongu said:
if you're interested in its HIFI feature, then absolutely!!
otherwise if music isn't your primary concern, you may want to wait and see how the S8 shapes up, IMHO
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
not into samsungs and the locked up bootloaders.
I absolutely love the V20! Screen, camera, sound, performance, and build quality are all excellent! Battery life has been even better than I had expected. In fact, battery life has been so good that I've yet to buy a spare battery. Removable battery was a key selling point for me, as I've bought a spare battery within the first couple days of buying my last 3 phones(Samsung Notes). With the V20, though, I've yet to do so. I had narrowed down my decision to either the V20 or Pixel XL, but the V20 eventually won that comparison. I think you'll thoroughly enjoy the V20
SwiftKey'ed from my LG V20 via XDA Labs
If you are into developments and music and good doze mode for the battery and infrared and second screens, then the phone is an absolute GO for you. Although for me, screen on time has been diminished to 5+ hours from the 7+ i used to get. But thats because i have been installing way too many apps that synchronize and well... The more apps you install, the less SOT you will get.
To be honest, this has happened to me with every phone including samsungs. There is just no phone that can withstand a heavy user like me and remain with the same performance and battery life as it is. LOL
Ultimately battery life starts to suffer when you install more and more apps. Its really stupid that android doesn't allow you to disable programs from booting instead you have to depend on programs like greenify to kill the persistent programs. Yes I am aware full control can be had via root but really should be a factory feature. Facebook and messenger apps are two terrible offenders.
Anyway OP I strongly advise you get the v20, the second screen is almost a must have feature (once you start depending on it), it has external memory, removable battery (in the case you want to get an extended battery you can) and I like the ir blaster which lets me control devices around the house, something not many phones have.
Really there is literally only one complaint I have and I am sure the majority are fine with it. I got used to the volume controls on the back of the unit and now it makes it a pain in the ass to adjust volume when the phone is in my pocket.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Of course, everyone has opinions, and all vary. As well as experiences.
The statement earlier about the more apps you have the worse the battery...I can say that is most likely true. It is also the case that the more apps affects performance. I have a LOT of apps installed.
In my case the battery on this phone is quite a bit worse than my Note 4 was. In fact, quite poor. BUT (big BUT)...my Note 4 was rooted and on Maximum Overdrive ROM, and had Greenify on it, and a lot of extra non-used factory apps either uninstalled or disabled. The battery on it was great. Especially screen off battery. But then, who really cares about that?
I've seen the battery here range all over the place for everyone...it all depends on your use, configuration, and apps installed. A bit plus here is the removable battery,.
I really like the phone. Notable: performance, second screen, fingerprint button on back, removable battery. I likely will be keeping it, and likely be rooting.
[PS]
FYI...On the US996 only (as far as I know), the only way to unlock bootloader is via official LG site, and it voids the warranty.
fix-this! said:
so i have a google pixel, not the xl. love the phone but the battery life stinks and id prefer a larger device with a qhd screen. i have an opportunity to pick up a v20 for installment payments, specifically the US996 model. i know this can be bootloader unlocked and rooted. i also see there is aosp based roms which is awesome. do you guys think it would be worth getting? i mean hows the dev scene and battery life on it? id get a xl but they are still on backorder.
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Click to collapse
Hey, I just took advantage of Verizon's promotion where you switch to them from your current network and trade in your device (I had the s7 edge) and I was able to get the Pixel 5" or the LG V20 for free. At first I tried out the Pixel because I have never owned an LG device but really didn't like the little Pixel. I came from the Note line including the Note 7 that I had to return so when that mess happened I went for the s7 edge. The Pixel seemed overall boring and the screen was too small like you said, plus I have a 256gb card I couldn't use with the Pixel. I switched to the V20 within the 14 day return policy and very happy I did. This phone is solid and if you use the little qweek to force doze you have crazy good battery life, I don't even charge my phone in the middle of the day anymore like I used to with past devices. I also forgot how great it was having the IR blaster like my old Note 4 had and I hope LG keeps adding them to the V line phones.
what tweak to doze
xbmoyx said:
... and if you use the little qweek to force doze you have crazy good battery life, I don't even charge my phone in the middle of the day anymore like I used to with past devices....
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Click to collapse
Can you be more specific about the 'little qweek'?
ewingr said:
Can you be more specific about the 'little qweek'?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In Greenify the "Aggressive Doze" setting for unrooted phones.
ewingr said:
In my case the battery on this phone is quite a bit worse than my Note 4 was. In fact, quite poor. BUT (big BUT)...my Note 4 was rooted and on Maximum Overdrive ROM, and had Greenify on it, and a lot of extra non-used factory apps either uninstalled or disabled. The battery on it was great. Especially screen off battery. But then, who really cares about that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would agree my note 3 got the best battery life and I believe the amoled display is the primary reason for this since amoled can turn off the black sections of the screen it seems to save quite a bit of battery. I like ips better though cause it is sharper and produces colors more accurately, specifically white. I'll take the battery hit especially since I use an extended battery.
Sent from my LG-H918 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
bit the bullet and got the at&t model. unlocked with dirty santa and running resurrection remix. great device, got for $0 down when I opened a line for my daughter.
love the display and clarity.
sound and speaker are loud and crisp.
nice design and as fast as my pixel.
battery life tbd.
really missed qhd and a phablet.

Any reason to not buy a V20 Verizon VS995?

I have a Motorola Droid Turbo that I've had for almost 4 years. I tend to buy good phones when they are slightly out of date and bring them to my carrier (VZW). I need (rarely) international compatibility and a reliable phone. The LG v20 is appealing because the battery is replaceable (only reason I am dumping my existing phone) and has a headphone jack. If it has an adequate camera, that is fine for my needs.
Any reason not to buy this phone? Reliability, etc?
I am planning on purchasing 'new' from ebay, phones are running about $220. Any recommended sources for the oem batteries or at least one that works well? How about screen protectors?
I will purchase a TPU case. Amazon reviews are all over the place. When I receive the phone, I will read some guides on disabling all the background garbage apps.
jeep364 said:
I have a Motorola Droid Turbo that I've had for almost 4 years. I tend to buy good phones when they are slightly out of date and bring them to my carrier (VZW). I need (rarely) international compatibility and a reliable phone. The LG v20 is appealing because the battery is replaceable (only reason I am dumping my existing phone) and has a headphone jack. If it has an adequate camera, that is fine for my needs.
Any reason not to buy this phone? Reliability, etc?
I am planning on purchasing 'new' from ebay, phones are running about $220. Any recommended sources for the oem batteries or at least one that works well? How about screen protectors?
I will purchase a TPU case. Amazon reviews are all over the place. When I receive the phone, I will read some guides on disabling all the background garbage apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Rooting is not easy. Or wasn't.. haven't checked in a while. My phone I have had from launch and the screen suffers from temporary burn in. Really annoying. Was never an issue till the last couple months it has gotten worse. I'll probably never buy a phone without an OLED screen again. But overall I'm pretty happy with the phone. I don't really have that bad of urges to replace it. The note 9 is looking good but I want to see what LG does with the next v series. I came from Samsungs line before this phone I had the note 4, rooted Galaxy s4 3 and 2.
qs504792 said:
Rooting is not easy. Or wasn't.. haven't checked in a while. My phone I have had from launch and the screen suffers from temporary burn in. Really annoying. Was never an issue till the last couple months it has gotten worse. I'll probably never buy a phone without an OLED screen again. But overall I'm pretty happy with the phone. I don't really have that bad of urges to replace it. The note 9 is looking good but I want to see what LG does with the next v series. I came from Samsungs line before this phone I had the note 4, rooted Galaxy s4 3 and 2.
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Click to collapse
I will not be rooting so no biggie there. Sad to hear about the screen, I'll have to investigate more. Any other last gen phones you'd recommend? Obviously none would have the removable battery and many don't have a headphone jack...
I'd say you can't go wrong with any Galaxy device or note. Especially if you can root it. My s4 was running so smooth after it's 2 years were up. Was running a Google edition rom. I just don't know if I can look past the screen issues I have been having and have read about on the v20. My only complaint. The camera is awesome. The mic is amazing. Sound quality of music is great. Second display I use all the time. Fingerprint reader is instant and perfect. Build quality is excellent. I have been using it without a case for the last year and have dropped it many times and you can't even tell.
My wife and I both have Verizon V20s, having upgraded from V10s about a year ago. We love this phone, to put it succinctly.
The good:
-Root! (Even though you said you're not going to, we won't buy a phone that can't be rooted.)
-Good camera. Not the absolute greatest, but pretty darn good, and can handle low-light pretty well for a phone. Love having the second wide-angle sensor.
-Good battery life, especially with a new battery. I usually have about 70% life after streaming over Bluetooth all day at work and looking stuff up sporadically. Also charges very quickly with appropriate chargers.
-Nice screen size. Plenty bright and good for watching darkly lit shows. Does require two hands for typing unless you use the weird one-handed keyboard thing.
-Second screen. Very handy for custom quick shortcuts without even turning the main screen on.
-Removeable battery and SD card support.
-Unlocked out of the box, like any Verizon device.
There is probably more I like about this phone but can't remember. Those are the highlights, though. Now for the bad:
-Rooting does take some effort, but is totally manageable. (In case you decide to.)
-Bluetooth streaming was initially very choppy, but we fixed that by turning off battery optimizations for Bluetooth.
-Finger print sensor on power button sometimes unlocks the screen immediately after I lock it. Have to pull my finger away quickly. Not a big deal, I guess.
-Screen burn-in does require some effort to mitigate, but is fine after adjustments.
I think that's all. In a nutshell, great phone if you're willing to do a little bit of setup.
Would just like to chime in on the burn in. I have a h918 running the BTTF kernel with Kcal and I'll say it has definitely mitigated the frequency that it appears but no combo I have tried so far has completely gotten rid of it.
qs504792 said:
Rooting is not easy. Or wasn't.. haven't checked in a while. My phone I have had from launch and the screen suffers from temporary burn in. Really annoying. Was never an issue till the last couple months it has gotten worse. I'll probably never buy a phone without an OLED screen again. But overall I'm pretty happy with the phone. I don't really have that bad of urges to replace it. The note 9 is looking good but I want to see what LG does with the next v series. I came from Samsungs line before this phone I had the note 4, rooted Galaxy s4 3 and 2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can fix this if you have a kernel with kcal support like mk2000, and the color control app. You can turn down the max color values a bit and pretty much get rid of the ghosting completely.

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