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Update, 2018
The LG V30 ($800 at Amazon.com) was well-received upon its launch in November 2017. A significant step up from the G6, the V30 proved to be a worthy adversary to the Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus, especially in the camera department. With impressive battery life, a high quality headphone jack, and fast performance, it's easy to see why the V30 is still one of our favorite smartphones.
In May 2018, LG pushed out an update, the V30S ThinQ, which is currently only available unlocked. This upgrade is essentially the same phone with a little more memory and base storage, plus better AI software.
Check out CNET's best smartphones for more information on competitive products.
Our review of the LG V30 -- originally published on Nov. 14, 2017, and otherwise is mostly unchanged -- follows.
I just want a phone that does everything. Is that too much to ask?
I want a sleek, durable handset that's practically all screen. A device with gobs of performance, loooong battery life, an amazing camera and a headphone jack. How about water resistance, wireless charging, microSD expandable storage and support for any cellular carrier, too?
Until recently, Samsung was the only company that offered such a product -- like the Galaxy S8, S8 Plus and Note. Now, there's the LG V30 as well. It isn't a cheap phone, it isn't a small phone and it isn't perfect. I've used it for a whole month as my daily driver, and I definitely have annoyances to share.
But here's what the V30 truly is: a worthy rival for Samsung.
In test after test against Samsung's similar Galaxy S8 Plus, the V30 held its own -- to the point that you might be happy buying it instead.
What's an LG V30 and how much does it cost?
It's LG's new flagship phone -- a solid step up in build quality and features from the LG G6 released earlier this year.
The LG V30.
Josh Miller/CNETWith a new OLED screen, thinner build, improved dual cameras and a quad-DAC (digital-to-analog audio converter) built into the headphone jack, LG's marketing it as both a luxury phone and a content creator's dream, with particular focus on videographers (who can shoot pro-style Log format video) and audiophiles.
In the US, the 64GB phone costs between $810 and $840 depending on cellular carrier, with an unlocked version compatible with all four major US carriers retailing for $830.
Sprint is the exception: It sells an upgraded V30+ with double the storage (128GB) and a pair of B&O wired headphones for $912.
All about that screen
"Is that the new iPhone ($800 at Cricket Wireless)?"
I must have heard that question half a dozen times while using the V30, and there's good reason. Like the iPhone X and many other 2017 flagship handsets, the 6-inch LG V30 is a vision made of glass and aluminum.
It, too, has an unusually tall screen that extends practically all the way to the top and bottom edges. It, too, sports a smooth glass back and a shiny aluminum band. And it, too, houses a P-OLED display -- the first on an LG phone in quite a while.
The OLED screen really pops, even if LG's display is somewhat inferior to Samsung.
Sarah Tew/CNETWhy are OLED screens so sought after? Each pixel emits its own light, allowing for more vibrant colors and deeper blacks. And I'm happy to report that LG's 6-inch, 2,880x1,440-pixel screen is crisp and beautiful right out of the box.
The LG V30 does fit in pants pockets. How much it will bulge depends on your pants.
Josh Miller/CNET(As we've discovered in recent weeks, not all OLEDs are created equal, and some worried that the LG V30's 6-inch screen -- built by LG -- might demonstrate the same ghostly afterimages and muted colors as the LG-built 6-inch screen in the Pixel 2 XL. Thankfully, that doesn't seem to be the case with ours.)
That said, the V30's screen isn't quite the best OLED has to offer. It didn't get as bright or clear as Samsung's screen outdoors -- which honestly made taking photos and video a little difficult. It looks a bit blue when viewed from off-angles, even if the color shift isn't quite as noticeable as Google's Pixel 2 XL.
The V30's screen has some odd issues at low brightness, too: I had a hard time watching Netflix and browsing websites in bed because LG's screen tends to crush blacks when the screen's brightness is set low. Dim scenes in movies didn't just look dim, but positively deathly. Just something to be aware of.
More importantly, I had a few issues holding the phone that surrounds that giant screen.
While I absolutely adore the V30's rear-mounted power button (which doubles as a responsive fingerprint sensor, and triples as a divot that helps me balance the phone), the phone is still so wide, it was hard to grip with a single, medium-size hand. The glass and metal surfaces are smooth enough that it's easy for the phone to slip.
Also, the rough edges of the USB-C cutout tend to dig into my finger, which made my "pinkie shelf hold" problematic. Plus, there lots of times when, trying to grip the phone tightly, my meaty fingers would occasionally brush the edge of the screen, and the display would unknowingly sense two fingers and failed to carry out a tap.
Don't get me wrong, the V30 looks and feels lovely (save the big AT&T logo on the back of my review unit) and the fingerprint sensor placement is way better than the camera smudge magnet on Samsung's Galaxy S8 and Note 8. I just don't think the ergonomics are universally great.