Is the LG G5 better than the Galaxy S7? Here’s what reviewers are saying

The first reviews for LG’s G5 have been published online, so just what are they saying about this radical product?

For starters, Phone Arena’s review says that, despite the specs and features, something “isn’t feeling exactly right” with the handset.

“Objectively, it’s a competent flagship and even a decent improvement over its predecessor in some ways, but it feels like it’s just way too round in character. There are no sharp edges, nothing that jumps out, no area where the G5 is, or at least appears to be, significantly better than what the competition has to offer,” the review reads.

The write-up also touches on the dual camera setup, which features one traditional 16-megapixel camera and one wide-angled 8MP sensor.

“As was the case with the LG G4, the camera is overall very good, and the secondary, wide-angled sensor does add some intrigue, though don’t expect to make use of it regularly,” Phone Arena explains, before awarding the device with an 8.3 rating.

In a rather scathing review for Android Police, titled “A Bit Of A Mess, Frankly”, David Ruddock pulls no punches in comparing the G5 to Samsung’s best.

“The G5 feels like a tacit admission from LG that the company simply can’t compete directly with Samsung in the realm of design, ruggedness, battery life, camera performance, or even software features right now. I realise this comes across as a brutal assessment, but I don’t want to sugarcoat it by pretending the G5’s primary competitor doesn’t exist. That’s not fair to anyone. The LG G5 simply is not as good a phone as the Galaxy S7,” Ruddock says.

Ruddock adds that people should buy the cheaper Nexus 5X instead, owing to fast updates and a better camera.

ZDNet’s Matthew Miller awarded the device 7.8 out of 10, praising the design, but adding that it came with compromises.

“The LG G5 is fast, the battery lasts most of a very long day, the camera is fantastic, it feels good in the hand, and the curved glass front looks cool. The back metal appears to have some flaws, the curves around the camera and fingerprint scanner give it a bit of an unfinished look, and there is a rather sharp bezel around the sides,” Miller elaborates.

Miller still feels that Samsung has nailed the design department, however.

“The bottom line is that I have a Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge with an integrated battery that is 800mAh larger, in a slightly sleeker form factor, with a water resistant build. Side-by-side I would choose the Galaxy S7 Edge or Galaxy S7 every time.”

In the Forbes review, Ben Sin praised the G5’s dual-camera setup, saying it wasn’t a gimmicky feature.

“Other phones might have caught up a bit since – the S7 camera offers manual controls too this year – but I’d bet the G5’s main shooter will still hold up. The second wide-angle camera has proven very useful for snapping landscape shots in tight spots. There’s slight distortion on the edges, but not too bad,” Sin explained.

The reviewer noted one concern in the form of the removable chin at the bottom of the phone.

“As mentioned earlier, the G5 has a removable bottom that allows for a battery swap and plugging in of different modules. In my review unit, I’m noticing that the bottom chin doesn’t snap back completely even. One side is ever so slightly higher than the other,” Sin continues, before noting that the phone “operates like a dream” otherwise.