Last night, LG took the wraps off of the LG V20. It was perhaps the most highly anticipated smartphone out of LG in recent memory. A big reason for that was due to how underrated its successor, the LG V10, was. As well as the fact that it would be the first smartphone launched with Android 7.0 Nougat on board. However, when the device was announced, one thing that many people were wondering was, where are the modules? You may remember that the LG G5 sports a “drawer” at the bottom that slides the battery out and you can slide in new modules. Or as LG calls them “Friends”. This includes a camera grip, a B&O audio DAC, and a new battery. But these are nowhere to be found on the LG V20.
While many may have thought that LG had abandoned the idea of modules for the time being, that’s not the case. According to LG, who spoke with CNET at their launch event in San Francisco last night, the company will continue to bring modular smartphones to their G series. Which all but confirms that the LG G6 will indeed be modular. This means that the LG G series and the LG V series are meant for very different markets. Something that LG tried to explain last year, but didn’t do so well. This year, it’s quite apparent that they are meant for very different markets. A big part of that was making the LG G5 much smaller than its predecessor, jumping down from a 5.5-inch screen on the LG G4 to a 5.3-inch screen on the LG G5 this year.
The LG G6 will be modular, but will it use the same modules as the LG G5? If so, then that means that the design won’t be changing much, and the LG G6 will be the same size or at least the same width, as the LG G5. Leaving very little room for LG to innovate on what they created with the LG G5 earlier this year. The LG G6 isn’t due to be announced until Mobile World Congress next year, which takes place the last week of February. So there’s still time for LG to figure this all out.