Introduction
Do we have a good one for you today – the new LG G6 takes on the new Samsung Galaxy A7 2017 model. The LG G6 is new in both design and technology while the Galaxy A7 looks like a Galaxy S7, only with fewer features. The old LG G5 was a painted, all-metal modular design, which was a big gamble for LG, but buyers were not ready for this type of design and sales did not come close to their predictions. The new LG G6 is an all-glass design that has narrower bezels, an increased display size, an 18:9 screen aspect ratio, and they even did away with their removable battery. Samsung made a nice, solid mid-range device, but when even put up against their newest flagship, it looks a little dated. The LG G6 and Galaxy A7 are looking to capture your attention in those overseas markets. Let’s take a look to see what these two devices have in common before we look at each on an individual basis.
With the same 5.7-inch display size, the Galaxy A7 is slightly larger in physical dimensions and weighs 23 grams heavier than the LG G6. Both devices use Gorilla Glass for their display protection – the LG G6 uses Gorilla Glass 3 for the front and the Galaxy A7 uses Gorilla Glass 4. Both devices are IP68 certified for water and dust resistance and both have non-removable batteries with rapid charge available. The displays use a different technology, different resolutions, but both utilize the ‘always-on’ display technology. Both devices come with expandable internal memory with a base 32GB on the G6 and 32GB on the Galaxy A7. The camera areas are very different, but both take great photographs. They both have a fingerprint sensor for unlocking the device as well as Android Pay or other mobile purchases. Both of these devices do have a 3.5mm headphone jack. The LG G6 and the Galaxy A7 have the usual suspects – WiFi, Bluetooth v4.2, GPS, NFC, and the newer reversible Type-C port for charging and data transfer.
Please take a thoughtful look at the detailed Specifications Comparison chart below, and here you will see just how these two great devices stack up against one another. After that, we will look at each device in greater depth and point out some of its pros and cons. From all of this information, we will try to determine the winner based on specs and execution of design and functions.
Specifications
LG G6
LG went out on a big limb last year with their LG G5 and its modular design. What seemed like an innovative idea did not go over well with the public, so this year, LG went to a new sleek, all glass design and did away with the LG G5’s metal and modular body. This was also a bold move in that it allowed the LG G6 to include an IP68 certification, but took away the removable battery. LG helped by increasing the battery size from 2800mAh to 3300mAh and added wireless charging. LG increased the display size from 5.3-inches to 5.7-inches and gave it an 18:9 screen ratio for better movie watching and multitasking. LG also worked on improving the camera area and kept the fingerprint sensor on the back of the device. Let’s see if LG did enough to their LG G6 to see how it stands up to the new Samsung Galaxy A7.
The LG G6 sports a new 5.7-inch IPS LCD QHD+ display and includes the ‘always on’ feature and a resolution of 2880 x 1440 pixels with 564 pixels-per-inch (PPI.) This 18:9 screen ratio gives the LG G6 a slightly taller and narrower display that is Dolby Vision/HDR10 compliant and will give you a more realistic view when watching movies. Its sizing also allows two perfect squares for using multi-window. LG stuck with the 2016 Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 quad-core processor with dual cores clocked at 1.6GHz and another dual-core clocked at 2.35GHz. They paired that processor up with the impressive Adreno 530 GPU for graphics. The G6 packs 4GB of DDR4 RAM and 32GB of internal memory that is expandable to 2TB via a microUSB card.
LG keeps their affair with dual cameras going on the LG G6. They do operate independently from one another with the primary 13MP sensor using an f/1.8 aperture, PDAF, OIS, and dual-tone LED flash. The additional camera is a 13MP ultra wide-angle 125-degree sensor that has a fixed focus and an f/2.4 aperture. For normal picture taking, the LG G6 will use the primary 13MP shooter; however, if the user needs to capture a wider group shot in the photo or landscape, they can use the 13MP ultra wide-angle lens. LG used a 5MP FFC with an f/2.4 aperture for selfies and video chatting. LG increased the battery size from 2800mAh to a 3300mAh with Quick Charge 3.0 and now offers standard wireless charging.
LG originally had to keep the fingerprint sensor on the back of the LG G5 due to their modular design, but for the LG G6 LG had to keep the fingerprint sensor on the back of the device to keep the bezels small. It still acts as an on/off switch as it did on the LG G5. The LG G6 did away with its IR Blaster, but the FM radio is still around for certain market areas. The LG G6 is the first non-Google smartphone to include Google Assistant built into the device. The LG G6 measures 148.9 x 71.9 x 7.9 mm, weighs in at 163 grams and comes in Mystic White, Astro Black, or Ice Platinum. The device is available on all the leading US carriers for about $700 for the 32GB model.
Samsung Galaxy A7 2017
Samsung’s new Galaxy A7 (2017) follows its typical looks with rounded corners, speaker grill at the top and an oval home button at the bottom. It reminds you of a Galaxy S7 with a larger display and includes the all-glass construction. It includes some decent specifications for an upper mid-range phone, but with a price tag of $500, we should expect no less. The Galaxy A7 includes the IP68 certification for water and dust and an unusual new side-positioned loudspeaker. Let’s see just how this new Galaxy A7 (2017) mid-range holds up against the new LG G6 flagship.
The Galaxy A7 sports a large 5.7-inch Super AMOLED FHD display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels with 386 PPI. Samsung wisely included the ‘always-on’ screen on the Galaxy A7 to help save battery life and to make checking your notifications a breeze. The Galaxy A7 uses Samsung’s Exynos 7880 octa-core processor clocked at 1.9GHz and a Mali-T830MP2 covers the graphics. The Galaxy A7 packs 3GB of RAM and has 32GB of expandable internal memory up to 256GB via a microSD card.
For the primary camera on the Galaxy A7, Samsung included a large 16MP lens with an aperture of f/1.9, autofocus, and an LED flash. The Galaxy A7’s FFC also use a large 16MP lens with the same f/1.9 aperture as the primary camera. This large FFC should give you excellent low-light selfies and video chatting. Samsung included a large non-removable battery of 3600mAh, and includes rapid charging.
The Galaxy A7 is available in some Asian and European markets now – there is no word on when or if there will be a US release. It has a front mounted fingerprint sensor for unlocking the device as well as making mobile payments, including Android Pay and Samsung Pay, which will allow A7 users to make mobile purchases just about anywhere they can swipe a credit or debit card. It has IP68 certification against dust and water and a side-mounted speaker above the on/off key. It comes with Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow as the OS, but its Nougat upgrade should be ready sometime in May 2017. The Galaxy A7 is a GSM device and it will work on either AT&T or T-Mobile networks in the US. The Galaxy A7 measures 156.8 x 77.6 x 7.9mm, weighs in at a hefty 186 grams, is available in Black Sky, Gold Sand, Blue Mist, and Peach Cloud and costs about $500.
…And The Winner Is…
The Final Word
It is obvious that the LG G6 is the winner in this specification comparison – and of course, it should be as it is a flagship device and costs $200 more than the Galaxy A7. The LG G6 has a higher resolution, better processor and GPU, more RAM, better camera, and it is running Nougat.
The Galaxy A7 is a great device, but it has less features and limited appeal in the US since it will only work on the AT&T or T-Mobile networks. It does use the AMOLED display technology, but also uses a Full HD resolution. It does pack the IP68 certification, but so does the LG G6. The Galaxy A7 has a slightly larger battery, but the LG G6 offers wireless charging. They both employ the ‘always-on’ display and they both can handle mobile payments, although the Galaxy A7 can also do Samsung Pay.
While there are many similarities, the LG G6 is definitely the more advanced smartphone and the most versatile, but it will cost you a couple of hundred dollars more than the Galaxy A7. If you live in a European country, it could be an excellent choice.