Introduction
Do we have a good one for you today – the LG V30 goes up against Android’s archenemy, the Apple iPhone 8 Plus. Both devices are true flagships in their respective ecosystems, although Apple has also released its anniversary-edition phone this year, the Apple iPhone X. Some readers may say this is not a valid comparison because the iPhone is involved, but just remember that Android competes against iOS and therefore we most certainly must compare oranges to apples. The original iPhone back in 2007 changed forever the way we view a smartphone – we owe Apple a lot in this respect – but its closed iOS is just not everyone’s cup of tea. Android users want to pick, choose, and customize their experience without having someone tell them what to like. The LG V30 is the perfect Android device to compare to the Apple iPhone 8 Plus – both are close to the same size and both offer dual cameras. Before we examine each individual device, we will first see what these two flagships have in common, if anything.
As we look over the basic specifications, we can see very little in common. The LG V30 and iPhone 8 Plus do share a base of 64GB of internal memory, but the LG V30’s configuration is expandable via a microSD card. If you want more memory in the iPhone 8 Plus you have to purchase a 256GB model for $150 extra. Both devices use a dual-camera setup – the LG V30 uses a 16-megapixel sensor and a 13-megapixel one, while the iPhone 8 Plus uses two 12-megapixel sensors. Both have non-removable batteries with fast charge and wireless charging. The two devices are almost the same in terms of physical size, although the iPhone 8 Plus is 44 grams heavier. Both have NFC, but the Apple limits its chip to Apple Pay. Both support Bluetooth v5.0, WiFi, and a have USB port – the LG V30 has the standard Type-C, while the iPhone 8 Plus has Apple’s proprietary Lightning Port. The iPhone 8 Plus does have stereo speakers, but when it comes to the remaining sound components, the LG V30 is vastly superior. They both have a fingerprint sensor – rear-mounted on the LG V30 and front-mounted on the iPhone 8 Plus. Both have dust and water protection, but the V30 has IP68 certification, whereas the iPhone is IP67-rated.
Please take a careful look at the detailed specifications comparison chart below and here you will see just how these two great smartphones stack up against each other. After that, we will look at each mobile offering in more detail and point out some of its pros and cons. From all of this information, we will try to determine the winner based on overall specs, as well as the execution of design and functions.
Specifications
LG V30
I have read about many users that simply refuse to get an LG device, often citing a bad experience from around half a decade ago. Think what you may about LG, but they are constantly trying to innovate and come up with new ideas. Just look at the LG G Flex and LG G5 – both commercial flops, but they were designs that took a leap of faith. LG was one of the first to use dual cameras and four DACs for superior mobile sound – although it “forgot” to include stereo speakers here. LG was also not afraid to make yet another major design change with the new LG V30 by switching from an all-metal body to an all-glass one. This switch did away with a long-time LG tradition of a removable battery, but it gave way to an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance and wireless charging. LG was one of the first manufacturers to do away with the old 16:9 display ratio and jump to the new 18:9 ratio – allowing more screen real estate on a smaller device and giving the user two square windows for multitasking. LG also included the best available SoC into the V30, which all adds up to a great device.
LG has a time-honored tradition of using LCD panels for its smartphones, but this time around, it jumped on the OLED bandwagon. The LG V30 now sports a 6-inch QHD P-OLED with the newer 18:9 ratio display. It packs a resolution of 2880 x 1440 pixels that result in 538 pixels per inch (PPI). LG named its new display ‘FullVision’ – much like Samsung’s Infinity Display without the curved edges – that includes support for both Dolby Vision and HDR10. While the LG V20 used a fixed secondary display, the LG V30 uses a ‘floating bar’ for notifications that can be moved around on the display or swept completely out of the way. The LG V30 uses a Snapdragon 835 octa-core SoC with a quad-core cluster clocked at 1.9GHz and another quad-core module clocked at 2.45GHz, adding the Adreno 540 GPU for stunning graphics. The V30 has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of expandable memory.
LG started the dual-camera trend with the ‘V’ series and that feature continues with the V30 model. The main camera sports a 16-megapixel sensor, OIS, laser autofocus and PDAF, a dual-tone LED flash, and a large f/1.6 lens to help in those low-light situations. The secondary camera will take care of your wide-angle photos but lacks many of the specs of the primary camera. It sports a 13-megapixel sensor with a wide 120-degree lens and a slightly smaller aperture of f/1.9. The front-facing camera is the same 5-megapixel unit used on the LG V20 but now also includes facial recognition support. A 3,300mAh non-removable battery powers the device and offers Quick Charge 3.0 compatibility, as well as wireless charging.
With the new all-glass design, LG is able to offer an IP68 certification, add wireless charging, and surprisingly retain the MIL-STD-810G durability certification boasted by the V20. Besides excellent photos, the LG V30 is designed for awesome audio out of the headphone jack with its continued use of four DACs (Digital-to-Analog Converters), an EQ with left/right balance controls, and B&O Play certifications. With all of this circuitry, we just do not understand why LG did not include dual stereo speakers in the mix. Improvements continue with the addition of a larger display, giving it an 18:9 ratio, and switching to the P-OLED technology. The camera area improves all around and now adds facial recognition to go along with the V30’s voice recognition. The non-removable 3,300mAh-capacity battery will easily make it through the day on a single charge. The device measures 151.7 x 75.4 x 7.4mm and weighs in at 158 grams. The V30 comes in your choice of Cloud Silver or Moroccan Blue and ships with Android 7.1.2 Nougat reskinned by the company. The LG V30 will cost you approximately $840 outright.
Apple iPhone 8 Plus
Apple has a way of marketing its iPhones as though they are on the leading edge of technology and their many loyal users either don’t care or buy into that hype. However, many Android users know better – they know that Apple resisted a larger display, resisted AMOLED panels for a decade, still partially resists higher screen resolutions, smaller bezels, and software flexibility, with only some of these points finally being addressed by the iPhone X. It took Apple ten years to make some of those changes that we, as Android users, have enjoyed all along. Let’s see just how well the iPhone 8 Plus holds up to the LG V30.
The iPhone 8 Plus uses a straightforward 5.5-inch LED backlit IPS LCD module with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 that amounts to 401 PPI. Apple also kept the older 16:9 display ratio on the iPhone 8 series and saved the 18:9 ratio for the iPhone X. It uses Apple’s 3D Touch capabilities, which is a nice feature allowing the user to apply multiple pressure points on the display for additional options. It uses its own Apple A11 Bionic chip and its Apple-made GPU for graphics but offers no speed specifications – suffice it to say, it is fast. Apple always designs and includes a very fast processor, but then, it is not asked to do very much when it comes to multitasking. The new iPhone packs only 3GB of RAM and a base of 64GB of non-expandable memory – you must purchase the 256GB model if you want more internal storage.
Apple used to have some truly legitimate bragging rights when it came to smartphone cameras, but that was a few years ago. Many Android flagship devices have surpassed the iPhone over the last two years. The iPhone 8 Plus sports two 12-megapixel cameras mounted in a horizontal position on the left edge of the device’s back panel. They have a respective aperture of f/1.8 and f/2.8 with OIS, PDAF, quad-LED dual-tone flash, and 2X Optical Zoom. The front camera is a 7-megapixel affair with an aperture of f/2.2 for selfies and AppleTalk-enabled video chatting. Apple powers the device with a non-removable 2,691mAh battery that includes a rapid charge feature and finally included wireless charging, but only with support for the Qi format.
The iPhone 8 Plus looks very dated with its large bezels and the large front-mounted fingerprint sensor – it is amazing that Apple still uses that same design in 2017. The iPhone 8 Plus uses the earpiece and the second speaker on the bottom edge of the phone to provide stereo sound and Apple now offers IP67 certification for dust and water resistance. The company limits mobile payments to Apple Pay so your purchases are restricted to merchants that bought the necessary hardware to accept Apple Pay. As with all new iPhones, the iPhone 8 Plus has no 3.5mm headphone jack and uses Apple’s proprietary Lightning Port with an included dongle for connecting traditional wired headphones. Apple’s heralded Siri is ready, willing, and able to serve you here, as well. It arrives with iOS 11 and is updated yearly – one very nice feature of a closed system. It measures 158.4 x 78.1 x 7.5mm, and weighs in at hefty 202 grams. It is available in Gold, Silver, and Space Gray. The iPhone 8 Plus will cost about $800 outright for the 64GB model.
…And The Winner Is…
The Final Word
It should be easy to see why I picked the LG V30 over the Apple iPhone 8 Plus – not because it is an Android device, but because it has it all when it comes to looks, larger display, higher resolution, always-on display, OLED technology, and the 18:9 aspect ratio. It packs more RAM, has a great camera area, uses a standard USB Type-C port, NFC that can do more than just Android Pay, IP68 certification, memory expansion, a 3.5mm headphone jack, voice and facial recognition, MIL-STD-810G certification, and it only costs $40 more than the iPhone 8 Plus.
As with all Apple iPhones, this one is well-built and made to be a fast and smooth operator. On the other hand and even if I’m being generous, the iPhone 8 Plus looks like a smartphone from 2015 with it large bezels and a massive home button. It has a powerful processor and a great dual camera area. However, once you get past those features, you are only looking at a Full HD LCD screen, smaller battery, closed iOS, and you are limited to Apple Pay for contactless transactions. To top it all off, the iPhone 8 Plus will cost you $800 with 64GB or $150 more with 256GB of memory.
Buy the LG V30 (AT&T)