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​LG's Stylus 2 Plus revs its pen-powered phone a little faster

A better screen, processor, camera and memory should mean higher performance for the Korean company's stylus-equipped Android phone.

Stephen Shankland Former Principal Writer
Stephen Shankland worked at CNET from 1998 to 2024 and wrote about processors, digital photography, AI, quantum computing, computer science, materials science, supercomputers, drones, browsers, 3D printing, USB, and new computing technology in general. He has a soft spot in his heart for standards groups and I/O interfaces. His first big scoop was about radioactive cat poop.
Expertise Processors, semiconductors, web browsers, quantum computing, supercomputers, AI, 3D printing, drones, computer science, physics, programming, materials science, USB, UWB, Android, digital photography, science. Credentials
  • Shankland covered the tech industry for more than 25 years and was a science writer for five years before that. He has deep expertise in microprocessors, digital photography, computer hardware and software, internet standards, web technology, and more.
Stephen Shankland
LG Stylus 2 Plus

LG's new Stylus 2 Plus is a cheaper alternative to the Samsung Galaxy Note 5.

LG Electronics

If you like handwriting and doodling on your phone, LG is bringing new computing horsepower to its pen-powered model.

LG introduced its Stylus 2 in February, but on Wednesday announced a Stylus 2 Plus with some hardware improvements to the Android-powered phone. The 5.7-inch screen's resolution improves from 1,280x720 pixels to 1,920x1,080; the processor from 1.2GHz quad-core chip to a 1.4GHz octo-core chip; and the memory from 1.5GB to 2GB or 3GB depending on which country it's sold in. Some countries will get a 16-megapixel camera option, too, up from 13 on the Stylus 2.

The LG Stylus 2 Plus is available now in Taiwan and will reach Asia, South America, Europe and North America in coming weeks at "competitive" prices, LG said. It comes with pen-specific apps like Quick Memo for taking notes and Pen Keeper to warn you if you've unwittingly dropped the pen, and it'll run the newer version 6.0 of Google's Android, Marshmallow.

LG has struggled to keep up with its South Korean rival, Samsung, which dominates the Android phone market and offers a stylus-enabled option of its own, the Note.