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LG's next flagship phone joins notch craze, leaked images show

It didn't make an official debut at MWC 2018, but LG's next Android phone still seems to have made an appearance (complete with an iPhone-esque notch).

Ry Crist Senior Editor / Reviews - Labs
Originally hailing from Troy, Ohio, Ry Crist is a writer, a text-based adventure connoisseur, a lover of terrible movies and an enthusiastic yet mediocre cook. A CNET editor since 2013, Ry's beats include smart home tech, lighting, appliances, broadband and home networking.
Expertise Smart home technology and wireless connectivity Credentials
  • 10 years product testing experience with the CNET Home team
Ry Crist
2 min read
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This notched Android phone appears to be the upcoming LG G7, or "Neo."

Ynet

We didn't see a new flagship Android smart phone from LG at Mobile World Congress this week (though we have a few guesses as to why not). Instead, LG showed off a rather incremental upgrade to last year's V30. Ho hum, right?

Maybe not. According to Evan Blass at VentureBeat, the Korean manufacturer held a private, closed door meeting at MWC to show off new hardware and features. Sure enough, images from that meeting appeared to leak online through the Israeli news outlet Ynet.

After initially speculating that the leaked images showed a scrapped prototype, Blass consulted with sources and noted the "icy reaction" the reporter received from LG as the images went viral. His conclusion: We're looking at the real LG G7, codenamed "Neo."

Presumably, it's the same device that's rumored be released in June under the codename "Judy." Per VentureBeat, that device could feature a 6.1-inch display and a new kind of LCD panel that's brighter and more efficient than previous-gen LG smart phones. The phone is expected to include Qualcomm's latest mobile chipset, the Snapdragon 845 that powers the Galaxy S9, as well as 64GB of storage and 4GB of RAM. It's also rumored to be water resistant and capable of charging wirelessly. Much of that lines up with the newly leaked images, Blass notes.

Regarding Judy, a representative from LG told CNET at the time that they couldn't confirm or deny the speculation surrounding the upcoming device. LG didn't update us with any further comment at this point, either.

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