LG Wing is the weirdest phone we've seen in a long time
Phones
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These days most smartphones are either rectangular slabs with one straight screen, or in the case of Samsung and Motorola, they're slabs with flexible screens that open up In the case of the LG wing, though, it's neither.
Instead it's two screens, one that swivels on top of the other.
Yes, it's weird.
Yes, it's probably going to be expensive, but it's not as crazy and useless as you might think.
This is the LG wing.
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So I have a pre production model with me and before I swivel it open, you can see that the LG wing is a pretty straightforward phone.
It has a large 10 ADP display, wireless charging and an in screen fingerprint reader.
But it's also missing a few things that other LG phones usually have.
It doesn't have a headphone jack for instance, and it doesn't have a formal IP rating for water protection.
Now compared to the galaxy z full two, Samsung's phone is still heavier and thicker when it's folded.
But the LG wing is still bigger than most smartphones.
I'd actually guess that is about a third thicker Not twice as you'd zoom only because the top panel is actually thinner than the bottom.
When it comes time to open it up, you got to make sure it's in your right pan because it only rotates one way.
As a left hander, I was very confused and the first time when I received my unit.
Because I thought mine was stuck, but no.
LG estimates that the phone is durable enough to survive 200,000 rotations over the course of five years.
If you want more protection LG is working on cases but those will undoubtedly add more bugs.
Now while I don't recommend going buck wild and ripping these two displays apart I also didn't feel like I needed to be any more careful with the phone than any other premiums.
multitasking is the most obvious benefit, like watching YouTube while looking at something on the web.
Or you can have maps open in your car while controlling music.
Or you can make plans with a buddy on the phone while checking your calendar for an available time.
If you find yourself opening the same pairs of apps, you can customise it so they'll launch together quickly.
The new form factor also opens up different experiences for gameplay, but not all games accommodate the two screens for now.
And when you hold it upside down, it's top heavy, so it did get uncomfortable in my hand.
Having two screens to navigate one app is also interesting.
With messaging for instance, you can view a large part of the conversation while texting.
But not every app is optimized.
For instance, I'd love to watch a YouTube video while reading comments on the screen, but I couldn't do it.
You could also use the bottom screen as a trackpad to navigate the top display.
And if you just don't want to use the bottom display at all, you can just black it out and hold it as a grip.
The LG has three rear cameras one standard camera and two ultra wide camera, Press, one of which features a gimbal inside that we're using right now.
gimbals are used to stabilize the camera even as you move around and if you've ever been to a convention or a trade show, you'll see a lot of video people walking around with them.
When we tried it out footage was super steady even as we were shooting video while walking quickly down a lot.
LG added a special gimbal mode with extra controls as well so you can pan and follow your subject as well.
As they move, and if nothing else, using the bottom screen as a grip made shooting horizontal video way more comfortable.
On the top edge is a 32 megapixel camera that's inside the phone and pops up when in use.
We've seen this tech before and the one plus seven pro and vivo and Oppo phones so it keeps the display continuous and uninterrupted.
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Powering the phone is a Snapdragon 765 g chipset and a four ampere hour battery.
Since this is a pre production model, it wouldn't make sense to conduct battery tests now, but anecdotally the wing has a decent battery life With mild usage of both screens, it was able to last a full day without charging.
In the US the LG wing will be available first on Verizon, then at&t in the fall and T Mobile all on their respective 5g networks.
Pricing hasn't been released at the time of this video, but this phone could easily cost $1,000 or more.
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The LG wing isn't gonna be for everybody and LG knows this, its design and its potential price is gonna get many people to write it off.
But I appreciate the company's willingness to experiment, especially given the sea of identical phones out there.
Also, swivel phones themselves aren't exactly new.
They were around back when physical keyboards for phones were a thing.
I think LG thoughtfully applied that design to this current era of smartphones.
Whether or not people are willing to pay and give its vision a shot, however, is another question.
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That's it for now come back to CNET when we get the full review going.
And in the meantime, check out the rest of our channel for more videos on tech.
Stay safe be well and I'll see you next time.
