The leaked images and news stories that LG’s G5 would be a modular smartphone were confirmed today when the company debuted the phone at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

LG’s flagship phones have always boasted a removable battery and expandable storage and the G5 is no different. To access the removable battery, users can slide the phone’s “chin” off.


Beyond being able to replace its battery, this cartridge-like system allows users to swap in accessories like a Hi-Fi digital to analog converter, camera attachment, and whatever the company cooks up in the future. At launch, you’ll be able to purchase two modular accessories, the LG CAM Plus and LG Hi-Fi Plus with B&O Play.

The CAM Plus is a camera module that gives you a camera grip with physical buttons for power, shutter, record, and zoom. When attached, the camera grip adds 1,200 mAh of battery life to the phone. The Hi-FI Plus attachment was created in collaboration with Bang and Olufsen, and allows superior audio decoding. It supports up to 32-bit/384KHz high-def audio files, which will please audiophiles. I was a huge fan of the Hi-Fi digital to analog converter in the LG V10 so I'm super stoked about this attachment.


The LG G5 features a unibody aluminum body with a fingerprint reader on the back, like the Nexus 6P. LG has moved the volume buttons that used to surround the power button on the back, and has located them to the left side of the phone. I was a fan of the rear-mounted volume buttons the G4 and V10 so it’s a bit strange the company decided to move them.

Also on the rear of the phone are two cameras; one standard lens and one 135-degree wide angle lens. The wide-angle lens will allow users to capture more of a scene without backing up.


On the front, you’ll find beautifully curved glass that gives the impression of a bezel-less display. The 5.3” screen offers quad HD resolution and always-on notifications, similar to the Moto X Pure Edition. This means you can receive all of your notifications at a glance, without even touching the phone. LG claims the feature won’t have a significant impact on battery life, as it only illuminates the pixels it needs to show the notifications.

Powering everything is the latest chip from Qualcomm, the Snapdragon 820. Compared to the previous generation chip, the Snapdragon 810, the 820 boasts up to double the speed and efficiency, says LG. The processor supports 4K capture and playback and is optimized for VR content. The LG G5 also features 4GB of RAM and 32GB of onboard storage with microSD expandable storage (up to 2TB). Adding to the dizzying amount of features are QuickCharge 3.0, Android 6.0 Marshmallow, and USB Type-C.

LG also released a VR headset and 360-degree camera to compliment its new flagship phone.