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LG is trying its hand again at a curved smartphone. It may be one of the few times when the sequel bests the original. The company is following the unimpressive debut of the LG G Flex with the LG G Flex 2. The G Flex 2 was introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
The latest smartphone — actually a phablet with its 5.5-inch display — seeks to upgrade the experience many got from the original curved device from LG.
That experience was lackluster, but the sequel is a real improvement, reports Engadget,
In a company release announcing the new device, LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company president and CEO Juno Cho says:
“The G Flex 2 not only has the stunning looks, it also has the powerful guts to be at the cutting edge of current smartphone technology. Simply put, it’s a true head-turner in every sense of the word.”
For the G Flex 2, LG has improved every aspect of the original. That includes actually shrinking the display, from a full 6 inches to 5.5. Where the original had a poor resolution by today’s standards, the new Flex 2 has a full HD 1080p display.
Of course, the Flex 2 is a curved device. So that puts the microphone closer to a user’s mouth and curved displays are designed to reduce distortion. Engadget’s Chris Velazco adds that the Flex 2 is actually comfortable to hold against the face. As part of his review, he also notes that the back of the case is rather flexible and LG states that the 3,000 mAh battery is also flexible.
The back of the G Flex 2 also has a so-called self-healing feature. If the Flex 2 sustains any scratches on its back, the material from which it’s made has the ability to “heal” itself.
This was a feature on the original Flex phone but on the new device, this has been improved. Where it used to take about 3 minutes for scratches on the back of the phone to heal, it now takes just roughly 10 seconds.
And despite its ability to bend, the phone offers an apparent improve upon Corning’s trademark Gorilla Glass. A chemical treatment process on the Gorilla Glass has worked enough for LG to claim that its display glass is 20 percent more durable than the original.
LG also improved the quality of the camera on the G Flex 2 when compared to the original. The new phone will have a 13-megapixel rear-mounted camera that has LED flash and laser auto-focus. This helps getting images from objects in motion or in low light.
The phone will be sold with either 32- or 64GB of storage and will be one of the first devices to be using the Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor.
The G Flex 2 will be stocked with an almost original version of Android 5.0 Lollipop.
There have been no prices announced. Nor is there any indication when the G Flex 2 will be available. AT&T will likely be one of the first carriers to offer the device to its customers. AT&T announced a partnership to carry the phone on its service when it’s eventually available.
Image: @LGUS