LG G4 launches with next-level camera... but clad in leather

16.26 - Seeing it compared to 'competitor B' now. That's clearly Samsung. Which is odd, as I'd have thought the S6 would have taken a better picture than that. The G4 can interpret RGB better than most other cameras - combining with IR to... wait, Coughlin is just saying words now. He's trying to blind us with science.

Just say it's got a good camera, and move on. We can't explain this to the normal people that don't care.

G4

16.24 - Thankfully LG is on the low-light, large sensor game. 40% larger than some others, and one of the best with the f1.8 sensor. The optical image stabilisation has been super boosted, with 3D movement and further movement allowed - that sounds like it could be a really good feature.

More light in? Excellent!

16.23 - Learning now. 'Phos' means light, 'graphos' means light, so photography is light drawing. Weirdly this phone can do just that. I see what LG did there.

LG G4

16.21 - Onto the camera now - the laser autofocus is back, and the camera will launch in just 0.6 seconds - which is 0.1 seconds faster than Galaxy S6. Just shouted out the Samsung by laughing at brands that let you open the camera by double tapping the home button, rather than the rear key LG has.

Come on guys, you're better than mocking Sams... oh, wait, no. You love that.

16.20 - There's also ceramic plastic with metallic finish - with a diamond effect to make it look premium. I don't know why the brand is shying away from metal here. I do like the fact it's trying to do something different, but at the same time this is going to divide consumers.

16.18 - The back is where LG thinks it can differentiate. It 'sought out colours and finishes to represent warmth.' It also spent three months working out a new way of using leather in a phone, using vegetable tanning in the full grain leather.

LG keeps going on about craftmanship, but it's still a leather phone. The Moto X came in leather and it really got bruised easily, but LG reckons it will let you 'impart a part of yourself into it'.

16.15 - Here comes the justification of the leather back - calling normal phones 'monolithic block' with fingerprints magnetising to it, and being really boring in terms of design. LG's Andrew Coughlin, head of Mobile LG UK, thinks the arced design is 20% more durable.

The removable battery is back - apparently in response to consumer battery. 3000mAh battery, with 'minimal compromise'.

16.14 - Apparently there's so much more we haven't heard about the LG G4. Asking us 'if we believe everything we read on the web'. Yes, LG - that's because you put it on there.

LG G4

16.13 - Quick shot looks good - super fast from lock screen to taking a snap. That looks fast enough to rival the 0.7 seconds of the Samsung Galaxy S6.

16.11 - Watching some drone footage now captured with the G4. It's got a colour spectrum sensor to automatically help you get the best picture, manual mode to let you shoot in more depth than ever before, a super low-light f1.8 sensor and the 2K IPS Quantum display that's even brighter than before.

UI is overhauled - Smart Bulletin and Smart Notice are upgraded. I wonder if they'll do anything more than let me know the shipping forecast isn't available.

16.10 - Qualcomm chap on stage now through video - he's all about the G4. Improved GPS, powering the QHD display without munching the battery, better graphics... blah blah blah. We've heard this all before. He's congratulating LG for making the G4. Well done them.

16.07 - The IPS Quantum display is one of the best on the market, offering 2K display and making it 25% brighter than last year's dark-fest.

LG G4

16.06 - Some more buzzwords for you: comfortable elegance. Woohoo - the laser is back! Lasercam f1.8 - the closest they've ever come to emulating the naked eye...

16.05 - Leather, plastic, screen, camera - all confirmed according to this video.

16.04 - The goal of the G4: not just to show technology, but must be based on understanding the user and those that benefit from it. 'Innovation for a better life'. Tag line there, people.

Brian promises this phone gives him more pleasure than anything. Here it comes... the LG G4!

16.02 - Gabby's seen the phone. She's caressed it. She promises we won't be disappointed. Brian Na, pres of LG Electronics Europe, just trotted out.

LG

16.00 - And we're off! Traditional LG boomy music, inspiring magic and some other sorcery. There's a light that's flickering around people's heads. They're all frozen in time. It's a magic light that can freeze people.

The G4 will have the ability to stop time. Hey, Gabby Logan is here in London!

15.59 - it's about to kick off. Any second. Although we all know what's going to happen. IMAGINE IF LG HAD BOUGHT SAMSUNG. Wouldn't have seen that coming.

LG G4

15.56 - I'm finally in. There are pictures of the G4 everywhere. Actually, an LG exec was showing it off outside earlier. Pics here...

15.27 - we're mingling with the growing throng of people looking to get their eyes on the new LG G4. I've had a canapé. We're flying.

Gareth Beavis
Formerly Global Editor in Chief

Gareth has been part of the consumer technology world in a career spanning three decades. He started life as a staff writer on the fledgling TechRadar, and has grown with the site (primarily as phones, tablets and wearables editor) until becoming Global Editor in Chief in 2018. Gareth has written over 4,000 articles for TechRadar, has contributed expert insight to a number of other publications, chaired panels on zeitgeist technologies, presented at the Gadget Show Live as well as representing the brand on TV and radio for multiple channels including Sky, BBC, ITV and Al-Jazeera. Passionate about fitness, he can bore anyone rigid about stress management, sleep tracking, heart rate variance as well as bemoaning something about the latest iPhone, Galaxy or OLED TV.

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