For the past week, I've been using the LG G5, which I bought after selling my S7 edge. Although I can find more faults in the G5, I prefer it - here's why.
When both phones were released, I was really excited about the G5, the idea of a modular phone was exciting - even if it was just to remove and swap out the battery, but I've always been a Samsung guy, so the S7 edge seemed like a safer bet. Based on all the reviews I've read and all the hands-on videos I've watched, it seemed like I made the right decision, that was until I had a shot at playing with the G5.
Overall design
The G5, to me, feels much better in the hand than the S7 edge - it's easier to hold and I can more or less complete any task one handed. I also don't need to worry about finger smudges. I've read quite a lot of complains about quality control on the G5, thankfully this didn't impact me - my phone is flawless with no dents or chips. I wen't with the Titan colour, which looks awesome.
Software
Touchwiz was a joy to use, so much so that I didn't feel the need to install a 3rd party launcher, with the G5 I instantly installed Action Launcher 3 as I needed an app drawer (my brain doesn't work without one) I've also replaced the stock LG keyboard, which wasn't good. With the S7 edge I didn't feel the need to change the keyboard. These are all minor things to me though, as much as I enjoy my phone working out of the box perfectly - I'm still going to install a launcher eventually.
As for lag, there was none on my S7 edge and there isn't any on my G5 - if I had to choose, which one was faster, I would say the G5 feels more snappier.
Battery life
I couldn't fault the S7 edge battery, it was excellent. I didn't need to worry about charging it through the day. I can also say the same for the G5 - considering this battery is much smaller, it still manages to last me throughout the day, with about 30% left before I charge it overnight. Obviously the S7e battery is better, but for what I use my phone for, the G5 is more than capable.
In the morning, I usually remove my phone from the charger about 6 am (my 6 month old Son is my alarm) I don't tend to use my phone until I get to work about 8:30 am. The G5 has amazing standby. So far, after having the phone for just over a week, I've removed my phone each time around about 6 am and by 8 am I'm still at 100% battery life - this wasn't possible with the S7 edge.
Camera
Both cameras are brilliant;
1) I miss the double tap of the home button to launch the camera, I just can't get used to the double tap of the volume rocker.
2) I miss the instant focus that the S7 edge had.
These two features are very much missed, but what the S7 edge camera doesn't have that the G5 does is a brilliant wide angel camera. This is such a brilliant feature. One I didn't think I would as much. So much so that my next phone needs to have this feature.
Conclusion
I honestly couldn't fault the S7 edge - the battery life was excellent, the camera was great, the screen, as always, was bright and vibrant and Touchwiz good. I had the S6 edge for the best part of 2015, the S7 edge improved in all the failed areas, but after almost a month of using it, I got bored. The G5 is a breath of fresh air, it has a decent build quality, an excellent camera, excellent battery life and excellent screen. I don't care too much for the UI of LG, but that's easily changed. I'm also happy to be supporting a phone that dares to do something different, sure the modular part of the phone seems rushed, but I'm hoping, that in time, more developers jump on board to support this great idea.
When both phones were released, I was really excited about the G5, the idea of a modular phone was exciting - even if it was just to remove and swap out the battery, but I've always been a Samsung guy, so the S7 edge seemed like a safer bet. Based on all the reviews I've read and all the hands-on videos I've watched, it seemed like I made the right decision, that was until I had a shot at playing with the G5.
Overall design
The G5, to me, feels much better in the hand than the S7 edge - it's easier to hold and I can more or less complete any task one handed. I also don't need to worry about finger smudges. I've read quite a lot of complains about quality control on the G5, thankfully this didn't impact me - my phone is flawless with no dents or chips. I wen't with the Titan colour, which looks awesome.
Software
Touchwiz was a joy to use, so much so that I didn't feel the need to install a 3rd party launcher, with the G5 I instantly installed Action Launcher 3 as I needed an app drawer (my brain doesn't work without one) I've also replaced the stock LG keyboard, which wasn't good. With the S7 edge I didn't feel the need to change the keyboard. These are all minor things to me though, as much as I enjoy my phone working out of the box perfectly - I'm still going to install a launcher eventually.
As for lag, there was none on my S7 edge and there isn't any on my G5 - if I had to choose, which one was faster, I would say the G5 feels more snappier.
Battery life
I couldn't fault the S7 edge battery, it was excellent. I didn't need to worry about charging it through the day. I can also say the same for the G5 - considering this battery is much smaller, it still manages to last me throughout the day, with about 30% left before I charge it overnight. Obviously the S7e battery is better, but for what I use my phone for, the G5 is more than capable.
In the morning, I usually remove my phone from the charger about 6 am (my 6 month old Son is my alarm) I don't tend to use my phone until I get to work about 8:30 am. The G5 has amazing standby. So far, after having the phone for just over a week, I've removed my phone each time around about 6 am and by 8 am I'm still at 100% battery life - this wasn't possible with the S7 edge.
Camera
Both cameras are brilliant;
1) I miss the double tap of the home button to launch the camera, I just can't get used to the double tap of the volume rocker.
2) I miss the instant focus that the S7 edge had.
These two features are very much missed, but what the S7 edge camera doesn't have that the G5 does is a brilliant wide angel camera. This is such a brilliant feature. One I didn't think I would as much. So much so that my next phone needs to have this feature.
Conclusion
I honestly couldn't fault the S7 edge - the battery life was excellent, the camera was great, the screen, as always, was bright and vibrant and Touchwiz good. I had the S6 edge for the best part of 2015, the S7 edge improved in all the failed areas, but after almost a month of using it, I got bored. The G5 is a breath of fresh air, it has a decent build quality, an excellent camera, excellent battery life and excellent screen. I don't care too much for the UI of LG, but that's easily changed. I'm also happy to be supporting a phone that dares to do something different, sure the modular part of the phone seems rushed, but I'm hoping, that in time, more developers jump on board to support this great idea.
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