When One’s Not Enough: LG G5 to Sport Dual Screens, Dual Cameras and a Hardware Expansion Port

We heard some rumors earlier this month about LG G5’s expected specifications. Evan Blass of @evleaks is now confirming some of those features while adding a few more to the list.

All-metal LG G5’s dual screen and camera setup:

Sourcing the information from people familiar with the matter, the latest report confirms that LG G5 will sport a metal chassis. The “all-metal handset will borrow elements from past G-series devices as well as LG’s most recent flagship, the V10, while also bringing several new features to the table,” details Blass. Last week, a rumor suggested that LG G5 will have a dual camera setup with laser autofocus. Reporting for VentureBeat, the new leak confirms this dual camera setup where the flagship smartphone will get a main 16MP sensor accompanied by an 8MP sensor. The second camera will give the photos a wide 135 degree angle.

In between the two lenses is a circle with a quartet of elements in a square configuration, according to the briefed individual, who was also shown images of the upcoming flagship. Two of those are LED flash bulbs, while another one is a laser for assisting with autofocus, first deployed on 2014’s LG G3. The fourth element is also found on G4: a so-called RGB sensor to further assist with autofocus and other scene-recognition functions.

The G5 selfie cam will maintain the same eight-megapixel resolution as the G4, the source said, although no aperture was mentioned (G4 has an f/2.0).

Apart from a dual camera setup, LG G5 is also getting a dual display feature. LG’s next flagship smartphone will be a 5.3-inch display device with a 1440 x 2560 Quad HD resolution and a secondary ticker display, “first seen on the larger, 5.7-inch V10.” The device will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 processing chip, 3GB of RAM and will have 32GB of native storage.

Coming to the battery size, Blass claims that LG is “taking a page out of Apple’s book,” by installing a smaller battery as compared to LG G4. LG G5 is reportedly getting a 2800 mAh juicer while G4 had a better 3000 mAh battery pack. As noted in the report, LG G5 has a slightly smaller display and the new chip is also expected to be more efficient. Dismissing the rumors surrounding an Iris Scanner, the report suggests that LG G5 will employ a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor similar to LG’s Nexus 5X.

Magic Slot to expand the hardware:

Now to the more interesting and somewhat unlikely feature – Blass reports that LG G5 might feature a hardware expansion port called “Magic Slot” by the company. This port will help users to plug in accessories like VR headset, audio amplifiers, etc. Similar to Project Ara devices, LG G5 might offer its users to swap some hardware components for better choices. “While its physical incarnation isn’t very clear, it is said to enable some functional expansion by way of hardware modules. The examples we were given range from an array of specified cameras — action, 360 VR, “party” — to an audio amplifier to a physical keyboard,” Blass suggests.

LG G5 is expected for an early 2016 launch and might be showcased at MWC 2016. @evleaks does carry a strong record when it comes to leaks which makes us looking forward to LG G5’s Magic Slot. Let’s see if 2016 throws some exciting new features and devices our way.