LG V30 Is World's First Phone with This Killer Feature

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By Philip Michaels
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LG says its upcoming V30 smartphone will feature a dual rear camera, with one lens offering a f/1.6 aperture to let in more light and boost picture quality.

LG's V30 smartphone isn't going to make its debut until the end of the month. But LG is already talking up the camera on its soon-to-launch phone.

Last year's V20 featured a camera lens with an f/1.8 aperture. LG has a big change planned for the V30. (Credit:Tom's Guide)

Last year's V20 featured a camera lens with an f/1.8 aperture. LG has a big change planned for the V30. (Credit:Tom's Guide)

Specifically, the LG V30 will offer a dual camera setup that includes a lens with a f/1.6 aperture. That's the largest aperture to ever grace a smartphone, LG says. The upcoming Galaxy Note 8 is also rumored to feature dual cameras, but it's not yet known what it's aperture will be.

A wider aperture lets in more light. That can mean brighter, less blurry photos, particularly if you're shooting in low-light situations. LG is betting that the f/1.6 aperture coupled with a glass lens element will collect more light and reproduce colors more accurately when you take a shot.

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Last year's LG V20 featured a f/1.8 aperture on its rear 16-megapixel standard lens. (That phone also featured an 8-MP wide angle lens with a smaller aperture.) LG says an f/1.6 aperture like the one it's planning for the V30 lets in 25 percent more light when compared to an f/1.8 lens. The camera on the current Galaxy S8 has a f/1.7 lens and the iPhone 7 has a f/1.8 lens.

LG says the V30's glass lens will produce more accurate colors in photos. (Credit: LG)

(Image credit: LG says the V30's glass lens will produce more accurate colors in photos. (Credit: LG))

LG's V-series of phones tend to target content creators. Last year's V20, for example, introduced dual rear-cameras, improved video stabilization and a trio of microphones for capturing better sound to go with that video. By teasing out information about the V30's camera lens now, it's clear that this year's model will continue LG's focus on mobile photographers and videographers.

The wider aperture isn't the only feature LG has planned for the V30's cameras. LG says the new phone will minimize edge distortion on wide-angle shots, especially compared to the V20. The V30's cameras will also feature laser detection autofocus, optical image stabilization and electronic image stabilization.

LG has previously said the new phone will include a 6-inch plastic OLED screen with curved edges and improved display quality. Rumored V30 features include a Snapdragon 835 processor, an 18:9 aspect ratio that matches the LG G6 and ESS Quad DAC support for better audio.

The V30 is set to debut just before the IFA trade show in Berlin, when LG holds a press event on August 31.

Philip Michaels
Philip Michaels

Philip Michaels is a Managing Editor at Tom's Guide. He's been covering personal technology since 1999 and was in the building when Steve Jobs showed off the iPhone for the first time. He's been evaluating smartphones since that first iPhone debuted in 2007, and he's been following phone carriers and smartphone plans since 2015. He has strong opinions about Apple, the Oakland Athletics, old movies and proper butchery techniques. Follow him at @PhilipMichaels.