LG may drop the G series brand and launch a mid-range Snapdragon 765 phone later this year

LG’s mobile division has been tumbling for a while; that’s not a secret to anyone. And that is precisely the reason why they may be looking into shaking things up internally to renew interest. Last year, they disrupted their normal release cycle — an LG G-series smartphone by the start of the year and an LG V-series phone by the end of the year — to announce both the LG G8 and the LG V50 at the same time. This year, however, we only saw the LG V60 (which our own Joe Fedewa is currently reviewing) with no signs of an LG G9 anywhere. While we’ve heard of a whole host of rumors regarding this device, we might end up not seeing an LG G9 after all.

We’ve had clues about such a change for a while: in late January, Android Police’s Editor-in-Chief David Ruddock claimed that LG is altering their release schedule. He stated that the company will release the V series alongside Samsung’s Galaxy S series this year, which ended up being true as the V60 ThinQ recently launched. At the same time, he stated that the G series “may be effectively phased out” and that LG will have a new device series for fall, but he was unsure what it might be.

Now, a report from Naver News Agency, a major Korean online publication, claims that LG is indeed abandoning the G series in favor of a new branding, starting with a phone sporting Qualcomm’s 7-series chip. They state the phone will support LG’s Dual Screen attachment, support 5G connectivity, have a screen size between 6.7 to 6.9-inches, have a 48MP main camera, and a 4000mAh battery. The fact that it supports 5G connectivity indicates that the SoC is going to be either the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765 or the 765G: it’s the only 7-series processor from Qualcomm to have a 5G modem so far.

It’s also a cheaper processor, and choosing it over the Snapdragon 865 will greatly reduce costs. This shift in strategy lines up with LG’s 2019 financial report, which states that the company will invest heavily in mass-premium and mass-tier 5G products.

We don’t know yet if this device will make it to the market, and what it will be called. But it likely won’t be a G series smartphone given what we’ve seen so far, but rather an entirely new smartphone line.

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