Say hello to LG's first Android One phone

TL;DR

• LG has revealed its first Android One phone, the LG G7 One, alongside a new low-tier device, the LG G7 Fit.
• Both handsets include last-gen chipsets, a display notch, and QHD+ screens.
• LG is yet to announce price and release date information, but we should learn more at IFA.

LG has launched a pair of new smartphones, including its first-ever Android One handset, ahead of the IFA 2018 trade show. The company announced the LG G7 One and LG G7 Fit in a blog post earlier today (via XDA) and outlined their complete specs.

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News

Beginning with the LG G7 One, this, as the name suggests, is part of Google’s Android One program, meaning it runs a near stock version of Android (in this case, Android Oreo) without LG’s UX skin. Android One smartphones typically arrive with less-than-flagship specs, and while this can be said for some aspects of the LG G7 One, it generally features high-tier components.

For example, the handset comes with 32GB storage and a single rear camera, both of which you might expect of modern budget handsets. But take a closer look you’ll notice it’s also packing a QHD+ display, a Snapdragon 835 chip (found on the likes of the Galaxy Note 8 and Google Pixel 2), and 4GB of RAM.

This represents a still fairly uncommon approach to the Android One program, though using a year-old chipset to reduce the price of a new handset is something I believe more manufacturers should try (seriously, there’s nothing wrong with how the Pixel 2 performs). That being said, we don’t yet know the price details for either handset, but we expect them to be less than the LG G7 ThinQ which usually costs $750.

Moving on, the LG G7 Fit is not an Android One handset — it features LG’s UX skin — but it looks like it could cost even less than the G7 One. It’s shipping with an even older chipset, the Snapdragon 821, and slightly less impressive cameras (their smaller apertures won’t let as much light in), but it’s otherwise a very similar device.

Bizarrely, the G7 Fit does appear to come with a 64GB storage option that the G7 One lacks, though. It’s possible that this is a typo rather than a very strange design decision. As for what’s behind the “Fit” branding, your guess is as good as mine: I’m just rolling with the punches now following the weirdly titled “LG G7 ThinQ.”

Meanwhile, both handsets are IP68 rated for dust and water resistance, MIL-STD 810G certified for sturdiness, and include Hi-Fi Quad DAC audio and a notch.

The new handsets will be shown off at IFA 2018 which means we’ll get a chance to go hands-on with them in just a few days. What do you think of the LG G7 One and LG G7 Fit? Let me know in the comments.

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