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As countries around the world are slowly opening up their economies, phone makers are also starting to launch new phones again. Today, after much teasing and touting, LG released its new Velvet smartphone in South Korea. The design-centric phone aims to wow p…

As countries around the world are slowly opening up their economies, phone makers are also starting to launch new phones again. Today, after much teasing and touting, LG released its new Velvet smartphone in South Korea.
The design-centric phone aims to wow people with its clean look and sturdy design. A 6.8-inch POLED display (OLED with a plastic substrate) on the front will likely tempt people looking for a phone with an especially large screen.
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The devices internals are a rung below this years flagship-grade phones, like the OnePlus 8 and the Samsung Galaxy S20. Heres a look at its specifications:

  • Screen: 6.8-inch FullHD+ POLED display
  • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 765 5G might not be as powerful as the Snapdragon 865, but its more than sufficient for daily tasks
  • Memory: 8GB
  • Rear camera: 48megapixel main + 8-megapixel wide-angle sensor + 5-megapixel depth sensor
  • Front camera: 16-megapixel
  • Battery: 4,300 mAh
  • Software: Android 10.0
  • Internal storage:128GB UFS 2.1

The company says the phone has IP68 certification, so its water and dustproof. Whats more, its also military standard 810G compliant, so itll likely survive drops and harsh environmental conditions.
The LG Velvet has support for a Wacom stylus, so if youve ever envied Samsung Galaxy Note owners who can draw and write on their phones,, you can purchase this at a much lower price. The phone comes pre-loaded with a Nebo note-taking app that converts your handwriting to text.
LG Velvet Wacom support
The device packs some curious video features, including an ASMR recording mode if youre into it. Plus, theres a steady cam mode that uses AI to compensate for your hand shaking when youre holding the phone while recording. It also features speed controls for timelapse recording and voice focus to adjust out-of-focus audio recording while shooting a video.
LG Velvet is priced at 899,800 South Korean Won ($734), and itll go on sale on May 15 in the country. The company hasnt revealed pricing for international markets yet, but well keep an eye on that and update the story accordingly. 
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Published May 7, 2020 — 06:42 UTC