Lg G4 news, specs and hidden features

Ahead of the upcoming LG G4 release date, the flagship phone has leaked in full, with the Samsung Galaxy S6 rival's leather-clad design prematurely teased.

While none of the information we've seen regarding the G4 is confirmed, there are enough rumours and leaks to start building a picture of what we can expect to see from LG's champion this year.

Here's everything we've heard so far.

Classy in Leather

Its most striking feature is its leather rear, which, in our opinion, looks rather classy, although there appear to be regular plastic back covers available too. LG already sets itself apart from the rest of its rivals with rear power button and volume controls, and the G4 to land will with the same configuration, which is just fine by us. The front panel of the G4 appears to have a textured pattern behind the glass, and the panel itself is solid black, as opposed to the colored strip on the existing G3.

Expandable memory Removable battery

That's right folks, LG is now the sole major manufacturer to offer both a removable battery and microSD slot, at least according to the recent leaks. Previously Android power users and media hoarders had Samsung's flagships as an alternative for swapping out batteries and micro SD cards, but now the G4 looks set to be their only choice if they want both options. This could give the G4 the edge for certain users over the Samsung Galaxy S6 which offers neither option, or the HTC One M9 which only provides a microSD slot.

4K Delight

The G3 was the first major smartphone to land with a 2K Screen, and the G4 is expected to land with the same 5.5in dimensions and 2560 x 1440 resolution. If the G4's body itself is curved, as the leaks suggest, then it's very probable that the G4 will have a flexible Plastic OLED (POLED) display as the one found in the G Flex 2, albeit a larger panel with a higher resolution. That means that the G4 should be able to compete with the vivid colors and pure blacks of the Samsung Galaxy S6, which is a very good thing - the S6 has one of the best smartphone screens we've ever had the pleasure of eyeing up.

Megapixel Bump

If LG doesn't keep the super-fast laser autofocus, optical image stabilization and dual-LED flash that's present in the G3 and G Flex 2, then we'll eat our smartphones, SIM-cards and all. Luckily for our teeth and digestive systems, all leaks point to the G4's camera tech returning. The laser auto-focus should ensure that the G4's shots are taken just as snappily, while the stabilized lens should serve up the decent low-light shots we've come to expect from LG's past few flagship devices.

The only rumored difference that we've seen is that a leaked GFX Benchmark states that the G3's 13MP sensor will be bumped up to a 15MP offering in the G4. We also expect to see an improvement in the front-facing camera, especially with the (unfortunate) selfie craze that's showing no signs of dying out, and leaks point to an impressive 8MP front-facing snapper. The G Flex 2 automatically shows you a preview of your selfie when it detects that you've brought it down, and the G4 will almost certainly add this trick to its arsenal. A Samsung-style wide-angle lens for cramming more mugs into each shot is another possibility, but we'll just have to wait and see.