LG X Cam review hands on – Are two cameras better than one?
With dual cameras and a Full HD screen, the LG X Cam could set the mid-range standard
LG’s push for the mid range continues, with its new X Screen and X Cam phones attempting to differentiate themselves from what is a fairly cookie-cutter portion of the market. LG says that it’s trying to elevate one part of each of its phones to premium status, and as the name X Cam suggests, it’s the camera that gets the premium treatment this time around.
Or, I should say, cameras. Like the LG G5, the X Cam comes with dual cameras at the rear. The standard camera has a 13 megapixel sensor, but then there’s a 5-megapixel, wide-angle snapper as well. The latter results in some fairly neat looking wide-angle shots that work particularly well in more cramped situations, like in a bar or on a historic city street. You can switch back to the conventional single 13MP camera by hitting a button that’s constantly displayed in the camera app, so you can pick a shooting mode to suit the situation.
Without exception I found the pictures I took in the wide-angle mode significantly nicer to look at than the single camera shots. The wide shots seemed to have better centre-frame focus and also looked a lot more depth of colour than the single camera mode.
^Standard angle at the top and wide-angle below
Images shot using the main camera have a 4,160×2,336 pixel resolution while wide-angle shots are just 2,560×1,440, presumably because the wider aspect ratio of the images doesn’t fill the square 5-megapixel sensor. While I preferred the expansiveness of the wide-angle shots, there’s some fairly obvious curvature towards the edge of the image so you’ll have to pick your subjects carefully.
The camera’s the star here then, but that’s not to say the rest of the phone isn’t a nice piece of work. The X cam takes the form of a 5.2in, metallic-coated device handset that’s just 6.9mm thick. LG says it’s the thinnest phone it’s ever made. Despite this, its in-the-hand feel is still comfortable although I am slightly concerned that LG hasn’t learned the lessons of its older, slippier phones. Only real-world testing will see to that. I should also note that at 118g, it’s incredibly light – almost too light.
Elsewhere, there’s a 2,520mAh battery, which LG isn’t making any bold claims about. The processor is an as-yet unnamed octa-core chip paired with 2GB of RAM. I have to say it feels significantly snappier than the lower-end silicon found in the X Screen, that I tried out yesterday. 16GB of storage is included, which can be expanded via a microSD card.
The screen is also significantly (and ironically) better than the X Screen’s, taking the form of a Full HD panel. It’s very bright, and while I don’t think colours stand out on it as much as they do on the LG G5, it’s a decent piece of kit. That phones moniker comes from its dual-screen setup rather than the quality of its main display, so it’s not entirely nonsensical.
The X Cam will be a more expensive option than the X Screen, and while pricing hasn’t been announced I’d expect something in the region of Samsung Galaxy A5 territory, at around £300. If its camera proves it worth, it could be a great buy for smartphone photography enthusiasts.
