Its not a true 2018 flagship

If you haven’t heard, LG is drastically changing their mobile strategy for 2018. The company is abandoning the two-flagship race that the entered against rival Korean chaebol Samsung, and instead will now release a new flagship when they think it’s ready.

But the world won’t wait for LG’s next flagship so the company has released a slightly tweaked and re-worked version of their V30 dubbed the V30s ThinQ for MWC. The ungainly named phone has a new color, slightly updated internals and AI-equipped smarts, but ultimately it’s the same phone as they released last year.

Initial impressions: A thinly-veiled stopgap measure

As we explained earlier, the ungainly named V30 ThinQ is essentially the same device as the previously launched V30 with a few changes to the hardware. The phone packs the same exterior, dual cameras, video enhancements and button placements as the old flagship.

It does come with new color options, namely New Platinum Grey and New Moroccan Blue, as well as upgraded RAM and storage options: 6GB from 4GB and a choice of either 128GB to 256GB.

Aside from the slightly bumped up internals, the V30 ThinQ will also be getting new AI-powered camera software that adjusts the camera’s settings depending on what you’re shooting to make the most out of the shot. Images involving food will look more vivid and lively, as the AI component of the phone tweaks the shooting mode and settings to get the most out of the shot.

The issue with this is that LG’s headline device for MWC is essentially a gigantic software update, since the company has gone on to say that the AI shooting mode will be heading to regular V30’s as well once it’s ready.

It’s clear that LG was caught unprepared for this year’s MWC. Since its next flagship’s development was essentially canned and is starting over (with the mobile head saying they’ll release it when it’s ready) they had to come up with something so they wouldn’t show up empty handed to the world’s biggest mobile show. The V30s ThinQ is a stopgap measure at best – a place holder for LG’s next big thing.