The LG V40 Might Have 5 Cameras

A few years ago, every phone manufacturer was racing to offer the highest megapixel count in its cameras. Now, it’s increasingly about how many cameras you can cram into a phone. It’s common to have two on the back now, but LG is reportedly going a bit crazy with the upcoming V40. This phone will apparently have a total of five cameras.

This news comes from “sources familiar with the company’s plans,” who explain the phone will sport a pair of cameras on the front and three on the back. The V-series phones have long been LG’s chance to try out new features like the secondary ticker display and wide-angle cameras. Some of those features eventually expanded to the company’s flagship G-series. Others were relegated to the dustbin of history.

On the back, the three cameras will consist of a standard sensor, one of LG’s wide-angle cameras, and an unknown third sensor. It could be monochrome, telephoto, or something completely new and wacky that we haven’t seen on other phones. The Huawei P20 Pro, which also had three rear cameras, went with standard, telephoto, and monochrome.

The front-facing cameras aren’t just for snapping selfies. According to the leak, LG will use one or both cameras for a new face unlock system. It may even combine the cameras to perform 3D stereo mapping of your face for added security. Apple does a similar thing with the IR dot projector in the iPhone X. However, that unlock method works in the dark, and cameras probably won’t. Presumably, the LG V40 would keep the fingerprint sensor as a backup.

LG will reportedly also stick with the screen notch design from the LG G7 ThinQ. LG usually uses OLED panels on V-series phones, though. That could open the door to thinner bezels than we got on the G7, which has a non-flexible LCD panel. If you were hoping notches would be a momentary fad, it’s not over yet.

The new leak also includes details on the V40’s specs, but there are no surprises there. The phone will have a Snapdragon 845, an Assistant button, and LG’s customary quad DAC for high-fidelity audio. Although, that audio will come from a Type-C port rather than a headphone jack.

LG’s recent phones haven’t succeeded in turning around the company’s mobile division, which still loses money every quarter. The V40 doesn’t sound like it’ll be a radical departure from that losing strategy, but we’ll have to wait and see.

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