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LG G4c Smartphone Review

I'd love to be a flagship. LG shrinks its LG G4 to 5-inches and an RRP of 279 Euros (~$306). The new G4c model sports a quad-core SoC from Qualcomm, 1 GB of RAM, 8 GB internal storage, NFC, and LTE Cat. 4. Android 5.0.2 Lollipop is preloaded. The downgrade results in a good smartphone that will, however, always be in its big brother's shade.

For the original German review, see here.

The South Korean entertainment giant LG expands its G4 lineup with an affordable sister model dubbed LG G4c. The 5-inch phone obviously follows the design of the slightly curved LG G4 top model. However, it makes deductions in configuration and price. The storage can still be extended and the battery replaced. In return, more basic camera modules with 8 MP on the rear and 5 MP on the front are installed. Both LTE and NFC are also still on-board. LG-specific features, such as the "Knock Code," are also present. Android 5.0.2 Lollipop alongside LG's usual UI is the operating system. In addition to the metallic-gray review sample, LG's G4c is also available in white, gold and silver for an RRP of 279 Euros (~$306).

LG's G4c will compete with Huawei's P8 liteSony's Xperia M4 Aqua and Samsung's Galaxy S5 Mini besides its bigger brother LG G4 in the direct comparison.

LG G4c (G4 Series)
Processor
Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 MSM8916 4 x 1.2 GHz, Cortex-A53
Graphics adapter
Memory
1024 MB 
Display
5.00 inch 16:9, 1280 x 720 pixel, capacitive multi-touchscreen, TFT IPS LCD, 294 ppi, Gorilla Glass 3.0, glossy: yes
Storage
8 GB eMMC Flash, 8 GB 
, 3.27 GB free
Connections
1 USB 2.0, Audio Connections: 3.5 mm jack, Card Reader: micro-SD (max. 32 GB) micro-SIM slot, Sensors: A-GPS/GPS/GLONASS; accelerometer, proximity sensor, digital compass, NFC, Android Beam
Networking
802.11 b/g/n (b/g/n = Wi-Fi 4/), Bluetooth 4.1, GSM/GPRS/EDGE (800, 1800 and 2600 MHz), UMTS/HSPA+ (900, 2100 MHz), LTE Cat. 4 (800, 1800 and 2600 MHz), HSDPA+ 42Mbps, HSUPA 5.76 Mbps, Cat. 4 (150 Mbps/50 Mbps); head-SAR: 0.643 W/kg
Size
height x width x depth (in mm): 10.2 x 139.7 x 69.8 ( = 0.4 x 5.5 x 2.75 in)
Battery
10 Wh Lithium-Ion, 2540 mAh, 3.8 V, Talk time 2G (according to manufacturer): 1140 h, Talk time 3G (according to manufacturer): 960 h, Standby 2G (according to manufacturer): 660 h, Standby 3G (according to manufacturer): 660 h
Operating System
Android 5.0 Lollipop
Camera
Webcam: 5 MP (2560 x 1920 pixels); primary camera: 8 MP (3264 x 2448 pixels), AF, x4 digital zoom, LED flash, 1080p video@30 fps, touch & shoot, ímage stabilizer, Pause and Resume Recording, voice control, selfie cam function, timer, geotagging, face recognition
Additional features
Speakers: mono speaker, Keyboard: virtual Android QWERTY keyboard, Keyboard Light: yes, Accessories: device, battery, headset, charging adapter, USB data cable, quick start guide, LG Smart Keyboard, KnockCode, Easy Home, QuickMemo+, TalkBack, RemoteCall Service, LG Smart World, 24 Months Warranty, Features: FM radio
Weight
136 g ( = 4.8 oz / 0.3 pounds), Power Supply: 72 g ( = 2.54 oz / 0.16 pounds)
Price
279 Euro
Note: The manufacturer may use components from different suppliers including display panels, drives or memory sticks with similar specifications.

 

Case

The plastic back cover is susceptible to scratches
The plastic back cover is susceptible to scratches

The design of LG's G4c is loosely based on that of its bigger brother, but it uses a not quite as elegant plastic back that, however, features an attractive diamond pattern and brushed aluminum looks. Unfortunately, the plastic is relatively susceptible to scratches, which can be seen well on our not much used review sample.

The G4c is not a thin smartphone with a thickness of 10.2 mm, which is also due to its curved design in contrast to its rivals. Its size is relatively compact, and the lightly curved casing makes it pleasant to hold. The lateral frame is very thin, and the narrow rims at the upper and lower edges ensure a secure hold without danger of accidentally brushing the touchscreen. Like the bigger LG G4 brother, LG's G4c successfully passed our pressure and warping tests. The overall build is impeccable and well done. The entire back cover can be removed and conceals the slots for a micro-SIM and micro-SD card. The manufacturer specifies a maximum of 32 GB, but the device identified our 64 GB card from SanDisk without problems in the test. The battery can also be removed.

148.9 mm / 5.86 inch 76.1 mm / 3 inch 9.8 mm / 0.3858 inch 155 g0.3417 lbs145.5 mm / 5.73 inch 72.59 mm / 2.86 inch 7.3 mm / 0.2874 inch 136 g0.2998 lbs143 mm / 5.63 inch 70.6 mm / 2.78 inch 7.7 mm / 0.3031 inch 133 g0.2932 lbs139.7 mm / 5.5 inch 69.8 mm / 2.75 inch 10.2 mm / 0.4016 inch 136 g0.2998 lbs131.1 mm / 5.16 inch 64.8 mm / 2.55 inch 9.1 mm / 0.3583 inch 120 g0.2646 lbs148 mm / 5.83 inch 105 mm / 4.13 inch 1 mm / 0.03937 inch 1.5 g0.00331 lbs

Connectivity

The micro-USB slot operates in the 2.0 standard but does not support USB OTG. Wireless transmission of media from and to a compatible device is also possible via Android Beam and NFC. Android 4.0 and NFC are the minimum requirements for this, making it fast and easy to share photos, videos, contacts, websites, and more. The latest Bluetooth 4.1 standard is also installed.

The internal storage of factual usable 3.27 GB is very tight. However, it can be extended by up to 32 GB via micro-SD; our review sample even accepted a 64 GB memory card. App2SD is possible with restrictions. For example, we could move the game Asphalt 8: Airborne but not the app Drop Box in our test.

Upper edge: 3.5 mm jack, microphone
Upper edge: 3.5 mm jack, microphone
Left: no interfaces
Left: no interfaces
Lower edge: USB, microphone
Lower edge: USB, microphone
Right: notch for lifting off the cover
Right: notch for lifting off the cover
Rear: volume buttons and power button
Rear: volume buttons and power button
Under the back cover: Micro-SD and micro-SIM slots
Under the back cover: Micro-SD and micro-SIM slots

Software

LG's G4c uses Google's Android 5.0.2 Lollipop, which is covered by LG's proprietary UI LG UX 4.0. That also brings the trendy "flat look" of app icons on the screen. It is great that LG does not preload much bloatware that cannot be uninstalled. Useful extras like "LG Backup" or the well-known Google bundle are also installed, even if not as comprehensively as in the flagship LG G4. For example, the "Smart Bulletin Board" or "Smart Settings" have been omitted. A clever and at the same time battery-sparing idea is "Glance View." Swiping down over the screen displays the upper status bar with information about signal strength, battery status, time and date.

Android 5.0.2 Lollipop
Android 5.0.2 Lollipop
Android software information
Android software information
App2SD possible in some cases
App2SD possible in some cases
Glance View
Glance View
GPS test did not find satellites indoors...
GPS test did not find satellites indoors...
…but was quite accurate outdoors after only a moment.
…but was quite accurate outdoors after only a moment.

Communication & GPS 

LG's G4c offers mobile data connections via HSPA+ (upload max. 5.76 Mbps; download max. 42 Mbps) and LTE Cat. 4 (upload/download: 50 MBps/150 MBps). Furthermore, NFC and Bluetooth 4.1 transmit over close ranges. Quad-band GSM, dual-band UMTS and tri-band LTE provide sufficient frequency coverage, at least in Europe. As appropriate for this price range, the Wi-Fi module supports the IEEE 802.11 b/g/n standards and transmits in both the 2.4 and 5.0 GHz frequency ranges available in Germany. The range is good. It was still average at a distance of about 10 meters from the router and through several walls. No interruptions were noticed in the test. Internet browsing was sufficiently fast, and streaming HD videos from the Web was lag-free.

The review sample uses A-GPS and GLONASS networks for localization. Indoor tracking was not possible, but satellites could find us quite accurately after half a minute. LG's G4c gave a mixed performance in the comparison with the Garmin Edge 500 bike navigation system. It presented a deviation of 0.42 km over the total route. The review sample tended to take shortcuts in particular paths through the woods and very serpentine routes. The overall performance was still good, though.

LG G4c
LG G4c
LG G4c
LG G4c
LG G4c
LG G4c
Garmin Edge 500
Garmin Edge 500
Garmin Edge 500
Garmin Edge 500
Garmin Edge 500
Garmin Edge 500
The phone app provides...
The phone app provides...
...standard options.
...standard options.
Front-facing camera
Front-facing camera

Telephone & Call Quality

The phone app offers the usual Android standard with all important features. The call quality is only middling and annoys with occasional crackling and a consistently high base noise. There were no voice dropouts during the test call. The speaker is only useful in quiet surroundings. It started to overdrive increasingly at about half the maximum volume, and speech became unintelligible.

Cameras & Multimedia

The cameras have been slimmed down evidently compared with those in LG's G4. However, the front-facing camera still has a decent 5 MP alongside a wide angle lens for selfies and groufies. LG offers multiple features, such as "Touch & Shoot," voice or gesture control, for simple selfies. "Live View" is minimized in dim surroundings, and the rest of the screen serves as flash replacement, which functioned well in a close range. Although the color reproduction is generally satisfactory, the photos lack some sharpness and contrast. The low-light performance is still acceptable.

The rear-facing primary camera has a resolution of 8 MP and does not feature an image stabilizer or ambient light sensor. The photos thus suffer under high image noise and poor focus when the object is not illuminated sufficiently, which is due to the missing laser auto-focus. The other features are also only standard. At least voice control via predetermined code words functioned well. Photos are only middling even in good ambient light; they simply lack sharpness. The sensor also often overexposes, which results in too bright images and slightly inaccurate color reproduction.

Image Comparison

Choose a scene and navigate within the first image. One click changes the position on touchscreens. One click on the zoomed-in image opens the original in a new window. The first image shows the scaled photograph of the test device.

Scene 1Scene 2Scene 3
click to load images

Accessories

In addition to the phone, LG packs a standard headset in the box. Besides that, a charging adapter, an approximately 90 cm USB cable and a quick-start guide are found. LG does not yet offer any product-specific accessories, but we would guess that a tailored cover with window will soon be offered for LG's G4c since the option "QuickCircle Case" is available in the settings.

Warranty

LG includes a 24-month warranty on the phone; the battery and accessories are covered for 6 months.

Input Devices & Handling

Thanks to its decent sleekness and high sensitivity up into the corners, using the capacitive touchscreen is good. Inputs were implemented quite fast; screen rotation needed a second, though. The keyboard is easy to adapt according to personal preferences and functions quickly and reliably. The gimmick of pulling the keyboard apart in landscape mode or using the cursor in the word suggestion bar via elongated pressure on the space bar known from LG's G4 also functioned superbly with the G4c.

LG's G4c again relies on the familiar rear-key design: Power button and volume keys are directly under the camera module on the rear. It functions very well after getting used to this control method.

Multiple keyboard options
Multiple keyboard options
Keyboard: Landscape mode
Keyboard: Landscape mode
It is easy to adapt...
It is easy to adapt...
...the keyboard's size.
...the keyboard's size.

Display

The 5-inch screen of LG's G4c in the 16:9 format has a category typical HD resolution of 1280x720 pixels and a pixel density of 294 ppi. Gorilla Glass 3 protects the underlying TFT IPS LCD screen. The screen is lightly curved, which is more for show and USP than a true added value that the more curved LG G4 offers. The maximum brightness of 480 cd/m² is a good rate and easily outshines Huawei's P8 lite and Samsung's Galaxy S5 Mini. However, it cannot compete with LG's G4 or Sony's Xperia M4 Aqua with over 550 cd/m². The very homogeneous illumination of 92% is on the high level of the comparison group.

468
cd/m²
468
cd/m²
441
cd/m²
475
cd/m²
480
cd/m²
458
cd/m²
451
cd/m²
478
cd/m²
456
cd/m²
Distribution of brightness
tested with X-Rite i1Pro 2
Maximum: 480 cd/m² (Nits) Average: 463.9 cd/m²
Brightness Distribution: 92 %
Center on Battery: 480 cd/m²
Contrast: 980:1 (Black: 0.49 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 8.13 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5
ΔE Greyscale 6.73 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
70.038% sRGB (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
Gamma: 2.69
LG G4c
Adreno 306, 410 MSM8916, 8 GB eMMC Flash
LG G4
Adreno 418, 808 MSM8992, 32 GB eMMC Flash
Huawei P8 lite
Mali-450 MP4, Kirin 620, 16 GB eMMC Flash
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
Mali-400 MP4, 3470 Quad, 16 GB eMMC Flash
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
Adreno 405, 615 MSM8939, 8 GB eMMC Flash
Screen
16%
4%
-8%
2%
Brightness middle
480
566
18%
365
-24%
288
-40%
547
14%
Brightness
464
536
16%
353
-24%
289
-38%
535
15%
Brightness Distribution
92
90
-2%
93
1%
88
-4%
92
0%
Black Level *
0.49
0.47
4%
0.42
14%
0.81
-65%
Contrast
980
1204
23%
869
-11%
675
-31%
Colorchecker dE 2000 *
8.13
6.17
24%
5.2
36%
6.18
24%
5.77
29%
Greyscale dE 2000 *
6.73
6.26
7%
5.85
13%
5.52
18%
5.87
13%
Gamma
2.69 82%
2.48 89%
2.17 101%
2.23 99%
2.14 103%
CCT
7727 84%
8171 80%
7252 90%
7256 90%
7784 84%
Color Space (Percent of sRGB)
70.038
98.63
41%
91.25
30%
96.5753
38%
Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998)
65.48
70.86
72.0875

* ... smaller is better

LG's G4c can also hold its own with a good black level of 0.49 cd/m² and a very high contrast of 980:1. Only the AMOLED screen in Samsung's Galaxy S5 Mini defeats it for technological reasons.

LG's G4c does not do quite as a good job in color reproduction. The color brightness is slightly lower than the ideal, and a light red-green deficit as well as a bluish tint is evident. The latter is already visible in the darker tones in grayscale level, which a too high DeltaE of 6.73 also confirms. The gamma rate of 2.69 is close to the ideal rate, but the color temperature is somewhat too high (norm value: 6500 K). The shifts in the mixed colors are also a bit high; we measured a DeltaE of 8.13 here. Although these shortcomings were not noticed adversely in real-world use, enthusiastic photographers should first judge their snapshots on a computer.

CalMAN Colorspace
CalMAN Colorspace
CalMAN Saturation Sweeps
CalMAN Saturation Sweeps
CalMAN Grayscale
CalMAN Grayscale
CalMAN ColorChecker
CalMAN ColorChecker

Although the high brightness of LG's G4c makes it suitable for outdoor use, the strong reflections on the screen's surface in direct light are distracting. Nevertheless, the smartphone is generally good to use outdoors.

Thanks to the IPS panel, the screen has very stable viewing angles. No color distortions are seen even in extreme viewing angles. A minor grayish tint covers the content only in bright image areas.

Intense reflections limit...
Intense reflections limit...
...outdoor use.
...outdoor use.
Viewing angles
Viewing angles

Performance

LG's G4c is powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 410 quad-core SoC that clocks at 1.2 GHz. Qualcomm's integrated Adreno 306 graphics card and 1 GB of RAM support it.

The smartphone makes a mixed impression in the benchmarks. It can just surpass Samsung's Galaxy S5 Mini in some benchmarks like Geekbench 3 or Linpack and even outperform all contenders, except the much stronger LG G4, in Smartbench 2012. However, it is very clearly defeated in AnTuTu v5 or the newer GFX benchmarks.

Although the smartphone runs quite smoothly in conjunction with Android 5.0.2, it often needs a moment for starting apps or in the app drawer. The available performance is enough for routine use if the user does not have too high demands, though.

Geekbench 3
32 Bit Single-Core Score (sort by value)
LG G4c
462 Points
LG G4
1022 Points +121%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
369 Points -20%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
539 Points +17%
32 Bit Multi-Core Score (sort by value)
LG G4c
1419 Points
LG G4
2952 Points +108%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
1113 Points -22%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
2103 Points +48%
3DMark
1280x720 offscreen Ice Storm Unlimited Physics (sort by value)
LG G4c
9195 Points
LG G4
11178 Points +22%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
8942 Points -3%
Huawei P8 lite
8206 Points -11%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
5758 Points -37%
1280x720 offscreen Ice Storm Unlimited Graphics Score (sort by value)
LG G4c
3827 Points
LG G4
23390 Points +511%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
3047 Points -20%
Huawei P8 lite
5167 Points +35%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
7000 Points +83%
1280x720 offscreen Ice Storm Unlimited Score (sort by value)
LG G4c
4397 Points
LG G4
18821 Points +328%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
3570 Points -19%
Huawei P8 lite
5629 Points +28%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
6680 Points +52%
1920x1080 Ice Storm Extreme Physics (sort by value)
LG G4c
8507 Points
Huawei P8 lite
7399 Points -13%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
5660 Points -33%
1920x1080 Ice Storm Extreme Graphics (sort by value)
LG G4c
2188 Points
Huawei P8 lite
3676 Points +68%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
4028 Points +84%
1920x1080 Ice Storm Extreme Score (sort by value)
LG G4c
2621 Points
Huawei P8 lite
4138 Points +58%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
4304 Points +64%
1280x720 Ice Storm Standard Physics (sort by value)
LG G4c
8632 Points
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
7880 Points -9%
Huawei P8 lite
7238 Points -16%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
5569 Points -35%
1280x720 Ice Storm Standard Graphics (sort by value)
LG G4c
4767 Points
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
3341 Points -30%
Huawei P8 lite
5732 Points +20%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
8421 Points +77%
1280x720 Ice Storm Standard Score (sort by value)
LG G4c
5294 Points
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
3831 Points -28%
Huawei P8 lite
6010 Points +14%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
7561 Points +43%
2560x1440 Sling Shot OpenGL ES 3.0 (sort by value)
LG G4c
53 Points
LG G4
1324 Points +2398%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
366 Points +591%
Smartbench 2012 - Productivity Index (sort by value)
LG G4c
4678 points
LG G4
8940 points +91%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
4264 points -9%
Huawei P8 lite
2941 points -37%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
3782 points -19%
Linpack Android / IOS
Single Thread (sort by value)
LG G4c
104.3 MFLOPS
LG G4
361.4 MFLOPS +247%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
87 MFLOPS -17%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
238.8 MFLOPS +129%
Multi Thread (sort by value)
LG G4c
229.8 MFLOPS
LG G4
507 MFLOPS +121%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
195 MFLOPS -15%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
334.7 MFLOPS +46%
AnTuTu v5 - Total Score (sort by value)
LG G4c
21129 Points
LG G4
49941 Points +136%
Huawei P8 lite
34247 Points +62%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
29770 Points +41%
GFXBench (DX / GLBenchmark) 2.7
T-Rex Onscreen (sort by value)
LG G4c
9.8 fps
LG G4
24.9 fps +154%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
9.4 fps -4%
Huawei P8 lite
15.3 fps +56%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
21.5 fps +119%
1920x1080 T-Rex Offscreen (sort by value)
LG G4c
5.2 fps
LG G4
33.7 fps +548%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
6.6 fps +27%
Huawei P8 lite
9.9 fps +90%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
12.7 fps +144%
GFXBench 3.0
1920x1080 1080p Manhattan Offscreen (sort by value)
LG G4c
1.7 fps
LG G4
15 fps +782%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
5.4 fps +218%
on screen Manhattan Onscreen OGL (sort by value)
LG G4c
4 fps
LG G4
9.5 fps +138%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
10.4 fps +160%
BaseMark OS II
Overall (sort by value)
LG G4c
517 Points
LG G4
1596 Points +209%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
489 Points -5%
Huawei P8 lite
687 Points +33%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
764 Points +48%
System (sort by value)
LG G4c
1054 Points
LG G4
2368 Points +125%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
858 Points -19%
Huawei P8 lite
1467 Points +39%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
986 Points -6%
Memory (sort by value)
LG G4c
373 Points
LG G4
1558 Points +318%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
459 Points +23%
Huawei P8 lite
816 Points +119%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
817 Points +119%
Graphics (sort by value)
LG G4c
318 Points
LG G4
1995 Points +527%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
261 Points -18%
Huawei P8 lite
303 Points -5%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
600 Points +89%
Web (sort by value)
LG G4c
571 Points
LG G4
881 Points +54%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
556 Points -3%
Huawei P8 lite
616 Points +8%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
687 Points +20%
PCMark for Android - Work performance score (sort by value)
LG G4c
3199 Points
LG G4
4579 Points +43%
Huawei P8 lite
3717 Points +16%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
3236 Points +1%

Legend

 
LG G4c Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 MSM8916, Qualcomm Adreno 306, 8 GB eMMC Flash
 
LG G4 Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 MSM8992, Qualcomm Adreno 418, 32 GB eMMC Flash
 
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini Samsung Exynos 3470 Quad, ARM Mali-400 MP4, 16 GB eMMC Flash
 
Huawei P8 lite HiSilicon Kirin 620, ARM Mali-450 MP4, 16 GB eMMC Flash
 
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 MSM8939, Qualcomm Adreno 405, 8 GB eMMC Flash

The browser-based benchmarks tests also vary strongly. For example, LG's G4c can outrun Huawei's P8 lite and Samsung's Galaxy S5 Mini in Google's Octane v2 benchmark and Google's V8v7 test, but it comes in last in the SunSpider 1.0 benchmark. That is occasionally noticed in the somewhat longer load times when browsing, but that does not ruin the browsing fun with LG's G4c.

Sunspider - 1.0 Total Score (sort by value)
LG G4c
1036 ms *
LG G4
719 ms * +31%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
1119 ms * -8%
Huawei P8 lite
1986 ms * -92%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
1676 ms * -62%
Google V8 Ver. 7 - Google V8 Ver. 7 Score (sort by value)
LG G4c
2795 Points
LG G4
7818 Points +180%
Huawei P8 lite
2352 Points -16%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
3565 Points +28%
Octane V2 - Total Score (sort by value)
LG G4c
3085 Points
LG G4
7832 (6791min) Points +154%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
2019 Points -35%
Huawei P8 lite
2483 Points -20%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
3215 Points +4%
Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Total (sort by value)
LG G4c
14664 ms *
LG G4
4771 ms * +67%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
15201 ms * -4%
Huawei P8 lite
15866 ms * -8%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
18847 ms * -29%
WebXPRT 2015 - Overall (sort by value)
LG G4c
49 Points
LG G4
82 Points +67%
Huawei P8 lite
47 Points -4%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
48 Points -2%

* ... smaller is better

The Androbench Benchmark test checks the storage speed and that of the controller for the inserted micro-SD memory card of LG's G4c. The review sample marks the last place in most tests here; only Samsung's Galaxy S5 Mini is usually even a bit slower. However, we did not ascertain any excessively long waiting times in the real-world test.

AndroBench 3-5
Random Write 4KB (sort by value)
LG G4c
1.3 MB/s
LG G4
15 MB/s +1054%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
1.28 MB/s -2%
Huawei P8 lite
8.32 MB/s +540%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
3.91 MB/s +201%
Random Read 4KB (sort by value)
LG G4c
10.49 MB/s
LG G4
31.5 MB/s +200%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
9.99 MB/s -5%
Huawei P8 lite
18.46 MB/s +76%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
9.76 MB/s -7%
Sequential Write 256KB (sort by value)
LG G4c
7.49 MB/s
LG G4
153 MB/s +1943%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
15.2 MB/s +103%
Huawei P8 lite
52.8 MB/s +605%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
28.81 MB/s +285%
Sequential Read 256KB (sort by value)
LG G4c
112.9 MB/s
LG G4
251 MB/s +122%
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
79.6 MB/s -29%
Huawei P8 lite
139.5 MB/s +24%
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
130 MB/s +15%

Games

The integrated Qualcomm Adreno 306 graphics card is a member of the mid-range and can render most up-to-date games smoothly even if the details have to sometimes be reduced. Both Modern Combat 5 and Angry Birds Fight! ran without issues in the test. The decent touchscreen and the sensors function swiftly and accurately, and the precise game control contributes to gaming enjoyment.

Angry Birds Fight!
Angry Birds Fight!
Modern Combat 5
Modern Combat 5

Emissions

Temperature

The idle temperatures of LG's G4c always remain in an uncritical range with an average of 28.9 °C on the upper side and 28.7 °C on the underside. The device also only heats up marginally under load with 34.7 °C on the front and 33.5 °C on the rear, which is just lukewarm. Only Samsung's Galaxy S5 Mini is on par with that in the comparison field. We performed our stress test on LG's G4c using the battery test of GFXBench 3.0 to evaluate the temperature development in routine use. The T-Rex benchmark runs 30 times in succession, and the performance and temperature are recorded in addition to the battery's status. Here, the frame rates fluctuate invariably, the temperature increases gradually but not linearly. However, we did not observe temperature-related performance throttling in the real-world test with 3D games.

GFXBench battery performance
GFXBench battery performance
GFXBench battery temperature
GFXBench battery temperature
Max. Load
 36.4 °C
98 F
33.5 °C
92 F
33.6 °C
92 F
 
 37.1 °C
99 F
33.8 °C
93 F
34.7 °C
94 F
 
 36.3 °C
97 F
33.2 °C
92 F
33.3 °C
92 F
 
Maximum: 37.1 °C = 99 F
Average: 34.7 °C = 94 F
31.6 °C
89 F
33.2 °C
92 F
35 °C
95 F
31.8 °C
89 F
33.2 °C
92 F
36 °C
97 F
31.7 °C
89 F
33.8 °C
93 F
35.6 °C
96 F
Maximum: 36 °C = 97 F
Average: 33.5 °C = 92 F
Power Supply (max.)  36.9 °C = 98 F | Room Temperature 22.2 °C = 72 F | Voltcraft IR-940
(±) The average temperature for the upper side under maximal load is 34.7 °C / 94 F, compared to the average of 32.7 °C / 91 F for the devices in the class Smartphone.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 37.1 °C / 99 F, compared to the average of 35 °C / 95 F, ranging from 21.9 to 56 °C for the class Smartphone.
(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 36 °C / 97 F, compared to the average of 33.8 °C / 93 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 28.9 °C / 84 F, compared to the device average of 32.7 °C / 91 F.

Speaker

Like previously in LG's G4, the mono speaker in LG's G4c position on the lower rear is not ideal and will often be covered by a hand. The cost-cutting measures are audible in sound quality; LG's G4 has a considerably richer sound. Although trebles are rendered satisfactorily, bass and mids are pushed extremely into the background. We cannot agree with LG's salient assertion that the 1-watt speaker renders both low and high tones perfectly clear and makes additional speakers superfluous. The sound output via the 3.5 mm jack does not give reason for complaint.

Battery Runtime

The battery in LG's G4c has 9.6 Wh (2540 mAh) and is removable. However, that is not necessary because the runtimes are very good and outperform all rivals in almost all tests. Only Samsung's Galaxy S5 Mini lasts a bit longer in the Full HD video loop using Big Buck Bunny with a screen brightness set to 55% (150 cd/m²). 4:12 hours was possible under full load via the app Stability Test. The contenders needed a refill much sooner. We ascertained a maximum of almost 16 hours in the Reader's test with minimum screen brightness. Only LG's G4 (11.55 Wh/3000 mAh) and Samsung's Galaxy S5 Mini (8.1 Wh/2100 mAh) last longer here. The runtimes are best compared in the Wi-Fi browsing test that we also perform using an adapted brightness (150 cd/m²). Over 7.5 hours is impressive, and only Sony's Xperia M4 Aqua (7 hours) comes even close to that. LG G4c owners will thus not have to buy an additional battery right away because the G4c will easily manage a workday remote from an outlet with adapted brightness.

Battery Runtime
Idle (without WLAN, min brightness)
15h 55min
WiFi Websurfing
7h 37min
Big Buck Bunny H.264 1080p
11h 49min
Load (maximum brightness)
4h 12min
LG G4c
Adreno 306, 410 MSM8916, 8 GB eMMC Flash
LG G4
Adreno 418, 808 MSM8992, 32 GB eMMC Flash
Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
Mali-400 MP4, 3470 Quad, 16 GB eMMC Flash
Huawei P8 lite
Mali-450 MP4, Kirin 620, 16 GB eMMC Flash
Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
Adreno 405, 615 MSM8939, 8 GB eMMC Flash
Battery Runtime
-38%
-9%
-31%
-16%
H.264
709
501
-29%
753
6%
369
-48%
518
-27%
WiFi v1.3
457
326
-29%
351
-23%
420
-8%
Load
252
114
-55%
193
-23%
194
-23%
221
-12%
WiFi
849

Pros

+ Build
+ Bright, viewing angle stable IPS screen
+ Very good battery life
+ LTE and NFC
+ Decent UI and smooth handling

Cons

- Middling speaker
- Camera module in low light
- Moderate voice quality
- Tiny internal storage
- Inaccurate GPS

Verdict

In review: LG G4c. Test model courtesy of Cyberport.de
In review: LG G4c. Test model courtesy of Cyberport.de

Buyers of LG's G4c will find a decent smartphone with a bright IPS screen and very good battery life at a price of approximately 250 Euros (~$274). However, flagship features should not be expected. LTE Cat. 4 and 802.11 b/g/n dual-band Wi-Fi alongside NFC are on-board though. The sufficiently strong SoC and good build are also compelling for this price range. Anyone anticipating the superb cameras of LG's G4 will be slightly disappointed even if the lenses shoot fairly decent pictures - as long as the lighting is good. We would, however, appreciate better call quality and a bigger internal storage, although it can be expanded by up to 64 GB via micro-SD. Furthermore, the smooth operation and low temperature development are also positive. We did not like the inaccurate GPS and middling speaker as much, though.

Users who value a good price-performance ratio without having to make too many compromises in everyday use should risk a glance at LG's G4c.

Everyone else looking for a smartphone without real shortcomings should look closer at the Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini. The Huawei P8 lite is also an interesting alternative.

LG G4c - 07/24/2015 v4(old)
Michael Moser

Chassis
79%
Keyboard
69 / 75 → 92%
Pointing Device
88%
Connectivity
48 / 60 → 80%
Weight
93%
Battery
92%
Display
86%
Games Performance
54 / 63 → 86%
Application Performance
29 / 70 → 41%
Temperature
90%
Noise
100%
Audio
59 / 91 → 65%
Camera
68%
Average
73%
83%
Smartphone - Weighted Average

Pricecompare

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Michael Moser, 2015-08- 1 (Update: 2018-05-15)