It seems like it was ready for the prime time
Once one of the biggest Android OEMs in the space, LG failed to keep its phones exciting and appealing to users. Before it pulled out of making smartphones in mid-2021, LG had one last ace up its sleeve: a rollable smartphone. It never actually launched, but someone got their hands on a prototype, so you can at least see how it would’ve looked if it was released. We’ve seen a hands-on video before, but new footage of the handset gives us even more detail.
A South Korean YouTuber by the name of 뻘짓연구소 (via Mishaal Rahman), which roughly translates to “Jeoljit Research Institute” according to Google Translate, got their hands on the elusive rollable phone by LG. If launched, the phone would’ve been sold as the “LG Rollable.” The phone itself has a finished retail box, charger, and documentation. Likewise, the device doesn’t show signs of being an early prototype or engineering sample, and even the software looks pretty finished and polished. It appears like the LG Rollable was pretty much ready for primetime by the time LG decided to abandon the smartphone market and subsequently shelve its launch.
In terms of specs, the phone would’ve launched with a Snapdragon 888 CPU, with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. This indicates that the phone would’ve had the specs to match the best smartphones in 2021. LG was planning to shift its strategy again to giving importance to specs after launching both the LG Velvet and the LG Wing in 2020 with a Snapdragon 765G. It had a 6.8-inch POLED screen that would’ve rolled into a 7.4-inch panel. The device would’ve also come with a 64MP camera and a 4,500 mAh battery.
It’s unclear if its launch would’ve reversed LG’s fortunes, but we still wish it came out anyway. New form factors are always cool to look at, after all.
