LG V20 Review(MODDERS GUIDE)

Mods using files in os folders

High impedance mod – forces high impedance mode on the quad DAC

Alpha oreo rounded UI– this will give you the really nice, rounded, recent that  I like a lot. USE NOUGAT

Charging mod-allows faster charging while screen is on

Magisk Mods – these you can find in Magisk Manager

Ainur James Dsp- A lossless system-wide eq

Audio mod library-needed to have multiple mods

Busy box-needed for the system, not sure why

Cloudflare for Magisk both ipv4 and ipv6 improves DNS leading to faster internet response times

MAGISK SELinux-set this to permissive helps AINUR JAMES DSP work all the time

Xposed framework-Xposed for magisk–you need this modded Xposed Apk

Youtube Vanced-the best youtube app and as a Magisk module

Xposed Modules

A lot of people are unhappy with Xposed, for whatever reason. As long as you’re careful with what you install , you’ll be fine. You can find all these within the Xposed app.

Screenshot delay remover

Prevent running- used instead of Greenify. Use this one (not the one in the repo which has ads)

Apps

Besides for what I recommend here

Wakeblock-lets you set up wake lock blocking improved battery and deep sleep. I use this list.

Nap time-best aggressive doze app I have found works better than Greenifies aggressive doze. Turn off agressive doze in Greenify.

Bored signs-extend second screen functionality –KILLS YOUR BATTERY NOT RECOMMENDED –

Second Screen Status Bar

Yes this app gets its own section. This is the single biggest innovation on the LG V20. Made by Daved+ on XDA, this app turns your second screen into a status bar on stock ROMs. This app is beyond optimized and uses very little battery and CPU considering what it does. The fact that this app is always running and uses so few resources is actually incredible. Setup is a bit complicated you have to use a couple of different apps to get rid of the stock status bar. Please join the telegram groups here and here

.I can’t stress enough how optimized this app is and how big of a game-changer it is.I can personally vouch for how much time and effort went into the development of this app. Donations for this app are expected.

David has taught me so much over the past few years and I would just like to publicly thank him for being an awesome mentor and friend.

Build prop tweaks- I recommend build prop editor

sys.capture_signboard.enabled=true   allows screenshots to capture second screen

wifi.supplicant_scan_interval=180 -slows down how often wifi is scanned in order to improve battery

ro.telephony.call_ring.delay=0 no delay on ringing when a phone call comes in

ro.ril.enable.amr.wideband=1 better phone call sound quality

windowsmgr.max_events_per_sec=150 ro.min_pointer_dur=8 ro.max.fling_velocity=12000 ro.min.fling_velocity=8000

improves scrolling performance

Themes-(random) OREO ONLY

• Pixel experience dark
• Sense Pro Theme
• Miui Mix
• One round ui

Review post mods

Please note: When I say I am comparing, everything is relative to a flagship from this phones release and the next year.

Performance

Post mods: You the have a phone that’s outperforming next-gen processor based phones, in terms of speed. The performance is perfectly acceptable even for power users.

Display

The screen is an LCD panel which is pretty good for this type of thing, especially after kcal profiling which completely removes ghosting. It’s bright but on the bluish side of the white point, even post calibration although that tames it a bit. I think, since it’s LCD and not Oled you’ll only getting decent blacks which is good for an LCD but not as good as an Oled. It’s actually quite far from an Oled, to be honest!

Network Performance

Wifi and cell signal quality is above average, even for flagships, however the Bluetooth range is only average for a flagship. Audio quality from the speaker is passable. Audio quality for phone calls is at the upper end of average, but mic quality is quite a bit better than average. The DAC on this phone is best in the biz. It uses an audiophile-grade ESS Sabre DAC that’s found usually in 150+ dollar daps.

Audio

This is one of the places that this phone completely outshines almost all other phones on the market. With its exceptional quad DAC, as well as Aptx and Aptx-hd, supported Bluetooth codecs this phone is an audiophile’s dream. The DAC model is an ESS Sabre ES9218 with 32-bit support as well as a 130db SNR. The phone’s stock DAC has a 15 step volume whereas the Quad DAC has 75 steps for much more precise adjustment. Additionally, the quad DAC has left and right volume adjustment with six steps each. Which is really nice if you get colds often as I do.

In my Experience using the quad DAC with the Philips SHP9500s, Nad Viso Hp50, and the KZ Es4, the audio sounds cleaner and has a better soundstage. The Philips pair especially well due to the higher power output which really improves their bass response.

One of my biggest nitpicks of the LG G5 was how the 3.5 mm jack is on the top of the phone and the USB C port is on the bottom. The V20 doesn’t have this issue.

Another aspect of this phone is the audio recording. This phone has three High Acoustic Overload Point microphones. As well as the ability to record 24-bit/192kHz FLAC files. In the video, you have directional audio options as well.

Cameras

Cameras. This is very interesting! The stock camera libraries are terrible which also effects raw although I’m not sure why. While I jpegs are pretty meh, raw photos are fairly usable especially with tweaking in Snapseed. The manual controls on this camera are brilliant; top notch! The manual video is great though it also suffers from the oversharpening. It’s audio quality is amazing. Three mics and the ability to control the directionality of them, actually makes it work really well.

Once we get the modded libraries the camera goes from a  B- to a B+ for auto and a b+ to a- for raw for the main. It’s also one step below on each for the wide angle camera. The links in the list below are from the DEV whos username is Helf on XDA of the modded libs. Unfortunately, though the libraries are not yet available for oreo!!!!

• If you want to get really great auto functionality as well as portrait mode, download the recommended gcam and your jpgs climb to the stocks raw quality.

The wide-angle actually lets you get super creative shots.

Here are a few samples more can be found on my personal Instagram here.

These samples are all stock Oreo samples.

Video has all the same issues in terms of libraries as the still images do. The ability to have full manual in video though gives you great flexibility. Additionally, the directional audio recording is a super underrated feature of this phone. You will consistently record solid video with amazing audio compare to the competition.

Battery Life

Battery life. Typically, most users are getting 3-4 hrs of sot and basically unlimited standby, with the tweaks I recommend above. The battery life issues are completely negated by multiple batteries.

I’m also currently testing out an extended battery case which is your second option. I’m getting about 9 hours of sot and I’m not on wifi and mostly streaming youtube during that time. Here is a reference image to see the size of the battery case.

Upon further use please buy yourself either the 4100 mah Perfine li-poly or 8200 perfine.

Verdict.

Buy it if your willing to put the time in to modify it. It’s dirt cheap at a little over one hundred dollars on eBay. You’ll spend about two hundred dollars in all, with a case, extra batteries, and an SD card. Please note this phone is not recommended for the average user.