LG might be getting creative with its next flagship smartphone

It’s interesting to see how different smartphone companies approach the problem of shrinking sales in different ways. For example, HTC tried to recreate the success of the One (M8) last year by mimicking the device, and when that failed to turn the company’s sales around, it resorted to blatantly copying the iPhone, which also failed. On the other hand, it looks LG will be taking the opposite approach by trying to create something new and innovative, rather than imitating previous smartphones. At least, that’s what we’ve gathered from a recent report out of South Korea, which claims that LG will be making some big changes with its next flagship, such as giving it a semi-modular design and unique button placements.

As claimed in the latest report out of Korea, the G5 from LG will feature quite a change in terms of overall design, according to an eyewitness. As reported, it is said that the G5 will feature a somewhat modular design, with a slide-out removable battery fitting inside of a pullout drawer on the bottom side of the smartphone. To remove the battery, it appears that a user will simply pull the drawer out and replace the battery if needed, although, the phone will charge normally as any other device via a port on the bottom. In addition to this possible change, it appears LG may move away from rear-facing volume keys on this year’s flagship, placing the volume up and volume down buttons on the side of the device instead. The power button will still be located on the backside, but more interestingly, it is reported that the home button will also double as a fingerprint reader for unlocking the device and using mobile payments. Other reported specifications include a Qualcomm-made Snapdragon 820 processor, “dual cameras” (likely a reference to front and back-facing cameras, as well as an all-metal design and build.