LG Releases Statement Over Metallic Unibody Concerns

Remember the guy who bent his Nexus 6P in half with his bare hands? Well, he’s back again. This time with a different device and a different test.

YouTuber JerryRigEverything had his doubts on LG’s claim that the LG G5 had a metallic body (unibody at that too). He mentioned that the weight and feel of the device indicated that a great deal of plastic was involved in the phone, instead of metal. So he took his knife and started scratching the back of the device.

(Un?)Surprisingly, the LG G5’s back had a seemingly thick layer of plastic coating. Only after going deep with his blade, did Jerry encounter some metal. This led to a lot of questions on LG’s claim of the G5 being a metallic phone. After all, does it count as metal if you won’t ever be touching metal?

In response to the questions and doubts, LG has released a statement addressing the issues:

“Contrary to erroneous reports online that the LG G5 body is composed of plastic, LG would like to state unequivocally that the uni-body casing of the G5 is composed of a special aluminum alloy, LM201 (Feb. 2016 patent pending). LM201 was developed by LG in partnership with the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology for use in high-end sports cars, aircraft and consumer electronic pducts (sic) where durability, rigidity and lightness are required. As a die-cast metal, LM201 was determined to be most appropriate material to accommodate the curves of the G5. After the die-casting is complete, the insulating antenna slit is applied directly to the aluminum casing followed by a coating of primer which provides additional insulation and enhances the surface profile for the “microdizing” process, where pigment containing tiny metal particles is applied directly to the primer to provide a smooth and durable finish. While both anodized aluminum and microdized aluminum will scratch if enough pressure is applied, in the case of the G5 the gray primer beneath the pigment layer may be mistaken for plastic when the coloring is scratched off. We want to reassure our customers that the uni-body of the LG G5 is advanced aluminum alloy, not plastic.”

For now, LG claims that the G5’s “unibody” is aluminum alloy and the plastic that we see after the paint layer is scratched is nothing but primer. There is a lot to analyze in this statement, which we will in a separate article soon.

What do you think about LG’s claim over the G5’s “metallic” “unibody”? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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