With its K-series, LG offers robust smartphones in various price ranges. We have already tested a current mid-range model of this series with the, and we were also able to evaluate the and LG smartphones last year.With the LG K9, we now have an entry-level device that offers sufficient performance for simple applications with and an. In addition, 2 GB of working memory and 16 GB of eMMC flash storage also offer at least a minimum of storage space for your own data and apps. The removable battery, which many other smartphone manufacturers do not offer anymore, is particularly compelling.In the low price segment below 150 Euros ($174), there are also many competing devices of which we picked four for the comparison with our test unit. These include the, the, and the. The comparison with last year's model from LG, the ), is also interesting for our test. The LG K9 has a robust plastic case and is available in black and blue colors.
The LG K9 is an affordable smartphone for less than 150 Euros ($174). Apps such as WhatsApp run without any problems and the camera is.
You can take off the grooved back cover, giving you access to the battery as well as the nanoSIM and microSD card slots. The non-slip cover is tightly held in position by plastic clips, preventing it from accidental removal.The back also contains the simple main camera and the power button. While the latter looks like a fingerprint sensor, it is only a button with a design that follows that of the K-series. The volume buttons on the left side of the device are set into the frame with some slight play, but they respond to every input with a crisp pressure point.
The LG K9 is equipped with, an, 2 GB of RAM, and 16 GB of internal eMMC flash storage. In addition to this entry-level hardware, the LG smartphone also offers its users a 3.5-mm audio port and a USB 2.0 standard MicroUSB port.
According to the manufacturer, the internal storage can be expanded up to 32 GB via a microSD card, and if necessary, you can also move apps onto the SD card. However, you cannot reformat it as internal storage. Our 64 GB Toshiba Exceria Pro M501 reference card worked without any problems in the LG smartphone. Users of the LG K9 are greeted with an Android version 7.1.2 operating system with security patches on the level of April 1, 2018.
The adjustments by the manufacturer are limited to a restructuring of the settings menu. LG is also restrained in terms of third-party apps, benefiting the storage space which is quite limited anyways. Despite an aging operating system, LG delivers new security updates for example every three to four months for the and models, so we expect something similar for the LG K9.The restructured menu offers quick access to all the switches that activate or deactivate the communication modules. An account management feature also offers the option to create several user accounts for the LG smartphone. The LG K9 supports mobile connections to the GSM, 3G, and LTE networks. LTE (Cat.4) allows for transfer rates of up to 150 Mb/s during download and 50 Mb/s during upload. The LG smartphone does not show any particularities in terms of the reception quality, always offering an uninterrupted connection.Over closer distances, the K9 is able to transfer data via Bluetooth 4.2 or WLAN. However, for the latter only the slower b, g, and n standards in the 2.4-GHz band are available to the users.
The results of our WLAN test show that while the achieved speeds are standard for this price range, they are still slightly below average. In terms of its data reception, the LG smartphone has to be content with the last place in our comparison list. Using the 'GPS Test' app, we test how accurately the LG K9 can determine its own location. The LG smartphone achieves an accuracy of up to three meters outdoors and is also able to create a stable satellite connection indoors. While the accuracy then drops to about eight meters, it is still sufficient to determine an approximate location.During our bike tour, we compare the LG K9 with our Garmin Edge 500 reference device.
The recorded route shows that the K9 achieves a similar quality as the GPS bike computer and is merely slightly more inaccurate in very tight curves. The LG K9 is therefore well-suited for navigation tasks.
LG offers users of the K9 its own telephone app which provides fast access to a dial keyboard, contact and call lists, and groups. The arrangement is clear and shows only small differences to Google's standard telephone app.During a conversation, the K9 is able to transmit both sides clearly and understandably. In addition, the microphone filters out annoying background noises. The volume is sufficient to be able to still communicate with loud street noise in the background or in noisier surroundings. With a relatively high volume, the speaker function also offers a good option to communicate having both hands free. The LG smartphone does not sound boomy or scratchy. LG has equipped the K9 with an 8-MP main camera and a 5-MP front camera.
The selfie camera produces images with a rather lower quality. The whole picture appears slightly blurry and pale. Even though the camera app settings do not offer any detailed adjustment options to improve the image quality, you can select gestures to enable taking automatic selfies with the camera.In good light conditions, the main camera produces decent panorama snapshots, which although appearing slightly blurry in the detail still capture the selected object well. This impression is only slightly marred by being a bit pale. The same effect can also be seen in close-ups and appears even more pronounced then. While the objects in the image center appear sharp, the blurriness increases significantly towards the edges.
The contrast also appears slightly weak. In bad light conditions, the K9 is able to capture objects without them disappearing in black areas. However, the photographed objects are blurry and the detail is missing.The LG K9 is able to record videos in a resolution of 1280x720 pixels.
While the results have similar limitations as the photographs, a decent image stabilizer compensates for shaky recordings. The LG K9 is equipped with, an, 2 GB of RAM, and 16 GB of eMMC flash storage. This hardware can also be found in entry-level smartphones that are suited for simple everyday tasks. However, in our test unit this equipment occasionally led to stutters during navigation of the user interface.In our benchmark tests, the LG K9 was unable to stand up against the competing devices. Our test unit often only lands in last place, taking turns with the from time to time. The performance differences between these two devices are only minimal. The LG K9 only offers a below-average system performance in its price range.
The internal storage of the LG K9 is also only able to achieve a below-average performance in our benchmarks. Comparable devices of this price range can access data in parts significantly faster. Particularly LG's own model from last year, the, offers much faster access times.Using our Toshiba Exceria Pro M501 reference storage card, the internal microSD card reader can offer faster read and write rates that are at a similar level as those of our comparison devices and conform to our expectations to a device in this price range. The LG K9 is only suited for simple games. The integrated offers barely enough performance to display older and casual games smoothly. O ccasionally, you need to expect longer load times and possibly adjust your graphics to low settings. While gaming, the touchscreen responds very directly and is even slightly too sensitive at times.
In these moments, the image jitters, making accurate control of the game difficult. In addition, the response of the position sensor is slightly delayed, which also needs to be taken into account when playing games where this is used. (±) The average temperature for the upper side under maximal load is 35.2 °C / 95 F, compared to the average of 33.1 °C / 92 F for the devices in the class Smartphone.(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 37 °C / 99 F, compared to the average of 35.5 °C / 96 F, ranging from 22.4 to 51.7 °C for the class Smartphone.(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 36.4 °C / 98 F, compared to the average of 34.1 °C / 93 F(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 30.9 °C / 88 F, compared to the device average of 33.1 °C / 92 F. The speaker of the LG K9 provides users with a good sound quality for the occasional audio reproduction and is loud enough to cover up the surrounding noises. However, the sound spectrum is limited to the highs, since everything below the mids drops off sharply. The speaker neither tends to boom, nor does it sound scratchy.Besides using Bluetooth 4.2, you can also connect external speakers to a 3.5-mm audio port, which accepts the corresponding plugs with a clearly audible clicking noise and does not have a negative effect on audio transmission.
LG K9 audio analysis(+) speakers can play relatively loud (86 dB)Bass 100 - 315 Hz(-) nearly no bass - on average 45.3% lower than median(+) bass is linear (5.5% delta to prev. Frequency)Mids 400 - 2000 Hz(±) reduced mids - on average 13.2% lower than median(±) linearity of mids is average (13% delta to prev. Frequency)Highs 2 - 16 kHz(±) higher highs - on average 6.7% higher than median(+) highs are linear (3.1% delta to prev. Frequency)Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz(-) overall sound is not linear (36.7% difference to median)Compared to same class» 97% of all tested devices in this class were better, 1% similar, 2% worse» The best had a delta of 13%, average was 25%, worst was 44%Compared to all devices tested» 97% of all tested devices were better, 1% similar, 2% worse» The best had a delta of 3%, average was 21%, worst was 53%.
Nokia 2 audio analysis(+) speakers can play relatively loud (84.9 dB)Bass 100 - 315 Hz(-) nearly no bass - on average 35.6% lower than median(±) linearity of bass is average (8.8% delta to prev. Frequency)Mids 400 - 2000 Hz(±) higher mids - on average 8.9% higher than median(±) linearity of mids is average (9% delta to prev. Frequency)Highs 2 - 16 kHz(±) higher highs - on average 8% higher than median(±) linearity of highs is average (7.5% delta to prev. Frequency)Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz(-) overall sound is not linear (30.9% difference to median)Compared to same class» 85% of all tested devices in this class were better, 6% similar, 9% worse» The best had a delta of 13%, average was 25%, worst was 44%Compared to all devices tested» 90% of all tested devices were better, 4% similar, 7% worse» The best had a delta of 3%, average was 21%, worst was 53%. In our test, the LG K9 does not show any improvements compared to last year's model, the, in many respects, and our test unit is also surpassed by the competitors much too often. The advantages of the K9 lie in the removable battery and its simple, robust design. These characteristics turn it into a good smartphone for tasks where you would rather leave more expensive devices at home.The LG K9 is suited well as a stand-in for your own, expensive smartphone or for simple tasks without many demands on the system performance.Despite the low performance the K9 shows in our benchmarks, the LG smartphone can be used for most simple tasks.
Apps such as WhatsApp run without any problems and the camera is also sufficient for occasional snapshots under good light conditions. Interested buyers who are looking for an affordable smartphone and do not have too many demands on the performance could therefore take a closer look at the LG K9.