Is this the LG V40 ThinQ firmware? Or is it something else entirely?

This year, LG has released four devices with confusing names and similar specs. What’s worse, the devices are coming at a rapid-fire pace that even has us scratching our heads as to which device is which and the timeline of it all.

This strategy also doesn’t seem to be helping LG’s mobile division much.

Things might get even more confusing in a month or so when LG announces the LG V40 ThinQ, the follow-up to the LG V35 ThinQ, which was a beefed-up version of the LG V30S ThinQ, which itself is a beefed-up version of 2017’s LG V30 ThinQ.

Whoa.

But, to make things really confusing, there’s now a rumor that there might be yet another device that could be released around the same time as the LG V40 ThinQ. This rumor is based on firmware that XDA Developers discovered.

Using data in the firmware files, XDA thinks that the software is linked to the LG V40 ThinQ. But one major discrepancy is making the team think that it might instead be for another, yet-unknown device.

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Here’s the timeline of the announcements of flagship LG devices this year:

• February, 2018 – LG V30S ThinQ
• May, 2018 – LG G7 ThinQ
• May, 2018 – LG V35 ThinQ
• May, 2018 – LG V35 Plus ThinQ

Now, we don’t know anything for absolute certain about the rumored LG V40 ThinQ, but we have a pretty good idea that LG will launch the device about a month after Samsung launches the Samsung Galaxy Note 9.

With the expected launch of the LG V40 ThinQ, that will bring LG’s flagship lineup to a hefty five devices in one year. But now there’s a possibility that there might be a sixth.

The firmware doesn’t give firm information

XDA Developers found some LG firmware with the codename “judypn.” You may recognize the “judy” portion of the codename, as the internal name of the LG V35 ThinQ is “judyp” and the code for the LG G7 ThinQ is “judyln.”

Judging from the codenames, this is what we think each name stands for:

• LG G7 ThinQ is “judyln” and is an LCD phone with a notch.
• LG V35 ThinQ is “judyp” and is a POLED phone with no notch.

If that’s the case, then the LG V40 ThinQ (“judypn”) could be a POLED phone with a notch.

Another aspect of the firmware that suggests it might belong to the LG V40 ThinQ are the model numbers, which all seem to match up to the “V” line:

• LM-V400N
• LM-V405N
• LM-V409N

The LG V35 ThinQ’s model numbers are LM-V350 and LM-V350N, so it’s all lining up here.

Finally, “judypn” has a Google Assistant button. XDA knows this because the firmware makes reference to “hot1_key defined” which is how the LG G7 ThinQ refers to its Google Assistant hotkey. The LG V35 ThinQ does not have a Google Assistant button, and also doesn’t make any reference to the hot1_key.

In other words, there is a lot of evidence to point to the firmware with the codename “judypn” belonging to the LG V40 ThinQ, and that the device will have a Google Assistant button, a POLED screen, and a notch.

But something doesn’t add up…

There is one piece of info that the mystery firmware tells us that doesn’t line up with the LG V40 ThinQ, and that’s the number of cameras. The firmware definitively references a dual camera on the rear and a single camera on the front, just like the LG V35 and LG G7.

But the rumor mill points to the LG V40 ThinQ having five cameras: three on the rear and two on the front.

This is a pretty huge discrepancy. The way we see it, there are three possible explanations:

1. The mystery firmware file is for the LG V40 ThinQ, but is not a final version and will eventually get an update to include the two extra cameras.
2. The mystery firmware file is not the for the LG V40 ThinQ, and LG actually has two devices it plans to launch this year: the V40 and a yet-unknown device.
3. The mystery firmware file is for the LG V40 ThinQ, and the device will only have three cameras.

What do you think? Is LG really going to push six devices over the span of a few months, all with the silly “ThinQ” branding? Or does this firmware belong to the LG V40 and simply need a camera update? Let us know in the comments what you think!

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