Following the initial rollout in its home country of South Korea, LG Electronics announced the commencement of shipment of its latest LG G6 smartphone to international markets this week.

Nearly 200 carriers and operators worldwide will be making the LG G6 available to their local customers.

The LG G6 received many positive reactions at Mobile World Congress 2017 earlier this year. The smartphone features a 5.7-inch display in a compact 5.2-inch body with minimal bezels for one-handed operation. With a FullVision display that supports both Dolby Vision and HDR 10, the LG G6 is compatible with more HDR content. And the 18:9 screen aspect ratio of the FullVision display allows the screen to be divided into two identical perfect squares, ideal for multi-tasking with the G6's camera UX, which was developed with social media users in mind.

A wide angle front-facing camera complements the wide angle dual camera setup on the rear. The 125-degree lens on the back delivers panoramic image with less edge distortion than before and switching between the wide and standard lenses is seamless. And the 5MP 100-degree field of view front camera allows for large group shots without the need to tote around a cumbersome selfie stick.

Moreover, the LG G6 has met and passed the MIL-STD 810G standard for durability, conducted by independent testing and certification firm MET (Maryland Electrical Testing) Laboratories.

Galaxy S8 preorders kick off

In the meantime, preorders for Samsung Electronics' latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S8, are available from Friday.

The high-end phone comes in two sizes: the standard S8 with a 5.8-inch display and a larger Galaxy S8 Plus with a 6.2-inch screen. They cost 935,000 won ($824) and 990,000 won, respectively. The two models have 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.

Samsung also will release the S8 Plus that features 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. It costs 1.15 million won.