How to Boot the LG G6 and G6+ into Download Mode

If you ever need to return to stock Android, you will need to follow these steps to boot the LG G6 and G6+ into a special mode called Download Mode.

Lately I’ve shown you how to boot the LG G6 into various special boot modes. This included a guide on how to boot the LG G6 into Fastboot Mode, and then another guide was for how to boot the LG G6 into Recovery Mode. I’ll be showing you a different boot mode today, and this is one that will be used if you ever need to return to stock Android.

You will need to be in the LG G6 Download Mode if you ever need to remove  modifications, fix a bootloop, or anything like this.

Download Mode for the LG G6 is quite similar to what is available on Samsung devices. Sometimes Samsung will call this special mode Download Mode, while other times they will call this Odin Mode. For LG devices, this is simple called Download Mode and it enables you to connect PC software to the LG G6 and flash a factory stock version of Android. Flashing that firmware will completely reset your device and it will be as if you had just pulled it out of the box.

I’ll be going over those steps in a future guide, but today I just want to show you how to get into this special boot mode on the LG G6.

LG G6 Download Mode

1. Plug a USB cable into your computer (not into the LG G6 yet)
2. Power down the LG G6
3. Press and hold the Volume Up button
4. Connect the USB cable to the LG G6
5. Continue holding the Volume Up button until it boots into Download Mode

Explanation

This is the same process that we have used on LG devices for years and nothing has changed other than the type of USB cable that we’re using. So to start, you’re going to need to get the LG G6 into a powered off state. This is easy if you can boot into Android as you’ll just need to follow the traditional steps of powering it down. However, this can be difficult if the device is stuck in a bootloop. You can try holding down the Power button for 5-10 seconds to force it to shut down.

If that doesn’t work, then you may need to let the battery die completely, charge it up a bit, and then follow the step by step guide detailed above. Whatever the case, we just need to have the LG G6 in a powered down state before we can begin. Once that is done, you can press and hold down the Volume Up button. This button needs to be held down while you connect the LG G6 to the PC with a USB cable, and you need to continue holding the Volume Up button down until it boots into Download Mode.

You will see that you’re in the LG G6 Download Mode by the image that appears in the middle of the screen. Just like the image you see at the very top of this article shows, it will simply say Download Mode with some blue dots underneath it. However, the LG G6 will not show this image for very long (only about 5-10 seconds) and it will then boot over to another screen. You’ll still be in the LG G6 Download mode when you’re at this other screen, so there isn’t any reason to worry.

The second screen will look something like you see in the image above. The top will say Firmware Update, there will be some arrows forming a circle, and then you will be told to not unplug the USB cable while you are in this phase. As shown in the video above, unless you are actively flashing something with a piece of software on the PC, then you’re safe to unplug the USB cable. This warning is only there for the times when you are actively installing stock Android back onto the LG G6.

To get out of this mode, you’ll need to press and hold the Power and Volume Down buttons at the same time. Continue holding these two buttons (as shown int he video above), and the LG G6 will reboot in 5-10 seconds. Once you see it starting to reboot, you can then let go of these buttons.