Could not add google account > did factory reset > can not get through initial setup

Hi guys,

All was well except when I tried to add a google account this happened
screen 1
Just a sec...
screen 2
Add your account
google
sing in to get the most out of your device. i
Enter your email [I enter my email and have tried others for testing]
screen 3
Error sorry there seems to be a problem. Please try again.

For troubleshooting I tried

Disabled 2FA on google account
Removed account from other device
rest app settings
sign in via multiple apps, contacts, playstore, youtube, add accounts et cetera
Enabled Backup my data and automatic restore
Connected via VPN
Update system software

Nothing worked so I did a factory reset. Now the part of the initial setup that is supposed to add a google account gets stuck on

"Couldn't sign in
Can’t establish a reliable connection to the server"

But I really mean stuck, there are no buttons on the screen, no possibility to slide down the task bar or go to home screen because this is happening as part of the initial setup steps. Volume and power buttons work so I can turn it off and turn it on again after which it enters the initial setup and the same thing happenes again as there is no option to skip this step or skip set up as a whole.

There are quite a few google results for

"Couldn't sign in
Can’t establish a reliable connection to the server"

But they all involve interacting with options and settings which I can not do. How can I boot the phone without it launching the initial setup process?

Phone is E2363, the 16G dual sim version. Thanks if you can help

Initial setup: "Downloading" screen

Okay, so I just got the watch and have synced it up with my phone just fine. Now the watch screen says "Downloading" and it is taking FOREVER. No, I'm not some impatient person who can't wait a few minutes for his phone and watch to play nice together. It has been on the same screen for at least a half hour and the little circle that shows the progress isn't even close to 25% complete. What is it downloading? I turned off "download to android wear" in Google music.

Anyone else have this issue? Am I going to be without my phone for the rest of the night while this downloads? Any/all help will be greatly appreciated.

Initial list of removable apps using root access (debloat)

A special thanks to thecubed for providing us with root access! See his thread here:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/g4/o...ot-lg-t3164765

Following is a list of system apps I have removed without affecting apparent stability or performance. Disclaimer: I am not responsible for any damage you inflict upon your device, proceed at your own risk. I backed up complete copies of my system app folders, and rebooted after each uninstall in case I ran into trouble. I used the uninstall function of Rom Toolbox, and have heard of similar results using Titanuim Backup (including the inability to completely remove the Facebook entries without further intervention.)

Facebook
Instagram
Pages Manager
Lookout
Messenger (Facebook)
Snap Page
com.facebook.system
com.facebook.appmanager

The "com.facebook" entries were a little trickier. When attempting removal they would just downgrade to the factory-installed version, then after a reboot they immediately update themselves silently in the background. I had to remove the folders that held the original versions the apps were reverting to, then remove them again. I have never seen what should be an optional social media app so stubbornly intalled as a system app! Here are the directories I found the originals in:

/system/app/com.facebook.appmanager
/system/priv-app/com.facebook.system
/system/priv-app/lookout

After deleting these folders using a root file explorer (ES File Explorer) I was able to run root uninstalls with Rom Toolbox. I didn't remove anything connected to LG's services, Google's services, or the stock launcher. Only the apps that should have been optional to install in the first place. I hope this helps get some other users started making use of our new root access!