HD PICTURE QUALITY. HD picture quality was very good. It did an excellent job displaying the finest detail of HD content. However, image detail was a bit over-sharpened and we could not minimize this in the picture settings. Color accuracy was excellent, so colors, especially flesh tones, looked very natural and lifelike. Contrast--the difference between the darkest blacks and brightest whites--was good, so images had depth and dimension. Depth of black level was below average, with darker scenes in particular looking hazy, with little contrast. Brightness level was only fair, dimmer than most, not the best choice for a brighter room. In scenes with subtly shaded light-to-dark areas, such as a sky during sunset, the model did a very good job producing a smooth transition without distinct, coarse bands. Film mode operation for HD film-based content was excellent, with no visible jaggies along the edges of objects during motion scenes. Deinterlacing was very good, with minimal jaggies visible when converting 1080i video content, such as from cable, to the display's native resolution.
VIEWING ANGLE. This LG has a wide viewing angle overall, better than that of most TVs. It will provide the same picture quality, with fewer problems than most TVs, for typical viewing conditions -- say, if your family is seated across a long sectional or in chairs off to the sides. The picture did show some dimming from the sides but not to any point we found distracting. With dark scenes this model didn't fare quite as well. When viewed from the sides, the depth of black levels varied depending on the vertical position of the viewer's head. As we moved closer to the screen this limitation became even more apparent, especially if seated on the floor looking upward where black levels brightened significantly.
HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE (HDR) PERFORMANCE. HDR performance is not effective. The display's lack of peak brightness capability (by HDR standards) showed no image quality enhancements over regular HD content. The overall image was dimmer in tone than expected and lacked the contrast we expect from our HDR test videos. It did a good job reproducing a greater range of nuanced shadow detail from black to white, with no obvious banding on areas of the image that have subtle shade variations, with no visible loss of near-white shadow detail in the brightest areas.
MOTION BLUR. This LG TV has only fair motion performance, with significant blurring on our motion tests. This is typical of LCD TVs with the basic 60Hz frame rate. This model does not include a blur reduction feature. The visibility of blurring on typical program content is often subtle and may not bother most people, but keen-eyed viewers may detect some loss of texture and detail on scenes with movement.
SCREEN REFLECTIVITY. Though not as mirror-like as on some models, this screen surface is glossy and therefore susceptible to reflections from a nearby lamp or window. It does a good job reducing glare from ambient light and maintains contrast in a brighter room environment.
SOUND QUALITY. This model has fair sound quality with below average performance. It's acceptable for typical programming, but shortcomings become obvious with movie soundtracks and music. Bass was lacking as was treble detail, and the overall sound was a bit thin and notably closed in. The speakers produced a good volume range so this model should play sufficiently loud in typical room environments, though quality does degrade at high volume settings. Also, at higher volume, dynamic compression kept the sound from distorting but also limited the clarity of peaks in loudness, which can be distracting on some audio content. If sound quality matters to you, you might want to add a soundbar or other external speaker system -- but if this smaller-screen set is a secondary TV, you might find its sound quality acceptable.
EASE OF USE. On first power up there is an on-screen guide that helps you through setting up the TV. LG's basic remote offers a traditional button keypad with high contrast labeling that is fairly readable in a dimly lit environment. It provides direct button access to Netflix and Amazon streaming services. The TV's stand is 26 inches wide.
INTERNET FEATURES. This TV provides advanced Internet capabilities via its "WebOS" portal with access to a library of applications, and a full Web browser. Movie streaming services include Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video and Hulu. Also provides support for Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa.
CONNECTIONS. This model has three HDMI inputs-- one supports ARC (Audio Return Channel), one "component/composite shared" input (which means you can only use one type or the other at a time). It also has two USB ports, an optical digital audio out, an Ethernet port, WiFi wireless networking; DLNA, to access files within your home network; Casting, which allows you to send streaming content from your mobile device to the TV via your home network; Screen mirroring, where the image on your smartphone or other compatible device can also appear on the TV.
INCLUDED IN THE BOX. A quick start guide. An electronic manual in the TV's menu. A remote control with batteries. A detachable power cord. No printed manual is included.
