HD PICTURE QUALITY. HD picture quality was excellent. It did an excellent job displaying the finest detail of HD content. Color accuracy was excellent, so colors, especially flesh tones, looked very natural and lifelike. Very good contrast--the difference between the darkest blacks and brightest whites--gave images convincing depth and dimension. The brightness level was good, making it a suitable choice for most rooms. Excellent deep black levels are among the best we've seen, giving dark scenes great depth. There was visible banding (unnatural contours) on scenes with subtly shaded light-to-dark areas, such as a sky during sunset, rather than smooth transitions. The deinterlacing and film mode operations were excellent on HD content; there was little or no trace of jaggies on the edges of objects for video and film-based 1080i video content, such as from cable.
VIEWING ANGLE. The overall viewing angle on this display is unlimited, better than most TVs we've tested. Contrast, and depth of black level did not vary regardless of viewing position. When we viewed the TV from the sides the picture showed a slight shift in color tone, but overall color remained consistent with no degradation in overall image quality. When viewing the image from above or below eye level to the screen, the vertical viewing angle was excellent. The picture showed no change in color, contrast, and black level.
ULTRA HD PERFORMANCE. Overall UHD performance was excellent and showed very good HD-to-UHD upconversion. All native 4K content (non HDR) we played on this model, including movies and test videos, was presented in full 4K detail with excellent fidelity when played back via the TV's HDMI input. This TV can stream 4K programs from Netflix and YouTube. Images were clean and finely detailed. High-resolution photos were displayed in full 4K detail.
HIGH DYNAMIC RANGE (HDR) PERFORMANCE. HDR performance was very effective. The display's higher brightness capability helped enhance the realism of our 4K HDR test videos, while revealing very good contrast between moderately bright and very bright highlights within a scene. 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. There was no visible loss of near-white shadow detail in the brightest areas. Very bright, colored objects remained nicely saturated, and an extended range of color capability was apparent from our test patterns.
MOTION BLUR. This LG TV has very good motion performance, with minimal blurring on our motion tests, thanks to LG's "TruMotion". This feature is designed to reduce motion blur, a shortcoming of most displays.
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 very good sound quality, better than most models we've tested. Whether you're watching a movie blockbuster, a concert, or TV show, it is able to deliver a satisfying listening experience. Bass was deep, providing satisfying fullness to the sound but lacking in definition a bit, and treble was nicely detailed, while the overall sound was a bit closed in. The speakers produced a good volume range so this model should play sufficiently loud in typical room environments and without obvious distortion. Unlike most of our tested models, this model's sound should satisfy the more discerning listeners, so an external sound bar is optional.
EASE OF USE. On first power up there is an on-screen guide that helps you through setting up the TV. LG’s "Magic Motion" remote allows you to navigate on-screen menus using a traditional button key pad, or a gesture-controlled cursor, for increased flexibility. Using a point-and-click operation, the cursor’s movement on the display is linked to the motion of your hand, and is used to make selections. The remote also includes buttons that provide direct access to Netflix and Amazon streaming services.
INTERNET FEATURES. This TV provides advanced Internet capabilities via its "WebOS 3.5" portal with access to a library of applications, and a full Web browser. Movie streaming services include Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video and Hulu.
CONNECTIONS. This model has four HDMI inputs-- one supports ARC (Audio Return Channel), one composite input, and no component input. It also has three 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. Analog connections are made via a special breakout cable adapter (included) that attaches to the TV as a single plug. That means you plug your component, composite, or stereo cables into a dangling "pigtail" rather than the back of the TV itself. This is actually a more convenient way to make the connections on slim-profile models, but if you lose that adapter you'll have no way to connect your cables directly to the TV. Note: HDMI and other cable connections made to the rear-facing panel will protrude beyond the panel's slim depth.
INCLUDED IN THE BOX. A quick start guide. An electronic manual in the TV's menu. A remote control with batteries. Breakout cable adapters (one composite with stereo audio). No printed manual is included.
ABOUT ULTRA HD TESTING: We test UHD picture quality using 4K movies, videos, photos, and test patterns to confirm these displays deliver performance to this format's full potential. We check the TV's ability to reproduce 4K image detail, as well as high dynamic range (HDR) for TVs that support this capability. Image quality is tested using a 4K movie player connected to the TV's HDMI input, as well as from files stored on flash drive plugged into the TV's USB port. We also check the quality of 4K streaming from Netflix or YouTube (if the service is supported by the TV), and how well the TV can upscale HD movies to the display's higher UHD resolution while keeping artifacts such as "jaggies" along the edges of image content to a minimum. The best UHD TVs, and HDTVs, present high fidelity images that reveal the full quality of the best source content without degradation.
