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Nov 21, 2023

LG G2 OLED 4K TV Review: a Stunning HDR Display Perfect for Your Wall

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LG OLEDs are consistently ranked among the best 4K TVs on the market. And the company's 2022 premium display, the G2, remains one of its most impressive to date. The set's comprehensive picture quality features and elegant, uniformly thin design make it an especially great choice for buyers who want to wall mount their display.

With a brighter picture than previous models, it goes toe-to-toe with similar flagship sets from Samsung and Sony, while offering a few perks of its own that could make it the ideal high-end TV for your living room.

After testing the display, here's why we think it's still one of the top premium TVs you can buy.

What works

What needs work

The G2 is branded under LG's "Gallery Series," which means it has a thin, uniform profile that's designed to hang on your wall with virtually no gap. And it looks gorgeous when properly mounted.

That said, not everyone wants to put their display on a wall. Unfortunately, the G2 doesn't come with a stand at all, so if you do want to put the TV on an entertainment console, you'll need to purchase a stand separately ($150). Since the G2 is already pricey on its own, this is a bit disappointing.

For review purposes, however, LG did provide us with the stand so we could easily set it up for testing. The pedestal-style stand looks nice enough, but the display loses some of its design appeal when it's not mounted. This shouldn't bother buyers who are primarily focused on picture quality, but it's clear the G2 is really meant to be hung on a wall.

Of course, a high-end design is meaningless if the TV's picture performance can't match its premium style. Thankfully, the G2 is simply stunning.

The TV uses LG's "OLED evo" panel, which the company claims provides a 30% increase in brightness over a regular OLED screen. It delivers.

When testing the TV with an X-Rite i1Display Pro Plus Colorimeter using the Filmmaker Mode preset, we measured a peak brightness of around 1,000 nits. This is a big deal for two reasons. First, regular OLED displays have had a hard time pushing past 800 nits. Second, many HDR movies are mastered with a peak of 1,000 nits in mind, so the G2 can get closer to the intended range of brightness.

It's important to keep in mind that this peak is only attainable in smaller highlights, but it's still impressive for an OLED and it makes a noticeable difference when watching our usual assortment of HDR testing material.

Black levels are deep and precise, with the opening of "The Matrix" revealing good shadow detail mixed with impressive bursts of brightness. The climactic battle in "Aquaman" is a genuine feast of color on the G2, and the image appears punchier than a typical OLED.

Like most OLED TVs, viewing angles on the G2 are also fantastic, which means the image won't wash out when sitting to the side of the display. Uniformity is solid as well, and we didn't detect any major issues with vertical banding in dark scenes, which is a common issue with OLEDs.

That said, there is some noticeable banding during a test scene we use on the 4K Blu-ray edition of "Ex Machina." The sequence features two characters taking in a room that's filled with red light. The red tones in the background and faces of the characters do appear a bit blocky instead of smooth. We see this same issue on many TVs when playing this scene, but some displays handle it better than the G2, including the Samsung S95B.

Instances of banding like this are rare, and we didn't detect any other notable occurrences when watching 4K Blu-rays on the G2. 4K streaming material also looks exceptional, and even HD streams and cable broadcasts upscale nicely on the set. You're likely to notice more defects in lower quality material, but the TV's processing does a good job minimizing these flaws.

Though Sony and Samsung have both jumped on the quantum dot bandwagon with their latest high-end OLED TVs, LG hasn't adopted this feature.

Quantum dots are special nanoparticles that enable a TV to produce a wider and brighter range of colors. The tech has been used in LCD displays for years, often branded as QLED TVs, and 2022 was the first year quantum dot OLED TVs hit the market.

The Sony A95K and Samsung S95B are both examples of OLED TVs that benefit from quantum dots, but the difference isn't exactly night and day compared to the G2. In fact, the G2 can still produce nearly 100% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, which is the range of color needed to take full advantage of most 4K HDR movies and shows.

However, where quantum dots do offer a bigger advantage is in overall color volume. This means that while the G2 does well with dark colors, it can't display bright colors with as much pop and accuracy as a high-end OLED from Samsung or Sony.

That said, we can't say it ever feels like we're missing anything when watching TV on the G2. Side-by-side comparisons with a Samsung S95B or Sony A95K will surely reveal their benefits, but most people will be hard-pressed to notice the G2's lack of quantum dots during regular viewing.

Buyers who want the absolute best color will get a technically superior image with Sony or Samsung's offerings, but we don't think the G2's lack of quantum dots should be weighed too heavily when deciding between these three high-end sets.

When it comes to smart TV features, the G2 has all the essentials. LG's webOS platform offers access to every major streaming service and a ton of free streaming channels. The TV also supports Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and HomeKit for comprehensive smart home integration.

The included Magic Remote has built-in Alex and Google Assistant voice control, so you can choose your preferred voice assistant, and there's a hands-free option that uses microphones built into the TV. The remote features click-button controls as well as a pointer feature that lets you navigate menus by pointing it at the screen.

In general, the G2's interface works well but LG has redesigned the system a bit. Instead of a pop-up menu, webOS now has a traditional home screen to access apps and services. On the one hand, we do like having a central base to return to when we're deciding what to watch, but the old pop-up menu was more convenient for quickly switching between services.

Navigation and app loading times are solid, but some lag pops up here and there. Most notably, there's often a bit of a delay when pulling up some of the TV's settings menus. This isn't a huge deal, but for such a premium TV, we expected a slightly smoother experience.

The G2 also comes packed with all of the current-gen gaming features you could want, including support for high frame rate, variable refresh rate, and low input lag. There's even a Game Optimizer dashboard that allows you to easily pull up and adjust gaming settings when you play.

Spec

LG 65-inch G2 4K OLED TV

Resolution:

3840x2160p

HDR formats:

Dolby Vision, HDR10, HLG

Panel type:

OLED Evo

Refresh rate:

120Hz

Gaming features:

NVIDIA G-Sync, FreeSync Premium, VRR, ALLM

HDMI ports:

Four HDMI 2.1 ports

Remote:

Magic Remote with LG ThinQ, Alexa, and Google Assistant

Dimensions:

56.7" (W) x 32.3" (H) x 1.0" (D) without stand

Weight:

50.3 pounds

If you're in the market for a high-end TV that delivers stunning picture quality and a stylish design, the LG G2 OLED should be on your shortlist. When it comes to similar OLED competitors in this price range, you're really looking at one primary alternative: The Samsung S95B.

Though the Samsung model does have better color and we think it offers the best overall value, the G2 delivers similar contrast and brightness, and it's available in 77- and 83-inch sizes for buyers who want a bigger screen. The G2 also offers Dolby Vision support, which the Samsung lacks.

It's also one of the best 4K TVs for buyers who want to mount their display thanks to its gallery design that lets it sit nearly flush with your wall. However, we do wish you didn't have to pay extra to get a regular stand.

It's important to note that LG recently released a 2023 version of this TV, called the G3. The G3 delivers an impressive jump in peak brightness, but it currently costs a whopping $1,300 more than the G2. For most shoppers, we think the G2 remains the better buy.

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