LG G2 OLED Evo Gallery Series
MSRP $3,199.99
“The LG G2 is an astonishingly gorgeous TV.”
Pros
- Class-leading brightness
- Outstanding color accuracy
- Perfect black levels
- Top alternative for gamers
- Top-notch design
Cons
- Disappointing stand-mount option
The issue with reviewing TVs is that sometimes you get one which’s so deeply enjoyable to look at that you just form of, you recognize, forget that you just’re imagined to be working and find yourself just watching TV for a bunch of hours. That’s what happened to me with the LG G2 OLED Evo TV. Perhaps not my best work moment, but I believe it says lots about this TV.
A part of LG’s Gallery Series, The G2 OLED Evo is one of the best 4K OLED TV LG has made to this point. It’s in contention for one of the best TV of 2022, so I hope I’ll be forgiven for spending somewhat additional time simply having fun with it on the corporate’s dime.
While the LG G2’s picture quality is definitely stunning, it might not be the suitable TV for you. On this review, I’m going to cover what’s good, great, and even stupendous concerning the LG G2 OLED TV. (And let’s not get it confused with the old LG G2 Android phone; this most definitely will not be that.) But I’m also going to dig into the explanations it might not be one of the best candidate for everybody. In the long run, I hope you’ll know whether it is likely to be right for your property entertainment.
Video review
LG G2 Series details
While we reviewed the 65-inch G2 model, our review also applies to the 55-inch, 75-inch and 83-inch models.
| Screen Size | Model Number | MSRP |
| 55-inch | OLED55G2PUA | |
| 65-inch | OLED65G2PUA | |
| 75-inch | OLED77G2PUA | |
| 83-inch | OLED83G2PUA |
The LG G2 OLED is loaded to the hilt
The list of the LG G2’s admirable attributes is long. It’s got 4 HDMI 2.1 inputs, it looks stunning mounted on the wall with the no-gap wall mount that’s included within the box, and it’s indeed LG’s brightest OLED TV to this point due to LG’s OLED EVO technology — a mix of hardware and software efforts that, within the case of the G2, happens to incorporate a heat sink within the panel that permits the TV to succeed in high brightness levels while also reducing the danger of everlasting image retention — burn-in.
If the concept is to deliver on creative intent, then LG could be very much standing toe-to-toe with Sony
As an OLED TV, the LG G2 offers pitch-black black levels, setting the muse for eye-popping contrast. LG’s processing has gotten very strong these days, which makes for solid motion performance, minimal noise and artifacts, and really smart use of its peak brightness capabilities. In other words, the G2 doesn’t just get vivid for brightness’ sake — although you’ll be able to force it to accomplish that. Nevertheless, in its most accurate picture preset modes, it resolves vivid highlight detail in a way that’s paying homage to Sony’s TVs.
If the concept is to deliver on creative intent, then LG could be very much standing toe-to-toe with Sony in that regard, even when that isn’t certainly one of the G2’s primary marketing lines.
So far as bells and whistles go, the G2 is loaded with them. Voice control, automatic source detection, smart-home integration, and more gamer-friendly features than every other brand, including Nvidia G-Sync, AMD Free-sync, and generic Variable Refresh Rate support which, together with those 4 HDMI 2.1 inputs, low input lag, and a gaming dashboard, culminates in a highly attractive list of features for gamers who want all of it, even in the event that they aren’t more likely to use all of it.
My only real grievance about this TV is its stand-mount option. The stand is something you buy individually since LG intends for this TV to be mounted on the wall (hence the inclusion of said wall mount within the box). Nevertheless, I don’t like how the stand suits, feels, or works. I’m not a fan of the steep, raked back angle wherein it positions the TV, either.
Riley Young/Digital Trends
If asked, I believe LG might go thus far as to suggest that in the event you desire a stand-mounted TV, then its cheaper C2 model could be a greater option. My problem with that philosophy is that the G2 is a brighter, higher-performance TV, so someone might want it for greater than just its inherently slick wall-mount design.
There’s one other factor that may count as a negative for some people, but I’m going to get to that in a moment.
Performance by the numbers
For my measurements, I roughly stuck to the typically accurate “Filmmaker Mode” for SDR and HDR content, although I’m also a fan of the color-accurate “ISF Shiny” and “ISF Dark” modes available. My alternative to stay primarily to Filmmaker mode boils right down to the indisputable fact that it has nearly every minute setting I concentrate to establish the best way I’d want them, saving me the effort of digging deep into the settings menu. For instance, motion smoothing is turned off by default, and the white point already is ready to the D65 standard embraced by Hollywood professionals.
In Filmmaker Mode for SDR, peak luminance registered at 170 nits. To be clear, the TV can get much higher than that in the event you set it to. But do not forget that Filmmaker mode is imagined to make the image “accurate” and caps SDR brightness on the established standard. If one were to enter the “Expert” picture mode and set the height brightness choice to high and the OLED Light setting to the max, one could enjoy as much as 450 nits of practical brightness, which is each impressive for an OLED TV and ok to do battle with a daylight-filled viewing environment.
Riley Young/Digital Trends
Peak brightness measurements in HDR are what really give us a way of just how vivid a TV can get, and in HDR — this was before any adjustments, so just out-of-box HDR Filmmaker mode — I got about 980 nits peak from a 2% to 10% window, and about 190 nits full-field. After I set the TV to its HDR Cinema picture mode and maxed every part brightness-related setting, the TV pushed just past the 1,000 nit mark. By the numbers, that makes the white light output of the LG G2 the best we’ve seen from any OLED-based display. Does that make it the brightest OLED TV ever, though? Not exactly.
Brighter whites. But brighter colours?
The actual advantage to the QD-OLED technology that we see within the Samsung S95B and Sony A95K over the WRGB OLED tech utilized in the LG G2 here is in the colour brightness. If we measure six key colours — red, green, blue, yellow, magenta, and cyan, what we discover is that the LG G2 is available in shy of QD-OLED by anywhere from one-half to one-third as vivid — probably the most notable differences being in how vivid red, yellow, and green can get.
I’m going to stop there with the comparisons to QD-OLED because I’m saving that for my QD-OLED vs. OLED comparison piece, nevertheless it’s necessary to bring up because we will’t just call the G2 the brightest OLED ever — brightest in some ways, yes, but not in others.
Folks, this TV is drop-dead gorgeous to behold.
With that said, the LG G2 measured impeccably across the board. Using Calman Calibration software and a C6 colorimeter profiled to an Xrite i1Pro 2, I discovered that right out of the box in Filmmaker mode this unit was already dangerously near offering accurate D65 white point. I used to be capable of get it only a bit closer to nirvana with somewhat tweaking in SDR and HDR, but its errors were already below the brink of human visibility before I began tinkering. Colours did profit somewhat from the calibration though. Out of the box, green and aquamarine colours did enterprise into visible error territory, but, I mean, barely. In other words, sure, the TV might be made technically higher with a calibration but … whew, that’s a tough sell for my part since the out-of-box performance is just so good.
So, the TV measures extremely well — certainly one of LG’s best-measured TVs, if not one of the best. Does it watch equally as well?
Oh, man. Yes. Yes, it does.
Forget the numbers, trust your eyes
Folks, this TV is drop-dead gorgeous to behold. Full stop. That’s why I got distracted and just ended up re-watching movies I’ve already seen, like, 10 times. It was fun to look at them again on the G2 since the picture quality is just so fun and enjoyable. It’s really a spectacle, and I enjoyed almost every minute of it.
Riley Young/Digital Trends
As an OLED TV that has an almost instantaneous pixel response time, you will note a little bit of stutter — a form of a flashing effect — during slow pans in 24 fps film content — that’s just the way it is in the event you don’t enable motion the TV’s motion smoothing option. But aside from that, I just spent my entire time with this TV gushing to myself over the deep, wealthy picture quality. At no time did I spend any time considering the colour brightness might have been higher. Now, that’s probably because I even have limited hours watching QD-OLED TVs at this point, but without that frame of reference, this TV is solely dazzling. No one goes to bring this TV home and feel like they need more.
Unless — and here’s the large BUT — unless you watch in a reasonably vivid room.
But is it an excellent bright-room TV?
It pains me to say this because I even have not been one to harp on OLED as being a poor bright-room TV up to now. And here we’re with the G2, a particularly vivid OLED TV, so that you’d think I could be reluctant to solid any doubts around whether or not you’d be anything wanting thrilled with this TV. But, I had an interesting conversation the opposite day that lends somewhat perspective.
Though it’s probably not my style to name-drop, I’m going to anyway: I used to be talking to YouTube sensation Jon Rettinger recently about his next TV purchase. Jon, who reviews loads of TVs himself, currently has the vaunted Sony Z9D, and he’s looking to switch it. He doesn’t wish to buy one other TV for no less than five more years, so he desires to get this purchase right, and he’s been waffling between an OLED TV or a mini-LED QLED TV.
There might be some benefits to going with a mini-LED backlit QLED TV with just astonishing brightness horsepower.
We got to talking concerning the LG G2 and after singing the G2’s praises as I’ve just done here, and going forwards and backwards somewhat, I believe Jon was somewhat surprised that I ended up suggesting he consider another options. Once I learned about where Jon’s TV goes to go, after they watch TV, where the windows are in his space, whether or not they are right down to close the blinds each time they watch TV, how often his family watches this TV, and where the lighting is placed in his room — I ultimately figured that the G2 may not be the suitable option for his specific situation.
In fact, Jon ended up getting the G2 anyway, and last I heard, he’s thrilled concerning the decision. But, the strategy of vetting Jon’s specific needs and viewing environment jogged my memory that while I believe the G2 goes to be a tremendous option for an enormous slice of buyers on the market — I can’t say enough great things about it — in certain scenarios, I believe the move to mini-LED is likely to be the smarter call for some who will most frequently watch their TV in a room flooded with daylight. That isn’t to say the G2 stays a dark-room-only TV, but there might be some benefits to going with a mini-LED backlit QLED TV with just astonishing brightness horsepower.
Riley Young/Digital Trends
With that caveat out of the best way, I would like to be clear that the LG G2 is a fully remarkable, jaw-droppingly gorgeous TV to behold, and it earns every cent of its asking price. For those in search of a premium home entertainment experience, the LG G2 OLED Evo TV is among the finest options in the marketplace today.
Our take
Is there a greater alternative?
The LG G2 shares rarified air with only a handful of other premium, flagship TVs, none of which might be considered objectively superior in all categories of consideration. The Sony A95K is an equally astonishing TV, nevertheless it is considerably dearer, and never as vivid on average. The Samsung S95B can be a robust challenger in the identical price range, but not as vivid on average. The Samsung QN95B is similarly priced, very competitive by way of overall picture quality, and brighter in all measurable ways, but try as it could, it still can’t beat OLED and the proper blacks and screen uniformity game.
How long will it last?
Given its premium construction, highly advanced technical prowess, and update ability, the LG G2 will last well into the long run and will not be more likely to be eclipsed by newcomers any time soon.
Do you have to buy it?
Yes. The LG G2 is a remarkable TV and were it not for its disappointing stand-mount option, would likely have earned an ideal 10 rating. For many who are wall-mounting, don’t hesitate for a moment to buy this outstanding TV.
Editors’ Recommendations
