ZDNET’s key takeaways
- It’s not the latest model in this series, but the LG G3 OLED is an incredible television that has one of the best displays I’ve ever seen.
- The price tag may have been a little scary when it first came out, but you can now find it for $2,000 (Amazon says this is an $800 discount, while Best Buy says this is $300 off).
- It might still be out of reach for many consumers.
I’ll get straight to the point. I test a lot of TVs. When I found out I would be trying out LG’s G3<!–> along with one of the company’s new soundbars, I knew I would be watching a highly-touted TV.
It didn’t disappoint.
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To test something a little more modern, I went to Netflix and started the first thing I saw – the new “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F.” A good mix of bright and dark scenes impressed me even more. Colors were incredibly vibrant when they were supposed to be, and dark scenes were never washed out.
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I’ll call this easily one of the better displays I’ve seen on a television. It incorporates Micro Lens Array technology, or a layer of microscopic lenses on top of the OLED pixels that supposedly takes brightness to new levels. I especially noticed this when I tested a few games, and now my everyday screen looks dull by comparison.
In terms of audio, the G3 supports Dolby Atmos and LG claims that the built-in AI transforms two-channel audio into virtual 7.1.2 surround sound. While it isn’t “actual” surround sound, I was very impressed with the audio, and I could tell it was a significant leap from standard TV speakers. There are several additional audio presets as well, such as sports, music, clear voice, and cinema, which adds a nice bass rumble to action scenes.
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One of the small things I appreciate the most about the G3 is how well it handles harsh lighting. My living room has a lot of natural light spilling in from the side and a bright overhead light. While testing this TV, I had it sitting in front of my regular TV, which is a wall-mounted LED. The difference between the two was immediately noticeable. The side light didn’t impact the G3 at all, and while a reflection from my overhead light was visible, it wasn’t distracting. On my everyday TV, it detracts from the display quite a bit.
The anti-glare screen coupled with this set’s 1,400 nits of brightness means you’ll be able to enjoy content in any condition, especially bright windows, the bane of most TVs.
When it came time to give gaming a run, I quickly discovered this was going to be one of my favorite tests. As I mentioned before, the G3 has an incredibly vibrant display, and it truly shined here. No matter the game, colors were more vibrant than ever, but still quite natural at the same time. The 120Hz refresh rate is enough to make sure everything runs smoothly, and I never noticed any stuttering or slowdowns.
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I usually don’t tinker too much with settings, but I enjoyed nosing around the Game Optimizer menu to see what changes different options made. Most gamers probably won’t even notice these changes, but dedicated ones will.
ZDNET’s buying advice
When the LG G3–>