LG OLED C3 Evaluate: Units the Normal for Excessive-Finish TV Image High quality

Execs

• Higher image high quality than any non-OLED TV we have examined
• Superior distinction and off-angle picture
• Finest-in-class gaming options
• Smooth styling with ultralight, skinny panel

Cons

• Costly
• Not as vibrant as higher-end OLED TVs
• No main enhancements over the C2 from 2022

OLED TVs routinely ship the most effective photos cash should buy, and in my exams over time LG’s “C” sequence persistently emerges because the greatest TV for many high-end consumers, combining that nice image with a not-too-crazy worth. The C3 faces sturdy competitors from Samsung, which has its personal pair of OLED TVs now, in addition to from LG itself, which lastly gave the costlier G3 a marked bump up in picture high quality. 

For this evaluate I in contrast three LG OLEDs — the C3, the G3 and the C2 from final yr — in addition to the Samsung S95C and the Sony A80L OLED TVs side-by-side in my lab at CNET. The C3 held its personal, regardless of wanting dimmer subsequent to the G3 and the Samsung (which each value tons of extra). If the value distinction between these two and the C3 no large deal to you, go forward and splurge. For most individuals, nevertheless, it is nonetheless not value paying further for something higher than the LG C3. 

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And proper now I might argue the most effective deal on a high-end TV remains to be the LG C2 from 2022, not the C3. Going with final yr’s LG OLED saves you one other few hundred bucks and the 2 TVs have been principally indistinguishable in options, design and picture high quality in my exams. The C2 will promote out over the summer time and heading into the TV shopping for season this fall, whereas the C3 will drop in worth, however if you’d like a high-end TV proper now, seize a C2.

LG C3 sizes, sequence comparability

I carried out a hands-on analysis of the 65-inch LG C3 OLED TV, however this evaluate additionally applies to the opposite display screen sizes within the sequence. The 4 largest sizes have related specs and will present related image high quality. LG says the 2 smaller sizes, the 42- and 48-inch fashions, can be dimmer than the bigger sizes.

• LG OLED83C3PUA, 83 inches
• LG OLED77C3PUA, 77 inches
• LG OLED65C3PUA, 65 inches
• LG OLED55C3PUA, 55 inches
• LG OLED48C3PUA, 48 inches
• LG OLED42C3PUA, 42 inches

The C3 sequence sits within the center LG’s 2023 OLED TV lineup. Spending extra for the G3 will get you a considerable bump in brightness and the modern “Gallery” wall-friendly design. The cheaper B3 is dimmer than the C3 and lacks the corporate’s latest-generation A9 processor. The costliest fashions from 2022, specifically the 97-inch G2 and the 8K decision Z2 fashions, will stay on sale this yr relatively than being changed by “3” equivalents.

Smooth and acquainted, in a great way

The similarities between the C3 and the C2 from final yr begin with design. From the minimalist panels to the stands to the backsides, the 2 appeared equivalent to my eye in CNET’s TV lab. That is not a nasty factor; each are modern TVs and I proceed to understand the practically all-picture look. 

The “C” additionally stays one of many lightest TVs in the marketplace due to carbon-fiber development — the 65-inch C3 weighs the identical because the C2, simply 41 kilos with a stand, making it simple to carry onto furnishings or the wall. It is also extra environment friendly to ship. The straightforward middle stand has a small footprint.

LG saved the identical distant, sadly. In my outdated age I’ve grown simply aggravated by too many buttons, and I a lot desire the streamlined, easy structure of Samsung and Roku/TCL remotes, for instance. As at all times, you may wave LG’s distant round to maneuver the cursor or scroll shortly by means of menus with the built-in wheel.

Sensible TV, dumb use of display screen actual property

LG’s redesigned menu system occupies the highest half of the display screen with an enormous advert, which was pushing LG’s app retailer after I noticed it. Me no likey. Beneath that’s the marginally extra helpful row of “playing cards,” new for 2023, that provide issues just like the TV’s enter, a recreation part, music and a “residence hub.” 

Probably the most helpful card is the sport part nevertheless it’s worse than Samsung’s model, with a less-polished design and no entry to Xbox Recreation Go. LG solely has Nvidia GeForce Now, Utomik and Blacknut cloud gaming (there is a motive you’ve got by no means heard of the latter two) along with Twitch, YouTube and a fast hyperlink for linked consoles. The sports activities card permits you to arrange alerts for favourite groups’ scores, which feels kinda helpful to me, however general the cardboard row additionally appears like extra wasted area. Solely the ultimate row, with acquainted streaming app icons, would get any use in my family.

I believe most individuals utilizing this high-end TV ought to simply join an exterior streaming machine, like Roku or Apple TV, and keep away from utilizing LG’s system altogether.

The C3 additionally has a pair notable options LG debuted final yr, specifically a multiview mode that places two photos side-by-side — which stays restricted and may’t present two HDMI sources — and the always-ready display screen saver that may present clocks, artwork and different widgets when the TV is turned “off.” Parts of the latter transfer across the display screen to scale back the potential of burn-in. 

This is the place I remind you that, like all OLED TVs, the C3 is extra topic to each short-term and everlasting picture retention, often known as burn-in, than LCD-based TVs. The danger is small, which is why I do not contemplate burn-in a motive for most individuals to keep away from shopping for an OLED TV. Take a look at our information to OLED burn-in for extra.

Connections for everybody (together with players)

LG continues to excel at connection choices. All of LG’s 2023 OLED fashions introduced to this point (together with the B3) have the newest model of the HDMI normal: 2.1. Meaning their HDMI ports can deal with 4K at 120 frames per second and variable refresh fee, in addition to enhanced audio return channel and automated low latency mode (auto recreation mode). In different phrases, they will make the most of the newest graphics options accessible from PlayStation 5 and Xbox Sequence X and S consoles in addition to high-end graphics playing cards. All 4 of the C3’s HDMI ports assist 4K/120 — nice for hardcore players with a number of next-gen gadgets. 

• 4 HDMI inputs with HDMI 2.1, HDCP 2.2
• Three USB ports
• Optical digital audio output
• RF (antenna) enter
• RS-232 port (minijack, for service solely)
• Ethernet (LAN) port

Image high quality comparisons

I lined the C3 up towards the LG G3 and Samsung S95C — two more-expensive 2023 OLED TVs — in addition to the LG C2 from 2022 and a non-OLED TV, the TCL 6-Sequence Roku TV. The entire OLED TVs appeared spectacular, and a transparent step above the cheaper TCL, however some variations emerged between them. The Samsung and G3 outperformed the C3 in lots of areas, specifically HDR brightness and bright-room efficiency, however the C3 and matched or beat the opposite two.

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TV and flicks: Evaluating the C3 to the Sony, utilizing the snowy nature scenes from the Spears and Munsil take a look at disc, the 2 appeared related. The C3 did seem a bit brighter than the Sony after I selected the latter’s (default) Commencement Most popular tone mapping setting, however switching to Brightness Most popular evened the enjoying discipline and made them seem practically equally vibrant. I favored the look of Gradation higher, nevertheless, and I might give the nod to the C3 for having the ability to ship a barely extra impactful general picture in default settings. 

Variations between the C2 and C3 have been much more troublesome to discern. Brightness, colour and shadow element have been so shut as to look equivalent, and regardless of LG’s declare that the C3 may seem brighter, I did not see it. 

The Samsung and the G3 appeared brighter and higher than the opposite OLED TVs, primarily due to superior brightness. They measured roughly 500 nits brighter than the C3, for instance, and in side-by-side comparisons the distinction was apparent. The Samsung’s colour was deeper and extra saturated, however measured a bit much less correct and confirmed much less element in shadows than the opposite OLED TVs.

Switching to TV I checked out The Witcher: Blood Origin on Netflix and throughout the preliminary bar scene, the C3 and Sony once more appeared neck-and-neck. Highlights, shadow element and colour have been glorious and I could not see a lot distinction between the 2 as Elle sang and stabbed. The G3 and Samsung appeared a bit higher however not by leaps and bounds. Translation: the C3 nonetheless appeared nice, even on this rarified firm.

Gaming: The C3, just like the C2 earlier than it, is a wonderful gaming TV and LG hasn’t performed a lot to alter it. I nonetheless love all of the choices within the Recreation Optimizer menu, which gathers the entire gaming settings in a single place and verifies refresh fee, VRR standing and extra at a look. I additionally appreciated the power to edit the gaming dashboard to swap in additional standing indicators (decision, Dolby Atmos and so forth), however I am fairly nerdy like that.

The Darkish Room mode is designed to scale back eye fatigue nevertheless it additionally dulls the picture so I might keep away from utilizing it except you could. Among the many varied gaming picture modes I favored Normal greatest for many video games with its stability of shadow element and distinction. FPS is greatest if you’d like extra visibility into shadows, or you may simply crank the Black Stabilizer management up (on the expense of a washed-out picture).

Buried inside Recreation Optimizer is one other setting labeled “Scale back enter delay (enter lag)” with two choices, Normal and Increase. The previous, which is the default for any recreation, serves up an glorious enter lag end result much like previous LG OLED fashions: simply 13.5ms for each 1080p and 4K HDR sources. Partaking Increase cuts lag even additional, to only beneath 10ms for each. The catch is that Increase is just accessible for 60Hz sources, so you may’t use it with 120Hz video games or VRR. And no, I do not suppose many people would discover the additional 3ms of lag.

Vibrant lighting: The C3 is vibrant sufficient for almost any viewing surroundings, however principally the identical because the C2. As common for OLED TVs, it was dimmer and less-impactful than LED-based TVs just like the TCL. It was additionally considerably dimmer than higher-end OLED fashions, specifically the G3 and S95C.

Beneath are my measurements in nits for choose comparability TVs of their brightest and most correct image modes, utilizing each normal dynamic vary and excessive dynamic vary take a look at patterns.

As with most TVs, the brightest mode for HDR and SDR (Vivid on the C3) is horribly inaccurate. For the correct outcomes listed above, I used ISF Professional Vibrant image mode (Peak Brightness: Excessive) for SDR and Filmmaker mode for HDR. I like to recommend C3 homeowners do the identical to get good colour in vibrant rooms. Be aware that with SDR, you will have to disable the Auto Power Saving setting (Assist > Power Saving > Power Saving Step > Off) to get full brightness.

The anti-reflective display screen of the C3 is superb, however the Samsung and particularly the G3 did a greater job deadening vibrant reflections within the room. The C3 did have a darker general end than both one, which led to barely extra pop and distinction, however the distinction was minimal. In the meantime the C3 was higher than the Sony at dimming reflections, which mixed with the Sony’s barely dimmer picture led to raised efficiency in vibrant rooms for the C3.

Uniformity and viewing angle: Like all OLEDs I’ve examined the C3 was exemplary on this space in comparison with LCD-based TVs, with no vital brightness or colour variations throughout the display screen and practically excellent picture high quality from off-angle. From excessive angles I did discover that the G3 was higher, nevertheless — the C3 launched a slight purplish hue at excessive off-angles, whereas colour on the G3 remained true.

Image setting notes

LG made some modifications to its image settings menu for 2023. My favourite is the power to edit the highest degree, letting me floor totally different settings for simple entry and transfer round others. Along with the usual litany of image modes — Vivid, Cinema, Recreation Optimizer and so forth — LG has a brand new “Personalised Image” mode. Setting it up steps you thru a sequence of photos and asks you to decide on which one you want greatest, and ultimately an “AI” analyzes your selections and applies the mode. I gave it a whirl and the wizard stated I favored a “Clear” image, which it utilized to the picture. Sadly it did not look excellent to my eye, and after I measured it the picture was horribly inaccurate, so my recommendation is to stay with one of many (correct) preset modes relatively than the wizard.

Probably the most correct modes have been Cinema and Filmmaker for each HDR and SDR, in addition to the 2 ISF modes accessible in SDR. For SDR viewing I went with Cinema for darkish rooms (as a result of it was nearer to my 2.2 gamma goal) and ISF Vibrant for brighter environments, and for HDR I used Filmmaker (which was barely brighter than Cinema HDR). Recreation Optimizer is greatest for gaming, due to its processing, however fairly blue; for the most effective colour accuracy for gaming it’s best to regulate the colour temperature management towards pink (Image > Superior Settings > Shade > White Steadiness > Shade temperature).

Like most TVs the C3 provides settings that interact smoothing, aka the cleaning soap opera impact, as I desire to show it off for TV reveals and flicks (and it is off in Recreation Optimizer mode as a result of it will increase enter lag). You’ll be able to experiment with the settings (Image > Superior Settings > Readability > TruMotion) and it is off by default within the Cinema and Filmmaker modes.

See How We Take a look at TVs for extra particulars.

Portrait Shows Calman calibration software program was used on this evaluate.