OLED or LED? Many people ask this question when they start their search for a new home television. At tuexperto.com we have talked many times about the advantages and disadvantages of OLED. But also of the virtues and defects of LG's SUPER UHD televisions, the top of the range of LED televisions. Even so, it is possible that some users still have doubts. What television do I buy? An OLED or a high-end LED?
To try to help you, we are going to make a kind of comparison between the LG OLED models of 2018 and the SUPER UHD Nanocell 2018 televisions from LG . Specifically, we will use the SK9500 model, located at the top of the range of the SUPER UHD Nanocell models. The idea is that the comparison is as balanced as possible. Are you ready? We started!
Picture quality
Image quality is defined by multiple factors: blacks, contrast, brightness, processing, viewing angles, etc. So let's review how these televisions behave taking into account the aforementioned factors.
When it comes to the quality of blacks, OLED technology is second to none . By not including any type of backlighting, when a black image is displayed the pixels are directly turned off. I mean, it's a pure black. An LED TV can never beat this.
However, they can try to get close to what OLED offers. LG's SUPER UHD Nano Cell TVs, specifically the SK9500 and SK8500 series, use the Full Array Dimming system . This places the LED backlighting behind the screen, unlike Edge LED TVs that place it on the edges. This enables the reproduction of deeper blacks without loss of detail in the shadows.
Deep black translates to better contrast. Hence, it is said that OLED televisions have a practically infinite contrast . Similarly, SUPER UHD Nano Cell TVs with Full Array lighting achieve better contrast than most LED TVs.
To achieve better color, SUPER UHD TVs feature Nano Cell technology . These nanoparticles optimize colors by absorbing excess light and reducing color diffusion from RGB colors displayed on the screen. They thus present vivid and pure colors.
Very important is also the angle of view. Although the ideal is to watch TV from the front, the reality is that most users see it from a certain angle. This results in distortion of the image and the colors. Unless we have a technology that provides wide viewing angles.
In this sense, both LG OLED TVs and LG SUPER UHD TVs offer 178-degree viewing angles . Although we already know that it is one of the star features of OLED technology, in LED televisions it is not so common. LG SUPER UHD achieves this thanks to the use of IPS panels.
Image processor
The processor that incorporates the television has a great influence on the image quality. LG OLED 2018 TVs are equipped with the 14-bit Alpha 9 processor . Among its most notable features we have four-step image processing, a 7.3 times more sophisticated color table than conventional televisions, and the ability to reproduce HFR images up to 120 frames per second.
The TV SUPER UHD, however, have the Alpha 7 processor . It is a trimmed version of the Alpha 9, although that does not mean that it is not a powerful image processor.
It is a 12-bit processor , which analyzes and improves each frame to achieve more accurate images and richer colors. It allows to show more real colors and with greater chromatic richness (12 BIT, LUT 19x19x19).
HDR formats
One of the most important features of LG TVs is that they accept almost all HDR formats on the market. Among them is the Dolby Vision system, one of the best dynamic HDR.
Both LG OLED and SUPER UHD Nano Cell TVs (the high-end models at least) are compatible with the aforementioned Dolby Vision, HDR10, HLG and Technicolor .
Dolby Atmos sound
LG is one of the few manufacturers that is committed to integrating Dolby Atmos sound technology in its televisions. Thanks to this system, the sound flows around us to achieve a 360-degree experience.
This technology is also found in both OLED televisions and high-end LG SUPER UHD models . It is not available on the cheaper models.
ThinQ artificial intelligence
Finally we have another of the main novelties of this year. LG has incorporated the ThinQ system into its televisions , which we already saw in the LG G7.
Thanks to this system we can use the television as the control center of our smart home . In addition, we can manage its functions with our voice, just asking what we want. Do you want to put the console? Ask the TV. The same for viewing content. know the weather or know the name of the actor who appears on the screen. The possibilities are almost endless.
The ThinQ system is included this year in both OLED TVs and LG SUPER UHD with Nano Cell .
Conclusions
At this point, you may continue to ask the question from the beginning. What television do I buy? If you want to get the best possible image quality and money is not an issue, go for an OLED model from LG . You will not regret.
Now, if your budget is somewhat tighter or you are going to spend many hours a day watching the same television channel, you may be more interested in purchasing an LG SUPER UHD television . Although the manufacturer ensures that screen burns are no longer a problem for its panels, if we are going to see a constant image (a logo of a channel for example) for many hours a day, better than opting for an LED model.
Of course, and although we are talking about high-end televisions, the price is always important. As an example, the 55-inch LG OLED C8 is sold with a price of about 2,000 euros . On the other hand, the 55-inch LG SK9500 (top of the range of LG SUPER UHD televisions) is sold with a price of 1,700 euros . Each user will have to decide how much they want to spend.
