Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Audio / Video
  3. News

Finally a flat OLED! LG irons out its 4K OLED for store shelves in September

Caleb Denison
By

1 of 1
lg releases flat oled 4k uhd in stores september 2015
If you’ve been impressed by the incredible picture quality LG’s OLED TVs produce only to be frustrated by the curved screen that comes with it, then you’ll be excited to learn that LG has just announced its first flat 4K OLED TV will hit store shelves this September. Not only that, but the TV will be the first fully HDR-compliant OLED TV, capable of displaying specialized high-dynamic-range content from both streaming sources and connected components.

The new flat-screen OLED TVs filling out the EF9500 series include the 55-inch 55EF9500 and the 65-inch 65EF9500. Pricing and features for the new line are almost identical to the curved EF9600 series — the 55-inch model will run $5,500 while the 65-inch model will go for $7,000 — but there is one notable exception: The EF9500 series will be the only LG OLED able to take full advantage of HDR-infused content from Ultra HD Blu-ray discs and players, expected later this year. While the EF9600 series will get a firmware update that allows it to process HDR content from streaming services like Netflix, Amazon and Vudu, the update doesn’t cover the TV’s HDMI ports. While this isn’t a serious hindrance for the curved OLEDs — Ultra Blu-ray discs will still look spectacular — it is a particular advantage only the flat-screened OLED TVs will enjoy.

Related Videos

For those not familiar, the idea behind HDR is that it can provide a higher level of contrast between light and dark images on the screen to create a much more realistic image. HDR makes bright highlights brighter, adding realism to the glint of sunlight reflecting off a lake, or the intensity of the moon and stars shining against a dark night sky. In our experience, the effect is impressive. In fact, many in the industry believe HDR represents a significantly bigger leap in picture quality than UHD’s higher resolution.

Related

LG claims its OLED TVs are particularly well-suited for HDR since the TV technology is capable of perfect black levels; and we’re inclined to agree. The deeper blacks OLED TVs are able to achieve without introducing so-called “halos” of light around bright objects make for an especially stunning television. Though impressive advances in LED/LCD TV technology have been made in recent years, side-by-side comparisons see the OLED winning out every time.

One might be disappointed to learn the price for the flat OLED TVs doesn’t come in under that of their curved counterparts, especially given that flat LED TVs usually cost less than curved LED options. However, it could be argued that making OLED TVs is still expensive — LG is the only name in the game right now — and the expense for production is about the same. It is also worth pointing out that LG’s current 55-inch 1080p OLED now sells for $2,500 or less, while the company’s first-gen OLED sold for $15,000 — a 75 percent decrease in price over just two years.

We anticipate LG will be showing off the EF9500 next week at IFA 2015 in Berlin, and Digital Trends will be there first hand to show it to you.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
LG’s giant 97-inch M3 OLED TV eliminates HDMI cables
Man playing a video game on an LG 97-inch Signature OLED M3 4K TV.

Wall-mounting a TV is no picnic, especially when that TV measures 97 diagonal inches. But LG's new Signature OLED M Series TV could make that task much easier. The giant, 4K OLED TV uses LG's Zero Connect wireless technology to effectively eliminate the need for any AV cabling from AV receivers, set-top boxes, soundbars, or game consoles to the TV. As long as the OLED M3 has power, it doesn't need any other wires. LG is showing the M3 for the first time at CES 2023 but hasn't offered any details on price or availability.

The M3's wireless connection is powered by the included Zero Connect box -- a cheekily-named gadget that is essentially the same device as Samsung's One Connect box, except that the Zero Connect box uses a fully wireless connection to the M3 instead of Samsung's thin umbilical cord. One, Zero ... you get the idea. LG says the new box will have "multiple" ports for connecting devices, though it hasn't said how many and what kind.

Read more
Samsung shows off the first two 77-inch QD-OLED 4K TVs at CES 2023
Samsung S95C QD-OLED 4K TV.

Samsung was the first company to show off a 4K TV based on QD-OLED technology at CES 2022, and now, at CES 2023 it has unveiled two new QD-OLED models -- the S95C Samsung OLED and S90C Samsung OLED -- and each will be available as 77-inch models. Both will also be offered in 55- and 65-inch sizes.  The news came one day after Samsung Display confirmed it would show its next-gen "QD-OLED 2023" panel at the show in a 77-inch size.

When QD-OLED-based TVs debuted in 2022, Samsung and Sony revealed the first two 4K TVs models within hours of each other: the Samsung S95B and the Sony A95K. Both TVs proved to be absolutely stunning in terms of picture quality, leaving our reviewer no choice but to award them a rare 10/10 rating. But the TVs themselves weren't especially large; only 55- and 65-inch sizes were introduced.

Read more
LG says its G3 OLED evo TV will be 70% brighter, with no visible wall gap
LG G3 OLED evo 4K TV seen wall-mounted.

Ahead of its official CES 2023 presentation, LG has given us a taste of its TV tech for the coming year, especially as it relates to the company's lineup of OLED TVs. Once again, the G Series takes center stage, with the G3 OLED evo 4K. LG says that thanks to its Brightness Booster Max technology, the 55-, 65-, and 77-inch G3 models will see an increase in brightness by up to 70%.

The G3 OLED evo will also look a lot better when wall-mounted. LG calls its new One Wall Design approach "ultra-seamless" and says that it will leave no visible gap between the wall and the G3. That's saying a lot considering the G2 OLED evo was already impressively tight to the wall when wall-mounted.

Read more