LG finally caved. Go with QLED or another LG OLED? (1 Viewer)

[Edwin-S]

LG finally agreed to give me a credit for my defective #G9600 thanks to a lot of arguing by the people I bought my LG set from. They have given me a credit to replace the set. Problem is is that I would have to replace my EG9600 with a 2017 model, none of which have 3D capability.

I have 3 routes I could go:

1) another LG set: a 65" B7
2) a Samsung set: a QLED Q7F
3) a JVC DLA- X570R projector with pixel shift.

The big negatives with the LG is no 3D and the fact that it is an LG set.

The negative with QLED is that it has no 3D or DolbyVision support and the picture, while looking quite outstanding, still does not quite measure up to OLED, even though it is brighter. The blacks look good but they still don't quite reach the level of the LG.

The JVC has the advantage of 3D, but the biggest negative is it is a 1080p projector with pixel shifting. I was contemplating going this route, but I'm not really to enthusiastic about spending the credit on a faux 4K projector.

Standing and looking at the LG and Samsung sets in the store, I still feel that the OLED set has the best looking picture, although the QLED is certainly no slouch. Problem is that, after essentially being called a liar and being accused of damaging the set, I really hate LG as a company. It is making my skin crawl to think of giving them more business after having to deal with their shitty customer service department. I'm also concerned about having major problems with them if I take another of their sets and another problem occurs, due to their poor quality manufacturing,

It also bugs me that the main reason I kept the LG wasn't due to the 4K, it was due to the stellar 3D performance. If I had known that I was going to end up getting stuck with a 2D television set and dozens of dead 3D discs, three of which are presently in the mail, I would have saved my money and never gotten rid of my Panny plasma.

What is even worse is that it looks like I might have to give a shitty company's product another chance, because I can't get around the fact that I still like the look of OLED over LCD and LG's sets are the only ones who are covering all of the HDR bases by supporting DV, HDR10 and 10+, HLG and Technicolor.

Still, I might have to give all that up and go with the QLED because, damn, I hate LG and don't relish giving them any more business. One advantage with going QLED is that for another 1500 I could go up a size to a 75".

I know. First World problems, but I just needed to vent a bit.

So what would you guys do if you had had something like this occur?

Also a gaming related question for QLED owners who like to game. How do you like the set for console gaming? What is the lag like?

 

[Richard V]

I have an OLED LG, and wouldn't trade it for anything. I got a model that still has 3D and as you state, the 3D is OUTSTANDING. My 3D discs look WAY better on my OLED than my other 3D LED set. I'd say, swallow your resentment and stay with LG. I have seen the QLED and...... meh.

 

[Edwin-S]

What is funny is that, no matter how much I hate the bastards, I wouldn't even have hesitated in swapping for a replacement LG set if they had maintained the 3D capability. It's too bad the chain where I bought the set doesn't carry Panasonic, because that is the OLED set I would have switched to if I have to be stuck with a 2D-only set, even if it doesn't support DV.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Honestly, if 3D is your priority, I'd give serious consideration to a projector that has 3D capability. I'm not familiar with that specific projector, but I can say that after moving from watching 3D on a 50" plasma to a 100" home projection screen, the difference is night and day. I wouldn't know what to suggest if you were only choosing between different 2D televisions, it's been a while since I was in the new TV market and I'm a little behind the times.

 

[Robert_Zohn]

LG just offered the last few 3D capable C6, E6 and G6 2016 OLED TVs to select authorized dealers.

 

[Tino]

LOVE my E6!!

 

[Edwin-S]

Honestly, if 3D is your priority, I'd give serious consideration to a projector that has 3D capability. I'm not familiar with that specific projector, but I can say that after moving from watching 3D on a 50" plasma to a 100" home projection screen, the difference is night and day. I wouldn't know what to suggest if you were only choosing between different 2D televisions, it's been a while since I was in the new TV market and I'm a little behind the times.

I've already spent so much money upgrading to a 4K chain that i'm unwilling to spend money on a 1080p projector for 3D. The other problem is that right now I don't have a dedicated theatre room. All my gear is in my living room. Putting a projector in the living presents several problems with running cables and mounting. I'm hoping true 4K projectors eventually down to an affordable level by the time I'm ready to do a room and that at least one manufacturer will still implement 3D in one of their units.

Right now I have an old JVC RS2U which I got some use out of when I temporarily set up in the living room. I had planned on making a dedicated theatre room, but the plan fell through as there was more important house maintenance needs that came up. Also, I'm not quite sure how to go about making a room with good sonic qualities for a reasonable price. I really don't want to spend thousands on a room.

If I want to watch a 3D film in the future, I guess I'll have to do it at my B-I-L and sister's place. That is where most of my old gear ends going for most part. I can always watch them on my old Panny or Samsung there, even though the 3D is not going to be at the level of my present LG set.

LG just offered the last few 3D capable C6, E6 and G6 2016 OLED TVs to select authorized dealers.

The credit I received is a warranty settlement. I have to use it in the store where I bought the original set. I looked online to see if they had any E6 or C6 TVs. There was nothing. Even if I could use the credit somewhere else, these fellows went to bat for me as I was getting nowhere with LG's aggravating, pathetic joke of a customer service department. I feel it would be wrong of me to use a credit that they managed to get for me at another store. Best Buy Canada was advertising a G6 but it is too expensive at 10 grand.

LOVE my E6!!

I liked my EG9600. I would still like it if it hadn't started getting diamond shaped spotting underneath the glass. It is LG that I can't stand.
That being said I was back at the store today, taking another look at the QLED A7 vs the LG B7. Looking at both sets again, pretty well confirmed to me that LG B7 picture quality was better than the A7. The A7 has more nits, so it can go brighter, but the LG set's ability to get better blacks makes up for the lower light output. When I looked at both pictures the LG set just looked more detailed to me and had an illusion of depth to that was missing on the QLED.

Judging strictly on picture quality, the OLED set, to me, is still the best, So, right now, it looks like I'm going to give the worthless, ignorant bastards at LG another chance and swap for the B7. However, I will be royally steamed if that rumour about them bringing back a 3D set in 2018 turns out to be true: although, the guy at the store thinks it isn't going to happen. Home 3D appears to be effectively dead.

 

[DaveF]

I love spending other people's money, so...

Do you have to spend the credit on a TV? Are there other things you need over the next year or so valuing up to your credit value (appliances, computer, new movies,...)?

Could you then shop for your new perfect TV from wherever?

 

[Edwin-S]

I love spending other people's money, so...

Do you have to spend the credit on a TV? Are there other things you need over the next year or so valuing up to your credit value (appliances, computer, new movies,...)?

Could you then shop for your new perfect TV from wherever?

The old display has to be returned for the credit to apply. That leaves me without a display if I don't exchange it. All of my older displays end up being re-homed to my B-I-L and sister's place as I don't have the room to keep numerous large displays. Although, that situation may change as she seems to quite like the PQ of my old Panny 65" plasma, And, let me just say, she is no videophile, I have to admit that I'm still impressed by how nice that set looks with the THX mode selected, A calibration was never been done on that set.

In fact, the only set I ever had professionally calibrated was my old Toshiba 57" rear projection set. I still remember that fellow coming over at 8 pm and not leaving until like 4 in the morning. I actually felt sorry for the guy because what he was charging me to do the job did not seem commensurate with the amount of time and effort he put in. I ended giving him a bit more because of the amount of work he did. It looked pretty good after he was done. The other thing I remember was him telling me how he would offer a free basic calibration to anyone who bought a set through him ( he worked at FutureShop) and how few people would actually take him up on the offer.

That is why dropping 3D support on TVs with the "excuse that no one wanted it" is such bullshit. If that is a valid excuse for dropping or adding a feature then word salad technologies like HDR, Dolby Vision, Deep Colour and Ultra High Definition would have been stillborn, because the "average" TV consumer couldn't care less about that stuff.

The only ones that 3D, HDR, Dolby Vision or what have you matters to is equipment geeks and home theatre hobbyists, so dropping a feature that only that segment cares about is just dumb. Conversely, it is that segment that drives the implementation of all of these technologies, because they are they only ones who are willing to pay the premium prices that are commanded when some new word salad technology gets added to a TV set.

 

[Edwin-S]

I was looking to see if there was any hints as to what improvements might be being planned for 2018 OLEDs and ended up over at AVS for a bit. They have thread speculating on what may show up next year. I thought my head was going to explode after reading it for awhile. They were going on about hoping that LG improves on banding that is occurring in 2017 model OLED sets. I'm like, what banding? How close to the set or how are they watching these sets to notice something like that?

At the store I was about 4 to 6 feet away from the set and watching like a person would normally do and I didn't see any banding going on. One guy was mentioning "piss yellow staining" that affected 2015 and 2016 models. I never noticed any kind piss yellow colour on my set. Do I just not know what to look for? They were also talking about how Samsung's QLED outmatches LG's OLEDs in colour volume and brightness.

That being the case, Samsung's QLED should have every advantage over LG's OLED sets and yet the OLED picture seemed more dimensional to me. The QLED picture was bright and colourful, but it looked flatter to me. I had someone along with me and they mentioned how the OLED picture felt like you could reach right into it. They certainly didn't say that about the QLED. So, what gives? Why would a set that has all of the technical spec advantages not completely blow away LG's OLEDs that are only meeting about 90% of the colour spec and are considerably less bright when counting nits?

Also, it was probably a mistake for me to go looking because apparently LG is looking to introduce some Blue TADF based technology that is supposed to reduce power consumption, improve longevity and improve the efficiency of the WOLED technology used in their sets. I guess the translation of that word salad is increased brightness in nits, possibly getting them to the 1000 nit level.

I have to wonder how much brighter a TV has to be? I watch in a darkened room with a backlight and the TV certainly didn't seem to show any want in terms of light output. The same goes for colour volume. Exactly how much more color is really needed? I watched the "Dolby Vision demo" on the B7 and, frankly, the whole thing looked pumped and artificial. Definitely exaggerated between before and after. The colours were so bright that it didn't look natural. I have yet to see neon green grass and trees in real life.

Edit: Something just occurred to me. When I watched "The Fifth Element" UHD disc, the look of the picture kept reminding me of something, but I couldn't quite recall until now. The picture looked a lot like my old 65" VT plasma in THX mode.

 

[revgen]

@Edwin-S If you're worried about buying an LG, then I recommend giving the Sony OLED TV's a look. Sony's customer service may be more to your liking.

 

[Edwin-S]

@Edwin-S If you're worried about buying an LG, then give the Sony OLED TV's a look. Sony's customer service may be more to your liking.

Funny, you should mention that. I'm looking into the Sony. However, they do not have one, yet, in the store where I bought my LG. I need to see it before I'm willing to buy it. I was going to swap for the B7; however, I think my plan is going to change. I'm going to return my EG9600 to the store for the credit. I'm going to keep the credit until at least after CEDIA in early September, since the major manufacturers should be throwing out some hints on what their 2018 models should be incorporating.

If there is nothing really major then I'll either use the credit on the B7 or a Sony. The Sony is quite a bit more expensive than the B7. A reviewer at CNET felt that the PQ differences between the Sony and the LG sets were next to zero, so I'm not sure I want to spend 1700 more for the SONY. I'll have to decide if my hate for LG is really worth an extra 1700 dollars.

If it looks like there will be big improvements in the 2018 OLEDs, I'll save up some coin and use the credit on a 2018 set. Brand to be decided.

In the meantime, I'll see if I my B-I-L would be willing to give me my old Samsung D550 plasma back to me in return for an LG LED set that I have in my bedroom. The LG set is smaller, but it would be a better fit in the room that he is using the 550 in. And he seems to prefer LED sets over plasma, due to less reflection.

 

[Bartman]

You guys are in a completely different league but I thought I'd relate my experience anyhow. In the Spring I decided to replace an aging Samsung plasma second TV before the 1080p sets disappeared. I read all the reviews and went with a $400 Samsung LED, it looked good in the store. I noticed that the screen finish on Samsungs was superior to other similarly priced sets that often had a mottled appearance. However at home the picture was generally unwhelming, even with the published calibrations. My main TV is a newer Samsung plasma and this experience made me realize the superiority of plasma over LCD/LED. I have seen OLED TVs and they are impressive. I hope my plasma lasts until OLEDs come down in price.

 

[Edwin-S]

That is probably not a bad idea. The rollout of 4K has almost been as gimped as it was for 3D Blu-ray. I only upgraded because of the impressively improved performance of 3D on LG'S OLED set. That, plus the price was very attractive; although, still expensive.

If I had known that I was going to end up losing 3D functionality, I wouldn't have spent the money. I would have waited for another two years or ,ore.

 

[Jimbo64]

It's funny you say that because I only purchased my 4K LG Oled for my 3D discs. I do have a bunch of 4K discs but only because the 3D disc was packaged with them. I probably will look for a 4K player soon but not really in a rush for it.

 

[Edwin-S]

It's funny you say that because I only purchased my 4K LG Oled for my 3D discs. I do have a bunch of 4K discs but only because the 3D disc was packaged with them. I probably will look for a 4K player soon but not really in a rush for it.

When I originally assessed my set, I was impressed by the improved blacks. The picture did pop more than my Panna plasma; however, if it had been a 2D-only set, I would have returned it. With 2D-only, I could have lived with my Panny as the picture quality on that unit was hardly a dog's breakfast.

Right now, I find these 4K HDR discs to have a pleasing look colour-wise, but they play too dark, even for me, (and I prefer a darker picture). The 4K of Ghost in the Shell is a case in point. The TV was struggling to display all of the shadow detail in the night scene involving a battle with a spider tank. The blacks looked like they were being crushed and the picture looked like it suffered from posterization in some areas.

Also, it makes sense to hold off buying a player until these manufacturers put out players that can support all of the HDR types (like DV) at a reasonable price. I bought the Samsung K_8500 player. Now, if I want DV support I'll have to spend money on yet another piece of equipment. I miss the PS3 days.