LG C2 55-inch Ultra HD Smart OLED TV Review: The Champion of OLED
The TV I am going to review is part of a series that has been one of the most popular OLED TV series in India. The LG C2 range is a successor to the C1 and CX range that came before it. This series promises better performance and efficiency, and brings the benefits of OLED screen technology to TVs. Is this the best 55-inch premium TV you can buy in the Rs 2 lakh range? We’ll find out in this review.
LG C2 55-inch OLED TV (OLED55C2PSC) design and specifications
The LG C2 series comes in a variety of sizes. It has TVs ranging from 42 inches (Rs 1,39,990) to 83 inches (Rs 11,74,990). The unit sent to me for review was 55 inches, which is priced at Rs 2,19,990. All sizes of TVs in this range are Ultra HD (3840×2160 pixels) OLED TVs with a refresh rate of up to 120Hz and all have almost similar specifications. The TVs in this series also support Dolby Vision IQ and Dolby Atmos.
LG’s C series TVs aren’t known for flashy, premium designs. The 55-inch C2 TV isn’t as attractive as the Samsung 55QN95B. Still, the company has managed to build a slim profile with thin bezels, easy access to ports and sockets, and a thin border around the screen that lets you focus more on the screen.
There are no markings on the front side of the TV, not even the LG logo. The only thing that is present at the bottom is the power button which is housed in a module and also houses the status light and IR receiver. All the ports and sockets are placed to the left of the screen and are easily accessible, even when the TV is hung on a wall. The speakers are bottom firing. Overall, the design of the TV is quite simple.
The LG C2 55 inch TV weighs 12.7 kg without the stand and 14.4 kg with the center stand that comes in the box. The stand is designed in such a way that the TV can be placed on a small table. For the review, I mounted the TV on the wall. The wall mount kit is not provided with the TV but can be made available on request at the time of free installation.
Talking about the ports and sockets of the TV, it has four HDMI ports. All of them support 4K with 120Hz. One of these supports eARC. The TV has three USB Type-A ports, LAN, optical digital audio-out, single-socket AV-in, antenna and cable sockets. It also has an analog socket for IR blaster. The TV has no connectivity for wired headphones.
Additionally, there is NVIDIA G-sync, variable refresh rate (VRR) and AMD FreeSync support for gaming. The LG C2 supports dual-band Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5 for connectivity, and comes with a 2.2-channel speaker system with 40W rated sound output. The television is powered by LG’s a9 Gen 5 AI processor at 4K. It supports a variety of AI features.
LG C2 55-inch OLED TV (OLED55C2PSC) remote and features
LG’s Magic Remote concept has been quite popular. The same remote comes with the C2 55 inch as well. It is a full-size unit and is made heavier at the bottom for better grip. The remote shows a floating cursor on the screen. You can set the cursor at any point and click by shaking the remote in front of the TV. Apart from this, it also has a scroll wheel and button controls. The remote is easy to use and the interface starts to feel friendly very soon.
The TV remote has hot keys for Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+ Hotstar. There are separate buttons for Google Assistant and Alexa. Usefully, you can use both features simultaneously on the TV. This feature is not usually seen in TVs. The rest of the remote is standard with buttons for power, volume, source selection, and opening the settings menu. You can open them at any time.
Talking about other features of the TV, it also has support for Apple Air Play and HomeKit. Along with this, it also supports hands-free voice control and LG’s AI ThinQ suite. With its help, it can sense the surrounding light so that the picture and sound can be adjusted accordingly. The TV can be connected with the LG ThinQ app. You can connect it through your smartphone, after which you can use the phone as a TV remote and can also change many settings.
LG C2 55-inch OLED TV (OLED55C2PSC) software and interface
LG’s WebOS platform has been around for a while, originally developed for Palm smartphones. It now comes as the default operating system for TVs. It has also been updated over the years. It has now been upgraded to support content recommendations. Some elements expand to the full screen, such as settings and source selection menus. Most of the interface takes up the entire screen.
It has a home dashboard in which connected devices are shown in a tile display. From here you get quick access to AirPlay and any IoT device that you have connected through the LG ThinQ app. The main interface of the smart TV appears on the full screen in which weather, content recommendations, apps and web browser are visible. Pressing the home button now pauses the things being played, which did not happen earlier.
The popular apps you want to watch on a smart TV are already installed in it like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+ Hotstar etc. You can install other apps by going to the library. Many types of games and social media apps are also provided in the TV. The app library of webOS is quite good. Apps work the same way as they work on other TV platforms.
Overall, I found the software experience to be a bit clunky and things took a little too long to load. Other than that, I had no major issues and found webOS to be useful.
LG C2 ″ OLED TV (OLED55C2PSC) performance
At over Rs 2,00,000, the LG C2 55-inch TV is obviously a premium option. Considering the price, it is natural to expect similar performance from it. LG’s OLED televisions usually deliver on this basis and the C2 is no different. It is one of the best TVs in its segment right now when it comes to picture quality and overall performance.
Looking at its specifications, the TV is ready for all types of content. It supports various HDR formats with features like Dolby Vision IQ, Dolby Atmos audio, pixel level dimming. One thing that is most special about its picture performance is that it adjusts the picture according to the lighting and situation in the room. This allows it to display the content in the best picture quality so that whatever is displayed on the screen looks in its best form.
Ultra-HD Dolby Vision content was at the top of the list for me. I watched a variety of shows and movies on the TV. These included titles like Obi Wan Kenobi, The World’s Most Amazing Vacation Rentals, Uncharted, and Man Vs Bee. The TV performed well in this regard, especially when it came to contrast levels.
The true pixel level of OLED TVs means that contrast virtually goes to infinity, but maintaining it at the right level is a challenge. The LG C2 gets the job done here and delivers picture quality that doesn’t feel like it’s struggling too much to highlight deep blacks, as is the case with affordable OLED TVs.
Colours were fine, with the focus being more on colour accuracy than on showing bright colours. Dolby Vision’s ability to handle colours is clearly evident here, especially when The World’s Most Amazing Vacation Rentals shows some of the most beautiful locations.
The brightness was on point depending on the lighting in the room. LG’s AI ThinQ function works here and sets the picture properly. Picture collaboration is accurate in detailed scenes of Obi Wan Kenobi. However, at times the TV takes a few minutes to react to changes in light conditions, but once it does its job, the picture quality comes out to be excellent.
OLEDs are not known for very high brightness levels. Here the company has claimed to make the C2 brighter than the previous models. This was not a problem for me as I mostly watch TV at night in dim light in the room. But during the day time it was a problem at times.
Unlike the Samsung QN95B Mini LED TV, the LG TV struggled to adjust to brighter picture quality during the day. I had to pull down the curtains to get this right. This can be a challenge in brightly lit rooms. Dolby Vision and HDR10 content was watchable in a brightly lit room, thanks to the TV’s brightness. Non-HDR content was a bit difficult to watch in such a room. Episodes of Better Call Saul were quite detailed, thanks to the TV’s Ultra HD resolution. But dull nighttime scenes made watching this wonderful show a bit difficult. Black levels were handled well, but the show’s suburban setting sometimes lacked character and feel.
While I did have some issues with brightness, the TV’s sharpness and motion handling were spot on. In slow scenes of Man Vs Bee, the TV kept the focus on Rowan Atkinson’s facial expressions. On the other hand, fast and exciting action scenes in Uncharted looked clean, with accurate blur levels and hardly any artefacts.
The TV performs well with low-resolution content and displays decent brightness and color levels. There were some disappointments while watching The Batman on Amazon Prime Video. The TV was not able to do much with the low resolution and the picture in streaming mostly looked poor quality. However, the Philips Ambilight 7900 series TV gave better results in this case. This shows that the LG C2 needs a lot of improvement to process low-quality content.
The sound quality of the LG C2 55 inch proved to be very good in many places. Thanks to Dolby Atmos, the sound was clear even in standard content, even at high volume. However, this was also a problem for me. I often have a habit of keeping the TV volume at 90 percent to hear things better. But, while watching movies like Uncharted and The Batman on this TV, I did not get that level of loud sound. You may feel the need to install a soundbar or speaker system in it.
Our decision
Premium televisions come with great expectations and the LG C2 55 inch TV priced at Rs 2,19,990 delivers the kind of flagship experience you would expect from it. The TV offers an amazing viewing experience with high quality content while maintaining amazing colours, contrast levels, black levels, sharpness and motion.
There are some shortcomings in it. If these shortcomings match your needs and viewing conditions, then you may also prefer to buy one of its competitors. These shortcomings include weak brightness, lack of performance with low-resolution content and a built-in speaker system with low loud sound. In such a situation, Samsung QN95B can also be your choice.
Despite this, the overall LG C2 55 inch is the best choice for the TV with its good design, features, and software. If you are planning to buy a premium TV in the near future, then you can definitely put this TV on your list.
