LG has unveiled the details of this year's TV lineup at CES 2018. Aesthetically, the TVs don’t differ from the 2017 range, but internally they’ve received a healthy bump in specifications.
LG’s AI platform, ThinQ, was the centre of attention during the company’s press conference this year, though; meaning it was bound to make its way to its TV lineup. Unsurprisingly, LG has built AI into its 4K OLED and Super UHD LCD TVs and is offering Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa integration, too.
The new connected TVs will work in unison with other LG ThinQ products, such as the new CLOi robot, plus LG's smart refrigerators and speakers.
The new 2018 TV lineup also includes support for HFR (high frame rate) of up to 120fps. The improved frame rate helps with motion clarity, which is what you’ll want if you’re watching a lot of sports. However, LGs TVs still don’t support HDMI 2.1, meaning you’ll need to rely on the TVs' built-in streaming apps to enjoy content at the higher frame rate. At the time of writing Netflix and Amazon Prime Video don’t have any 120fps content, but with time I’m sure streaming services will up their game so see this as a way of future proofing your purchase.
The C8, E8 and W8 OLED product line will also have LG’s new Alpha 9 (A9) processor on board, which LG says will help them deliver clearer, more colour-accurate pictures. During the press conference, LG showed off how the new chip helps in reducing in banding in particular during particular scenes. The South Korean manufacturer also said the new processor speeds up CPU and GPU operations by 35% and frees up to 50% of memory.
Elsewhere, the majority of LG’s Super UHD LCD 4K TVs have moved from edge-based local dimming to full-array local dimming. This results in a better contrast ratio so the new TVs should be perfect for HDR content. Speaking of HDR, the 2018 line will support the full gamut of standards, from HDR10, HLG to Dolby Vision, Advanced HDR, HLG Pro and HDR Pro. As for sound, Dolby Atmos is also supported on LG’s OLED TVs.
I’ve yet to receive any official word on UK pricing and availability but I’ll be sure to update this article when I hear more. On first impressions, though, I’m impressed . If 2017 was anything to go by, I’m sure the 2018-line will be even more popular.
