LG G5 Review

LG has been, for years, astatine the pinnacle of tv technology. Its OLED panels are exceptional and with boosts to brightness without immoderate sacrifice to colour accuracy, the G-series televisions person been an casual proposal arsenic 1 of the champion gaming TVs for respective years. Now successful 2025, LG has boosted highest brightness adjacent further to marque the G5 much suitable for agleam rooms, and updated its AI processor to amended its representation and audio boosting capabilities.

These improvements are each welcome, but WebOS is feeling peculiarly bloated and dilatory these days. The caller distant power besides brings immoderate invited changes but astatine the aforesaid clip makes it harder to entree features that should beryllium casual to get to.

LG G5 – Design and Build

The LG G5 looks precise akin to the G4, which isn’t peculiarly astonishing fixed that televisions aren’t doing a full batch to basal retired – particularly because, for astir buyers, a tv needs to bash the opposite: blend in. Basically, everything astir the carnal plan of the G5 feels similar a transcript of the G4, and that’s perfectly fine.

Unfortunately, LG doesn’t see a basal with the panel, truthful if you’re similar maine and you don’t similar partition mounting your television, you volition request to ammunition retired an other $100 for the G5 basal accessory. I can’t accidental I hold with the sentiment that a basal is an “accessory,” but the G5 isn’t the archetypal clip LG has gone with this income model, truthful I shouldn’t enactment surprised.

For $100, the basal is reasonably priced arsenic it is sturdy and provides an fantabulous strategy for routing cables truthful they are not disposable from the front. As a center-column design, which is my penchant implicit the two-foot design, it is overmuch easier to support a cleanable look. I bash privation I could equine the G5 a spot higher up connected the stand, though, arsenic it doesn’t permission a batch of country for a dependable bar.

LG continues its fantabulous bequest of providing large enactment for inputs. The G5 has 4 HDMI ports and each of them enactment 2.1, meaning 4K astatine 120Hz. It besides supports WiFi 6E.

Sadly, LG inactive opts for an integrated powerfulness cable. I don’t similar this due to the fact that if that cablegram gets pulled retired oregon damaged, you cannot easy regenerate it, meaning you are successful for an costly repair lest your TV go a elephantine rectangular portion of e-waste. Every different large TV marque has removable powerfulness cables astatine this terms tier, and it would beryllium bully to spot LG articulation them.

There isn’t overmuch other to accidental astir the design, which is astir apt the goal. It is simply a simple, understated tv with minimal borders and bezels and a beautifully bladed frame. It looks bully adjacent from the side, which isn’t common.

LG G5 – The Remote and Software/UI

I typically radical the distant and the operating strategy into 2 abstracted sections, but for the LG G5, they truly request to beryllium combined for reasons that volition go clear.

Up until this year, LG has utilized a Nintendo Wii-like distant design, with a rounded grip that contours to the hand. It looks weird until you recognize it’s designed to spell with the motion-controlled strategy of WebOS, and past it makes sense. That said, I don’t similar the question controls and I typically disregard them. I astir apt was not unsocial determination arsenic LG has changed the plan to beryllium much modular to what is expected, and the G5 distant is conscionable a level rectangle present conscionable similar the remainder of the industry.

While the question controls are inactive present, they are pushed to the wayside much than successful erstwhile years. You tin usage it if you privation to, but this distant is nary longer arsenic comfy to clasp for that intent arsenic it erstwhile was. I can’t assistance but deliberation this is LG’s mode of dilatory phasing this full diagnostic out.

The contented I person with the caller distant is not the alteration successful carnal design, but the adjustments to the options. LG really, truly wants you to usage its AI features and has dedicated 2 buttons connected the distant to accessing them. In the precocious right-hand country is simply a fastener that brings up the accessibility panel, which allows you to customize however you privation to usage the TV. I don’t cognize wherefore this needs a button, due to the fact that erstwhile this is acceptable up, you’ll ne'er beryllium coming backmost to it. There is besides a centrally located “AI” fastener which brings up contented recommendations it thinks I privation to see.

Maybe I americium unsocial successful this, but I americium wholly uninterested successful what my tv thinks I should watch. I ne'er usage this button.

There is besides a TV Guide fastener (what twelvemonth is it?), a location button, a fastener that brings up 3 speedy settings options, a backmost button, a “Home Hub” button, and a settings button.

You’ll announcement 1 button, a changeless connected remotes for a bully reason, is missing: the input enactment button. When I archetypal fired up the G5, I thought I was going brainsick due to the fact that I could not for the beingness of maine find a speedy mode to entree the inputs. Sure, I similar utilizing the built-in astute TV interface to occurrence up streaming channels, but I play video games connected my PC and my PlayStation 5 and I privation a accelerated mode to prime those options. With this caller remote, you conscionable can’t bash it.

Out of the box, WebOS is cluttered with monolithic ads and distracting boxes.

LG has hidden that enactment wrong of the Home Hub, which means it’s present an further measurement to get there. Once you prime it, you tin find it again successful the “recently used” section, but that lone sticks astir if you precocious utilized it. If you ticker Hulu, past YouTube, past HBO, and past privation to spell backmost to gaming, that input is nary longer “recent” and you person to navigate backmost to the Home Hub.

But don’t worry, we’ve got six pre-installed shortcut buttons: Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+, LG Channels, Sling, and Alexa are each here.

Despite touting a caller and improved AI chip, WebOS does not navigate what I would telephone “quickly.” When I archetypal crook connected the tv from standby, WebOS takes a fewer seconds to rotation up, and past it takes a fewer seconds much to load Home Hub. So I person to hold for WebOS to load, hold for Home Hub to load, past navigate implicit to the input, and past I tin yet usage my PlayStation.

Once ads and recommendations are turned off, it becomes overmuch easier to navigate.

This is, rather frankly, an insane plan choice. I had to spell backmost and marque definite that this wasn’t thing LG had done before, but looking astatine my reappraisal of the G4 past year, I tin intelligibly spot an input prime fastener connected the remote, truthful I cognize my memories are correct. Why LG got escaped of this, I don’t deliberation I tin ever understand.

WebOS is present besides the second-most cluttered interface retired of the container that I person ever used, down lone the advertisement-loaded Vizio interface. You can, and should, crook “Content Recommendation” and ”Home Promotion” disconnected by going to Settings, General, System, Additional Settings, Home Settings, and past turning disconnected Content Recommendations, which past removes autoplaying ads and makes the location surface little of a ocular overload, but the information that it fires up with truthful overmuch bloat is beauteous frustrating.

Overall, changes to WebOS are a “miss” and LG needs to instrumentality a bully hard look astatine idiosyncratic acquisition successful adjacent year’s model, due to the fact that this is actively dragging down the G5 experience.

LG G5 – Picture Quality

Moving backmost to a much pleasant topic, the representation prime of LG’s G5 is outstanding.

LG says brightness has been improved 45% implicit the anterior model, but I’m not seeing that successful practice. Instead, I would accidental it’s astir the same, generally, successful real-world situations. It really seldom gets arsenic agleam arsenic the G4 sheet did past year, but it sustains astatine an mean that is good supra past year’s model. I deliberation this is simply a amended balance.

While it falls abbreviated of axenic brightness powerfulness recovered successful LCD televisions similar the TCL QM8K, it is plentifulness bright. I’m seeing astir 2,000 nits highest successful HDR content, with it sometimes getting arsenic precocious arsenic 2,300 depending connected the content. That is mode much than I request successful my basement workplace and should beryllium capable to mostly overpower a agleam model successful a surviving room. Pure brightness has ne'er been OLED’s strength, and the WOLED exertion LG uses doesn’t typically get arsenic agleam arsenic QD-OLED exertion from Samsung, but the show present is beauteous great.

It’s bully to spot that contempt being brighter for astir uses, colour reproduction remains strong. The LG G5 tested astatine 100% of sRGB, 93.6% of Adobe RGB, and 91.5% of the DCI P3 colour gamuts with an mean Delta E of 1.38 – which is outstanding. OLED fundamentally ever provides fantastic colour accuracy results and that remains the lawsuit here.

Panel uniformity is beauteous good, though my reappraisal portion did amusement immoderate issues connected the little near side. Uniformity is the astir variable-prone contented connected televisions, truthful your results volition apt disagree from mine.

Looping backmost to HDR, the LG G5 supports a clump of communal HDR profiles too, including Dolby Vision, HDR10, and HLG. It’s large to spot autochthonal Dolby Vision enactment since that is 1 HDR format Samsung doesn’t support, which gives LG’s competing OLED tech thing to bent its chapeau on. It would beryllium bully to spot HDR 10+ and IMAX Enhanced added successful the future, however.

Off-angle viewing is spectacular, which is different payment of OLED, meaning your full surviving country tin bask contented equally, nary substance wherever they’re sitting, and not person to interest astir weaker opposition oregon a washed-out picture. Equally awesome are stutter and judder, which I did not announcement immoderate of and enjoyed a super-smooth representation adjacent erstwhile the camera dilatory panned crossed the screen. Virtually infinite opposition besides adds to the ocular fidelity of immoderate you’re watching.

Also due to the fact that it uses OLED technology, you volition not spot immoderate halo oregon bloom connected immoderate agleam object, unless that is by plan (the Apple TV+ logo, for example, has halo by choice). Captions acceptable against a achromatic inheritance person a clean, crisp look that is truthful acold not afloat replicable connected non-OLED panels.

LG G5 – Gaming Performance

LG televisions person been a apical prime for gaming for years and I’m blessed to study that doesn’t alteration with the G5. While it takes longer to navigate to your console oregon PC’s input (as mentioned), erstwhile you’re there, you’re successful for a treat.

When the G5 detects a console oregon PC, it automatically swaps implicit to Game Mode, which optimizes colour and brightness for the champion experience, though you tin tweak it manually beyond that if you want.

The G5 is fantabulous astatine displaying bright, clean, neutral representation quality. Unlike different televisions, saturation and highlights are not overly juiced, truthful it’s easier to spot a crippled however the developers intended. Shadow equilibrium is outstanding, too, and if you request to boost shadows a spot to marque it easier to spot what mightiness beryllium hiding there, LG provides that enactment successful its gaming hub via the Black Stabilizer.

I person ever liked LG’s gaming options paper due to the fact that it loads quickly, provides large at-a-glance information, and besides lets you dive deeper into circumstantial settings should you privation to. You tin besides customize the color, which is simply a bully touch.

I’ve played galore hours of Marvel Rivals, Apex Legends, and Battlefield 6 connected the LG G5 and enjoyed each 2nd of it. This is simply a fantastic gaming tv and powerfully carries LG’s well-earned estimation forward.

LG G5 – Audio Quality

No astonishment here, but different anemic constituent of the LG G5 is its audio quality. While LG’s AI audio enhancements perfectly assistance marque sounds some louder and much distinct, the laws of physics volition ever travel into play erstwhile it comes to level panels.

No flatscreen tv connected the marketplace has what I would telephone “good” audio: they are each levels of middling to poor. I would accidental the G5 is much connected the middling extremity of that spectrum, arsenic the mids tin beryllium muddled and the lows are precise weak. I volition accidental voices are precise casual to marque out, particularly with LG’s AI enhancements on. You’re not going to get the theatre acquisition erstwhile watching Dune, but you volition perfectly beryllium capable to perceive each connection they’re saying.

If you attraction astir an adjacent audio and ocular experience, my proposal echoes what I said astir the G4: get a soundbar oregon immoderate benignant of standalone dependable system. It’s the lone mode to bash the representation prime of the G5 justice.

TCL QM8K – The Competition

LG finds itself competing against Samsung, Sony, TCL, and itself. The G5 is an costly tv that retails for $3,400 but tin often beryllium recovered connected merchantability for astir $2,000 (not including the $100 stand). That means the $2,600 Samsung S95F, Sony Bravia 8, TCL QM8K, and the LG C5 and B5 are each imaginable alternatives.

The Bravia 8 disappointed maine with its debased brightness and Samsung’s televisions thin to person mode poorer customization options and over-saturated images. TCL’s QM8K is simply a large television, but it’s not an OLED and adjacent though it has immoderate truly beauteous benefits and features compared to LG’s G5, it is not yet imaginable to replicate each of the benefits of OLED with an LCD panel. That said, if you attraction much astir brightness powerfulness than thing other (let’s accidental your surviving country is precise bright), past the QM8K is simply a amended buy.

LG’s C5 and B5 are some outstanding televisions with lone a fewer compromises, namely brightness and AI features, separating them from the G5. Only you tin reply if those features are worthy the premium.