LG TVs are one of the most popular brands on the market today and this LG LED TV review will explain the technology that puts LG LED TV models right up there as some of the very best TVs available today.

Televisions are now much more than a display for simply watching TV and movies on. This is something that has LG has recognised by introducing technologies such as LG LED 3D TV, LG Smart TV and a range of connectivity options including Wi-Fi and DLNA for connecting all your home media devices. The outcome is that LG consistently come out on top in many of the LG LED TV reviews that they receive.

LG LED TV Technology

The advanced technology behind LG LED TVs is what sets them apart from other brands. In fact LG LED televisions are the only ones to achieve THX certification. This is no easy task as in order to be awarded with THX certification LG LED televisions must pass rigorous testing which analyzes every aspect of their picture quality before they can display the THX badge.

LED TVs in general use different variations of LED lighting to illuminate the LCD panel. LG LED LCD TVs incorporate three different methods of LED lighting systems across their TV line-up. The different methods have been developed to cater for the wide range of display sizes and price brackets available throughout the range of LG LCD LED TV models. The different methods of LED lighting methods and their pros and cons are outlined below.

LG Full LED Slim-This is LG’s most advanced lighting system which utilizes an LED full array which uses individually controllable LED segments located across the entire area behind the LCD panel. It is the technology which is primarily responsible for LG LED TVs being awarded with THX certification.

It enables LG’s most advanced features including local dimming which delivers more intense levels of blackness and contrast by being able to control the brightness of the backlight in specific areas of the display to provide the appropriate level of lighting. If an onscreen image contains areas which are both dark and bright at the same time, the corresponding segments can be simultaneously controlled to provide the correct intensity. This is something which isn’t possible with conventional CCFL LCD backlights and other LED lighting techniques where the whole backlight is controlled as one and not as individual segments.

LG LED Plus - LG LED plus is an enhanced version of standard edge-lit LED TVs. As the name suggests edge-lit LED televisions locate the LED lights around the perimeter of the LCD panel.

How LG LED Plus TVs differ is that the edge lighting is divided in to sectors which can be individually controlled to provide local dimming which improves contrast levels. It does not offer the same control that the full LED array does in the LG Full LED Slim method, but it is better than many other LED backlight systems that do not have any local dimming capabilities.

The major benefit the LG LED plus systems has over Full LED Slim is that because the LEDs are placed around the perimeter of the LCD panel and not to the rear, the thickness or the TV is reduced considerably. Also other benefit of LG LED Plus TV models is that because they do not use as many LEDs as in a full array, they use less power and they are not as complex or as expensive to manufacture which is reflected in the end-user price.

LG LED - This is LG’s ‘standard’ LED edge-lit technology which locates the LED around the perimeter of the LCD panel. There are no local dimming capabilities with this LG LED HDTV technology but it still produces incredible colors, contrast and brightness as well as an ultra-thin display.

In addition to the different lighting methods of LG LED TVs there are a number of core technologies that are responsible for the stunning results produced by LG TVs. Below is an outline of LG LED TV technology, how it works and the benefits it brings to home entertainment.

LG IPS Advanced LED LCD TV Panels

IPS is an abbreviation for ‘In Plane Switching’. It is the newest generation of LG LCD panel which uses ‘wide field of view’ technology. Deficiencies in previous generations of LCD panel meant that wide viewing angles would reduce the color and brightness of images by approx 40%. Also older LCD displays suffer from afterimages when pressure is directly applied to the screen. Although this is not a big problem with TVs, it is a restricting factor for touch-screen technology.

LG IPS LED TVs eliminate both these problems as well as having other significant benefits. IPS solves this problem by fundamentally changing the way the liquid crystals polymers in and LCD panel work. With previous LCD panels in order to alter the properties of the light directed from the backlight, the liquid crystals were aligned vertically (pointing outwards towards the viewer). This results in a narrow viewing angle which although it can be improved by using a corrective coating on the panel it is still reduces visibility by up to 40% for wide angle viewing.

LG LED LCD IPS technology is different because the liquid crystal polymers are aligned horizontally meaning they can be viewed from a wide angle with only a 2% reduction in brightness and color.

Other benefits of the IPS technology used in LG televisions is that the response times of the LCD panel are reduced by up to 50% giving them the ability to display fast moving images with vastly reduced blurring and judder. The energy efficiency of IPS panels is also improved by 30% and the production costs are also reduced because of the simpler pixel structure, both of which reduce the total cost of ownership to end-users.

LG 3D LED TV Technology

LG 3D LED TV models use FPR (film-type pattern retarder) technology which does not cause screen flicker. In recognition of this, LG LED 3D TVs have been awarded ‘flicker free 3D TV’ certification by the TUVRhineland Institution.

Unlike the active 3D TV shutter glasses used by most other TV brands which alternately display images for the left and right eyes, LG 3D LED TVs simultaneously display both left and right sided images to the viewer using the FPR 3D TV panel. The display separates the left and right images by means of the patterned retarder film situated in front of the LCD panel along with the polarized 3D TV glasses which filters the images intended for the left and right eyes resulting in uninterrupted flicker-free 3D TV images.

Additional benefits of the FPR technology contained in LG 3D LED TVs is that because the 3D images are continuously visible to both of the viewer’s eyes there is little reduction in brightness unlike with active 3D TV where the shutter glasses are alternately restricting the vision of either the left or the right eye at all times.

As well as being the cause of the reduction in brightness, active 3D shutter glasses need to be synchronized with the TV so that shutters open and close at exactly the right time. Unless perfectly in time this can introduce 3D crosstalk when the left and right sided images overlap giving the appearance of a ghosting effect. As the FPR technology used in LG 3D LED televisions uses polarized 3D glasses which don’t need synchronizing the cause of the ghosting is eliminated. Also because the 3D glasses do not contain shutters, circuitry and batteries, they are much lighter to wear and cost a fraction of what active shutter 3D glasses do.

One final benefit of FPR is the improved handling of high speed motion. Because active 3D TV displays alternate images for the left and right eyes, it is in affect reducing the refresh rate by half. This is in contrast the FPR method used by LG 3D LED LCD TVs which display the full refresh rate for both eyes. The benefits of this are particularly noticeable when viewing images containing high speed motion (such as movies and sports), active 3D TVs on the other hand may exhibit judder and blurring because of the effective reduction in the refresh rate.