LG A2 OLED TV Review

The LG A2 has a simple style similar to its predecessor, the LG A1 OLED. It features two V-shaped feet as the stand, and the back panel is flat except for the housing for the inputs.

The stand supports the TV well, but it doesn't eliminate all wobble. It also raises the screen high enough off the table that placing smaller soundbars in front doesn't block the screen, but larger ones do.

Footprint of the 65-inch TV stand: 44.5" x 11.0" x 2.64" to the bottom of the screen

The back of the LG A2 features brushed metal that covers the panel and plastic housing for the inputs. The side-facing inputs are easy to access, but there are a few back-facing ones that are harder to reach if you wall-mount the TV.

The feet have detachable clips that serve as cable management to help keep your setup clean.

The panel itself is very thin, but it doesn't sit perfectly flush against the wall due to the housing for the inputs.

The LG A2 has excellent build quality. It feels solid, and there aren't any noticeable quality control issues. There's a bit of flex on the plastic housing of the inputs, but this is normal for LG's OLEDs, and it's only an issue if you press against it.

The LG A2 has a near-infinite contrast ratio that results in perfect black levels when displayed next to white objects. It means blacks look deep and inky in a dark room, even if there are bright objects on the screen.

There's no difference in dark scene behavior between the calibrated picture mode and Game Mode.

The LG A2 has okay SDR peak brightness. It's an improvement over the LG A1 OLED, and while it gets bright enough to fight glare from small light sources like a lamp, it isn't a good choice to place it opposite a bright window. There's some variation in brightness between different scenes due to its Automatic Brightness Limiter, but it isn't as aggressive as other OLEDs.

These results are from after calibration in the 'Expert (Dark Space, Night)' Picture Mode with the OLED Pixel Brightness at its max, Adjust Contrast at its default of '85', Peak Brightness on 'High', and the Color Temperature set to 'Warm 50'. The brightness is similar before calibration. If you want the brightest image possible, use the 'Standard' Picture Mode with Adjust Contrast on '100' and the Color Temperature set to '0'. It results in a peak brightness of 484 cd/m² in the 2% window, but the image is less accurate.

The Peak Brightness setting helps make the TV brighter, but it also causes the variation in brightness, which can be noticeable if you use it as a PC monitor with different window sizes. If it distracts you, disabling the setting helps reduce the aggressiveness of the Automatic Brightness Limiter, but it makes the screen dimmer:

• Peak 2% Window: 256 cd/m²
• Peak 10% Window: 259 cd/m²
• Peak 25% Window: 260 cd/m²
• Peak 50% Window: 260 cd/m²
• Peak 100% Window: 164 cd/m²
• Sustained 2% Window: 243 cd/m²
• Sustained 10% Window: 247 cd/m²
• Sustained 25% Window: 248 cd/m²
• Sustained 50% Window: 248 cd/m²
• Sustained 100% Window: 156 cd/m²

The LG A2 has alright HDR peak brightness. It gets bright enough to make small highlights stand out versus the rest of the image, but it isn't as bright as other OLEDs for a truly impactful HDR image. These results are from the 'Cinema' HDR Picture Mode with the OLED Pixel Brightness at its max, Adjust Contrast on '100', Peak Brightness on 'High', and the Color Temperature set to 'Warm 50'.

If you find the image too dim, the TV can reach a peak of 697 cd/m² in the 2% window using the 'Vivid' HDR Picture Mode with Auto Dynamic Contrast on 'High', Dynamic Tone Mapping enabled, and the Color Temperature set to 'Cold 50'. However, the image is less accurate like this.

The HDR brightness in Game Mode is alright and looks the same as outside of Game Mode. The results are with the same settings as outside of Game Mode, but with Game Optimizer enabled.

The LG A2 has incredible PQ EOTF tracking. It means that it displays images at their correct brightness right up until its peak brightness, where there's a sharp roll-off, resulting in a loss of fine details in bright objects. If you still find the image too dim, you can use the same settings as in the HDR Brightness box, but with Auto Dynamic Contrast on 'High' and Dynamic Tone Mapping enabled. It makes the image appear brighter, as you can see in this EOTF, but it doesn't change the peak luminosity.

The LG A2 has an excellent HDR color gamut. It has near-perfect coverage of the commonly-used DCI-P3 color space, and it's future-proof because it also has good coverage of the wider Rec. 2020 color space. However, tone mapping is off in each color space, similar to the LG C2 OLED, meaning details are lost in some scenes.

The LG A2 has good color volume. It displays dark colors well, but it doesn't display colors as bright as the Sony A95K OLED, and it's limited by its incomplete color gamut.

The SDR out-of-the-box accuracy is fantastic. Colors and the white balance are both nearly perfect, and the color temperature is extremely close to the 6500K target. However, gamma doesn't follow our 2.2 target for moderately-lit rooms well, as all scenes are brighter than they should be.

The accuracy after calibration to the D65 white point is incredible. It's easy to calibrate and calibrating it improves gamma the most as it's perfect with the 2.2 target.

You can see the full settings for our calibration here.

The LG A2 has excellent gray uniformity. The screen is uniform throughout, and there's minimal dirty screen effect in the center, which you won't notice during sports. Like any OLED, there are faint vertical lines with near-dark scenes, but you only notice them if you sit really close.

The LG A2 has perfect black uniformity as there isn't any blooming around bright objects.

The LG A2 has a wide viewing angle that makes the image remain consistent from the sides. It means that it's ideal for wide seating areas, but some colors lose their hue at narrow viewing angles, so it isn't as ideal if you need to sit close as the edges of the screen start to look inconsistent.

The reflection handling is amazing. It handles a moderate amount of light well, but strong light sources can get distracting as there's a purple tint. However, it isn't as bad as on QD-OLED TVs like the Sony A95K OLED.

The LG A2 has a WOLED panel because it uses an RWBG subpixel layout with all four pixels in a line. All four pixels are never on at the same time, and you can see alternate pixel photos below:

• Alternate 1
• Alternate 2
• Alternate 3

The LG A2 doesn't have issues displaying 480p content, like from DVDs and SD cable channels.

720p content, like from HD cable channels, looks great, as there aren't any issues.

1080p content from Blu-rays looks almost as good as native 4k content.

The LG A2 displays native 4k content perfectly, and there aren't any issues like dithering.

This is a 4k TV that can't display an 8k input.

The LG A2 has a near-instantaneous response time that results in almost no motion blur behind fast-moving objects. However, there's still persistence blur due to the sample-and-hold method of OLEDs.

The LG A2 isn't technically flicker-free because there's a slight dip in brightness every eight ms, which coincides with the refresh rate. However, it isn't the same as pulse width modulation on LED TVs because it isn't a full on and off, and it isn't noticeable either.

The LG A2 doesn't have an optional black frame insertion feature to reduce persistence blur.

The LG A2 can interpolate lower frame rate content up to 60 fps. Unfortunately, there's a ton of artifacting with any fast-moving object, which gets distracting.

Due to the near-instantaneous response time, there's stutter with lower frame rate content because each frame is held on longer. Enabling the motion interpolation feature can help reduce stutter, but it isn't a perfect solution.

This TV removes judder from native 24p sources like native apps and Blu-ray players, but it can't from sources that only output signals in 60Hz, like a cable box.

Unlike the higher-end LG B2 OLED and the LG C2 OLED, the LG A2 is limited to a 60Hz refresh rate and doesn't support variable refresh rate technology to reduce screen tearing. It means you can't play high-frame-rate games, and you'll see tearing if the frame rate of your game drops.

The LG A2 has low input lag in Game Mode, enough for a responsive gaming feel.

The LG A2 supports common signals up to 60Hz and displays proper chroma 4:4:4 with any of its supported signals, which helps result in clear text while using it as a PC monitor. It accepts 1080p @ 120Hz signals, but it skips frames.

As the LG A2 is limited to HDMI 2.0 bandwidth and a 60Hz refresh rate, it can't take full advantage of the PS5's capabilities, but it still works with signals up to 60 fps.

As the LG A2 is limited to HDMI 2.0 bandwidth and a 60Hz refresh rate, it can't take full advantage of the Xbox Series X's capabilities, but it still works with signals up to 60 fps.

As the tuner is limited to ATSC 1.0, you can't stream over-the-air 4k channels.

The LG A2 supports eARC, meaning it can pass high-quality audio to a compatible receiver or soundbar. It doesn't support DTS or DTS:X, though, which is disappointing as many Blu-rays use this audio format. If you have a Blu-ray player, it's best to connect it directly to your receiver instead of using eARC.

The frequency response is decent. Dialogue sounds clear, and the sound profile is well-balanced, but like most TVs, it doesn't produce much bass, so it's best to get a dedicated subwoofer for that.

The distortion handling isn't bad. There isn't too much distortion at moderate listening levels, but it gets much worse at its max volume.

The LG A2 comes with LG's webOS smart platform built-in, which is user-friendly. It's updated compared to previous versions, as it now supports user profiles, meaning you can customize it for different people in your house.

Unfortunately, like almost all smart TVs on the market, there are ads throughout the smart interface, and you can't disable them.

The LG A2 has a great selection of additional apps, so you're sure to find your favorite content.

The LG A2 comes with their well-known Magic Remote. You can use its point-and-press feature like a Wii remote, making it easier to navigate through the menu. Its built-in mic allows you to ask it to open apps, search for content, and switch inputs, but you can't change certain settings like the brightness. This remote comes with the model ending in PUA, but if you get the model ending in AUA from Costco, it supports NFC, so you can tap your phone against the remote to cast content to the TV.

There's a single button underneath the center of the TV. You can turn the power on and off, adjust the volume, switch inputs, and change channels with it.

• Remote
• 2x AA batteries
• Cable management clips
• User guides