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To try to better understand how long a TV should last, we're running 100 TVs through an accelerated longevity test for the next two years. We've just posted our 1-year video update with our latest findings on temporary image retention, burn-in, and more!

LG EF9500 OLED TV Review

Tested using Methodology v1.0
Review updated Mar 01, 2017 at 06:31 am
LG EF9500 OLED Picture
8.5
Mixed Usage
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
9.3
Movies
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
8.1
TV Shows
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
8.2
Sports
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
8.4
Video Games
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
7.8
HDR Movies
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
8.6
HDR Gaming
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench
7.8
PC Monitor
Value for price beaten by
: Not at the latest test bench

The LG OLED EF9500 4k TV has a very sleek design and excellent overall picture quality, especially in a dark room. Motion handling is excellent, and smart features work very well. It isn't perfect, though. Notably, the input lag is higher than average.

Our Verdict

8.5 Mixed Usage

Great all-round TV. Excellent picture quality and motion handling for a range of different content. Unfortunately the screen can't get very bright and fluctuates depending on the content.

Pros
  • Perfect blacks
  • Perfect flicker-free motion
  • Great color accuracy at an angle
Cons
  • Prone to temporary image retention after displaying static images
  • Constantly changing luminosity based on the scene (ABL)
  • High input lag
  • Poor color uniformity in the shadows
9.3 Movies

Great movie performance. OLED panel provides perfect blacks and great dark scene performance. Picture quality is excellent.

8.1 TV Shows

Great for watching TV is an an open room. Excellent picture quality can be enjoyed from all angles. Deals very well with reflections. Unfortunately can't get very bright to overcome ambient light.

8.2 Sports

Excellent sports performance. Almost perfect motion handling to minimize blur. Uniformity of screen could be better.

8.4 Video Games

Very good video game performance. Excellent picture quality, and motion handling. Unfortunately the input lag is above average for fast-paced games.

7.8 HDR Movies

HDR looks great. Supports a wide color gamut and brighter highlights. Unfortunately the whole screen can't get bright.

7.8 PC Monitor

Works well as a PC monitor. Supports a wide range of resolutions at up to 60Hz. Unfortunately there is some temporary image retention after static images.

  • 8.5 Mixed Usage
  • 9.3 Movies
  • 8.1 TV Shows
  • 8.2 Sports
  • 8.4 Video Games
  • 7.8 HDR Movies
  • 8.6 HDR Gaming
  • 7.8 PC Monitor
  1. Updated Mar 01, 2017: Review published.
  2. Updated Nov 09, 2015: Our testers have started testing this product.
  3. Updated Oct 25, 2015: We've purchased the product and are waiting for it to arrive in our lab.

Test Results

Design
9.0
Design
Style
Curved No

The EF9500 has a flat screen (the only one in LG's OLED lineup). The back of the TV is a white cream color. The borders around the screen are really thin.

Design
Stand

Dimension of the 55" TV stand: 28.5" x 8.5"

Design
Borders
Borders 0.35" (0.9 cm)
Design
Thickness
Max Thickness 1.46" (3.7 cm)
Picture Quality
10
Picture Quality
Contrast
Native Contrast
Inf : 1

The blacks are really black on this TV, because the pixels self-emit the TV's light.

10
Picture Quality
Local Dimming
Local Dimming
No
Backlight
N/A

For reference, we took a video of our local dimming test.

6.1
Picture Quality
SDR Peak Brightness
SDR Peak 2% Window
365 cd/m²
SDR Peak 10% Window
367 cd/m²
SDR Peak 25% Window
366 cd/m²
SDR Peak 50% Window
230 cd/m²
SDR Peak 100% Window
131 cd/m²
SDR Sustained 2% Window
365 cd/m²
SDR Sustained 10% Window
367 cd/m²
SDR Sustained 25% Window
366 cd/m²
SDR Sustained 50% Window
230 cd/m²
SDR Sustained 100% Window
131 cd/m²

The SDR peak brightness is bellow average and is similar to the HDR peak brightness, and the same comment about the 'ABL' apply. The overall peak brightness is a bit less than what you can achieve while in HDR mode, though.

6.2
Picture Quality
HDR Peak Brightness
HDR Peak 2% Window
402 cd/m²
HDR Peak 10% Window
400 cd/m²
HDR Peak 25% Window
399 cd/m²
HDR Peak 50% Window
226 cd/m²
HDR Peak 100% Window
135 cd/m²
HDR Sustained 2% Window
402 cd/m²
HDR Sustained 10% Window
400 cd/m²
HDR Sustained 25% Window
399 cd/m²
HDR Sustained 50% Window
226 cd/m²
HDR Sustained 100% Window
135 cd/m²

Like other OLED TVs, it has ABL, which means the maximum luminosity of the screen varies depending on the content of the image. You can see a table of our full measurements here.

8.3
Picture Quality
Gray Uniformity
50% Std. Dev.
2.046%
50% DSE
0.141%

In terms of uniformity, this is the worst OLED TV we've seen so far. Even the edges are slightly darker than the rest of the screen. This varies by unit though, so don't look at this number meaning there will be a definite problem, but more as a general indication.

8.0
Picture Quality
Viewing Angle
LCD Type
N/A
Color Shift
35°
Brightness
68°
Black Level
75°

It can maintain its picture quality at an angle without major problems (the colors change slightly, though).

Update 01/06/2017: We have changed the methodology of testing. Since this is an old TV which we don't have anymore, we extrapolated the results from 2016 TVs.

10
Picture Quality
Black Uniformity
Native Std. Dev.
0.329%

On a purely black screen, the uniformity is perfect. However, dark grays are not as good (more on this later).

9.5
Picture Quality
Gradient
Color Depth
10 Bit
9.1
Picture Quality
Pre Calibration
White Balance dE
1.97
Color dE
1.5044
Gamma
2.09
9.7
Picture Quality
Post Calibration
White Balance dE
0.33
Color dE
0.7689
Gamma
2.2
8.0
Picture Quality
480p Input

Lower quality content like DVDs or SD channels are displayed without any problems. You might want to turn on 'Noise Reduction' though, to reduce a little bit the noise.

8.0
Picture Quality
720p Input

Cable TV and other 720p content looks good on the LG EF9500.

9.0
Picture Quality
1080p Input

Blu-rays looks good on this TV.

10
Picture Quality
4k Input

Native 4k content looks good and sharp on the LG EF9500.

7.4
Picture Quality
Color Gamut
Wide Color Gamut
Yes
DCI P3 xy
84.71%
DCI P3 uv
85.7%
Rec 2020 xy
61.26%
Rec 2020 uv
64.05%
9.0
Picture Quality
Reflections
Reflection
0.4%
Screen Finish
Glossy

The screen finish has a purple tint, which is a little bit annoying, but not a deal breaker. The screen is glossy, though, so if you have a window directly opposite the TV, your eye will be distracted.
The varying luminosity is not as bad on this OLED as the others we reviewed. With half the screen displaying white, a luminosity of 219.9 cd/m2 is not bad. See here for a table of measurements at different window sizes.

10
Picture Quality
3D
3D
Yes
3D Type
Passive

The passive 3D on this TV is great. You don't see the alternating lines the way you do on the 1080p OLED TVs.

Picture Quality
Pixels
Type OLED
Motion
9.9
Motion
Motion Blur
Refresh Rate 120 Hz
Response Time
0.3 ms
Overshoot
1.3 ms

Interestingly, the transitions look more like the EC9300 than the EG9100. It is not noticeable to the naked eye, though. Unfortunately (or fortunately for some), the screen doesn't flicker.

4.0
Motion
Image Flicker
PWM Dimming Frequency
0 Hz
BFI
No
BFI Frequency
0 Hz
BFI In Game Mode
No
8.6
Motion
24p Playback
Judder-free 24p
Yes
Judder-free 24p via 60p
No
Judder-free 24p via 60i
Yes

Update 1/25/2016: We installed new firmware (04.20.75) and no longer have judder via 24p or 24p via 60i, which means this TV is now equal to the LG EG9600 for judder-free playback. You can find the firmware and installation instructions here.

10
Motion
Motion Interpolation
Motion Interpolation (30 fps)
Yes
Motion Interpolation (60 fps)
Yes
Inputs
6.2
Inputs
Input Lag
1080p @ 60Hz
53.5 ms
1080p With Interpolation
120.1 ms
1080p @ 60Hz Outside Game Mode
54.5 ms
1080p @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
56.7 ms
4k @ 60Hz
51.9 ms
4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
63.3 ms

The good news is you don't need to be in any special mode to get lower input lag. You simply need to make sure 'TruMotion' is disabled.

8.0
Inputs
Supported Resolutions
Resolution 4k
1080p @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
1080p @ 120Hz
No
4k @ 30Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes
4k @ 60Hz
Yes
4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4
Yes

As with all LG TVs, it doesn't support a 120 fps signal. To get chroma 4:4:4, you need to set the input icon to PC. For 4k @ 60Hz @ 4:4:4, you also need to turn on UHD Color.

Inputs
Side Inputs
Inputs
Rear Inputs
Inputs
Total Inputs
HDMI 3
USB 3
Digital Optical Audio Out 1
Analog Audio Out 3.5mm 0
Analog Audio Out RCA 0
Component In 1 (incl. adapter)
Composite In 1 (incl. adapter)
Tuner (Cable/Ant) 1
Ethernet 1
DisplayPort 0
IR In 0
SD/SDHC 0
Inputs
Inputs Specifications
HDR10
Yes
5.1 Passthrough ARC Dolby Digital
Yes
Dolby Vision
No
5.1 Passthrough ARC DTS
Yes
5.1 Passthrough Optical Dolby Digital
Yes
5.1 Passthrough Optical DTS
Yes
HDMI 2.0 Full Bandwidth Yes
ARC Yes (HDMI 2)
USB 3 Yes (1)
HDCP 2.2 Yes
CEC Yes
MHL No
Variable Analog Audio Out No
Sound Quality
7.6
Sound Quality
Frequency Response
Std. Dev. @ 70
3.56 dB SPL
Std. Dev. @ 80
3.35 dB SPL
Std. Dev. @ Max
4.83 dB SPL
Max
91.3 dB SPL
Low-end Cutoff
84 Hz

Good bass extension and loudness. The frequency response is good too, and no pumping is present.

6.7
Sound Quality
Total Harmonic Distortion
Distortion @ 70
0.013
Distortion @ 80
0.034
Distortion @ Max
0.05

Very good distortion results all-around.

Smart Features
9.0
Smart Features
Interface
Smart OS WebOS

LG's WebOS smart platform is great and very user-friendly. You can control the onscreen cursor with the remote by pointing at the screen. See our full review of WebOS here.

0
Smart Features
Ads
Ad-free
No
Opt-out
No

Ads can be found on the main page of the LG content store.

Smart Features
Remote
Remote Smart
Smart Features
Misc
Power Consumption 101 W
Power Consumption (Max) 149 W
Firmware 03.01.15