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00:00This is the brand new LG QNED Mini LED 86 TV.
00:05Bit of a mouthful, but also one heck of a TV.
00:07And if you're after a big screen with fantastic image quality,
00:10but perhaps you can't quite stretch your budget to a flagship LG OLED TV,
00:15then these QNED TVs are definitely worth considering.
00:18It combines a mini LED backlight, a quantum dot layer,
00:22and LG's own nano cell filter to give you the best possible image quality
00:26out of a LED LCD TV.
00:28And a big thank you to LG for sending out this whopper of a 75 inch TV
00:32and also partnering with me on this video.
00:34And if you fancy checking this guy out, I'll leave a link in the description below.
00:38So these 2023 QNEDs get LG's latest Alpha 7 Gen 6 4K AI processor.
00:45We also get a much improved stand with this new model,
00:47as well as updated webOS 23 software,
00:50which includes this nifty new personalised picture wizard,
00:53so it can create a custom profile that suits you.
00:56So we've had these LG QNEDs for a couple of years now,
00:59and it's short for quantum dot nano cell.
01:01Now, you have your regular basic LED LCD TVs that you could buy for a few hundred quid.
01:06Then above that, you've got LEDs that feature a mini LED backlight
01:09and maybe a quantum dot layer.
01:11A little bit better, a little bit more expensive.
01:13And then above that, at the tip top of non-OLED TVs,
01:16you've got these LG QNEDs that add that nano cell filter at the front.
01:21So basically the best kind of TV you can get without going up to OLED.
01:25And it's really a combination of these layers that gets you the best image quality.
01:29The mini LED backlight boosts brightness
01:31and also massively improves the contrast thanks to much better local dimming.
01:35Then the quantum dot layer boosts brightness
01:37and filters the light to give you more vivid, more accurate colours.
01:40And then we have that LG nano cell layer,
01:42which uses nano particles to filter unwanted light for purer and even more accurate colours.
01:48And it can also help enhance details in the scene.
01:50Basically, it's the filter that filters the filter, I think.
01:54Either way, LG reckon QNED is the next-gen QLED.
01:58And first impressions?
02:00Well, it's a pretty big TV.
02:01So you can get a much bigger screen without paying quite as much money.
02:05You'll also see we have this new stand.
02:06This actually replaces the Crescent stand that we've had on the last couple of years of nano cells.
02:10And I really like this because it's much easier to fit a soundbar here.
02:14You can actually adjust the height of this.
02:16There's two different options around the back.
02:18So you can have your screen above your soundbar.
02:20And also, for an LED LCD TV with a big screen like this,
02:25it's a completely flat back.
02:26So you can wall mount it and it'll be nice and close to your wall.
02:30Not quite as flush as their gallery OLEDs,
02:33but not bad at all for a TV like this.
02:35And everything about this new metal stand just feels more premium, more high-end.
02:39And it does a really good job at not making the TV too wobbly,
02:43even though it's a pretty big size.
02:44And around the back, you can actually route the cables through the back of the stand
02:48to keep them nice and tidy and hidden away.
02:49So a nice design upgrade with this new stand.
02:53Now, around the back, we have four HDMI ports,
02:56two of which are the higher spec 2.1.
02:58Great for your PC and games console, so you can get up to 4K 120 that way.
03:02Although one of them is the eARC,
03:04which is what you want to use if you're going to plug in an eARC soundbar or speaker system.
03:08So it's a bit annoying that that does take up one of those faster ports,
03:11but you do also have two regular HDMI 2 ports as well for 4K 60.
03:15So four in total, two 2.1, and also an RJ45 ethernet port
03:20if you want to get the fastest, most reliable internet,
03:22which you may want to do if you're going to do some game streaming on this,
03:24because this is a pretty good gaming TV in its own right.
03:27And with apps like GeForce Now, you can actually stream games directly to this
03:31without needing a console or a PC.
03:332023 QNEDs also get their latest Alpha 7 Gen 6 4K processor.
03:39And while perhaps not the most exciting upgrade, it is the TV's brain.
03:43And this year, we're looking at better upscaling, improved local dimming control and contrast,
03:47plus better motion handling and deep learning AI optimizations.
03:51It also controls the automatic brightness and sound levels
03:53depending on the type of content you're watching.
03:55And as usual, here in the AI service settings,
03:58we have picture, brightness, genre selection and sound AI modes
04:01where the TV will auto detect and give you the best settings based on what you're watching.
04:05Or if you prefer, you can just turn it all off.
04:07But one of the most important parts of the processor's job is how it manages local dimming,
04:12because having tons of dimming zones is kind of pointless
04:14unless you have a processor that can use them optimally.
04:17So with this and its mini LED backlight,
04:19we have around 30,000 or so LEDs projecting the light out.
04:24So actually on a 10% window on this screen with HDR content,
04:27we're looking at about 1,250 nits of brightness,
04:29which is definitely one of the brightest TVs you can get outside of the latest OLEDs.
04:34And actually, this is split into around 2,500 or so dimming zones.
04:38It does vary based on the size of the TV.
04:40And all that, as I say, is managed and optimised by the processor.
04:44And so each zone can be then dimmed individually,
04:47which means the TV and the processor has more granular control over which areas are bright and dark,
04:52which helps to reduce light bleed in darker areas of the scene,
04:55meaning deeper blacks and better contrast, especially with HDR content.
04:59Now, of course, OLEDs with their per-pixel dimming
05:02still have the advantage when it comes to perfect contrast and blacks,
05:05but the QNED is brighter than all but the top-end OLEDs.
05:09And image retention, aka burn-in, won't ever be an issue here.
05:13Not that I've ever experienced that with my OLEDs.
05:15And so I am a big fan of mini-LED, especially in more affordable TVs.
05:20And while a big TV is never going to be exactly cheap,
05:23they're a good balance of size, image quality and price.
05:27Now, to my eye, image quality is fantastic,
05:29particularly if you're watching Dolby Vision or HDR10 content.
05:33Although, obviously, without last year's model next to it side-by-side,
05:37it's kind of hard to tell just how much different or better this year is,
05:40but it's still a phenomenal TV in terms of overall picture quality.
05:43I mean, just look at it.
05:45And with that new stand, those really nice and slim bezels around the edge,
05:48and also a pretty decent anti-reflective coating, it's a lovely TV.
05:52Now, one of the new features I mentioned earlier is this personalized picture wizard.
05:56So you can go into it in the settings menu,
05:58it'll give you a sort of few A-B tests, you say which one you prefer,
06:01and at the end, it'll create this custom profile for you.
06:04Now, right now, I have it in Expert Bright.
06:06I do quite like this mode.
06:07I usually go between Expert Bright, Expert Dark, or the Filmmaker modes.
06:11But if I go along here,
06:14you can see this is my cool and balanced personalized picture profile.
06:18It's going to be different for everyone.
06:19You may not like this, and you can, of course, stick with the regular presets,
06:23but it's a nice new option to have.
06:25It's also a heck of a TV if you're into your games as well.
06:27I've got my PS5 hooked up here via the HDMI 2.1 port,
06:31and it supports up to 120 frames per second.
06:34We've got a 120 refresh, although the game also has to support that.
06:37We have FreeSync Premium VRR,
06:39which helps smooth out your frame rate and also reduce screen tearing.
06:43We have H-Gig support, which is a fancy technology
06:46that sort of optimizes the HDR of the game to the dynamic range of your TV.
06:51Or is it the way around?
06:52Either way, it's a good feature to have.
06:53And also Auto Low Latency mode, which is what you'd want.
06:56So when it detects a game input like a PS5 console,
06:59then it actually turns off a lot of that background processing
07:01to give you the fastest response time and lowest latency possible.
07:05So if you want a big, bright, and fast gaming experience,
07:07these QLED TVs are actually a pretty good choice.
07:10And as I mentioned earlier, you can always go down the cloud gaming route
07:13if you install the GeForce Now app,
07:15which lets you stream your PC game libraries up to 4K directly onto the TV.
07:19LG's WebOS 23 is just as slick and easy to use as ever.
07:23Plus, it's identical to the UI that you get on LG TVs
07:26that costs two or three times as much.
07:29We get all the usual streaming service suspects,
07:31and there's a new GameQuick card here on the home screen,
07:34which gives you a gaming focus list of apps like Twitch and GeForce Now all in one place.
07:38And as ever, I'm a big fan of LG's Magic Remote, which comes bundled with the TV.
07:43As for sound quality, well, it's surprisingly not bad.
07:46There is bass up to a point, and vocals and music are clear.
07:49Plus, it gets pretty loud,
07:51although I'd still recommend pairing it with a good soundbar to get the best experience.
07:56So the 2023 LG QNED Mini LED 86 TV is a nice little refinement this year.
08:02Nothing groundbreaking, but the new stand, the latest version of WebOS,
08:07the new processor, all nice little upgrades.
08:09And overall, it's a terrific TV for movies, watching sports, gaming.
08:13And I really do like WebOS and also the Magic Remote.
08:16Now, if you fancy checking this out for yourself,
08:18I will leave a link in the description below.
08:20And if you've got any questions about this, drop a comment as well.
08:22I'll do my best to get back to you.
08:24Thank you so much for watching, guys.
08:25I'll see you next time right here on The Tech Jam.