Hello and welcome to the review of LG C1 OLED TV in 55-inch screen size. C1 is a direct successor
to the excellent CX OLED TV from last year and it is available in a wide variety of screen
sizes - from 48 up to 83 inches. Except for the new 83-inch variant, refreshed webOS 6.0
platform and updated magic remote, there are no big changes compared to last year, but despite
that C1 is still an excellent TV for a wide variety of content. Let’s dive into details.
LG 2021 OLED TV lineup consists of 6 different series, A1, B1, C1, G1, R1 and Z1. A1, B1,
C1, G1 and R1 have Ultra HD 4K panels, while Z1 is the only series featuring
Ultra HD 8K screen. All series except for A1 have 120 Hz panels and support 4K120 gaming.
G1 is the only OLED series with an improved panel this year - so called OLED evo that can reach
higher peak luminance. G1 is available in 55”, 65” and 77” and it is the only series that is
designed to be mounted on the wall - if needed, the stand needs to be purchased separately.
A1 and B1 series are using alpha 7 gen 4 picture processor, while other series
are using 4th generation of alpha 9 processor designed specifically for OLED technology.
C1 has exactly the same design as CX and C9 OLED TVs, so there is nothing new to report
here. Build quality remains excellent and design is still very clean and elegant.
An updated version of magic remote is supplied with C1 - the new version supports NFC, has an
updated design that fits well in the hand and it’s got all the well known features that made it one
of the best remotes on the market. The pointer, the wheel, customizable quick access buttons,
and built-in microphone for voice assistants. LG has redesigned the home menu on the webOS 6.0
with the full screen approach similar to Android TV. As I said in my review of UP7500 series,
I’m not a big fan of this approach as it is more complicated compared to the previous home menu.
Another thing which was quite surprising is the fact that new webOS is still not in native 4K
resolution but only in HD. This makes it faster, but less sharp especially if you get a TV with a
big screen. You can see the new magic remote and webOS 6 in action in my hands on video,
linked in the description. My measurements using CalMAN 2021, picture
processor tests and viewing of various content confirmed that overall picture quality of C1
is the same as on the previous generation. In short - it is excellent and will satisfy even
the most demanding users. Upscaling, motion, uniformity, HDR, colors, contrast - as soon as
you select one of the accurate picture presets you can enjoy content without any worry.
For those who want the best accuracy, the TV offers plenty of picture controls together
with support for CalMAN’s AutoCal automatic calibration for the studio accuracy at your home.
You can learn more about picture modes and settings in my separate video.
As expected, HDR performance was on the same level since the peak brightness,
color gamut coverage and supported HDR formats are the same as last year. I like that LG has added an
option to disable HDR tone mapping, so the user can choose which image he or she prefers - with
more or fewer details in highlights. The control is available in the picture settings menu.
There are no additional controls to prevent image retention and
the same options are available as on previous generations.
C1 is an excellent TV for gaming - all of its 4 HDMI 2.1 ports can carry Ultra HD 4K HDR picture
at 120 frames per second and there is also NVIDIA G-SYNC and AMD Freesync support for
tear-free gaming. Auto Low Latency mode is supported, input lag is very low,
pixel response is short and there is no noticeable blur that would distract you.
There is also a dedicated Game optimizer menu in which user can fine tune game related options.
Sound quality is on the same excellent level as on the previous generation.
Clear and loud with a good balance of low and high frequencies. As I compared the sound quality to my
C9 OLED TV, I concluded that it is exactly the same. You can also connect the TV to an
external audio system for even better result, especially for enjoying movie soundtracks.
Time to conclude this review. LG kept the same winning formula when
it comes to the new C1 OLED TV. It is an excellent line of TVs for everything from watching movies,
TV shows, sports to gaming. The image is sharp, upscaling is great, HDR performance is
impactful and sound quality is surprisingly good for the built-in down firing speakers.
Even though I’m not a big fan of the new webOS homescreen,
I’m glad to see that it remains fast, stable and great in conjunction with
the supplied magic remote. I really hope LG will update webOS to the native 4K resolution
since the interface is not as sharp as it should be on such an excellent TV.
Considering the price, features and performance, LG C1 deserves my highly recommended award.
I would like to thank the LG office in Croatia for sending me this TV for testing.
Finally, thank you all for watching this video and have a great day.