LG 65EF9500 review

LG does away with OLED's controversial curve

LG 65EF950V
LG does away with OLED's controversial curve

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Wherever you find LG's webOS interface you're going to find a TV that's easy to use. WebOS really does do an outstanding job of streamlining access to all your favorite content and allowing you to customize its set up to suit your individual preferences.

It's economical with its screen real estate too, letting you keep watching TV while you browse many of its features and content links.

Its structure is logical and straightforward, and it's pretty enough and friendly enough in its approach - even using an animated 'bean bird' cartoon character to keep a smile on your face during initial set up. Even the most technophobic of users won't be put off exploring it.

LG's attempt to integrate the TV's picture and sound adjustments into the webOS interface haven't really worked, I guess, simply unnecessarily adding an extra button press. But this is a small niggle amid all the things webOS gets right.

LG 65EF950V

Sound

Compared with the best flat TVs this year, I guess you'd have to say the 65EF9500's sound is only fair to middling. There's not all that much bass around, and high trebles can start to sound a bit harsh when the going really gets tough.

However, in the context of the screen's extraordinary skinniness its sound quality is actually very impressive. Its mid-range is expansive enough to produce loud voices and action scenes without them sounding cramped or thin, and there's a good amount of detail to be heard with high quality movie mixes.

The sound even manages to spread beyond the physical chassis of the TV quite convincingly, making the addition of a separate set of speakers much less of an imperative than I'd expected.

LG 65EF950V

Value

If you look at the 65-inch flat TV market as a whole, then the 65EF9500 is undeniably expensive.

It even comes in well under Samsung's flagship LCD TV for 2015, the UN65JS9500. On the other hand, the 65JS9500 is actually remarkably affordable by OLED standards, costing thousands of dollars less than a similarly specified and large OLED TV would have done only 12 months ago.

So if you're hopelessly attracted to the unique picture qualities OLED delivers, then there's never been a better time to buy one.

John Archer
AV Technology Contributor

John has been writing about home entertainment technology for more than two decades - an especially impressive feat considering he still claims to only be 35 years old (yeah, right). In that time he’s reviewed hundreds if not thousands of TVs, projectors and speakers, and spent frankly far too long sitting by himself in a dark room.