LG 42LE4900 review

LG's great value 42-inch edge-LED set has some tasty features, but can its pictures cut the mustard at this price?

LG 42LE4900
LG's great value 42-inch edge-LED set has some tasty features

Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

Like an eight-stone opera singer, the 42LE4900 musters a surprising amount of sonic power from its skinny frame. We're not quite sure how, but the scene in chapter 2 of Inception, when the building collapses, sounds loud and detailed, and high frequencies are relayed without excessive harshness.

However, it's still boxy in tone and seriously lacking in bass, which is fine when watching Dickinson's Real Deal but gets a bit wearing when you watch Inception all the way through.

Value

Weighing up the amount of features against the circa-£600 price tag, we have to conclude that the 42LE4900 offers good value for money. It's great to find DLNA features and USB playback on the spec sheet, plus you don't find picture settings this detailed on many sets at this price.

That value factor does start to dip once you consider the picture shortcomings, the lack of on-board processing and the limitations of LG's current internet TV offering, but even then there's still enough good stuff here to stop you feeling short-changed.