LG 55 B4 vs LG QNED86A / QNED85A / QNED87A

The brightness results in HDR materials LG B4 are very good. It is true that none of them exceed 1000 nits, although the luminance stability is excellent and looks practically the same in every scenario. The only moment where the tested television performs worse is the last scene, although this should not come as a surprise. Large frames filled with a lot of white have always been, and will likely continue to be, somewhat of a weakness for OLED televisions. However, the combination of perfect contrast, black levels, and brightness in the LG B4 allows for a full spectrum of the HDR effect. Additionally, the incredibly high coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut, which reached 99%, deserves recognition. As a result, colours look incredibly vibrant and stunning.

Against the backdrop of contrast and black, the brightness of the QNED86A and the overall HDR effect fare much better. It's a television that can achieve around 700 nits under the best conditions, so in terms of luminance alone, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. As a result, scenes with strong lights, explosions, flashes, or bright parts of the landscape – look clear and can make an impression. Interestingly, even in tougher moments with small, contrasting elements on the screen, the television does well with backlighting and details are quite visible. The problem arises when there are many dark tones. The lack of effective local dimming means that black virtually disappears, and instead, we get a grey glow spreading across the entire screen. This kills the depth effect and causes the image to appear flat, as if it lacks cinematic character. In bright animations or family films with vibrant colours, this won't be an issue, as the colours and bright light dominate. But in horror films or productions set in darkness, these limitations are strongly felt. As a consolation, it’s worth noting that the QNED86A is essentially a QLED television with an LED PFS filter, which gives it very good coverage of wide colour gamuts. Both the DCI-P3 palette and the wider BT.2020 perform solidly here. This means that colours in HDR films are saturated, juicy, and have the right depth – even if the black itself is disappointing, the colours can save the viewing experience and make the image look appealing.

The best factory mode prepared by the manufacturer is "Filmmaker," and we used it throughout the entire testing procedure. We must admit that the unit we received straight out of the box had quite decent colour reproduction. The biggest issue in both SDR and HDR content turned out to be white balance. In the former, there was a strong dominance of red, resulting in a noticeable yellow tint in the displayed image, particularly evident on skin tones and whites. In high-quality materials, this colour was also pronounced, but due to a lack of blue, there were also signs of green visible. Besides these shortcomings, we also encountered issues with greyscale and the colours themselves.

We primarily tested the QNED86A in Filmmaker mode, which is designed to provide the most faithful picture. Unfortunately, right out of the box, there were quite a few shortcomings. The most glaring issue was the poorly calibrated white balance – there was a lack of blue, which caused the overall image to take on a slightly yellowish, and sometimes even an orange hue. An even bigger problem was the way the television manages brightness. Due to its technical limitations – that is, local dimming functioning only along the edges of the screen – the QNED86A has a tendency to oversaturate entire scenes. This is where the flattening of the image that we mentioned earlier comes from. Instead of clear depth and contrast, we get something akin to "boosted brightness," which, in the long run, can strain the eyes.

LG B4 has been providing very advanced calibration tools in its TVs for years. We can even say that as the only manufacturer on the market, it allows for such deep intervention in image adjustment. Thanks to these, we were able to calibrate the device so well. The evidence of this is the extremely low deltaE errors, which can be said to stand at a reference level. Both SDR and HDR materials now look exactly as the film director intended. It is no coincidence that TVs of this brand are most often used as preview screens for various graphic or post-production studios.

What was saved in the QNED86A6A is undoubtedly the colours. After calibration, the white balance was set with great precision, ensuring that deviations on the Colour Checker palette mostly did not exceed the visibility threshold for the human eye. In other words – the colours finally looked natural, without strange yellow or orange tones that had previously marred the perception. Unfortunately, even the best calibration cannot overcome structural limitations. The already mentioned very modest number of local dimming zones and their unfortunate placement meant that the analysis of the EOTF curve in films still showed noticeable scene over-exposures. The image tended to flatten, lacking cinematic depth. Fortunately, this effect is not as visible in older productions or in SDR content. There, calibration really does its job and allows the QNED to be tamed so the image can be pleasing. However, the specifics of this construction – especially the contrast issues – cannot be completely bypassed.

In this paragraph, we will take another look at the tonal transition smoothing feature, but we will also check how the TV handles lower quality material. As we have managed to check, the setting responsible for smooth gradation works quite effectively, although it has its weaker moments. While the feature works well with SDR content, it becomes less useful with HDR content. Even at the lowest of options, it blurs essential details, so we advise against using it.

The image scaling on LG B4 is rated fairly moderately positively. Although there is no edge splitting, the image itself is naturally "soft". We can change this by adjusting the sharpness slider.

If someone is worried about potential "steps" when blending colours, the QNED86A has a simple solution for that. Just turn on the feature called Smooth Gradation and set it to the medium level. Then the TV really smooths out all those unwanted transitions – especially in older productions – and it does so in a way that the film grain doesn’t disappear, nor do any strange artefacts appear. In other words, you can use it without any worries.

The upscaling itself also turns out quite well. Of course, there are no miracles here – with poorer quality sources, you can notice characteristic jagged edges. Fortunately, there is a sharpness slider in the menu, and if someone prefers a more "soft" image, it can be quickly adjusted to their own taste.

The maximum refresh rate we can set on the LG B4 is 120 Hz. This is the absolute minimum for those who require high image smoothness. The manufacturer has implemented a multi-level motion smoother called "TruMotion". It has been divided into two separate sliders that adjust the sharpness of moving images (De-Blur) and stuttering (De-Judder). Both sliders can be set in the range from 0 to 10, with each level affecting the degree of smoothness, so everyone can find their sweet spot.

The LG OLED B4 panel features an average response time of 0.1 ms (which directly results from our measurements), allowing for an incredibly clear image, unattainable for LCD TVs, which have response times of even several milliseconds. This can be clearly seen in images from the "UFO Test", showing no trace of blur trailing behind the object.

QNED86A has been equipped with a 120 Hz refresh rate panel, so right from the start, it can be said to be suitable for both sports and gaming. And indeed it is – the picture looks smooth, and motion blur isn’t too much of an issue. IPS panels have always had a bit of a problem with this, and here too you can sometimes notice slight blurring, especially in very dynamic scenes, but it’s not something that ruins watching a match or a fast-paced game. For cinema and sports fans, LG has included the traditional TruMotion smoothing feature. In the menu, we have two sliders – one for movies (De-Judder), and the other for sports (De-Blur). The first adds missing frames and allows you to adjust the character of motion – from raw, cinematic to a more fluid, “theatrical” feel. The second improves sharpness during dynamic actions, so it’s worth turning it up a bit if you watch a lot of sports.

The LG B4 television is equipped with four full-fledged HDMI 2.1 ports with a full bandwidth of 48Gbps. All functions corresponding to this standard activated without any issues, and throughout the entire testing procedure, they caused no problems. The combination of such extensive functionality and low input lags leads us to say that the tested television is truly designed for gaming. This is not surprising, considering that the manufacturer has always placed great emphasis on this. Therefore, we can enjoy both a properly implemented HGIG mode and gameplay in Dolby Vision with low latency. Such a tandem will surely attract the attention of all passionate gamers for whom quality is the most important.

A standard feature in televisions from the Korean manufacturer is also the implementation of GameBar, allowing for quick adjustments of settings "on the fly," without the need to exit the game. It also enables image adjustments for individuals with visual impairments, which is an extremely nice touch. Another important piece of information is that when the VRR technology is turned on, we will not experience a drop in contrast. This is, of course, due to the construction of the panel and the lack of conventional backlighting. However, it is normal for shades of grey to flicker slightly, although this is a characteristic feature of this function regardless of the manufacturer and the television.

In summary: The LG B4, like all OLEDs from the manufacturer equipped with 120Hz panels and HDMI 2.1 ports, creates a harmonious whole with the console. In practice, it is a complete television, and if we expect the highest possible efficiency in gaming, the B4 will be the ideal choice.

When it comes to gaming, the LG QNED86A6A is a complete tool. It features four HDMI 2.1 ports with a full bandwidth of 48 Gb/s, which means that whether you connect a PlayStation 5, an Xbox Series X, or a powerful PC – everything will work in full 4K at 120 Hz with support for all functions. This is a significant advantage, as some competitors still only feature two such ports, which can be troublesome when dealing with multiple devices. It also includes VRR, or variable refresh rate, which eliminates screen tearing, and ALLM, which automatically activates game mode when the console powers on. Dolby Vision Gaming is included as well, alongside proper implementation of the HGiG format, so titles that support these formats look livelier and more detailed. Additionally, there's the Game Optimizer – a kind of control centre for gamers. From this interface, you can view image parameters in real time, quickly switch modes, activate additional features, or adjust picture settings to your own preferences. The LG QNED86A6A has basically everything you would expect from a modern gaming television.