LG QNED91T6A vs IFFALCON U85X

As befits a MiniLED television, LG QNED91T easily surpasses the magical barrier of 1000 nits on the luminance chart. In scenes where light played a key role, the effect was truly decent. For instance, 1000 nits in the first scene of "Life of Pi" is an impressive value, and the 600 nits achieved in the third and fifth scenes allowed one to feel the true magic of HDR. However, problems arise with very small light elements on the screen, such as the moon, street lamps, or lights. A value around 100 nits - to put it bluntly - is disappointing, as these elements are dark enough to be barely visible. The television deserves praise for covering 96% of the DCI-P3 colour gamut and 75% of BT.2020. LG QNED91T leaves us with very mixed feelings, mainly due to the very aggressive dimming algorithms, which, while effectively eliminating the halo effect, negatively impact the brightness of smaller elements.

iFFALCON U85 handles HDR in a rather twofold manner – on one hand, it can surprise with solid peak brightness of around 650 nits, which places it well above average in this price segment. This is especially evident in bright, full-screen scenes. Examples from films such as Life of Pi or the final test sequences from The Meg prove that the television can maintain the power and essence of HDR effect when the entire panel needs to "ignite," delivering truly satisfying experiences. However, problems arise in high-contrast scenes, where smaller, bright details appear on the screen; the dimming algorithms prioritize black depth to such an extent that they can stifle the brightness of small light points to just 100 nits, which drastically reduces image dynamics and deprives us of the true "bite" we expect from HDR standards. On a brighter note, however, the colours remain impressive, as the use of the PFS phosphor filter (marketed as QLED by the manufacturer) showcases them very well, achieving nearly 94% coverage of the DCI-P3 colour palette, allowing for a vibrant and rich image in most content.

All our tests are conducted in the best picture mode on each television. In this case, as usual, it is the Filmmaker mode. The name of the mode suggests ideal colour reproduction; however, there were noticeable deviations from the correct image here. Our unit, in terms of white balance, displayed quite a strong dip in blue hues - both in SDR and 4K HDR content - which resulted in a distinct yellowing of the image, visible in comparison scenes from the film with Tom Cruise. As we mentioned earlier, QNED91T has certain tendencies to brighten the screen. This is confirmed by gamma, which is quite significantly below the reference value of 2.4. Meanwhile, the EOTF curve, responsible for brightness in 4K content, showed some issues with the television's dimming in the darkest areas, which we could observe in the paragraph describing the quality of the HDR effect. Although the Filmmaker mode is quite a good "out-of-the-box" mode, it too requires some adjustments.

We tested the factory colours on the iFFALCON U85X model in 'Film' mode, which is definitely the most reliable among all available settings, although it is still far from perfect. The main issue that stands out in both SDR and HDR content is the incorrect white balance – an excess of blue and red components gives the image a slight purple tint, which disrupts the naturalness of the film scenes. An even greater challenge is the way the television manages its brightness. Analyzing the gamma chart for the SDR signal, we noticed significant instability: instead of adhering to the standard value of 2.4, the device oscillates around 2.2, only to suddenly make an unnatural jump towards 3.0. In practice, this leads to confusing effects – large, bright areas on the screen appear too dark, while smaller elements are unnecessarily brightened. A similar characteristic can be found in the EOTF curve, which makes the image unpredictable and loses its cinematic authenticity.

LG offers advanced calibration tools in its televisions such as 65QNED91T6A, which we utilised. When it comes to white balance, we were able to significantly correct it in SDR content. The picture mode in 4K HDR quality posed greater challenges, which, although still not perfect, looks significantly better than before calibration. Errors on the Color Checker palette and colour gamut are much smaller than in the factory settings. Regarding brightness characteristics, gamma for HD content is practically ideal, with a slight exception at the end of the graph. However, the television had the most trouble with brightness in 4K HDR content. Analyzing the EOTF characteristics in films, we observed that the television manipulates brightness quite heavily, which we could see in previous tests. Brightness is significantly boosted compared to the graph in the static test, and the television lights up certain scenes to the point that some smaller elements lose detail. This is unfortunately caused by the average backlight zone management algorithm in this model. Nevertheless, calibration yields quite good results, especially when it comes to the precise reproduction of colours.

After professional calibration of the movie mode, we must admit that the result is more than satisfactory – the iFFALCON U85X undergoes a true transformation. Colour errors in SDR content have dropped to a level below 2, which makes them virtually imperceptible to the human eye. We have managed to set the white balance almost perfectly, and brightness management (gamma) has become nearly exemplary. As a result, with standard quality materials, the television simply looks perfect and it is difficult to fault it.

In the case of HDR signal, the situation has also significantly improved, although here the nature of the device becomes a bit more evident. Colour errors have been reduced to around 3, which is an outstanding result in this price range. However, it is worth taking a look at the EOTF graph (available on the right side of the screen in the filters: 4K HDR, gamma / EOTF) to notice what is not immediately visible regarding the brightness management by the U85. Although the reference line looks decent, in real film scenes, the television still interprets the signal “in its own way” due to very aggressive local dimming algorithms. Does this disqualify this model for watching HDR content? Absolutely not. It's simply a typical affliction of almost every Mini-LED, which must reconcile high brightness with the attempt to maintain deep blacks. One simply needs to be aware of these technical limitations, which are unavoidable in this segment.

When it comes to tonal transitions in lower quality materials, the television offers a well-known feature from LG televisions - "Smooth Gradation". We can control it in three levels: low, medium, and high. We recommend using the medium option, as it does a good job of removing tonal transitions without causing noticeable problems with the removal of object structure or other artefacts.

As for image scaling (upscaling), LG's Alpha processor performs quite well in this regard. The image appears very plastic, with slight aliasing on some elements, which does not significantly affect the quality. It looks really okay, and the overall effect is very satisfactory.

When it comes to upscaling the image to 4K resolution, the iFFALCON U85X performs well. The device efficiently enhances low-quality signals, making even older materials look clean and clear on the 4K panel. At extremely low resolutions, such as 480p, one can notice slightly jagged edges (especially on fine lines), but let's be honest – this is a scenario that you will encounter only when watching very old recordings, so in everyday use, it is not a real problem.

Much worse is the digital processing aimed at smoothing tonal transitions. Although in the menu we find the “Gradual Smoothing” function, its effectiveness is at least questionable. In practice, it does not effectively eliminate banding (colour banding), and worse, it can cause more harm than good. This filter can be too aggressive in areas where it shouldn’t, artificially smoothing details that should not be altered, such as the natural texture of the face or fine details of skin texture. Instead of improving quality, this function can give the image an unnatural, “plastic” appearance, so it is best to use it with great caution or, preferably, leave it switched off.

The television has a refresh rate of 120 Hz, which should satisfy most users in terms of motion smoothness. Additionally, QNED91T is equipped with the TruMotion feature, which allows for smoother image display in films. Within this feature, we can adjust the "De-Judder" and "De-Blur" sliders. The "De-Judder" slider is responsible for reducing judder in films, which is particularly useful when playing content with a lower frame rate, while "De-Blur" helps to reduce blur in fast scenes, which is important for sports or dynamic shots.

In contrast to budget constructions, which in dynamic sports scenes can resemble a slideshow, the iFFALCON U85X is a heavyweight contender equipped with a panel that has a native refresh rate of 144Hz. However, it is worth noting that in the world of films, series, or sports, we will primarily operate at 120Hz due to the specifics of how image enhancement systems function. Such a fast panel is excellent news for gamers and sports fans as it opens the door to advanced motion settings that simply do not exist in cheaper 60Hz models.

We manage everything from the menu “Motion Clarity”, where instead of using pre-set, often overly aggressive modes, we definitely recommend our own configuration based on two sliders. The most important of these, motion blur reduction, is responsible for fluidity in films – here, it’s best to aim for a value of around 4, which will maintain a natural, cinematic character of motion without falling into the artificial “soap opera effect.” Meanwhile, the first slider, motion blur reduction, is the key to success in sports broadcasts. In this case, it’s worth going all out and setting it to maximum, ensuring that the image during fast actions on the field remains sharp, while troublesome trailing is eliminated.

The LG 65QNED91T6A television is equipped with HDMI 2.1 ports with full bandwidth of 48 Gb/s, providing full support for all the standards needed for gaming on modern consoles. We can count on variable refresh rate (VRR) support and automatic low latency mode (ALLM). This ensures smooth gameplay without delays.

Thanks to support for all popular HDR standards in games, such as HGiG and Dolby Vision, we can fully utilise the potential of the PS5 and XBOX One consoles. The television also handles lower resolutions than 4K without any issues, so even older consoles look good on it. The Game Bar makes it easy to access gaming-related settings, allowing us to quickly and intuitively adjust picture parameters and features for gamers. Additionally, the QNED91T offers the NVIDIA GeForce Now feature, which allows us to play in the cloud without needing a console. However, it should be noted that this solution is quite costly and somewhat falls short of the Xbox Game Pass, which is available only on Samsung televisions.

QNED91T LG is an excellent choice for both less experienced and more advanced gamers looking for a versatile television for gaming.

iFFALCON U85X is an outstanding piece of equipment for gamers that has just about everything one can expect from a modern screen for consoles or PCs. We find here two full-fledged HDMI 2.1 ports with full bandwidth of 48 Gbps, which opens the door to key technologies such as VRR and ALLM, ensuring smooth gameplay without tearing the image and with minimal latency. The television handles high refresh rates in various resolutions without any problems, and a real curiosity is the mode that allows for achieving up to 240Hz when dropping down to Full HD quality. The whole thing is managed by the Game Bar (which is a faithful copy from TCL), allowing for instant switching of picture modes, customising the interface appearance, or even adding a virtual crosshair in the middle of the screen.