LG QNED91T6A vs IFFALCON U85X

As befits a MiniLED television, QNED91T LG easily exceeds the magic barrier of 1000 nits on the luminance chart. In scenes where light played a key role, the effect was truly decent. For example, 1000 nits in the first scene of "Life of Pi" is really an impressive value, and the 600 nits achieved in scenes three and five allowed us to feel the true magic of HDR. However, problems arise with very small light elements on the screen, such as the moon, lanterns, or lamps. A value of around 100 nits - to put it bluntly - is disappointing, as these elements are so dark that they are barely visible. It is worth praising the television for covering the DCI-P3 colour gamut at 96% and BT.2020 at 75%. LG QNED91T leaves us with mixed feelings, mainly due to very aggressive dimming algorithms, which, while effectively eliminating the halo effect, do impact the brightness of smaller elements.

iFFALCON U85 handles HDR in a rather dual manner – on one hand, it can surprise with a solid peak brightness of around 650 nits, which places it well above average in this price segment. This is particularly evident in full-screen, bright scenes. Examples from movies like Life of Pi or the final test sequences from The Meg prove that the TV can maintain the strength and essence of the HDR effect when the entire panel has to "light up," delivering truly satisfying experiences. However, problems begin in high-contrast scenes, where smaller, bright details appear on the screen; the dimming algorithms prioritize deep blacks to such an extent that they can suppress the brightness of small highlights to just 100 nits, drastically reducing the dynamism of the image and depriving us of the true "punch" we expect from HDR standards. However, the question of colors remains a sweetener; thanks to the use of the PFS phosphor filter (marketed as QLED by the manufacturer), they look very good, achieving nearly 94% coverage of the DCI-P3 color palette, allowing for a rich and vibrant image in most content.

We conduct all our tests in the best picture mode on each TV. In this case, as usual, it is the Filmmaker mode. The name of the mode suggests perfect colour reproduction; however, there were noticeable deviations from the correct image. Our unit, in terms of white balance, showed a significant drop in shades of blue - both in SDR and 4K HDR material - which caused a clear yellowing of the image, noticeable in comparison scenes from the film with Tom Cruise. As we described earlier, QNED91T has some tendencies to brighten the screen. This is confirmed by the gamma, which is significantly lower than the reference value of 2.4. On the other hand, the EOTF curve, responsible for brightness in 4K content, showed some issues with the TV dimming the image in the darkest areas, which we could observe in the paragraph describing HDR effect quality. Although the Filmmaker mode is quite a decent "out of the box" mode, it still requires some adjustments.

We tested the factory colors in 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 problem that stands out in both SDR and HDR content is improper white balance - an excess of blue and red components gives the image a slight purple tint, which undermines the naturalness of film scenes. However, an even greater challenge is the way the television manages its brightness. Analyzing the gamma curve for the SDR signal, we noticed significant instability: instead of sticking to the reference value of 2.4, the device oscillates around 2.2, only to suddenly experience an unnatural jump to around 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 feature 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 took advantage of. 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 better than before calibration. The errors on the Color Checker palette and the colour palette are much smaller than in factory settings. Regarding brightness characteristics, gamma for HD content is practically ideal, with a slight exception at the end of the graph. However, the biggest issues the television had were with brightness in 4K HDR content. Analyzing the EOTF characteristics in films, we noticed that the television manipulates brightness quite significantly, which we observed in earlier tests. Brightness is considerably boosted compared to the graph in the static test, and the television brightens certain scenes to the extent that some smaller elements lose detail. Unfortunately, this is caused by an average local dimming algorithm in this model. Nevertheless, calibration yields decent results, especially in terms of precise colour reproduction.

After professional calibration of the movie mode, we must admit that the effect is more than satisfactory – the iFFALCON U85X undergoes a true transformation. Color errors in SDR content dropped to a level below 2, making them practically imperceptible to the human eye. We managed to set the white balance almost perfectly, and brightness management (gamma) became nearly exemplary. As a result, with standard quality materials, the television looks simply perfect, and it's hard to find any faults with it.

In the case of HDR signal, the situation has also improved significantly, although here the nature of the device is a bit more pronounced. Color 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 chart (available on the right side of the screen in the filters: 4K HDR, gamma / EOTF) to see what is not immediately visible regarding brightness management by the U85. Although the reference line looks decent, in actual 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 ailment of almost every Mini-LED that has to reconcile high brightness with an attempt to maintain deep black. One just has to be aware of these technical limitations, which are unavoidable in this segment.

When it comes to tonal transitions in lower quality materials, the TV offers the already-known feature from LG TVs - "Smooth Gradation." We can control it at three levels: low, medium, and high. We recommend using the medium option, as it effectively removes tonal transitions without causing noticeable issues with removing the structure of objects or other artefacts.

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

When it comes to scaling the image to 4K resolution, the iFFALCON U85X performs solidly. The device efficiently enhances low-quality signals, making even older materials look clean and clear on the 4K matrix. At extremely low resolutions, such as 480p, you can notice slightly jagged edges (especially on thin lines), but let's face it – this is a scenario you'll only encounter when watching very old footage, so it's not a real issue in everyday use.

However, the digital processing aimed at smoothing tonal transitions is significantly worse. Although the menu features a function called “Gradual Smoothing”, its effectiveness is at least debatable. In practice, it does not effectively reduce banding (color stepping), and worse, it can cause more harm than good. This filter can be too aggressive where it shouldn't be, artificially smoothing out details that should not be touched, such as the natural texture of the face or fine details of the skin's texture. Instead of improving quality, this feature can give the image an unnatural, “plastic” look, so it's best to use it with great caution or, better yet: leave it turned 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 movies. As part of this feature, we can adjust the "De-Judder" and "De-Blur" sliders. The "De-Judder" slider is responsible for reducing jitter in movies, which is particularly useful when playing content with a lower frame rate, while "De-Blur" helps reduce blurriness in fast scenes, which is essential for sports or dynamic shots.

In contrast to budget constructions, which in dynamic sports scenes may resemble a slideshow, the iFFALCON U85X is a heavyweight contender equipped with a panel featuring a native refresh rate of 144Hz. However, it is worth remembering that in the world of movies, series, or sports, we will mostly operate at 120Hz due to the specifics of image enhancement systems. Such a fast panel is excellent news for gamers and sports fans, as it opens the door to advanced motion settings that simply don't exist in cheaper 60-Hz models.

We manage everything from the "Motion Clarity" menu, where instead of using pre-set, often too aggressive modes, we definitely recommend a custom configuration based on two sliders. The most important of them, reduction of flicker, is responsible for smoothness in films – here, it's best to aim for a value around 4, which will maintain a natural, cinematic character of motion without falling into the artificial "soap opera effect." On the other hand, the first slider, reduction of blur, 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, and annoying trailing is eliminated.

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

With support for all popular HDR standards in games, such as HGiG and Dolby Vision, we can fully harness the potential of the PS5 and XBOX One consoles. The television also easily handles lower resolutions than 4K, 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 NVIDIA GeForce Now functionality, enabling us to game in the cloud without needing a console. However, it should be noted that this solution is quite expensive and somewhat falls short compared to Xbox Game Pass, which is available only on Samsung TVs.

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

iFFALCON U85X is an exceptional device for gamers that has virtually everything you can expect from a modern screen for consoles or PCs. Here we find two fully-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 and with minimal latency. The TV handles high refresh rates at various resolutions without any problem, and a real curiosity is the mode that allows for up to 240Hz when dropping to Full HD quality. The entire system is managed by the Game Bar (a faithful copy from TCL), which allows for instant switching of picture modes, customization of the interface appearance, or even adding a virtual crosshair in the middle of the screen.