LG A1 OLED 4K HDR TV
RRP $ 1,800.00
"The LG A1 is not a game changer, but still an OLED television."
advantages
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Perfect black levels
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Great color
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Low input lag
disadvantage
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Lower brightness
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Sluggish interface
Unseen, we presented the LG A1 OLED with our Top Tech of CES 2021 Award in January. At the time we wrote, "LG promises that the A-Series will be much more affordable for a wider audience, and while LG has not yet released any figures, we are confident that we will reach the prices that the average family can afford."
Perhaps our trust was out of place.
It turns out that – at the time I write this seven months later – the LG A1 OLED is only two or three hundred dollars less than the LG C1 OLED I raved about earlier this year, assuming you look at it 55- or 65-inch models. That's not the kind of breakthrough pricing I was hoping for when I introduced the A1 OLED to my coworkers via a Zoom call towards the end of the world's biggest virtual tech show. Sure, $ 300 isn't to be sneezed at, but it's not a huge premium to ask if you're already looking to spend close to $ 1,800 on a 65-inch television.
TV prices usually drop towards the end of the calendar year and may drop further when next year's models hit this spring, but for now the prospect of an OLED TV below $ 1,000 remains elusive.
For this review, I think it's important to know what you get and what you don't get with LG's A1 OLED and, perhaps most importantly, whether the small saving comes with some sacrifice in design and performance.
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Dan Baker / Digital Trends
Despite a few flaws, the A1 OLED is still an OLED TV, and I was quickly reminded of this when I unboxed the TV. It has the same amazingly thin profile that you'll find on the C1 OLED, with a screen thinner than any other smartphone on the market. Sure, there is a bulge in the lower third of the TV that houses all of the electronics, but even when mounted on the wall, you still get the “wow” factor from the incredibly thin screen – even if it doesn't curl up.
The screen isn't the only part that resembles the LG C1 OLED. The entire chassis appears to be identical to the LG C1, with one exception: the A1 OLED only has three HDMI ports, while the C1 has four.
The similarities end with the included stand. The LG A1 comes with two feet that must be screwed into the bottom of the TV, while the LG C1 comes with a heavy, central stand. However, since the LG A1 shares the same chassis with the C1, anyone who wanted to use the central stand of the C1, CX or even C9 OLED TV could if they wanted – the mounting holes are there. A quick visit to eBay will produce results on LG C-Series stands for sale. Just be prepared to pay for it as the shipping is so steep due to the heavy weight of the stand.
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
Once set up on a stand or mounted on the wall, the television looks very elegant with its extremely thin profile, frameless design and a strong anti-glare coating to reduce the "mirror effect" of the screen.
The A1 OLED comes with LG's newly designed “Magic Motion” remote control, which is equipped with buttons and also enables motion control of the TV in the Nintendo Wii style.
LG A1 OLED 4K HDR details
| Screen size | Model no | RRP |
| 48 inches |
OLED48A1PUA |
$ 1,200 |
| 55 inches | OLED55A1PUA | $ 1,300 |
| 65 inches | OLED65A1PUA | $ 1,800 |
| 77 in | OLED77A1PUA | $ 3,000 |
Features and Specifications
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
The LG A1 OLED uses a 60 Hz panel in contrast to the 120 Hz panel of the slightly more expensive C1 model. In general, screens with higher refresh rates offer smoother and more natural motion, especially in fast-moving sports and movie scenes.
The A1 is powered by LG's A7 Gen4 processor, not the newest, fanciest A9 Gen4 processor found in all of LG's other OLED TV series. We'll go into more detail about what that means in the Performance section.
As already mentioned, the A1 has three HDMI inputs instead of four, none of which are HDMI 2.1 compatible. The TV supports eARC for uncompressed audio passthrough to other devices, but it doesn't support other popular features associated with HDMI 2.1 such as: However, the A1 offers LG's Game Optimizer setting, so it can't do without game-friendly features. We'll get more into gaming performance in the next section.
The television offers HDR10, HLG and Dolby Vision HDR support, so it is an HDR television, but as test measurements with a SpectraCal VideoForge Pro and a C6 measuring device with CalMAN software showed, the LG A1 OLED is not as bright as the LG C1 OLED or, as it turns out, the Vizio OLED TV.
power
user interface
The LG A1 runs LG's WebOS Smart TV system, which recently received a facelift and is a little more eye-friendly and easier to navigate than it was a year ago. However, I've found that WebOS felt more cluttered as it was used, and its implementation in the A1 OLED proved annoyingly sluggish. I was often frustrated with the delay between my key presses and the corresponding action on the screen. The system can be used to watch Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and other apps, but I would highly recommend adding a Chromecast with Google TV, which offers a huge improvement in experience and responsiveness, although it only requires one of three HDMIs Inputs.
Audio
The LG A1 sounds surprisingly good in view of its slim design and reduced price. I think most users will find the built-in sound system perfect for everyday television thanks to its solid dialog clarity and decent bass production, although I would always recommend a selection from our list of the best sound bars for a more cinematic experience while watching movies and games.
image
Since it is impossible for me to review the LG A1 without comparing it to LG's slightly more expensive C1 OLED TV series, I will present most of my observations on image quality in this context. Before I start though, I want to make a few things clear.
As already mentioned, the LG A1 is an OLED television and as such offers a few advantages. Aside from its stunning looks, the A1 is blessed to produce perfect black levels. Since the A1 OLED has no backlighting (every pixel lights up by itself), there are no annoying backlighting anomalies to be endured. There is no blooming or halo around bright objects on a black background, no dirty screen effect (spots on an LCD screen), and no backlight fluctuations (slow brightening and dimming). Therefore, the A1 OLED has a remarkably clean appearance with deep, rich colors and an incredibly satisfactory image quality.
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
The response time of the A1 OLED is also practically instantaneous, so that no image blurring is caused by the screen. Instead, the blurring you see on the A1 is actually caused by the fact that your eyes can't keep up with the speed at which the image is changing – even on a 60Hz screen like that of the A1 OLED.
However, the A1 OLED's 60Hz screen robs the TV of the smoother movement you see on the C1 OLED. Plus, the A1 OLED's A7 Gen4 processor isn't as sophisticated as the updated A9 Gen4 image processor from the C1 OLED series and above. It would require placing the TVs next to each other to notice this, but the A1 doesn't do quite as good a job of upscaling low quality content (low resolution or low bitrate streaming video or cable / satellite content) as the C1 does does.
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
The real drawback of the A1, however, is its brightness. The A1 OLED may not be a weak TV, but it doesn't have the brightness potential needed to really bounce HDR images off the screen. The peak brightness of the A1 OLED is around 500 nits, while the LG C1 and Vizio OLED are closer to 750 nits. That's enough of a difference for most people to notice whether the TVs are next to each other or not. The A1 just looks less brilliant.
The lack of brightness extends beyond bright highlights into color and overall look. The colors of the A1 lack a certain crackle compared to the C1 and the overall picture level is a bit darker. It's perfectly fine (sometimes even dazzling) in a very dark or very dark room, but even turning on the room lights steals a lot of the A1 OLED's zeal, making it a less realistic TV option for many.
Games
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
Dan Baker / Digital Trends
As already mentioned, the LG A1 OLED does not offer a variable refresh rate. And while an Xbox Series X or S will tell you that the TV has 1080p resolution at 120 frames per second (fps), that's not the truth. The A1 simply skips every other frame of a 120 fps signal.
However, the A1 is capable of 4K HDR at 60 Hz and has a remarkably low input lag of around 10 milliseconds in game mode. The A1 also comes with an LG gaming dashboard that allows for game genre detection and optimization, along with black and brightness controls that can make it a little easier to spot enemies in dark shadows in challenging first person shooter games.
The bottom line is that the A1 OLED is an excellent TV for most gamers, but those looking to get the most out of their next-gen Xbox Series X or S will want to upgrade to the C1 OLED for the best experience.
Our opinion
The LG A1 OLED has all the image quality advantages inherent in an OLED display and looks very nice in a dark room. None of its drawbacks alone is a deal breaker, but when you add up the individual shortcomings of the A1 OLED and put them in the context of the very small price difference between it and the step-up C1 OLED, it's hard to imagine why anyone would save you money not for the better TV and leave the A1 OLED completely over.
Is there a better alternative?
Yes sir. The LG C1 OLED is a superior TV, if only a little more expensive. The upgrades are worth the additional cost, however; You get what you pay for in this case. The Vizio OLED is also a brighter TV available for the same price, but I don't care about its SmartCast smart TV interface or some of its flaws. However, the Vizio OLED is a better gaming TV overall.
How long it will take?
Since the A1 OLED doesn't have the latest processor or HDMI connectivity, I think it will feel its age a little earlier than most TVs. However, from a general longevity standpoint, I would expect it to last for many years. I wouldn't recommend an OLED TV to anyone who watches the same news, weather, or sports channel for hours, every day, for months, because burn-in is a small risk on any OLED TV.
Should you buy it?
If the price of a 55-inch model falls below $ 1,000, then yes. Otherwise I would forego the A1 OLED and buy the LG C1 OLED TV instead.
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