LED HDTV LG Electronics 55LB5900 55-Inch 1080p 120Hz LED TV

LED HDTV LG Electronics 55LB5900 55-Inch 1080p 120Hz LED TV

Disclaimer: I attempted to buy this via Amazon, but first unit came completely destroyed in the box. Refused on delivery. I decided to purchase it from a local store as I didn't care to risk waiting on another damage unit.

That being said, this is a very under-reviewed television. I had researched my next TV for quite awhile and came to the conclusion I'd only purchase a Samsung, LG, or possibly Vizio. My requirements were as follows:

50-55", Small profile, LED, direct-LED backlighting, and NO "smart" functionality (I have a ROKU and an HTPC that destroys pretty much any "smart" television functionality that a manufacturer includes on their TVs.) These requirements made for an extremely limited search as most major TV manufacturers are pushing their "smart" televisions only. I came across this LG and compared to as similar as possible Samsung and Vizios. The LG price point and direct-LED backlight was the winner. I couldn't find any other TV that fit all the requirements above and certainly not at this price point, which was fairly unbelievable considering it is the new 2014 model.

The picture: Blacks are far deeper than I had thought for an LED (I've been a plasma buyer up until now). The direct-LED backlighting is superb and I notice no weird lighting issues and certainly no edge bleeding. The viewing angle is much better than I had thought, but most LED TVs are correcting this issue anyway, so this shouldn't be too surprising. I see no "soap opera" effect from higher refresh rates. I have yet to figure out how to manually set the refresh, but as of now everything appears perfect with standard factory settings.

The audio: Surprising. I wasn't even going to review sound as most factory sets are junk.

Style Name: Everyday OfferSize Name: 55-Inch

Excellent TV for the Price! *Updated on the bottom*

I want to first clarify some points others have been making in the reviews on this TV. It IS indeed 120hz, the person who left that review obviously had no idea what they were talking about. I've seen people dock it stars for the lack of smart functionality. This is not a smart TV. It has a basic,navigable, and responsive menu. I have also seen docked stars for lack of ports. The site plainly lists how many ports the TV has, it's your own fault if you expected it to have more.

I have something plugged into every port on this TV, except the USB port (I have no need).
Xbox 360 plugged into the Component inputs (old style 360), WD Media Player into 1 HDMI, and a future HDMI cable already run for my future Xbox One. I also have standard coax cable hooked up to this TV as well. This is all I need the TV for, which is why I went with this one vs a TV with more options since budget was an issue.

I haven't yet tweaked with the picture settings yet, but plan to and I hope to update this review when I do.

Pros:
-Beautiful display. My friends have commented on it's sharpness, color, and thin bezel. Minimal glare, if any in my setup.
-Absolutely perfect response time. I am a very heavy gamer, and this works great for FPS and fast response games. If you plan on using this for any game console, this is your TV.
-Absolutely no 'soap opera' effect.
-Color and Blacks have been very impressive. My previous LCD LG (i think 09 model) would go to 'lit black' on dark scenes, kind of like an extremely dark grey. I would say this TV is as close to real color and contrast as you can get.
-Nice sized remote, not a wii type. 

Style Name: Everyday OfferSize Name: 55-Inch Verified Purchase

2 Part Review:

TV - Great

PACKAGING - Not so Great (make sure you read the packaging part for shipping from Amazon, this is where they lost a star)

TV - It's a great TV. All the other reviews pretty much cover that. It's large, clear and crisp and has several different modes for different applications which I enjoy (Cinema, Gaming, Vivid etc). The put-together time was longer than others have mentioned but only because it came with a part that wasn't explained where/how to install and I spent 10 minutes head-scratching (still not sure I figured it out correctly). This is only slightly less alarming than "not" receiving a part that "should" be included, but nonetheless the little bracket things didn't appear to have a large impact on structural integrity.

Picture Quality (*NOTE* - I came from 40" 60hz Sony and upgrading to 55" 120hz, my expectations were pretty high. Let that be known for this portion) - Picture quality is great but not stunning. I haven't watched a Blu-Ray yet but I've watched HD Netflix shows and it was definitely great, but again, didn't blow me away. Gaming was also very crisp and clear, but yet again it's clearly not 4k. Don't let this part detract you from buying as it is definitely a good TV and the picture is great. I guess it just isn't as amazing as I thought it would be in 2014 with an HDMI and 120hz. But again, I'm still happy I bought it and would buy it again. Take that for what it's worth.

The bezel is thin and not as distracting as I thought being silver, coming from a previous black larger bezel. It isn't ideal but again, not too distracting because it's nice and thin.Read more 

LED HDTV LG Electronics 55LB5900 55-Inch 1080p 120Hz LED TV

LED HDTV LG Electronics 55LB5900 55-Inch 1080p 120Hz LED TV