LG's latest C5 OLED television earns a top review, yet I opt against an upgrade for specific reasons.
The LG C5 OLED TV, a part of the C-series that has won awards and been included in the best OLED TV guide on a popular tech website, is not considered a significant upgrade over the LG C2 OLED TV for most users.
After thorough testing, the LG C5 OLED TV was concluded to be a five-star TV, offering perfect black levels, flawless gaming specifications, reliable picture quality, and solid app support. However, the improvements, particularly in brightness and picture quality, are very modest and largely incremental rather than transformative.
The C5 continues to use the WOLED panel technology with only slight enhancements like a new Primary RGB Tandem OLED tech instead of the more impactful micro lens array (MLA) from flagship models, which was discontinued for this series. This means that the C5 shows only slight increases in peak brightness over the C2, and in some cases, the brightness improvement is not enough to deliver a noticeably better HDR experience.
Moreover, the C5 tends to lose some color volume in darker scenes, and the overall picture tuning remains conservative, especially in smaller sizes like 48-inch due to heating issues and pixel density. This indicates that the default settings for the C5 require fiddling to avoid overly bright or unnatural motion effects, suggesting no major leap in processing quality over the C2.
Another factor is the absence of a heatsink in smaller models like the 48-inch LG C5 TV, which limits its performance headroom. Smaller C5 panels suffer from heat buildup that caps brightness and picture performance; a heatsink could help but is not included.
Given these factors, for users with an LG C2 OLED TV, the incremental nature of improvements in brightness, color accuracy, and processing on the C5—without major technological leaps or design changes—makes upgrading generally unnecessary unless a specific new feature or slightly bigger screen is desired.
In contrast, LG's flagship G5 OLED offers much more noticeable improvements with a four-stack panel design and record OLED brightness over 2,400 nits, but it comes at a significantly higher price and is a different product category altogether.
For those who recently bought a C-series OLED TV, it is suggested to save money or spend it on a more pressing upgrade elsewhere in the system. The LG C2 OLED TV, with its punchy picture that is accurate enough for enjoyable viewing, continues to be a solid choice for many.
- Despite the LG C5 OLED TV being a five-star device with outstanding features, a review of its improvements reveals only modest and incremental changes.
- In a preview of smart-home devices and gadgets news, the LG C5 OLED TV, especially in smaller sizes like 48-inch, falls short due to heating issues and limited performance headroom.
- For users considering a hi-fi speaker upgrade, the lack of transformative improvements in brightness, color accuracy, and processing on the LG C5 OLED TV compared to the LG C2 may not warrant an upgrade.
- The showcasing of latest technology in the tech industry includes advancements like micro lens array technology, but the LG C5 OLED TV continues to use older WOLED panel technology.
- Brands like LG offer a range of OLED TVs, such as the flagship G5 OLED, which boasts notable improvements in brightness and performance, but at a higher price point.
- After thorough research, it's recommended that users with an LG C2 OLED TV hold off on upgrading to the C5, as the C2's accurate and punchy picture remains enjoyable for viewing, especially when compared to the incremental improvements of the C5.
