LG unveils QNED miniLED range for Australia

LG has unveiled a miniLED TV range for Australia that will bring more affordable quality 4K and 8K TVs to the public.

LG QNED miniLED 4K & 8K smart TV

LG has unveiled a miniLED TV range for Australia that will bring more affordable quality 4K and 8K TVs to the public.

It is an interesting move by LG which along with Sony is the doyen of the more expensive high quality organic LED TVs which offer striking images with brilliant whites, pitch blacks, and no bleeding of colours across the screen.

LG is positioning its new QNED miniLED range below OLED in quality but above traditional LED TV. It will sell both 4K and 8K QNED models. Whereas standard LED offers a small number of dimming zones or independent light sources, LG QNED MiniLED TVs have over a thousand dimming zones for more precise image control.

LG says that in contrast its OLED TVs offer millions of dimming zones in the form of self-lighting pixels.

The QNED miniLED range will go head-to-head with other manufacturers that offer miniLED such as Samsung’s premium “Neo QLED” TVs with around 10,000 dimming zones lighting the screen.

In 2021, miniLED is the signature technology of high quality TVs that don’t break the bank in the way OLED TVs do.

Making things more complex is another technology called microLED, which emulates OLED but instead uses non-organic particles as light sources. Samsung this year showed off a 110-inch microLED TV that cost in the hundreds of thousands of dollars; smaller, slightly cheaper models are expected to come to market.

If you are not confused already, QNED (quantum nanocell, emitting diodes) is not to be confused with QLED (quantum light-emitting diode), another TV range most notably sold by Samsung.

LG admits that its MiniLED TVs will still suffer from backlight bleed when viewed from the side and in a darkened room, but who wants to watch TV standing at the side anyway?

LG QNED miniLED TV range - click on image to enlarge.

LG says the QNED is a good option price wise for those wanting to buy 8K at a reasonable price; a 65-inch 8K QNED set will cost $4,295.

If you stick with 4K, an 86-inch 4K QNED costs $6,095. That’s much less than an 83-inch premium 4K OLED set at $8,495.

LG is marketing three ranges of QNED. Differences between them include the number of dimming zones, the capability of the processor used for upscaling content and interpreting technologies such as Dolby Vision.

There is also gaming capability: The 4K QNED91 and 8K QNED99 both support fast action 4K gaming at 120 frames per second. (Don’t expect 8K gaming at 120 fps as the data stream would be enormous.)

LG is wedded to Dolby Vision which offers extra details in bright and darker scenes in more than 1,000 movies. Samsung skipped the Dolby Vision licensing fees by using HDR10+ announced by itself and Amazon Video in 2017. It’s a VHS versus Betamax situation.

Prices for the QNED99 8K are $5,759, $7,799 and $10,799 for 65, 75 and 86-inch models.

QNED96 8K models are $4,799 and $5,999 with 65 and 75-inch displays and it costs $4,679, $5,999 and $8,399 for 4K QNED91 sets.

The TVs are available now.