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For years LG was the only OLED TV game in town, but now Samsung’s QD-OLED TVs are in the mix too, and shoppers who want the best TV could be the ultimate winners. Last week Samsung, the largest TV maker in the world, announced pricing on its new 2023 OLED models, largely matching LG’s prices. This marks the first time the two Korean rivals have similar pricing on the best high-end TV technology, giving TV buyers more choice and potentially more savings.
I haven’t reviewed any 2023 OLED TVs yet, so I can’t say which is the best. I briefly saw LG and Samsung’s 2023 OLED TVs at CES in January when they were first announced, but last week marked the first time I was able to eyeball the two in person. It happened at LG’s headquarters in New Jersey, where the company set up three 2022 OLED TVs — the Samsung S90B, Sony A95K and LG G2 — against the new LG G3.
The G3 indeed looked brighter than last year’s G2. LG says it’s up to 70% brighter than previous its OLED models, thanks to a new Micro Lens Array technology. Billions of tiny lenses inside the OLED panel help focus the light, reduce scatter and improve efficiency. LG didn’t specify a number in nits, and noted that only the 55-, 65- and 77-inch G3s get MLA — the 83-inch has the same brightness as last year.
LG demo’d a range of TV shows and movies and its OLED TVs looked mostly better than the competition based on what I saw. That’s par for the course — every manufacturer-hosted TV demo I’ve seen is designed to make that TV maker’s sets look superior (Sony’s recent demo is another example).
