LG Infinia 55LW5600 Review

LG Infinia 47LW5600 Review


Well, I just learned that bigger is not always better.

We had purchased this 47" version of LG's new passive 3D line and were absolutely BLOWN AWAY by the image quality... it is PRISTINE! (Easily a 5-star+ set.) In fact, we were so pleased with that unit that we thought we might want just a slightly larger TV instead. So, we ordered the 55" model (55LW5600) and planned on returning the 47" one.

Well, amazingly, we're sending back the 55" TV. The image is noticeably less pristine (grainy/pixelated/dull - even on the highest resolution blu-ray content... and even more surprisingly, the 3D was making us sick. (So strange, since we totally LOVE the 3D on the 47" model.) Too bad... because we were really excited about the larger size... but we'd much rather have quality over quantity.

(Interestingly, it was my wife - who claims to not notice the "soap opera effect" of the new LCDs - who was most disturbed by the quality loss. It was glaringly obvious to her (as it was to me... though I didn't want to admit it, since I really wanted the larger model). If my wife notices the difference, trust me... it's there. I later did a side-by-side comparison between the 55LW5600 and the 47LW5600 which confirmed our suspicions.)

Here's a little more detail:

IMAGE QUALITY:

On the 55" model, image quality of even the highest resolution blu-ray discs was noticably less sharp, more pixelated/grainy, and overall just more dull. I played extensively with the settings but could not overcome these issues.

Alternatively, images on this 47" model are crisp and GORGEOUS. My hunch is that the resolution on both units is identical, but it is spread over a greater screen area on the larger unit, resulting in the ability to more easily see image flaws. I have not found specs to confirm this, though. We sit about 10-12 feet away from the TV, and we did notice a significant improvement in our perception of the image quality when moving back about 5 feet. But, the arrangement of our room does not allow us to sit this distance from the TV... so the 47" is the obvious choice for us.

I would say that you should not consider a larger version of this TV if you intend on sitting closer than 12 feet to the set. Further out than that, you may have a better experience.

3D EFFECT:

I also learned that 3D can (under certain circumstances) make us sick. Strange, because we've always enjoyed 3D in the theater... and we absolutely LOVE 3D on the 47" version of this TV. But, on the 55" model, there were some strange fluttering effects, especially in fast-motion video (using 3D blu-rays as our video source). We also noticed some kind of strange boxy/pixelated effect during quick scene changes, or when going from bright to dark (and vice versa) scenes.

None of these 3D issues occurred with this 47" version. In fact, not only was the image impeccable, but the 3D looked absolutely gorgeous (and truly appeared to be fully HD quality - despite the controversy to the contrary - with no noticeable resolution loss at all).

VERDICT:

So, if you're debating (like we were) about whether to go with LG's 47" version (47LW5600), or to go a little larger with the 55" model... we'd suggest sticking with the 47" TV unless you will be sitting a fairly significant distance away from the set. Otherwise, this 47" model is THE NEW STANDARD by which TVs (anywhere near this price range) will be judged going forward. Enjoy!

Oh... so what else did I learn? It turns out my wife's a videophile! Who knew?!? :-)

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UPDATE:

I was able to improve the 2D video quality of the 55" model significantly by using the settings given on hometheater.com ([...]). Blu-rays now look extremely good... perhaps still not quite as good as the 47" version, but MUCH better than the default settings. So much improved, in fact, that if we only wanted the TV for 2D viewing, I would no longer hesitate to keep the 55" version.

Alas, though the 3D image quality has improved on the 55" set with the new settings, you still really need to be a minimum of 13-15 feet away from the set to keep your eyes from wigging out when viewing objects that are closest to you in 3D space. Objects that go back into the screen fare the best, and border on stunning... the closer the object to the viewer, the more likely eye-strain/sickness will result.

Again, none of these issues were experienced with this 47" set. This has made the decision on which set to keep much more difficult. For now, 3D is an important enough feature for us to keep us leaning toward keeping this 47" set. Decisions, decisions... :-)

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FINAL UPDATE:

Well, we found a setting on the larger 55" TV (which is also present on the 47" model) that allows you to adjust the 3D image in such a way that it positions the image further back into the screen (essentially virtually giving us the additional 3 feet back we felt we needed). To access, simply click the quick menu button *while 3D content is onscreen*. Then, select the top option to adjust the 3D settings. From there, the bottom option allows you to send the 3D image further back (to the left) or you can also bring it further forward going the other direction. We found the setting of "-5" (about half way to the left) to be a good compromise, improving the 3D image for us immensely (so that we no longer felt nauseous when viewing) and still kept us from seeing ghosting. (Going all the way to the left introduced some faint ghosting and didn't seem to be necessary since adjusting it half-way seemed to alleviate the sickness we felt when watching 3D content.) So, with that, and the video settings we found at hometheater.com, we have now fallen in love with the 55" model.

So, our FINAL VERDICT is that the 47" model is better out-of-the-box. Plug it in and WOW! The 55" model requires a little more work, but it can eventually look every bit as good as the 47" set.

Hopefully our trial-and-error helps someone out there. :-) We're extremely happy with our decision now.