LG 47LH55

PC Magazine



Most HDTVs can produce a more accurate picture after some fine-tuning, but arcane picture controls are the last thing you want to fiddle with while you're setting up a new TV. LG's 47-inch LG 47LH55 LCD TV ($1,800 list) features the company's new DIY calibration system, Picture Wizard, which makes initial setup an intuitive, jargon-free process. The set's excellent energy efficiency and low price are appealing too, but this TV's picture quality isn't quite what you'll get from the more-expensive competition.

Perched on a convenient swivel base, the 47LH55 features a classic glossy black bezel bordering its matte-finished screen. Thin transparent accents along the sides of the TV add an attractive finishing touch, and a narrow sliver of the transparent material along the bottom edge of the TV's frame wraps around a modest indicator light located near the right corner. The textured remote features an uncluttered keypad with clearly labeled buttons, but it lacks a backlight or glowing keys.

The selection of inputs on the 47LH55 should prove adequate for most people: four HDMI, two component video, VGA, and an RF input. A side-facing USB port can be used to connect storage devices containing JPEGs and MP3s for playback on the TV.

In addition to the typical selection of preconfigured picture presets, the Picture Wizard option guides you through the configuration of basic picture controls such as brightness, contrast, color, and tint. You make each adjustment while viewing a simple test pattern that displays examples of proper and improper results. After setup is complete, the wizard can apply the new settings to any or all of the TV's inputs. Picture Wizard doesn't cover more advanced adjustments (such as white balance, which requires the use of an expensive light analyzer to properly configure), but in my tests, it was perfect for optimizing the basic picture settings without resorting to third-party tools.

Picture size controls allow the 47LH55's 1080p resolution screen to display every pixel of 720- or 1080-line video without overscan, although with standard-definition video sources the set sacrifices (an acceptable) 6 percent of the picture. PC output to the TV's VGA port supported resolutions up to 1080p, but the auto-adjustment feature was unable to completely eliminate some minor pixel tracking and phase errors that were apparent in related test patterns from the DisplayMate Multimedia Edition test suite.

The 47LH55's color gamut is a good match for the HD spec, although reds and blues were slightly undersaturated in my tests. The white balance when using either its Cinema preset or after a run through Picture Wizard left things looking slightly too cool (bluish), but professional calibrators will find the TV's excellent white balance controls can help correct this common error.

The dark-colored screen is effective at producing a well-contrasted picture in a brightly lit room, and the TV's LCD technology is better than most at maintaining color saturation at wide viewing angles. The 47LH55's average dark room contrast ratio of 1,142:1 and related black level measurement of 0.08 candela per square meter (cd/m2) were appreciably better than the Toshiba Regza 55ZV650U's contrast result of 750:1 and brighter average dark measurement of 0.13 cd/m2. If you're more likely to watch in a dark room than a bright one, LCDs such as the LG 47LG90 and the Sony Bravia KDL-46Z5100 deliver significantly darker black levels (0.03 cd/m2 each) and related contrast ratios in excess of 3,100:1.

Standard-definition video generally looked good, although some minor jagged-edge artifacts were visible in the classic waving flag scene from the HQV Benchmark DVD. Examining a challenging assortment of HD video clips as well as a selection of Blu-ray movies revealed more jaggies along moving edges, but an otherwise pleasing performance when it came to cleaning up compression artifacts—particularly in gradient colors, where they're often most obvious. The 47LH55's "TrueMotion 240Hz" technology (similar to the Toshiba 55ZV650's "ClearScan 240") pairs a 120-Hz LCD panel with a scanning/blinking backlight system for improved motion resolution compared to regular 120-Hz TVs. But LCDs that can update the entire video frame 240 times per second (a 240-Hz refresh rate), like the more expensive Sony KDL-46Z5100 ($2,599.99 direct), offer superior picture clarity when displaying motion video.

One constant throughout my evaluations with the 47LH55 was slightly softened picture quality compared to the aforementioned Sony and Toshiba models, as well as Samsung's PN50B850 plasma and LN55A950 LCD sets. The 47LH55 simply enhances less picture detail than those models.

The LG 47LH55's estimated operating cost of $2.77 per month (159W average) using default picture settings is among best results I've recorded for a screen of this size, and it's enough to earn our GreenTech Approved designation. (The 46-inch Sony KDL-46Z5100 managed a still-respectable result of $2.95 per month, with a 170W average.) Cost estimates are based on 5 hours of daily operation at $0.1135 per kWh, the 2008 national average.

Given its otherwise solid performance, excellent energy efficiency, and dead-simple picture controls, LG's 47LH55 LCD is a good set for the price, but you do get a comparatively soft picture in the bargain. The 47-inch set in Toshiba's Regza ZV650U line has similar features and will cost you about the same, and overall, you do get a sharper picture.

Benchmark Test Results
HDMI video input: 1080p24/1080p60
VESA Bright Uniformity: 80.8%
VESA Dark Uniformity: 68.8%
HQV Benchmark score: 86/130
HD HQV Benchmark score: 55/100
Average Contrast Ratio: 1142:1
Average Power Consumption (default settings): 159W; $2.77/month @ $0.1135/kWh (2008 USA average)