Topic: New best in class OLED Gaming TV?

There’s potentially a new best in class OLED TV. The Samsung S95B QB-OLED is getting rave reviews across the board, especially for gaming. One of the biggest selling points is it is much brighter than current OLEDs, one area they are weaker compared to LCDs.

Rtings has it rated slightly higher for gaming and HDR gaming than the LG OLEDs. In fact it’s their highest rated TV ever in these categories. Rtings review

Vincent Teoh of HDTV test also gives it his highly recommended award and raves about it after the firmware update. HDTV test review

Other renowned outlets also seem to be showering it with praise. Obviously early days and time will tell if there are any issues long term.

Also worth noting like the LGs there are some pros and cons. As such one, other or neither may be better for you based on your setup, but it seems LG finally have some proper competition for OLEDs.

@themightyant It’s a very nice TV but it’s also 2 grand 😂

@nessisonett LOL. As all the brand new top end TVs are like the LG G2 Evo. I’m not suggesting buying one! I’ll stick with mine for quite a few years yet.

More just an interesting note for the future that LG finally has decent competition in the OLED space. By next year this model will be £1,500 and be replaced by another £2,500 model. A year later this tech will bleed down into some lower priced models. Such is the high end tv market.

Seems most of the TV threads are locked now so I’ll post here.

So I’ve decided to join the OLED club. Went ahead and got LG C2. (For the money it seemed the best deal) Absolutely beautiful TV. I love my Samsung QLED as well, but I now appreciate the darker blacks on the OLED. I’m still trying to monkey around with settings to balance brightness and darkness, but even the default set-up looks good.

Questions for those who have had an OLED, and specifically the LG — how have you found the panel longevity? If you’ve had an OLED for a couple years, have you noted any of the panel dimming, less vibrant, or any ‘burn in/burn out’ or image retention phenomena?

Since my unit is new I want to preserve it as best I can against issues over the months and years to come. At the same time I don’t want to be a slave to any fear of pixel fading, so just wanting some advice —

The set has OLED care features like screen move which I have enabled, and also I set “adjust logo brightness” to “low” but wondering if I should make that “high” or if it really makes that much of a difference to help longevity and burn in vs the sacrifice in brightness.

My biggest question though is regarding the “pixel cleaning”. The menu says to do this regularly. But in my research many people say not to do it unless you see burn in effects developing because the pixel cleaning process itself will wear out the overall pixel brightness quicker. Apparently the TV does an “auto-clean” (I realize this is a recalibration of the pixels which they call a “cleaning”) after every 4 hours of use? I can’t find that anywhere in the settings or info that confirms that fact. There’s apparently an hour long major cleaning that should be done after every thousand hours or something like that. It’s unclear to me how that works. I mistakenly thought I needed to manually run a pixel cleaning after every 4 hours and have run it twice but now I see you really shouldn’t ever run it manually unless you have image retention or unless you’re at the 2000 hour mark…? There’s a lot of conflicting information on the internet about it and the TV menu simply says run the cleaning “regularly”, which is so vague.

Anyways, any advice, clarification, or experience from those who have this or a similar OLED TV?

Specifically paging @BAMozzy since you seem to be the resident expert TV tech. Thanks in advance! 😄

@Th3solution The way OLEDs work can lead to more wear in some areas of the screen and 'static' elements are a big reason you get unbalanced wear.

A red logo/health bar for example may only be using the 'red' sub-pixel at a constant rate and brightness for 'long' periods of time compared to 'red' sub-pixels elsewhere on the screen - eventually leading to a 'noticeable' difference. Its impossible to determine if you'll have 'issues' in the first year or two at least because it depends on how many 'hours' you use your TV, whether or not you allow cycles in Standby and even the settings (inc brightness - which can also affect longevity).

RTINGs have started a 'new' test in the last year or so to see how a wide range of TV's hold up - inc OLEDs, QD-OLEDs and LED TV's and it seems the C2 is holding up well with its 'default' compensation cycle operating, better than some other TV's. Not just Burn-in but any 'issues' - some have failed on PSU's or their G1 has line of pixels not working. Most (if not all) LED TV's have some uniformity issues from 'new' but may offer a longer, more consistent lifespan (consistently not uniform or consistently 'blooming' with not perfect blacks) and an OLED may start off perfect but depending on 'use', content and even settings etc may 'deteriorate' over time with 'uneven' wear in a relatively short time. If you only use your TV for 2-3hrs a day, its not going to wear out as quickly compared to the same Content/settings for 6hrs or more a day. Watching more 'news' with static elements may wear certain areas than watching Movies, watching with Brightness turned up will wear the pixels more than being 'dimmer'.

TV's are mass produced and things can 'fail' sooner than others too so there is some variation between the same brand/model/size. In general though it looks as if LG have spent more time and effort on prolonging their TV's life and preventing 'burn-in' - although image retention is more likely on OLEDS in general but disappears/settles.

There isn't a 'wrong' TV as it really does depend on the user and what they want/expect, how they use their TV, what settings etc they use and whether or not they let their TV go through its compensation cycles as and when 'required' - which I would leave to the default. You could also be 'unlucky' and get a dodgy set that 'fails' for other reasons - like an LCD that one zone 'fails' or excessive uniformity issues you can't fail to notice, replace with an OLED and have nothing but superb PQ for years - until you decide to replace for something 'newer' anyway...

I noticed/wondered exactly the same thing. When I got the C2 I was totally unaware of the longevity issues, looked around the settings and found the pixel cleaning function. I've run it a couple of times since then but I was similarly unclear about what I should be doing.

I got my C2 at the start of the year and I am very happy with it.

@BAMozzy Thanks, BAM. I’m paying more attention to the things I watch and noticing if there are static elements present. For the most part I don’t watch news or things with a solid logo for very long, except for sports. Sometimes, depending on the broadcast, they will have a scoreboard at the bottom of the screen. Usually it won’t stay there longer than 15 minutes though, since they cut to commercial breaks, etc. I don’t watch news channels, so that shouldn’t be an issue. I reckon gaming is the biggest risk of a static image from a HUD element staying up for dozens of hours. I’ll need to get into the habit of changing HUD settings to highest transparency when the game has options.

I also watch movies where there’s black bars on the top and bottom to keep with the original cinema screen size, and I also am in the habit of using subtitles, so those might be things I need to keep an eye on.

Fortunately I don’t really use the TV more than 4 hrs a day on average. More on weekends and less on weekdays. So I probably won’t even hit 2000 hrs within the next year.

@woollypump Yeah, I’ve seen on forums that running a manual cleaning will wear out your panel much quicker and that the TV is going to be running automatic pixel cleaning in the background anyways. So some people say to never worry about a manual cleaning unless you see image retention. Then I’ve read that LG encourages to do it once or twice a year. Then I’ve seen where people are running it weekly or monthly. Overall, I think think the consensus seems to be that the TV will take care of itself and that the pixel cleaning is only necessary for extenuating circumstances. I think I’ll lay off using it since there’s a lot who have said it will shorten the overall lifespan of the screen and reduce the overall brightness over time. And I like my TV brightness really high. 😄

Glad you’re enjoying your C2. I really like mine so far also. Have you experienced VRR and/or 120 fps on any games yet? None of the games I’m playing yet have taken advantage of that, I guess. Everytime I pull up the little Gamer sub menu (which is pretty cool by the way) it shows 60 fps and VRR not enabled, even though I have my PS5 set for VRR - automatic.

@Kidfried I was in the same boat, but made a move recently and have more room. The prices continue to come down for TV’s, so I treated myself. The latest updated models and more expensive options don’t seem to have a whole lot more performance than TVs from a couple years ago, so I went with the C2 and saved some money. My QLED is about 4 yrs old, and it still works fine, but it’s small and doesn’t have HDMI 2.1.

@Th3solution If it's any help, my brother's heavily used gaming TV (a B7 65" OLED from about 5 years ago) still has a perfect screen. My nephew now has it in his bedroom. The best advice is to treat OLED panels as if they were plasma screens from back in the day - avoid repeated hours of static images but don't worry about wide-screen letterbox "bars" at all - the black pixels are essentially switched off so not susceptible to wear.

@Th3solution My OLED journey is this:

Bought a floor model LG E7 OLED at half price from Visions. Noticed image retention/burn in issues by month 3 of owning it. Mostly through reds and yellows. Did the image cleaning and all that multiple times. Good thing I bought warranty (which supposedly they don’t usually do for floor models but my salesman did)! Took the TV back to the store to be repaired. Went through the grind of dealing with warranty. Then had to take it to the repair warehouse. Got the tv back in about a weeks time.

After one month of use, the screen quits. I still have audio so I know it’s a panel issue. After talking on the phone, take it back directly to the warehouse. After about a week they determine it’s a faulty panel. They’ll replace the panel but warn me it’s the last time they’re doing it. Okay. A week later I get the TV back.

Almost 6 years later, it’s still going strong. Haven’t had a single issue with retention, burn in or anything. It is used heavily for all manner of things you would use a TV for. Best screen I’ve ever owned by far and I essentially got a brand new TV for half price. I’ve done the image cleaning thing once on this last panel.

Lessons: Image retention and burn in are definitely possible but with even the slightest bit of care it should last a long while. Warranty is a must for expensive electronics. And the squeaky wheel gets the grease. 😄

Also, I usually let the TV cycle through the stock images once before fully turning it off. Maybe this has helped. Hope you enjoy your TV! Those inky blacks are so very worth it.

@Th3solution If you are using it to display a wide range of content and letting the TV do its 'thing' naturally - settle for a lower general brightness setting with great blacks anyway, the colours still pop, buy from a reputable seller with decent warranty coverage, you'll likely be fine.

Most electronic issues occur in the first 'year' of use so you want to make sure you are protected from the general 'failure' that mass produced products can have. As others have said, don't run things unless you have a 'reason' to run things and not just because you have some 'image' retention immediately after having something on screen for a period of time - sometimes it just needs some 'varied' content to reset/settle to normal so don't go looking hard for it (then you can't fail to notice at a distance) and only be concerned if its still there a while later - especially if you've left it off in standby overnight and its still noticeable the next day.

This long in to the OLED generation, I'd think that for 'most' users they'd be a LOT more publicity and outcry if it was such a major issue. It may not suit 'some' people because of the way they use their TV's and/or what they 'expect' in terms of longevity for 'cost' - although paying for 'tech' costs - large 'panels' with high density of pixels are NOT cheap to make - let alone build a TV with all the 'Smart' functions, audio and connectivity built in too. The fact it costs more than 'other' TV's is more down to the 'tech' and features it offers than being built to 'last longer'.

But anyway, the point is that you have a 'greater' risk of 'uneven wear', temporary image retention etc but that doesn't mean that you can't 'minimise' it or should be concerned because that 'extra' risk is so small for the way you use your TV and/or not concerned if it doesn't last 7yrs+ because tech advances and maybe something much better is available at prices you are willing to upgrade for. No TV will last forever and 'heavy' use TV owners may need to upgrade because it fails, low TV users may upgrade before their TV 'wears' out.

Therefore I think people should choose the 'tech/TV' that suits them, their needs and usage. Make sure you buy from a reputable seller, take out 'extended' warranty if you can't afford to replace your TV IF things do go wrong in the near future and be aware of risks/downsides (if any) to understand if it is the 'right' TV/Tech for the use/life expectancy etc. From what I recall of RTINGs first test, Gaming seemed to provide the most uniform screen 'long-term' on that particular - don't pause or leave 'menu' screens on - but general gaming with static huds (CoD) didn't cause a problem - Fifa a 'bit' but has more static elements, but nowhere near the news or 'mixed' content tests so I don't think there is far too many variables to be 'concerned' you are at 'significant' risk and/or not aware of minimising/reducing risks to get the most out of it.

I still think it represents probably the 'best' bang for Buck TV you can buy for ALL round content use and Gaming being a particular strong point too but being the 'best' in general does mean its not the 'best' for specific people and/or situations - maybe something suits those better, but in 'general' the LG C2 is probably the 'best' all round TV for that year and still beats/or at least matches 'many' newer TV's on the market. Its a superb TV and a great choice - I hope it brings you joy for years to come...

@LN78 @Jimmer-jammer Thanks, that helps to know many years of heavy use, including gaming, can still be done without concern.

@BAMozzy I feel like you’re right about the fact that stories about LG panel issues are rare and the company continues to be a market leader in OLED. So a reasonable amount of care and attention should keep the TV is good shape for several years. Maybe in 5-7 years I’ll be ready for an 8K set and this one should get me through until that 😄
I much appreciate your insight!

@Th3solution so I've had a a C1 for almost two years now. It gets regular use for gaming and watching programmes.

I don't watch any news or sports so static elements are few and far between. The most static images I have is if I leave a console on for a while (which I tend to do quite a bit).

Xbox at least will dim the screen after a while, I can't remember if PS does this. In terms of the TVs own settings, I think the only one I have activated is one where it dims static elements. I can't remember what it's called.

Not sure how much effect it's all having but after 2 years of constant use I have absolutely no burn in or dead pixels or anything. Nothing looks dimmer either.

I do have a few presets for watching films and TV on different Xbox apps, the TV stores them on a per app basis (which is kinda weird because you have to set them for each Xbox video app, I guess some communication is happening between the TV and the xbox). The only TV app I use is the media player for watching things off a hard drive. It handles a 18tb hard drive absolutely fine. It is the best player I have for 4K content but occasionally will crash out of longer videos but it is still better than what's available on Xbox. The LG media player is a bit restrictive with supported subtitle files though which is annoying for playing things off the hard drive. Maybe I'll finally have to get my ears cleaned out if I start using a lot! 😂

The only thing I've noticed and I wonder if it's a perception thing rather than an issue with the TV. But 4K content doesn't look "amazing" any more. I would say that happened after a few months. Now I don't know if the TV became less sharp or whether I just got used to it but I suspect it's the latter.

The only issue I have with brightness after almost 2 years is that it's still too damn bright lol. I have turned it down a few times so my eyeballs don't burn out of their sockets

Mine came with a 5 or 10 year warranty as well so I'm not particularly worried about issues cropping up. I've never done any pixel cleaning or anything either.

@Th3solution Yeah I've tried 120fps on a few games; Doom Eternal, Borderlands 3.

I was also really impressed by the 40fps modes enabled by being 120hz capable on Miles Morales and Horizon Forbidden West, although it was the kids playing MM and I only played an hour or so of HFW.

The C2 replaced a decent non-OLED LG TV and the C2 was a step up for everything. We got it half way through my Bloodborne platinum run and Bloodborne looks so much better on it, so it's not just high FPS PS5 games that benefit in my experience.

@ralphdibny I have noticed some content looking more “amazing” than others. When I first booted up some good 4K shows it was mind blowing, and then when I watched some cable TV it looked noticeably less crisp, obviously. But even from one 4K movie to the next, some seem to be shot or edited better than others, whether it be the cameras used or the HDR rendering or whatever. It’s a phenomenon that I already noticed on my lesser 4K QLED, but is even more apparent on this better set. The amazing stuff looks even more amazing, whilst the average stuff still looks great, but not… amazing 😅.

@woollypump I am excited to try out the different frame rates and see if I notice large differences and whether VRR makes a visible improvement. I can totally see why Bloodborne would definitely benefit from the better darks and blacks of an OLED, even if the frame rate is locked at 30.

@Th3solution It's like music. If the recording sounds like crap then more accurate sound reproduction doesn't make it sound good, you just hear the crapness better.

@woollypump 😂 Yup, very true. One of the first native PS5 games I played after I got my console was Maneater. I was expecting to be blown away by the visuals of PS5 games but that game was mostly crap to look at. I was very disappointed by the ‘next gen’ at the time. But I quickly realized that just because a game has a native PS5 version, it doesn’t mean it looks or functions well.

I've just ordered a new telly! I had not planned to this year, but I saw a deal I could not miss. Bagged a Samsung QN90C 50" for under just under 900 quid, with a saving of just over 50%.

There were a couple of LG OLED's I almost went for, but they were either too expensive or did not have the size screen I needed for my setup.