LG 55UH6550 4K UHD TV Review

A Quick Look at LG’s UH6550 60Hz Smart LED TV

The UH6550 is part of LG’s 2016 standard lineup of 4K Ultra HD LED TVs. There are four other series in this lineup which include the UH6500, UH6150, UH6100 and UH6090. LG also offers a premium line of 4K TVs known as their Super UHD 4K LED TVs which offer better performance and features.

The UH6550 is available in 55″ (reviewed here), 60″, 65″ and 75″ screen sizes. This review can be applied to all screen sizes since the features and performance are very similar if not identical, with the exception of a 120Hz refresh rate offered only on the 75″ model. I’d like to note that although the 55″ UH6550 has a 60Hz refresh rate, I didn’t experience any motion issues including blur or judder while viewing 24fps and 60fps content.

Design/Features

The UH6550 has a sleek and refined appearance fashioned with a silver bezel trim surrounding the display screen. It is not the super slim and/or razor-thin type of bezel that can be found on many higher-end models, yet it still exudes a level of attractiveness that is pleasing to the eye.

“A” frame-type feet have become commonplace on flat-panel designs and in my opinion complement the overall design of this display panel. They also provide decent stability, especially on smaller screen sizes such as the 55” model reviewed here.

The TV screen uses an edge-lit LED design for illumination and has a local dimming feature that I will cover in the performance section below.

Note: LG’s  Magic Remote is not included with its standard 4K TV lineup. A basic IR remote is supplied. The Magic Remote is optional and can be purchased separately.

More features….

• HDR Pro (High Dynamic Range) for extended picture contrast, brightness and color
• Ultra Luminance – Picture quality becomes even more dynamic with Ultra Luminance, boosting peak brightness and increasing the overall contrast ratio
• True Black Panel – An antiglare, low-reflection screen coating helps the TV to achieve superb black levels and a high contrast ratio for an exceptional Ultra HD picture
• IPS (In-Plane Switching) display panel provides very good off-axis viewing
• Color Prime Pro delivers an expanded color range
• TruMotion 120Hz blur reduction (60Hz native refresh rate)
• UHD Mastering Engine and 4K Upscaler enhance standard-definition and high-definition video signals for optimum display on a 4K screen
• HEVC/VP9 decoding for watching streamed 4K video sources like Netflix, Amazon Instant Video and YouTube
• WebOS 3.0 smart TV platform with built-in web browser
• Netflix Recommended – Certification that allows consumers to know which TVs work best with Netflix’s streaming service
• 802.11ac dual-band Wi-Fi to connect to your home’s wireless network
• Quad-core processor for seamless web browsing and app multitasking
• Built-in down-firing speakers (10 watts x 2)

Connectivity

• 3 HDMI 2.0a inputs (HDCP 2.2 compliant)
• 1 Component/Composite input (shared)
• 2 USB 2.0 inputs
• 1 Ethernet input
• 1 RF input for antenna/cable/satellite
• 1 Digital optical audio output

Performance

LG’s 55UH6550 performed admirably, delivering an engagingly detailed and sharp picture with plenty of clarity that was capable of revealing fine detail while viewing my HDR, 4K and 1080p video content used for picture evaluation. Furthermore, HDR content looked good overall but fell short of being the “best it could be” since the UH6550 doesn’t get very bright, nor does it have a very wide color gamut.

I was satisfied with the color palette portrayed on the UH6550; colors were rich and vivid and proved to be both accurate and natural with the TV’s picture mode set to either the Expert Bright Room or Expert Dark Room settings. In addition, flesh tones were rendered with very good tonal balance which gave facial close-up shots a very natural and life-like appearance.

Black levels weren’t all that bad for a display using an IPS panel, which is known for its inability to produce extended contrast and deep black levels. The LG UH6550 was able to extend its contrast to achieve some decent-looking black levels in a room with dim lighting. I must point out that these deeper black levels were achieved with the TV’s LED Local Dimming feature turned on. I recommend the Medium setting for most viewing, but I must also note that the High setting did add slightly deeper blacks on certain dark scenes.

However, in a completely dark room, black levels don’t do as well and reveal the limitations of the IPS panel’s contrast/black level performance. On the other hand, in a room that is brightly lit, any black level deficiencies will most likely go unnoticed.

Using the local dimming feature does reduce the peak white output slightly when the TV is displaying white objects and is primarily visible when the white object(s) is set against a black background.

Furthermore, I always like to inform consumers that the type of local dimming used on this TV is not the same as full-array LED backlighting with local dimming, which uses zones of LEDs placed directly behind the TV’s screen and allows for more precise dimming and much better contrast and black level performance than the LED edge-lit dimming used on the UH6550.

Shadow detail was good on this TV – even with the local dimming turned on, I could still see the proper amount of shadow detail during dark scenes without any black crush within the image.

Screen uniformity appeared to be very uniform on the 55″ model when viewing a completely black screen. I did not detect any clouding or light bleed.

Side angle viewing was very good and above average on this display when compared to what I usually see on most TVs that don’t use an IPS panel. I experienced only very slight picture dimming when viewed at extreme off-axis angles.

Conclusion

The 55UH6550 is one of LG’s more affordable 4K Ultra HD TVs and is packed with a generous helping of useful features and technology, some of which have trickled down from its higher-end models, yet is available here at a lower price point.

One of many great features worth mentioning on the UH6550 is its webOS 3.0 smart TV platform, which is well known for providing one of the best entertainment experiences currently available.

In general, its overall picture quality is very respectable but does come up a bit short in the areas of strong contrast and deep black levels. This is most apparent when viewing in a very dark viewing environment. It is, however, less of an issue when the TV is viewed in a well-lit room.

I invite you to check out LG’s UH6550, in any screen size, if you’re in the market for a decent performing 4K UHD TV that won’t break the bank.

HDTVs and More recommended.

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