LG 65EF9500 TV Review

Kyle Schurman Avatar

Written by:

Updated 3:56 pm

Expert Rating

94

I’ll just state the obvious first: The LG 65EF9500 television is an expensive model. Really expensive, to the point where 4K describes both the screen’s resolution and the price tag of this 65-inch TV. Learn more about refresh rates before you buy, by consulting our 120Hz Vs. 240Hz Vs. 60Hz Refresh Rate guide. This is one of the best Tvs from LG.

The EF9500 family of LG TVs — available in 65-inch and 55-inch sizes — provides HDR capabilities and makes use of OLED display technology, which produces notably deeper blacks and brighter whites than what’s currently available in the LED-LCD TVs market. It even provides better image quality versus the now defunct plasma display technology. Simply put, the LG 65EF9500 easily qualifies as one of the best TVs currently available, thanks to its amazing display quality. Shooting for a 49-inch IPS 4K TV? Then click our LG 49 4K UHD smart TV review.

So continue reading my LG 65EF9500 TV review to learn if the really high price tag of this model is justified.

(Even though this review specifically deals with the 65-inch 65EF9500, LG says the feature set and display quality of this model are almost identical to the 55-inch 55EF9500.)

Overview

Summary: LG’s flagship 65-inch television offers HDR compliance and OLED display technology, which provides the best image quality on the market today with bright whites and true blacks. However, you will pay extra for the OLED technology, which has a much higher price tag than similar sized LED-LCD TVs.

WHY IT’S A TOP PICK: Extremely thin TV features impressive OLED display resolution

Price: $4,997 (65-inch screen) or 55-inch, $2,997
Available: Now

What We Liked

  • OLED picture quality is outstanding
  • Doesn’t suffer from motion blur
  • Wide angle viewing is very good
  • Most of the unit is very thin
  • Fully HDR compliant
  • Better than average audio quality from built-in speakers

What We Didn’t

  • OLED technology is very expensive
  • Only two screen sizes available in EF9500 family
  • Limited to three HDMI port outputs
  • Doesn’t work with typical VESA wall mounting kits

LG 65EF9500 TV Review Specs

Screen Size 65 inches (55 inches also available)
Screen Resolution 4K/Ultra HD
Screen Type OLED
Flat Screen green-check-mark
120Hz Refresh Rate green-check-mark
HDR Compliant green-check-mark
3D Capable green-check-mark
WiFi green-check-mark
Smart TV Interface webOS 2.0
Input Lag 50 to 55 ms
Connectivity 3 HDMI, 3 USB, Ethernet, WiFi
Weight 56.9 pounds
Size 57.1 x 2 x 33.1 inches
Price $4,999
Buy

Design

The EF9500 family of OLED LG TVs offer a flat screen design, while other OLEDs from LG make use of curved screens.

You’ll hardly notice the border on this television, as it measures about one third of an inch in width, giving the 65EF9500 an infinity like look. It’s almost as if the TV has no border at all with what some might call an edge to edge screen.

The extremely thin screen contributes to the sleekness of this model, as most of the TV measures about a quarter of an inch in thickness, although the area containing the electronics and ports in the back measure almost 2 inches in depth.

The 65EF9500 is a single pedestal design, and the base of the pedestal has a narrower footprint than most 65-inch units. You’ll need about 33 inches of flat space on which to rest the pedestal. And the pedestal itself measures several inches in depth.

LG provided an anti-glare coating on the screen, which is important when trying to view the screen in a room with sunlight or other bright light sources. Some reviewers have reported a purple tint on the screen from this coating, but I did not notice it during my tests.

LG 65EF9500 Features

LG-65EF9500-Review
The LG 65EF9500 65-inch TV makes use of WebOS 2.0 as its Smart TV interface. What about another 65-inch super UHD Tv? For more details, open our LG 65SK8000PUA review.

While LG only included three HDMI input ports with this model, at least they’re all HDMI 2.0a compliant. The television has three USB ports, including one USB 3.0 port, an Ethernet jack and built-in WiFi.

LG includes what it calls its Magic Remote with the 65EF9500, which has a few more buttons than some older LG remotes, but still remains pretty easy to figure out in a short amount of time. Additionally, the remote intuitively allows you to control the on-screen cursor by just aiming and moving the remote.

The TV’s smart TV functionality is supported by WebOS 2.0. It’s an interface that ranked well in our best 55 inch Smart TV 2018 list. That in mind, LG gave this model a quad-core processor, which during my testing equated to a very responses UI and fluid experience from app to app or menu to menu.

With LG’s WebOS, you can set up the main screen to reflect your favorite apps, rather than just a listing of recently accessed apps, as some other Smart TV interfaces provide. Some of the best and perhaps most popular apps savable in the WebOS store include Netflix, Hulu Plus, YouTube and Amazon Instant. However, the LG 65EF9500 is missing a few popular apps, such as HBO Go, HBO Now, UltraFlix, and Showtime.

One drawback to WebOS 2.0 is that some apps you have installed are not included in the Smart TV search function, which may cause you to miss out on some programming.

Versus other large screen TVs, the audio quality of the LG 65EF9500 is well above average. Those who want top-end audio quality may find they need to add a speaker system or a sound bar to this model, but I’d suggest that you wait to purchase these extra audio components until you try out the LG 65EF9500’s built-in audio first to see if it will meet your needs.

One area where this model struggles a bit is in input lag, which is between 50 and 55 milliseconds, meaning this model wouldn’t really qualify to be a best gaming TV.

Display Quality

LG 6500EF9500 TV Review
The LG 65EF9500 65-inch TV offers the latest features, including OLED display technology and 4K resolution.

There simply isn’t any competition in terms of display quality for OLED TVs on the market right now. Its colors are vibrant and accurate, and its contrast ratio is simply amazing. If you want to see what true black should look like on a TV, the LG 65EF9500 will show you. OLED technology allows for these deep black results, as each pixel emits its own light, allowing for the highest contrast available.

LG is the only manufacturer currently making OLED TVs, although Samsung did at one time. That’s part of the reason LG can charge a premium for OLED, as you can’t find these televisions any where else, and is part of the reason why LG qualifies as one of our best TV brands on the market.

Unfortunately, some questions still exist about the longevity of OLED TVs, as it’s unclear whether such screens may suffer from burn-in over the long term. LG says its screen will work for at least 30,000 hours of use, which should give you some peace of mind.

4K and Upscaling

Another cutting-edge image quality feature with this model is its 4K/Ultra HD resolution, as LG’s 65EF9500 has made our best 4K TV for 2018 rankings.

The Ultra HD/4K resolution with this model means this TV will be able to handle the eventual migration from HD to 4K programming. It also has upscaling capabilities, meaning the TV will upscale full HD programming now to take full advantage of the 4K resolution of this model, while you wait for 4K programming to become widespread.

Viewing Angle

Even when viewing this model at a sharp angle, the display remains easy to see. Rtings measures the viewing angle for this unit at 84 degrees, which is an outstanding level of performance.

Movie quality is strong with this model and judder isn’t a problem, as viewing a 24 fps source movie with this unit’s 120Hz refresh rate works flawlessly. Motion blur is also a none issue with the 65EF9500.

3D

The 65EF9500 has passive 3D capabilities, and the OLED technology excels in its display quality with 3D programming.

LG 65EF9500 vs. 65EG9600

I loved the display quality of the flat 65EF9500 screen, but some people may prefer the look of a curved screen, which is where the 65EF9500 vs. 65EG9600 comparisons come in. The two sets are nearly identical in display quality, but the 65EG9600 is curved.

An area where the flat 65EF9500 TV has an advantage over its curved brother is in its HDR compliance. HDR is a new type of technology that produces noticeably brighter colors and better overall image quality versus non-HDR programming. While there isn’t a lot of HDR programming on the market now, it represents the future of TV programming.

Wrap Up

Ultimately, the decision of whether to purchase this model will come down to its price. The OLED display quality is outstanding and perhaps best described as unmatched.  Which might explain why this TV is on our short list of our best 4K TVs in 2018. So if you have the money, the LG 65EF9500 is a great option for a large screen, 4k television with all of the latest bells and whistles.  If your budget isn’t quite large enough, there are plenty of LED-LCD TVs in our best 65 inch TV list that will work well for you.

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Kyle Schurman Avatar