LG 55LE8500

There are many different kinds of 55-inch TVs in LCD and LED forms. Some of these displays are cheap while others cost more mainly because of the features they offer such as Internet connectivity, DivX support, wireless 1080p support, and Energy Star compliance. LG is one of the companies that present a comprehensive set of options for the consumer so he or she can pick the ideal 55-inch display that fits the budget. Picking LG’s flagship series of the LED family which is currently the LG 55LE8500 series as of August 2010 has its benefits not just because of its LED Local Dimming feature, but it’s very high contrast ratio.

Latest Update: The LG 55LE8500 is now on sale at Amazon.com

LG 55LE8500

Technical Features

The LG 55LE8500 is large and mighty without the bulk because the TV itself is very thin and the bezel is hardly recognizable once the LED Backlighting technologies come to effect. Other LED models may share these wonders as well but only the LE8500 series has the 9,000,000:1 contrast ratio that shatters the boundaries of every LG display existing. Viewers will enjoy the best image quality regardless of the lighting of the scene.

Technologies

The Full LED Slim technology is an exclusive technology in the LG 55LE8500 and smaller version which provides a local dimming feature which allows even deeper black levels to be witnessed. It uses special Smart Energy Saving features that are common in all LG models and the Intelligent Sensor helps by having the display utilize only enough lighting based on the outside lighting conditions to save more energy. The end result is 30% energy savings compared to older models and a nice Energy Star 4.0 certification to convince to skeptical buyers that this is an eco-friendly TV.

Moving visuals look just as impressive with a low 1ms response time and TruMotion 120Hz technology that eliminates most if not all of the motion blur witnessed in high-speed action movie scenes and various fast-paced video game shooters. Depending on the type of content being viewed, viewers can use the AV Mode to activate the “Cinema”, “Sports”, or “Games” modes to load up a series of preset video and audio settings that best optimize the targeted content. Certain movies animate very cinema-like because of the 55LE8500′s support of 24P Real Cinema.

To complement the impressive video features, LG perks up the audio side of the 55LE8500 by adding Dolby Digital support to give certain titles the full 5.1-channel surround sound experience. There are also some technologies that benefit all types of content like the Infinite Sound technology which improves the quality of the bass. The Clear Voice II technology is useful for most programs that have talking voices in the foreground. All this technology does is improving the clarity of these voices so they can be heard more easily even in rough background noise situations.

Extra Features

The Netcast Entertainment feature is on top of the extra feature set because it opens up plenty of ways to enjoy content thanks to the vastness of the web. YouTube alone is a massive site with millions of videos and a growing library of 1080p content and beyond and the LG 55LE8500 has access to all these videos just by plugging in the Ethernet cable. Picasa is another useful service for browsing uploaded images while Yahoo! TV Widgets serves as a customizable and centralized hub that displays all kinds of useful data coming from news, stocks, and sports website. Finally, Netflix or Vudu subscribers will enjoy the added plus for streaming any of the titles in their library to the display for instant enjoyment.

Non-subscribers of these services that have many movies, images, and songs in their computers or portable devices can plug in these devices to any of the 2 USB ports. The 55LE8500 will recognize any JPEG, MP3, and DivX HD files on the storage and play them back instantly.

Bottom Line

3D TVs are slowly making their way to the mainstream market so it is fair to predict that the prices of these flagship LED displays like the LG 55LE8500 will only get cheaper. The LG 55LE8500 was originally priced at around $2,700 and there are a few online deals that sell it for less than $2,000. Although 3D TVs are impressive, the 55LE8500 will not be obsolete any time soon and the device performs wonderfully as a whole.

Average User Rating:

Actual User Reviews:
• “This television has options and features that are simply not available anywhere else. It can access information/files from the internet without computers, and it shows standard resolution better than most HD televisions. The design is only flawed by the fact that it doesn’t have an audio out jack other than optical. Best high end purchase I’ve ever made. Without Pioneer making top-end monitors, the torch is passed to LG. Throw in the fact that LG is about one third the price of Pioneer, and this TV is a win-win for consumers.” – M.Simons (USA)

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• “I had my 55LE8500 delivered last Wednesday and after spending some time with it I know I made the right choice for a new television. The picture is really stunning when displaying HD programming. Bluray titles even more so. I am also extremely happy with the quality of standard def programming, i.e. non-HD cable channels and avi files. The black level performance is amazing. This TV has full array LED backlighting with local dimming and does not suffer from clouding or flashlighting problems that are present in other products. The glass front is both an image improver lending a crystal clear look to the picture, but it is also very reflective so you will need to be able to control light sources in your viewing room. For me this was not difficult, however, if you have a room with many large windows and also lamps it could be a challenge. You may also enjoy the internet features available after connecting the television to your network. You can update the firmware when available, there are movie choices from Vudu and Netflix and many more options. This product is an expensive item, but the build quality shows and the display technology is among the best out there this year. My first choice had been a Panasonic 54VT25 plasma; its screen is not so reflective, but I am worried about image retention and burning so I went with the LCD. If you want one of the best HD displays and can control the light sources in your viewing room, you won’t regret owning the LG LE8500.” – W.Hathaway (FL,USA)

• “Did a lot of research (Consumer Reports, Internet reviews, other magazines, etc.) before purchasing this TV. I was replacing a 50 inch DLP hi-def TV that had to have projection bulbs replaced yearly. At $200 a pop, that was ticking me off. Anyway, this TV is awesome. Picture is the best I have seen. Viewing AVATAR with a blu-ray player is absolutely stunning – detail, clarity and colors are amazing and will blow you away. I have the TV connected to the Internet via Wi-fi (had to purchase the LG AN-WF100 Wi-Fi USB Adaptor). My Wi-fi and computer setup are Apple based, but I had no problem whatsoever connecting the TV to the internet in order to use Yahoo Widgets, Netflix, U-Tube, etc. Not surprising, the sound leaves much to be desired, but when you think there are two speakers contained in a cabinet only 1-inch thick, it could be worse. Most people will connect this set to their hi-fi surround sound system anyway, so this is no big deal. Only problem I had was connecting the base (I did not wall mount the TV) to the main unit. The TV weighs about 90 pounds and you have to lay the main unit face down on a soft surface and elevate the bottom (I used big pillows) of the TV about 15 inches in order to screw the base to it. Once attached, the base is quite sturdy and it swivels, so I have no fear it will topple over easily, but be sure to keep the young kids away. Yes, like plasma televisions, this LCD/LED TV has a glass front, so in a very bright room, there are reflections, but because the picture can be set to compensate for this, I have not found this to be a drawback. The led backlighting instead of edge-lighting on other brands makes a real difference on contrast levels. I recommend this TV.” – R.Rossi (PA,USA)

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