Forget OLED? LG is going all in on QNED TV tech for 2025, and it's dropping quantum dots
OLED, make room for QNED
LG is a brand closely associated with the best OLED TVs. Its C- and G-series models have traditionally been top picks for picture-quality-conscious viewers. At the same time, its B-series has provided a budget-friendly OLED option among the best TVs for gaming.
For 2025, LG will update all three of its main OLED lineups as expected, but from what we learned at CES 2025, there’s a new push at the company to port some of the innovations associated with its OLED TVs over to its QNED LCD TV family.
Up until now, LG’s QNED TVs have lagged behind its OLED models when it comes to picture performance and features. But in 2025, LG will be introducing new QNED evo models with the same Zero Connect tech found in its flagship LG M5 OLED TV, along with more powerful AI and gaming features. QNED evo TVs will all feature either the company’s a9 AI or a8 AI processors, the same ones used in the LG C4 and LG B4 OLED TVs, respectively.
While LG’s move to upgrade its QNED TVs isn’t surprising, what is surprising is that the 2025 TVs will use a new proprietary Dynamic QNED Color Solution that replaces the quantum dots used in previous TVs. LG provided few details about this new tech at CES other than it uses “fluorescent elements…to convert blue light to white, absorbing and purifying unnecessary waves of light. Also: “The outcome is amazingly realistic and vivid colors along with high brightness.”
Quantum dots have long been a performance differentiator for mid-range and high-end LCD TVs, and they’re also used in flagship QD-OLED models like the Samsung S95D, so LG’s proprietary alternative has plenty to live up to out of the gate.
Here are the details on the new LG QNED evo TVs:
QNED92
This flagship 4K series features Dynamic QNED Color Pro, a step-up version that’s capable of 95% DCI-P3 color space coverage. It also uses LG’s Alpha a8 AI processor and is the only new-for-2025 model with a mini-LED backlight. QNED92 TVs will be available in 65- to 85-inch screen sizes.
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QNED9M
This series uses a regular LED backlight and a Dynamic QNED Color solution that covers 93% of the DCI-P3 color space. It has the same a9 AI processor as the LG C4 OLED and features LG’s Zero Connect box for wireless transmission of 4K video with up to 144Hz VRR for gaming. LG’s wireless QNED TV has AMD FreeSync Premium certification and will be available in 75-, and 86-inch screen sizes.
QNED85
The QNED85 series also uses a regular LED backlight and a Dynamic QNED Color solution, along with LG’s a8 AI processor. This series will feature the first LG QNED TV series with a 100-inch screen size, and it also features an 86-inch model that supports 4K HFR (High Frame Rate) 4:4:4 content for PC gaming. QNED85 TVs will also be sold in 50-75-inch screen sizes.
Along with the QNED evo series TVs, LG will carry over its 8K QNED99 series from 2024. All new models will feature the updated webOS 25 smart TV interface, which provides new and enhanced features such as Voice ID and an AI chatbot.
A new era for QNED?
LG’s competitors such as Samsung are longtime backers of LCD TV technology, and it offers everything from basic edge-lit models to quantum dot-enhanced versions in their QLED series TVs and mini-LED backlights in their Neo QLED series TVs.
Other TV makers such as Sony have recently stepped up their LCD TV game with the Sony Bravia 9, a mini-LED model that uses an innovative backlight design that gives it OLED-like black-level performance, while Hisense and TCL have been producing increasingly better quality mini-LED TVs that push the boundaries of screen brightness. While all these brands have succeeded in grabbing attention, LG’s QNED lineup has struggled to break through when it comes to LCD TV market share, though the company says QNED sales are improving.
Looking at LG’s QNED evo lineup for 2025, the addition of the 100-inch screen size in the QNED85 series is a no-brainer. Most TV makers report that market share for their 85-inch and larger screen sizes has been booming, and 98-inch-plus models have become standard in TV makers’ lineups. With a regular LED, as opposed to mini-LED, backlight, the 100-inch QNED85 should arrive at a competitive price point, and its advanced gaming features could give it a leg up on competing models.
Wireless connectivity was previously limited to LG’s super-expensive flagship OLED TV, so the addition of that feature to its 2025 QNED lineup, and not even the flagship series, is encouraging. Samsung is also bringing wireless connections to its flagship QN990F series 8K TVs, The Frame Pro series TVs, and The Premiere 8K projector in 2025, so wireless TVs are clearly a trend.
The main question surrounding LG’s new LCD TVs is if Dynamic QNED Color – the standard and Pro versions – will provide a sufficient alternative to quantum dots, which have long been a reliable solution for enhanced brightness and color depth in LCD TVs. LG is clearly bullish on its QNED TV lineup for 2025, so it may have an ace up its sleeve with Dynamic QNED Color. We’ll have more to say on that topic when LG’s new QNED TVs become available, most likely this spring.
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Al Griffin has been writing about and reviewing A/V tech since the days LaserDiscs roamed the earth, and was previously the editor of Sound & Vision magazine.
When not reviewing the latest and greatest gear or watching movies at home, he can usually be found out and about on a bike.
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