The LG CX OLED, and its close sibling, the LG GX, are both set to get support for Dolby Vision gaming at 120Hz within the next week – making them shoe-ins for best gaming TVs for Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S consoles.
A report in Forbes runs through the incoming firmware update, which should be coming imminently to South Korea (next handful of days) and then around the world before the end of October – bringing the delights of Dolby Vision gaming at 120Hz to gamers around the world.
The update comes a few months after the same support landed on the LG C1 and LG G1, the 2021 successors of the CX and GX. This made them the first TVs in the world to support Dolby Vision gaming at such a high specification.
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The update also added in a new Game Dashboard feature – essentially a settings overlay you can summon onscreen while mid-play, allowing you to tweak settings and switch between game modes without interrupting the action.
However, at the time LG also said that "additional 2021 and 2020 TV models are also being tested for Dolby Vision gaming in either 60Hz or 120Hz" (thanks, Vincent Teoh) and the company now looks to be making good on that promise.
What's all the fuss about?
Dolby Vision is a dynamic HDR format, one that includes shot-by-shot metadata to enhance the color and contrast of its HDR images, and is most commonly used in films and TV shows – though it's steadily making its way into the world of gaming. You'll find the format supported on the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S. PS5 gamers won't get the benefit of the format or this latest upgrade, at least for now.
LG is, however, still laying the groundwork for Dolby Vision gaming support, so you won't get it on most TVs these days. As of September 2021, though, "more than 100 next-gen HDR titles optimized for Series X|S are available now or coming soon in Dolby Vision", according to Microsoft – so the games are already partially there to be enjoyed in the high-spec format.
The main gain is going to be for owners of the LG CX OLED, which was a massively popular OLED TV when it launched last year – and which still might be the OLED screen to buy as Black Friday comes around in late 2021. While the LG C1 has a slightly more advanced processor, the differences are nominal, and the price difference between both models means the older CX will be a much smarter buy on for most.
This 4K HDR screen packs in vivid colors and contrasts with OLED's deep blacks, an excellent webOS smart platform, HDMI 2.1 support, as well as support for both automatic low latency mode switching and variable refresh rates (VRR) too.
The news also comes amid LG's high-quality certifications from two independent certification companies. So when it comes to top-performance gaming on the latest Xbox consoles, the LG CX – or the LG GX, a slightly pricier version designed for wall-mounting – will probably be your best bet.
